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Strong field in all three styles expected at third annual Dave Schultz Memorial International Wrestling Tournament at U.S. Olympic Complex in Colorado Springs, Colo., May 11-12
4/25/01
Gary Abbott/USA Wrestling
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Talented international wrestling stars from across the world are expected to compete at the third annual Dave Schultz Memorial International Tournament, May 11-12, in Colorado Springs, Colo.
The wrestling tournament will feature top athletes in men’s freestyle, men’s Greco-Roman and women’s freestyle wrestling on the Senior level. The competition will be hosted in Sports Center 1 at the U.S. Olympic Complex.
The Colorado Springs Sports Corporation will support the competition by assisting in the promotion and coordination of the event. Adelphia will be among the local sponsors, and plans to televise the finals to the Colorado Springs community.
The foreign teams that have confirmed participation in the third annual Dave Schultz Memorial International Tournament are Russia, Turkey, Mexico, Poland, Bulgaria, Venezuela, Sweden, France, Canada, Albania and Great Britain.
The freestyle teams from Russia and Turkey that are competing in the 2001 Freestyle World Cup in Baltimore, Md., May 5-6 will travel to Colorado Springs to participate in the Dave Schultz Memorial International. A number of Olympic-caliber stars from these teams will enter the competition.
USA Wrestling and the Dave Schultz Wrestling Foundation have worked together to create the Dave Schultz Memorial International. The event honors the memory and achievements of Olympic Champion Dave Schultz, who was tragically killed in 1996.
“The whole idea of having an international tournament in Dave’s honor is great,” said Nancy Schultz. “He made a lot of friends on his international trips, and it is great to have this tournament in that spirit. Knowing the tournament has an established reputation internationally is very nice to see.”
Tickets are available at the door. They are $4 for Sessions I and II and $6 for the gold-medal finals. There is an all-session ticket available for $12. High school students can attend all of Saturday’s action for just $5. All students who are below high-school age receive a $2 per day ticket special. Coaches that bring five or more wrestlers will receive free admission.
Session I competition is Friday, May 11 at 10:30 a.m. and 4:00 p.m. Session II is Saturday, May 12 with start times of 8:30 a.m. and 2:00 p.m. Session III is the gold-medal finals on Saturday night, starting at 6:00 p.m. (The schedule is subject to change based upon entries).
Top U.S. athletes from wrestling clubs across the nation are expected to participate in the tournament as well. The quality of the competition should be spectacular. The event has added significance as a qualifying event for U.S. wrestlers for the 2001 World Team Team Trials in freestyle, and possibly in Greco-Roman and women’s wrestling, based upon foreign entry levels.
Colorado Springs is one of the world’s hotbeds for wrestling. The U.S. Olympic Committee and USA Wrestling have their national headquarters in the city. In addition, the U.S. Olympic Training Center resident programs in both freestyle and Greco-Roman wrestling are based there. The U.S. Army and U.S. Air Force conduct their World Class Athlete Programs for wrestling in the Colorado Springs area. A number of talented women wrestlers also train in Colorado Springs.
Dave Schultz won an Olympic gold medal in freestyle wrestling at 163 pounds in the 1984 Olympic Games in Los Angeles, Calif. He was a World Champion in 1983 and won an outstanding seven World-level medals during his career. Among his other major event titles were the Pan American Games, the World Cup and the Goodwill Games. Schultz was recognized as an international ambassador of goodwill within the wrestling community.
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Dinos Wrestling Newsletter
Contents: Senior Nationals Preview
Junior Trials Preview
Junior Dinos Report
Canada Games Qualifiers
Senior Nationals Time!
Dinos Wrestling Club prepares for final Domestic challenge of the Year.
The Senior National Championships will take place at Simon Fraser University next weekend. Also taking place at the event is the Junior World Team Trials. Obviously the most important event of the season the Gold Medalists at the competition will earn the right to represent Canada at the World Championships.
In a post Olympic year there is usually a number of key national team members who chose to retire. However, with the World Championships being held in Madison Square Garden (New York) this September, and the Commonwealth Games around the corner in 2002 (Manchester) the majority of our 2000 Senior Team will compete at this years nationals. The Dinos have put a great amount of effort into their preparations and are expecting a strong showing at the tough event.
Seniors Preview: Women
46Kg (9 Pre-registered Athletes)
Carol Huyhn (Burnaby) won a bronze medal at last years World Championships. She must be seen as the favorite. Typically a small number of competitors the quality of this class is still pretty good. Julie Harris (Dinos) and Amy Tanaka (Guelph) have both defeated Huyhn this year in domestic competition. Also to watch is Tanya Mair a three time senior champion.
51Kg (11 Pre-registered Athletes)
Lindsey Belisle (Burnaby) is the defending national champion, however Erica Sharp (Dinos) has beaten her twice this season including a 10-0 technical fall. If Sharp competes at this weight she should be an overwhelming favorite at the nationals and possible favorite for the World Championships. Teresa Piotrowki (Guelph) is the only athlete who has actually defeated Sharp at this weight ( it happened three years ago).
56Kg (15 Pre-registered Athletes)
One of the Toughest weight classes in Canada there are a number of tough competitors here.
Jen Ryz (Burnaby) is the favorite after an excellent performance at last years seniors and a Bronze medal at last years World Championships. Erica Sharp (Dinos) beat Ryz 3 times last season, and Tonya Verbeek (Brock) has been impressive all season here. There are some other tough competitors, of them two more Dinos stand out Melissa Kindratsky ( 5th 98' Junior Worlds), and Brittanee Laverdure (Current Junior Champion) both will compete very tough here.
62Kg (10 Pre-registered Athletes)
Trish Leibel (Lakehead) moved from Calgary to Thunderbay this season for school. As a three time Senior champion she will be the favorite in another tight race. There is a group of athletes to watch here Breanne Graham (Dinos), Tara Hedican (Guelph), Megan Dolan (Brock), Tamara Medwitsky (Montreal). Graham is having a great season thus far with two National Crowns (CIAU and Junior) already in the bag. This is a tough weight to call.
68Kg (12 Pre-registered Athletes)
Shannon Samler (Burnaby) has had an excellent season, and is the returning champion. But, this is where Christine Nordhagen (Dinos) has chosen to wrestle this year. After moving up a weight class the last two seasons (and winning the World Championships last year). she has chosen to return to her original weight class. Other athletes to watch include Lara Jones (Brock) and Viola Yanik (Saskatoon).
75Kg (6 Pre-registered Athletes)
With Nordhagen out of the mix Ohenawa Okuffo should be the strong favorite to make a return trip to the World Championships. Some young talent exists at this weight including the Dinos Elise Comeau and Pam Wilson (MacMaster).
Junior Trials Preview:
The Dinos have the following athletes at Junior Womens Trials;
50Kg Kate Walker Trials Ranking - #2
54Kg Brittanee Laverdure Trials Ranking - #1
58Kg Breanne Graham Trials Ranking - #1
75Kg Elise Comeau Trials Ranking - #2
Laverdure, Graham, and Comeau should have a good possibility of winning the trials. It would be an upset if Walker was to beat Rushton the defending Junior national champion.
All of the athletes above have worked hard through the season and will compete with intensity.
Junior Dinos Report:
The Cadet/Juvenile Nationals were held April 5-7th in Saskatoon.
15 Junior Dinos made the trip to Saskatchewan with high hopes. At the end of the first days competition half of the team remained undeafeated an situated in National Semi-Final Matches!
Alas, the second day of competing was not nearly as kind to the JDs as the first had been. A number of Narrow defeats at the hands of quality opponents left the majority of the group just short of where they had wanted to end. Nevertheless, our wrestlers competed extremely hard and represented our club with pride and passion. At the end of the day our results were exceptional:
Alex Wood (National Champion), Joseph Bentley (Silver Medalist), Rob Young (Bronze Medalist) And six wrestlers just missing the podium in 4th place! Jenelle McDougall, Laura McDougall, Stephanie Buchan, Christa Waters, Huy Nguyen, Brent Calis
Congratulations to the entire team for an extremely exciting and enjoyable season!
Canada Games Qualifiers!
The Canada Games will take place this summer in London, Ontario. Last weekend the Canada Games Team was decided at a trials in Leduc. Four Junior Dinos Wrestlers will represent Team Alberta this summer in the prestigious competition.
Coaches Mike Spinney
Mike Dunn (King of the Mat coach & Dino Alumni)