Everybody comes from somewhere. I happen to come from New York.    This year, I chose to spend the holidays with my mom and siblings in New York, something I have not done for a few years. On the way, I made a two-day side trip to a pretty neat wrestling event - the New York Athletic Club Christmas International.    This was my first visit to this annual event, which features all three international styles. The field was perhaps the best in tournament history. But we will come back to the wrestling action later.    If you have been around international wrestling very long, you become aware of the New York Athletic Club (NYAC or New York AC, for short). This is actually hallowed ground for wrestlers. The NYAC has been sponsoring world-class wrestlers longer than any other club in the nation. If you dig through the record books, you find great wrestlers from the NYAC throughout American wrestling history. In addition, the club has also supported wrestlers from other nations who have made New York its home.    The winningest wrestler in American history is a NYAC athlete - 13-time World and Olympic medalist Bruce Baumgartner. He grew up across the river in New Jersey, and had a loyalty to the "AC" his entire competitive career. For somebody who grows up in the tri-state metropolitan area, there is something special about competing for the NYAC. One of this year's champions, Long Island native Dean Morrison, explained that he had competed with the club since his high school days. Even though the NYAC had champion wrestlers from across the nation in its stable, it takes special care of the New York-area athletes. World silver medalist Kerry McCoy, another star from Long Island, has had a long affiliation with the NYAC.    Over the years, I have been at the NYAC for many wrestling-related activities. It tends to be the home base for Team USA during competitions held in New York. That included the 1998 Goodwill Games and the 2003 World Freestyle Championships. The club becomes the hotel for the team, and the wrestling room at the club becomes the central training base for the athletes and coaches. In the mad chaos of New York City, the NYAC is a place that the athletes can concentrate on their wrestling, and have their needs met. I have brought a variety of media members to the club to cover a practice, or interview an athlete.     The New York AC is more than a wrestling club - it sponsors world-class athletes in many sports. I know a bunch of champion judo players who also compete for the NYAC, including former wrestlers Jason Morris and Jimmy Pedro. The club takes great pride in the achievements of its athletes, and the wrestlers are among the best of the NYAC competitors on an international level in any sport.    The building is a classic, on some of the best real estate in the entire world. It sits on Central Park South, one of the more exclusive addresses in the world. Outside, the famous horse and buggy drivers take tourists on romantic rides near Central Park. Cabs speed by, carrying people to all of the active attractions of the vibrant city. It is an older building, and has some of the charms and challenges that come from a long tradition. People who live in more "modern" places don't always understand what is so special about these historic sites that go back before we were born.    The club has a very recognizable logo, the winged foot. You see that logo, and you think of excellence. In addition, the club publishes a magazine for its members, the Winged Foot (quite appropriate). A most recent copy of the publication was displayed all over the wrestling venue this weekend, with NYAC member Kristie Marano winning the World Championships on the magazine cover.     USA Wrestling has chosen to do some of its most important functions at this club, which has been a willing partner to support the sport. The retirement dinner for Bruce Baumgartner, held during the Goodwill Games, was a highlight for the sport, an amazing night for people who love wrestling and witnessed Baumgartner's amazing career. And during the World Championships, it was the site of the Evening with Legends, where American heroes and former wrestlers J. Dennis Hastert, Donald Rumsfeld, Stephen Friedman, John Irving and Norman Bourlag were honored. That was a magical night for those in attendance, as wrestling celebrated its most successful "alumni" who had made a major impact on society. The NYAC setting was perfect for this collection of celebrities, the true "movers and shakers" that our sport has developed.    You can't get into the lobby of the NYAC without following its dress code - jacket and tie for men and business outfit for women. Of course, to participate in sports, you can enter the club through the back door if you fail the dress code, which everyone has done at least a few times.    I have a personal affinity for the AC, having grown up within wrestling in the area. I never wrestled for the club, but whenever I was at a tournament where some of the athletes were wearing those recognizable Winged Foot logo t-shirts, you knew it was a tough event. Sonny Greenhalgh, the wrestling chairman for the NYAC, was one of my coaches on the freestyle and Greco-Roman circuit, along with leaders like Al Bevilacqua, Chic Murano and others. Some of the athletes, like Dave Foxen, were people I looked up to when I competed, and later got to know better when I worked within wrestling. Then there is the legendary Set Agonian, a friend who is so active with wrestling in the city.     So, it was quite fun for me to attend this year's NYAC Christmas International. I was scheduled to see only the second day, but United Airlines called me and asked if I would leave the night before because of an overbooked flight. I was able to watch and cover the entire event, and spend the Saturday night in a room at the club.     The wrestling is held in the gym on the sixth floor, named after Raymond Lumpp, the long-time athletic director of the NYAC. It snuggly fits three mats, with a few rows of chairs for athletes and spectators around the area. At the ends of the gym were the weight training equipment and cardiovascular equipment used by the members, who would come in to work out when the wrestling went on. You could call the set-up "cozy" and be very accurate. What was good is that everybody had a matside seat, and there was an increased intensity from the closeness of the action. It is also quite classy to see so many of the fans wearing suits and ties and business attire - adding an elegance to the whole show.    The field was large and talented this year. You know things will be interesting when you have two World champions in the same weight class - as both Rulon Gardner and Dremiel Byers entered at Greco-Roman heavyweight. Many of the nation's best women wrestlers were there, including local hero Kristie Marano, the reigning World champion. The top name in the freestyle field was Joe Williams, who was using this event as a tuneup for his Olympic qualifying tournaments in February. This event was a chance for those serious about the upcoming Olympic Trials to get in a few tough bouts and to see where they stand in their preparation for the year. USA Wrestling's National Teams program offered prize money in the men's division, an added bonus for the athletes.    There were some talented foreign athletes as well, even though the Canadian wrestlers who normally attend skipped it this year because their Olympic Trials were only a few days prior to the event. Among the most impressive was two-time World silver medalist Karem Gaber of Egypt, a throwing machine in Greco-Roman, and powerful Diletta Giampiccolo of Italy in the women's draw. Gaber tossed his way to the title, firing up the crowd with every match, and Giampiccolo beat the top two American wrestlers at her division with some very impressive wrestling. There was also a strong team of Greco wrestlers from Belarus in the competition.    As you might expect, the tournament went down to the last match, the Gardner vs. Byers war. It went the full nine minutes, tied at 2-2. Gardner won the bout based upon fewer passivity calls, showing m