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Young female wrestler tackles difficult sport with ease

By Tarah Holland
Staff Writer 3/17/06

Nelson Kepley/News & RecordHannah Woodburn, 7 WRESTLING TOURNAMENT What: Third annual 2006 Hayes-Taylor YMCA/UNCG Open Wrestling Tournament When: April 1; weigh-in is 7-9 a.m., wrestling starts at 10 a.m. Where: Hayes-Taylor Memorial YMCA, 1101 East Market St., Greensboro Fees: $15 before noon on March 31, $20 walk-in Divisions: Pee Wee (fifth grade or below), Junior (grades 6-8) Senior (grades 9-12) and Open (ages 18 and up) Registration and more information: Call 272-2131, Ext. 25, or visit www.ymcagreensboro.org/hayes/ Hannah Woodburn Age: 7 School: Second grade, Jesse Wharton Elementary Sport: Wrestling Her move: Fireman's carry On the mat: She holds seven medals from local and state competitions Off the mat: She's a Battle Forest Barracuda swimmer To other girls who want to wrestle: "It's fun and it's good for girls. I can show you some moves." ABOUT THE CLUB The YMCA/UNCG Wrestling Club began in 2003 to educate youth about amateur wrestling and to motivate and build character. It's a year-round program that's held in two-month sessions. There are five coaches: Jonathan Woodburn, who wrestled at UNCG; Jamal Fox, a 1996 national division III wrestling champion; Peter Bearse, who wrestled at North Carolina; and former high school wrestlers Amy Boshek and and Charlie Kroksh. Practices are Mondays and Thursdays at UNCG from 6-7 p.m. and 7-8:30 p.m. Each two-month session or 16 practices is $35 for YMCA members and $55 for non-members.

"Our focus is to have every child learn about the things that wrestling has to offer. Not just little boys."
Jonathan Woodburn,
YMCA-UNCG Wrestling Club director at Hayes-Taylor YMCAGREENSBORO -- To get an idea of Hannah Woodburn's strength, think outside the box and inside the circle.

It's there that the 7-year-old competitor meets her opponents eye-to-eye and pound for pound, but even so, to many spectators Hannah still appears unmatched.

Moments -- and a quick double-leg takedown -- later, any anxiety over the young athlete's place in the male-dominated sport of wrestling are tripped up and pinned to the mat just as swift as any of her male challengers.

"When I'm in the wrestling room I have to act like a boy, so they won't make fun of me," Hannah said. "Then I try to pin them."

Hannah is one of two girls in the YMCA-UNCG Wrestling Club at Hayes-Taylor YMCA. In its third year, the year-round program has about 25 wrestlers ranging in age from 5 to 18.

The group is led by Hannah's father and former UNCG wrestler Jonathan Woodburn.

"Our focus is to have every child learn about the things that wrestling has to offer. Not just little boys," said Woodburn, who's also the aquatics and fitness director at Hayes-Taylor.

Most of the club's wrestlers are from the Triad, though some travel from as far away as Hickory. The group practices in the lower level of UNCG's Health and Human

Performance Building, where they learn various stances and fundamentals of the sport. Participation in local competitions is voluntary.

Girls such as Hannah are encouraged to step up to the mat to showcase their abilities.

"They think, 'Oh, she's going to be easy to beat,'" Hannah said of her male opponents. "I just do my best when I'm out there."

Learning the rules has been exciting for the Jesse Wharton second-grader, who's in her third competitive season. Her interest in the sport grew from attending her father's practices.

The two often add to their workout at home, where they practice moves on the kitchen floor.

"It gives her confidence and now she's not afraid to try things," Jonathan Woodburn said.

And make no mistake about it -- pastel blue socks and evenly trimmed bangs are about as "girlie" as it gets on the mat.

With the stray elbow licks, first-match jitters and sometimes taller opponents with longer arms, there's little time for anything else.

"It's a hard sport. I feel good when I win," Hannah said. "Sometimes I don't win, but it doesn't matter because I just look forward to the next one."

Gender aside, it's never easy to see your child take a blow, said Hannah's mother, Martha Woodburn. "I get nervous," she said. "Sometimes it looks painful, but she really enjoys it."

But not every parent is open-minded about female wrestlers.

"There have been parents to pull their sons out because they didn't want them to compete against her," Martha Woodburn said. "Competing is always her choice."

Some parents don't realize that young girls actually have an advantage when it comes to wrestling, Jonathan Woodburn said. "They develop mentally and are stronger at an earlier age," he said. "Our girls learn the same skills as any other athlete. The Y is all about building character."

Missy Hardy's 8-year-old daughter Kayla gave up ballet for wrestling several years ago to follow in the footsteps of her older brother. Since then, Kayla and Hannah have become best friends.

"They're tenacious, tough girls," Missy Hardy said. "Tough girls that put on make-up in between matches."