Every day, hundreds of people come through the gates at the U.S. Olympic Training Complex in Colorado Springs, Colo.
And every day, hundreds of those people get to walk into a place which has fostered growth in competition, dedication and a winning desire. The place is the wrestling room located in Sports Center 2 at the OTC.
We’re all fans. We love the sport of wrestling, so being able to sit in a glorified closet called the coaches office about 20 feet from the wrestling mats might not seem thrilling, but it always is.
Trips down to the OTC for USA Wrestling media staffers like Gary Abbott, Craig Sesker and myself aren’t as routine as you might think. Our offices (and USA Wrestling’s office) are located about 12 minutes away. Typically, we come down here to do interviews when each of our three Olympic wrestling styles have camps, or when there are media opportunities for our athletes. Just last week, Gary had to be on the grounds escorting some national media who came down to talk to Rulon Gardner, who has been working out at the OTC since he first started talking about coming back.
Today, I’m here essentially as an escort. A couple of guys from North Carolina are here doing a documentary on the athletes from the Ohio Regional Training Center. You can see some their work from the Ohio RTC here.
When outside media comes to the OTC, it’s the Communications Department’s job to make sure all their needs are met and they have access to coaches and athletes. It’s a small, but important part of our jobs. It’s not glamorous by any means, but it provides you a feeling you know our sport is getting coverage beyond the normal wrestling channels. With it being an Olympic year, we’ll be down here more than ever.
I won’t try to write around the fact being in the wrestling room at the Olympic Training Center is a pretty cool situation. For a never-was wrestling hack like myself, being able to absorb wrestling knowledge on a daily basis is crucial. Watching wrestlers develop and hone their skills is one part of it, but being able to visualize what the training situation is like and being able to have that in the back of my mind for an upcoming broadcast, interview or video feature is extremely helpful.
For some, this is a sanctuary, for others, it’s hell. With the Dave Schultz Memorial International coming up this weekend, wrestlers in town for camp get a chance to get different looks from some of the foreign teams who have shown up to train before the tournament. Greco training has included teams from Sweden, India, Italy, Spain and Greece, while men’s freestyle has tangled with India and Italy. Women’s freestyle also mixes it up with India and a small contingent from The Netherlands.
As I write this, Brandon Slay is running practice and in every corner and crevice of the room, you’ll see talent. You’ll see names. As I stick my head out the door, I can see NCAA champion J.P. O’Connor of Harvard working out with Mizzou All-American Nick Marable. Developmental athletes like Destin McCauley, Earl Hall and Tanner Hall are mixing it up with Chase Pami, an NCAA finalist for Cal Poly or Todd Meneely, a three-time Division II champion from Nebraska-Omaha.
World Champion Jordan Burroughs is in the room. Yes, there have been plenty of double legs to go around.
Some days down here are better than others. Sometimes you’ll just find the resident team working out. Sometimes you’ll see Greco do grind matches – marathon sessions that end with everyone wanting to jump off a bridge.
Unfortunately, I’m not like a lot of fans when I come down here. It’s not because I’m jaded or anything like that, but this becomes part of the routine. On Friday, I walked over to Jordan Burroughs, Shawn Bunch and Raymond Jordan and joked that I’d be running the practice, holding my Bronze Coaches Card in hand.
Burroughs looked at me and said “Naw, we’re only gold over here.”
It really personalizes the wrestlers in many respects. Having covered many of these wrestlers back during their high school days, it’s always a time of reflection, remembering wins and losses from these Olympic hopefuls. I’d witnessed Burroughs win a World Championship. I’d also witnessed him wrestle on one of his worst days back in high school. Now, Burroughs’ worst day is better than many wrestlers’ best, and that goes for everyone down here.
Watching practice, getting ribbed by the Greco guys and becoming completely immersed in wrestling culture always makes you realize why you do what you do. Whether you follow a college team, are a friend or a parent or if you’re lucky like I am, get the opportunity to work for the sport of wrestling, stepping into the OTC even for a few moments changes you. Many come to visit to say they’ve been there.
When it’s your job, its easy to get lost in what this sport means for so many people, but every interview, every escort, every check-in on FourSquare (yes, that’s to you Wynn and Adeline), matters. This place is special, no matter how trivial the task at hand might be.
Even if it’s just a tour.
