BRANDON PAULSON  2002-03 Team USA Ranking: No. 1 at 55 kg/121 lbs.  Years on Team USA: 8 (1991-92, 95-97, 99-2004)  Residence: Golden Valley, Minn.  Club: Minnesota Storm  College: Univ. of Minnesota  High School: Anoka, Minn. (Anoka)  Born: Nov. 22, 1973 in Anoka, Minn.  Height: 5-5     1. You rolled through the U.S. Nationals this year. Would you say the tournament is getting easier for you or have you gotten better at tournament preparation over the past few years?  Paulson: It is a combination of a few things. Shawn Sheldon, Steve Mays, and myself pushed each other to a higher level because of the heated competition. I am a better wrestler now because of them. I am now more relaxed and focused at the important tournaments. I know I train the right way and am confident in my abilities.    2. Last year at this time, you stated that you weren't sure about sitting out the Challenge Tournament at the Trials because the only other time you had done that (2000), you lost. Have your feelings changed on that since you won the Trials last year?  Paulson: I'm not too worried about sitting out the challenge tournament anymore. I know what I need to do the two days of the challenge tournament to get ready. Although, I don't think it is the right way to do things. The challenge tournament should be one day and the finals on the next day.    3. Who will you bring with you as training partners for the Trials?  Paulson: Although Leroy Vega has went to the "Dark Side" (freestyle), he still helps me train. He grew up in Indiana and is going to wrestle with me the days of the challenge tournament. He has helped me immensely the past couple years, and he is a big reason why I have been wrestling so well the last two years.    4. There was a lot of controversy at the end of your match with the Russian at last year's World Championships. How often do you think about that match?  Paulson: That match was very frustrating because I thought I wrestled a great match, but I somehow still lost. That doesn't make sense in my mind. To be honest, I pretended each of my opponents at Nationals was this Russian. Maybe this is why I had a few heated matches.    5. Having tasted an Olympic and World silver medal in your career, does it make it that much harder to accept defeat?  Paulson: I hate to lose. I have such a belief in my abilities that it is a shock to me when I lose. It makes it harder to handle sometimes. But, now I have more important things in my life so I don't "worry" about losing anymore. When I start to dwell on how bad losing is, I think of how bad it must have been for God to give up his only son. Losing isn't as bad after that.    6. Did you at any point consider retiring following last year's World  Championships?  Paulson: If you ask my teammates and wife they will tell you I retire after every tournament I wrestle. This year, the day before weigh-ins at Nationals I had a bad weight cut and decided that I was going to win Nationals and then be done. But, I felt better the next day and am ready for the Trials. The World Championships last year were really hard to handle for me because I felt as if I did every thing right and I was the best in the World, but I still didn't win the World Championships. Everything has to go right to be a World Champion. But I still want it! I now take it tournament by tournament.    7. There have been points since 2000 where you have spoken of retirement from the sport. At what point did you know that there was no turning back?  Paulson: No turning back on what. I make a commitment for the next tournament and that is it. If I start looking too far ahead it hurts my mental state. So I will wrestle the Trials and go from there.    8. How difficult is it for you to juggle a full-time job, a family and a wrestling career?  Paulson: These past couple years have been a big change for me with a full-time job, family, and training. I have to train smarter because my time is limited. I have to be very flexible because I can't train at the same time every day because it depends on my work schedule or what my kids are doing. My boss is a little flexible, it's my Dad.  I think he would rather see me wrestle than work so he is extremely flexible, but does expect me to earn my money. I owe him a lot because with out him I wouldn't be able to juggle everything and I wouldn't be wrestling. God and my family come first. My wife is extremely supportive. "Whatever makes me happy" but I know it is very taxing on her which makes it taxing on me.    9. There have been a few times this year where your wrestling has been up-and-down. You struggled at the Concord Cup, but wrestled a lot better just one week later at the Dave Schultz. What do you think is the main cause of that?  Paulson: World Team Trials and World Championships is what I train for. Everything else is just training. I did get down on myself a little bit because I didn't wrestle my best throughout the month of February. But I got back and one of my coaches, Joe Russell, said "When was the last time you had a good February?" That kind of reminded me of why I went to these tournaments, to get some good competition. I train for the Trials and World Championships because that is what is important.    10. Are you for sure done following 2004, no matter what happens?  Paulson: Like I said earlier, I am done after every tournament. But seriously, I am done after this years Worlds. Of course, if I still love to train and compete, I heard there is a pretty big tournament next year in Athens that I wouldn't mind winning. Check for updates on my web site, www.brandonpaulson.com.