Watching Wrestlers Lose

[BigDogDaddy]

They say you can tell more about a person when they are at their worst than when they are at their best. Let's face it, wrestling is the most demanding sport there is and the irony is that every match has one winner and one loser.

 

While I have enjoyed watching many great moments in the sport for the past thirty years, the one thing I truly enjoy is the sportsmanship. I love a close dual score and the intensity of a deciding match. While your heart soars for the kid who gets the takedown with a few seconds left to win the match and the dual, you sometimes get a real treat if you concentrate on the young man that just got taken down to lose.

 

You see, while the sport is about winning, to me, it is more about character building. The sign of a succesful team, coach and wrestler is often found in that one moment... the moment of the handshake... the body language of losing wrestler heading over to the winning coach... how does he carry himself ... does he make eye contact with the coach... and then the long walk back to his own coach. Sometimes the two minutes after the match is over, determines more about you than the last two minutes of the match itself.

 

With the intensity turned up this weekend, it was wonderful to watch the sportsmanship, the true art of the sport, at its best!

[bodock]

AMEN!!!!!

[Cowboy Curtis]

They say you can tell more about a person when they are at their worst than when they are at their best. Let's face it, wrestling is the most demanding sport there is and the irony is that every match has one winner and one loser.

 

While I have enjoyed watching many great moments in the sport for the past thirty years, the one thing I truly enjoy is the sportsmanship. I love a close dual score and the intensity of a deciding match. While your heart soars for the kid who gets the takedown with a few seconds left to win the match and the dual, you sometimes get a real treat if you concentrate on the young man that just got taken down to lose.

 

You see, while the sport is about winning, to me, it is more about character building. The sign of a succesful team, coach and wrestler is often found in that one moment... the moment of the handshake... the body language of losing wrestler heading over to the winning coach... how does he carry himself ... does he make eye contact with the coach... and then the long walk back to his own coach. Sometimes the two minutes after the match is over, determines more about you than the last two minutes of the match itself.

 

With the intensity turned up this weekend, it was wonderful to watch the sportsmanship, the true art of the sport, at its best!

On the flip side, If you have never sat close to that parent going off on the ref, the coach, or the other wrestler while their kid was losing, then you may be that parent.

[Sommers]

They say you can tell more about a person when they are at their worst than when they are at their best. Let's face it, wrestling is the most demanding sport there is and the irony is that every match has one winner and one loser.

 

While I have enjoyed watching many great moments in the sport for the past thirty years, the one thing I truly enjoy is the sportsmanship. I love a close dual score and the intensity of a deciding match. While your heart soars for the kid who gets the takedown with a few seconds left to win the match and the dual, you sometimes get a real treat if you concentrate on the young man that just got taken down to lose.

 

You see, while the sport is about winning, to me, it is more about character building. The sign of a succesful team, coach and wrestler is often found in that one moment... the moment of the handshake... the body language of losing wrestler heading over to the winning coach... how does he carry himself ... does he make eye contact with the coach... and then the long walk back to his own coach. Sometimes the two minutes after the match is over, determines more about you than the last two minutes of the match itself.

 

With the intensity turned up this weekend, it was wonderful to watch the sportsmanship, the true art of the sport, at its best!

Good stuff

[EChason]

Amen BDD - it truly defines the kind of adults these youth competitors will soon become. I've seen the down years, and the up years, but the bottom line is the sportsmanship - win or lose.

[BigDogDaddy]

Amen BDD - it truly defines the kind of adults these youth competitors will soon become. I've seen the down years, and the up years, but the bottom line is the sportsmanship - win or lose.

 

And where were you this weekend??

[takedown3]

I lost a match once several millenia ago and dropped kicked a chair. My father came out of the stands and told me if I ever displayed that lack of disipline again, my athletic carreer (football, wrestling, baseball, etc) was over. My coach made me run the entire next practice. Good lesson.

[best_of_the_west]

Great side note. I will venture to say that if you watch the heavyweights at the state tournament, you will see some great sportsmanship. These guys have to exert the most energy to get the job done in a 6+ minute match, and they know that because of the significant size and strength, a match can swing from win to loss in a matter of seconds. Coming from out West, some of you know about guys like Stewart Allen, James Lindow, and Carl Taylor showing this attitude when they were wrestling, but it was best displayed on the state-wide level in the great Crosby/Pennington matches of a few years ago. Although Crosby came out on top, both men were always respectful, sportsmanlike, and even friendly after the matches. It was a great example of what wrestling should be about.

[takedown3]

Great side note. I will venture to say that if you watch the heavyweights at the state tournament, you will see some great sportsmanship. These guys have to exert the most energy to get the job done in a 6+ minute match, and they know that because of the significant size and strength, a match can swing from win to loss in a matter of seconds. Coming from out West, some of you know about guys like Stewart Allen, James Lindow, and Carl Taylor showing this attitude when they were wrestling, but it was best displayed on the state-wide level in the great Crosby/Pennington matches of a few years ago. Although Crosby came out on top, both men were always respectful, sportsmanlike, and even friendly after the matches. It was a great example of what wrestling should be about.

 

Kind of like DII championship matches. You shake your opponents hand, shake the opposing coach's hand and don't humiliate your opponent by running around the mat with your index finger sticking up in the air as if everyone in McKenzie doesn't know who just won the match. Sorry, just looks like some NFL running back who discovers the end zone.

[wristbar]

I am all for sportsmanship but it makes me even more sick to see guys walk off the mat after losing and theyre not even upset off. Personally I would rather see a kid drop kick a chair than see him walk off the mat like nothing just happened.

[best_of_the_west]

Haha, I seriously doubt you will find many who agree with that, especially if you witnessed the infamous Scooter Houston incident a few years ago.

[takedown3]

Haha, I seriously doubt you will find many who agree with that, especially if you witnessed the infamous Scooter Houston incident a few years ago.

 

Booting ringside furniture is now referred to as "Going Houston". Hope the kid and his mother got their lives together. They'll run into one or two more dissapointments in life.