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The Program

Train Hard Expect to Win

Dear Wrestlers, Parents, Teachers, Administrators and Supportive Fans:

Wrestling is an Olympic sport with a rich tradition that goes back to ancient times. So important was wrestling in Ancient Greece that it broke a tie score in the Pentathlon (an event like the modern day Decathlon) to determine the game’s overall outstanding athlete. Wrestling is the national sport of many countries today and found as an organized sport in almost every region of the world. There are more than 15,000 kids involved in high school and youth wrestling in Kansas alone! The reason for the popularity of the sport may be that it is uniquely democratic in that it offers fair opportunity for every sized person to compete against an equally sized opponent. There are 14 weight classes at the high school level from 103 pounds up to 275 pounds. Wrestling is also popular because it leaves the “playing time” up to individuals rather than subjective coaching decisions. This occurs through a process of wrestle-offs, also known as challenge matches.

There is no sport that requires so much of its athletes. Regulation matches in high school are six minutes of one-on-one combat. A match is nonstop action. There are no timeouts or ends to plays. Wrestling is furious, tactical and strategic. It takes several years to become proficient on the Varsity level. Wrestling is often a brutal, muscle-burning, oxygen-depleting fight in which the better conditioned and more skilled athlete dominates. Running, lifting weights, mat drills and live battles with teammates can be expected in typical daily two to three hour practices. Yes, it can be pretty intense. There are no shortcuts to becoming proficient in this demanding sport. It is the coaches’ objective to prepare student-athletes adequately for competition. Naturally, this means living healthy, substance-free lives! We absolutely prohibit weight loss of more than seven percent of the wrestler’s body weight from the first practice (except in special cases of obesity and only with parent and doctor’s written permission).

Ultimately, the SME program measures success by how much our student-athletes develop physically, mentally and socially. We are very concerned about progress in all three of these areas. The coaching staff recognizes that there are varying degrees of interests and abilities among kids, so we establish goals and objectives on individual basis. Emphasis is put on enjoyment of the sport, sportsmanship, time-management, academic achievements, discipline, empathy and helpfulness towards others. It’s the goal of the SME wrestling program to meet the reasonable expectations of parents, teachers and school administrators. The coaching staff encourages parents to talk about their expectations and evaluate our progress. The coaching staff vows to be open-minded, sensitive to individual needs and to serve all involved in the SME wrestling community.

Sincerely,

John Sonderegger
Head Coach