Thursday / Friday, July 15 / 16, 2010

I'm still learning to download, or upload... whatever... load my own blog.  So, we're skipping Thursday, the officials' clinic and weigh ins for men's freestyle.  Now, I know how spoiled I am, having Gary, Craig or Jason take my Word Document and turn it into something for you.  Gary, Craig, Jason... that was a "Thank You", in case you don't recognize them!

The other cool part, for me, is that the Azerbaijan Federation runs a very up-to-date website with results.  I have looked and I know Gary is watching these results like a hawk (not to be confused with a Hawkeye).

So, you can see our results in Gary's article.  You can also link to the Golden Grand Prix Website to get draws and brackets. That saves me a ton of writing and translating.

Getting back to that "Power of the Blog" thing I started on the way over here... Today is proof that it really works.  I sincerely ENJOYED watching our men compete today!  Those of you who recently read Coach Jones' statement about our immediate and long term goals need to know that our top athletes have "bought into" the program, Big time!

It would be easy to take shots at us bringing home four silver and two bronze medals... but not if you watched our guys COMPETE.  Everything we need was evident in our freestyle guys, today.  We dictated the pace.  We continued to build on every successful technique.  We pushed opponent over the conditioning barrier.  We managed leads aggressively.  We tired opponents through the first and second periods.  We dared to be great today.

Now, let's you and me test the idea.  Watch today's matches.  Identify all the things we're doing right.  Promote this philosophy in every room, at every age, in every style.  My hypothesis is that you will see the USA re-emerge as a global power... perhaps as early as 2012 !

Looking towards our Women's performances tomorrow, please see Gary's article for the draws.  Read Coach Steiner's Blog to feel what's going on in training.  Terry is another great example of positive results through top-to-bottom communication and buy-in.

I know many of our folks are in Fargo, tonight.  While I REALLY miss NDSU, in a warped kinda' way... I wish you could be in Baku.  Ponder that !!!

Ciao  

Saturday, July 17

I hope you're keeping up with Gary's front page articles.  The speed with which results are getting to you is incredible to me.  I know it saves me about an hour of typing every night!

So, our Women produced two bronze medals.  I thought this was a fair showing, with 50% of our athletes getting on the podium.  I know Coach Steiner and Coach (Keith) Wilson have some concerns, in getting us ready for Moscow.

This just hammers that point of communication again.  Find access to Coach Steiner's blog and join the process.  Terry's asking athletes and club coaches for the same "buy-in" Zeke and Fraser have.  These guys are putting us back within striking distance, but only if we all do our small parts!

Tomorrow is the Greco competition.  The U.S. does not have a team entered.  Our guys will be at the Pytlisynski event in Poland next week.  The special event tomorrow afternoon is a freestyle dual between the USA and host Azerbaijan.  This has the potential to really dial us in for Moscow.

Tomorrow is a travel day for me.  I leave the hotel at 4:00 and get to Budapest around 1:00pm.  There I will join Jerry Kuntz, Eric Fajerman and Stacey Davis... along with our athletes and coaches for the Junior World Championship.

I know the officials' clinic is going on in Fargo, today.  I hope everyone arrived safely and is ready to go for our annual "Marathon" and our most prestigious age-group event.

That's it for me and Baku.  I'll fill you in on the Istanbul, Budapest connection when I get checked in tomorrow evening.

Oh... I almost forgot... There IS one other thing I know for sure... Tom Clark is on FaceBook right this minute!

Ciao

Sunday, July 18, 2010

There are a few things I really miss about Fargo.  One is taking my early morning walk across campus and having coffee with Stecklein, Melosci and whoever else is brave enough to get up early.  The place we go is just down the street from the dome... I think it's 19^th street... across from Happy Harry's.  The name is Gloria Jean's.  I know it's a national franchise, but I just haven't seen very many of them outside Fargo.

Stecklein, my friend, this one's for you.  I am, right this minute, having Sunday morning coffee at Gloria Jean's in the Istanbul Ataturk Airport. 

I found it last Wednesday, on my way into Baku and, immediately took it to be ‘Karma'.  I'm sure it was built to remind me that I owe you dinner for Germany's blow-out of Argentina in the World Cup.

Attention, Toby Walker:  I have not forgotten that I owe you dinner, as well.  It was a year ago, in Ankara, where you so graciously volunteered to room with Roy.  You saved me from seven full days of meaningless babble.  You are my friend!

I mentioned, last Tuesday, that we, as officials, are required to attend and work certain events.  I mentioned our assignment system as part of the process of moving our guys up through the ranks.

The Junior Worlds are the last of what's called a ‘Type 4' clinics in 2010.  The ‘Type 4' does two things: It helps Category I officials maintain their standing in FILA; and It offers a chance for our best to be considered for Olympic status.

Obviously, we use our assignment dollars to put our Best and Brightest in position for that upgrade.  Our two guys, in Budapest, are Eric Fajerman and Stacey Davis.  Both fully fit the definition of Best and Brightest.

We are allowed one official per mat surface and there are four mats at the World Championship.  The remaining two spots allowed Jerry Kuntz and me to pay our own way.  I can't speak for Jerry, but I consider myself one who is here to maintain my category.

In order for our sport to prosper, we've got to replenish our officiating and coaching ranks with bright, young talent.  Those like me, who are just around the corner from retirement (mandatory at 60), seek only to stay solid in our work and hold the category to the end.

So, again this year, we have a really great combination of personalities on the mat for the Juniors.  These are good people and Budapest is a beautiful city.  It'll be a kick!

Ciao

Wednesday, July 14, 2010

No free access in Frankfurt and no place to plug in a flash drive on any of the pay-to-play internet stations.  So, this will get posted from somewhere further down the line.

I mentioned, yesterday, what I've come to believe is a relatively untapped coaching tool the blogging process can be.  I have been part of USA Wrestling's Coach Education Program since its inception and continue to take every opportunity to learn from my peers and share what I've picked up along the way. 

I had the chance to work with Coach Education Director Cody Bickley in the Silver Coaches' College at our recent World Team Trials in Council Bluffs.  Together with lead instructor, and my lifelong friend, Mike Hagerty, we were discussing where Coach Education has been and the direction we'd like it to head.

I get my share of teasing, based on being one of the old guys in the program.  I was telling Cody, I achieved my Silver Coaches' Certification in the summer of 1986 during the first ever Cadet Nationals in Allendale, Michigan.  I had the opportunity to study under the pioneers of the program, Jim Scott and Dan Gould.

Jim developed a scientific view of the physiology of wrestling and was one of the key figures in defining our Seven Basic Skills model.  Dan was in charge of the sport psychology component.  The combination of their views shaped much of my day to day philosophy in developing and preparing athletes at every level.

Those pioneers spent exhaustive efforts identifying those Seven Basic Skills of Wrestling.  Much has been made, in recent years about those skills.  Some suggest adding more skills to the list, while others offer up subsets and bulleted lists.  However, it's important to remind ourselves that simplicity, itself, was the big selling point of the Seven Basic Skills of Wrestling.

The concept was patterned, in large part, after the highly successful Soviet strategy.  Through the seventies and early eighties, the Soviet Union was the model for all Olympic wrestling.  As the USSR became more open to the west, we were anxious to have our top level coaches spend time training in the soviet system.

That leads back to my point of using blogs as coaching tools.  What our coaches found was not a magic pill or some secret technique.  They found a well developed, National system of communication.  Soviet athletes, youth through elite, were hearing common terminology and experiencing common technical and tactical advice from their first club coach through their Olympic coaches.

If you've had any access to Zeke's (National Freestyle Coach Zeke Jones) summaries of recent "Summits" or his analysis of the recent World and European Championships, you're seeing a return to that concept of focusing and unifying our efforts toward putting American wrestlers on the podium.  Certainly, if you've had access to Fraser's (National Greco Roman Coach Steve Fraser) emails and articles, over the past several years, you see that same strategy led us to an unprecedented World Championship in 2007.

For now, it's on the plane from Istanbul to Baku.  I'm ready to sleep laying down!

Ciao

Tuesday, July 13, 2010

I always look forward to this part.  Being able to travel the world and be in the company of great athletes and people is its own reward.  But being able to share part of the experience through a blog on TheMat.com magnifies the deal.

Besides magnifying it for me, I hope it does something for at least a few others.  I actually started “blogging” in 2002, as a communication tool to aid that year’s Women’s Team at the Pan American Championship in Maracaibo.

This was just prior to the age when every athlete and delegation member started carrying cell phones with international capabilities.  Many families and fans depended on the relatively new access to internet for results.  Perhaps more importantly, families and coaches back home looked to the blog for some touch of insight into the ‘focus’ and emotional readiness of their individual athlete and the team.

We had an exceptional group in Maracaibo and we produced exceptional results: seven out of seven on the podium and the team trophy.  The ability level of these athletes freed me up, just a little, to experiment with the blogging process as a coaching ‘tool’.

I have a reason for telling you all this.  But, for now, fast forward to July of 2010.  I’m on my way to two major events:  The Final event of the FILA’s Golden Grand Prix series in Baku, Azerbaijan; and the Junior World Championship in Budapest, Hungary.

As volunteer officials, FILA requires us to work one or more events per year at the international level.  To maintain our category, we must attend ‘clinics’ that fit the level we are trying to maintain.  It is often quite far and expensive, but it’s part of the deal.

USA Wrestling and our Officials Association ‘assign’ one or more officials to most events.  Assigned officials get help with expenses and a rotation system helps share that help.  Most often, though, you’re on your own.

I ran into a situation last summer, in Turkey, where I had to do some ticket changes.  It left me with some voucher money in the bank with American Airlines.  Getting a little creative, I found a way to use the vouchers to get part of the way to Baku.

In essence, I’ve got a round trip inside another round trip.  The details get a little weird.  I start out flying Albuquerque to Dallas and on to Frankfurt, Germany.  On the way home, I leave from Berlin through London and Chicago.

The first leg of my trip ends in Frankfurt, so I have to claim baggage (hopefully) and clear customs Wednesday morning.  Then, I’ve got to check back in for that other round trip.  That will take me from Frankfurt through Istanbul, Turkey and on to Baku.  If things go well, I’ll be there by midnight Wednesday.

The assigned American on the Baku trip is a very bright, up and coming official named Ryan Levin.  Ryan is one of the so-called “Brothers” from Utah, trained under Toby Tobiasson.  Ryan has been with the American team in and around Baku for the last week.  I’m really hoping that between Ryan and Team Leader, Paul Kieblitz,  someone will be at the airport to pick us up at midnight!

Just by luck, I meet up with another dear friend in Istanbul.  Davor Petanjik is Croatia’s Olympic level official.  Over the years, Davor has become a god friend… not just of mine, but of many American referees.  I spent some intense time with Davor on a tour last winter.  I’m really looking forward to catching up with him on the flight.

This is my first time accessing the Blog section of themat.com website, directly.  Before this trip, I’ve always emailed my entries to Craig Sesker and Gary Abbott, our communication guys.  I know Craig will be swamped in Fargo this week and Gary will be with me in Budapest.  

We’ll see how it goes for me, as a technologically challenged old guy, getting the blog published.  I read Tony Black’s recent blog of his adventures in Greece.  What a great experience!  I hope there will be others adding their perspectives on Baku and Budapest.

For now, we’re about to land in Frankfurt.  I will hope for a place with Wi-Fi access and get this thing rolling.

Ciao