Wrestling, a sport of character

[TomM]

Wrestling, a sport of character
http://www.theeasleyprogress.com/view/full_story/22945380/article-Wrestling--a-sport-of-character

[bigG]

Ya git up on your own. I like that.

[woody53]

Ya git up on your own. I like that.

More of our youth need to learn this. As a wrestler you do every time you step on a mat.
How many of us as Dad's, have seen our child get beat in a match, that we thought they would win? We see them get up and they look over at you. You can see that the tears might flow, and you feel it too. You suck it up. Lift your chin and point under it. Your child does the same and shakes the hand of the opponent that just beat them. That is what the sport teaches these kids more than anything.

[imnofish]

Spending much of my childhood as "the little guy," I was attracted to the opportunity it presented for competing against people my size.  Once I got involved though, I found that it offered so much more.  Personal knowledge of the tenacity, humility, and ingenuity that wrestling imparts to its participants motivated me to introduce it to my son.  I hope to see his sons on the mat some day. 

[bigG]

Nice posts. I've been out of paid coaching for quite some time now. But I'm always thrilled to see one of mine when we cross paths. It was an absolute thrill to share the kinds of moments Woody talks about and the subsequent wins the kid gains because of those tear jerkers. Makes a stronger person out of coach and wrestler.

[npope]

All good insight. In "connecting of the dots" that I am seeing in the comments it becomes very apparent that the posters value what participation in the process has to offer as opposed to merely winning. Flying under the radar here is that it is the process, not the outcome, that possesses the value we seek to "teach" the kids. If true, then basic behavior science tells us that we need to increase the reward to those for participating in the process relative to the reward we heap upon the champions.

While it's fine to have things like the March of Champions, winners kissing cheerleaders, champions getting their picture in the paper, etc., it really reinforces the notion that winning is what has value (as opposed to the process). If the true value of wrestling is derived from all those things posters have described above then it is imperative to properly reward the kids who participated in the process of preparation for competition, even those that lose and are relegated to the bleachers by the time the finals arrive. Whether you like it or not, their  efforts are dismissed/diminished when all of the glory is heaped upon the victor; the lack of recognition of their efforts serves as a disincentive to continue to participate. When kids stop participating (or feel undervalued despite their efforts) the fail to gain the very value we say our sport can offer. What they will learn is that nothing counts except winning - and that's not what I hear posters saying they think is important.

I know there will be at least a couple of posters that will jump up and say something like, "If they want to win and kiss the cheerleader then they should work harder," thinking that that somehow makes sense. First, that sets out winning as the goal - not participation in the process (they are different things, albeit sometimes related).  A third place finisher (or even a non-placer) may have out-worked the champion in terms of hard work in preparing. If you think there is perfect correlation between hard work and being the champion then you have been living under a rock. While there is likely a correlation, it is far from perfect, especially at the younger ages.

I am not saying that we have to get rid of the pageantry, or finals matches, etc., but rather, I am saying keep the bigger picture in perspective and reward accordingly; reward what has true value; share the wealth. Promote participation, highlight wrestler's of the week (for reasons other than winning), etc. It's very easy to get caught up in the glorification of winning; the system is built on that notion - but that's not what the posters on this thread have identified as having true value.

[imnofish]

Npope, excellent post; you are absolutely right.  As a coach, I frequently acknowledged the values and skills that wrestling develops in its participants.  I also promoted the idea that each team member was important to the success of his fellow teammate.  One situation that is often mishandled by coaches is the end of the season, when advancing individuals receive all of the focus and other wrestlers are essentially ignored.  My high school coach required that every team member practice, as long as even one wrestler was still advancing through the tournaments.  Each of us was a full participant, which provided continued learning opportunities and took a lot of pressure off the advancing wrestler(s).  When our teammates won state titles, we knew that we had a stake in their success and they knew that we fully supported them. 

[bigG]

I always made a point of writing articles in the paper about the quiet guys on JV, or whatever, who haven't had the wins, but you see working as hard as anybody. Guys whose "wins" maybe mean more than the big winners. To see a kid, no matter what age, put it all out there is the poetry. Ugly, bloody, sweaty poetry. To me , that's the best kind.