Washougal girl pins her way to U.S. title
Fourth-grader proves to be too much to handle against girls or boys

By Matthew Fritsch Post- Eagle Newspapers4/7/02

Kelsey Hanson may only be 10, but she has her eyes set on Beijing, China.
Though it is eight years away, the fourth grader at Cape Horn- Skye Elementary School in Washougal thinks she could be there, wrestling for a gold medal.
With good reason—she’s already a national champion.
Competing for Team Oregon, Hanson pinned three opponents in a combined time of 69 seconds to win the 73-pound National Title.
“I want to be in the Olympics and wrestle in college,” Hanson said.
With her domination on the mat, Hanson was also named “outstanding wrestler” of the 550 girl wrestlers competing at the U.S. Girls Wrestling Association National Championships in Lake Orion, Mich., March 22-24.
She earned the honor with pins of 17, 18 and 34 seconds.
But don’t think she didn’t have it coming—she did.
Wrestling for three years, Hanson got her start in the East County Mat Club and has been coached by Thad Eakins, Mark Mercer and Rob Anderson. She’s currently a member of the Southwest Washington Mat Club.
“When she first came home with the flier, I thought we’d go to a couple practices and she’d get beat on and that would be the end of it. But she loved it and has been at it ever since,” her dad, Troy, said.
Monday through Thursday he drives her the hour it takes to travel to Battle Ground where she practices for two to two-and-a-half hours. Saturdays, the whole Hanson clan (including her mom, Brenda, and four sisters) climbs out of bed as early at 5 a.m. to drive to wrestling meets in Washington or Oregon.
But Hanson rarely has the opportunity to square off against another girl, typically she is facing a boy of the same age and weight.
And Hanson has seen a lot of little boys cry.

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USA Wrestling Board of Directors meet on April 5; the Board approves support for NWCA Title IX lawsuit as well as other actions

4/7/2002
Gary Abbott/USA Wrestling

USA Wrestling held its semi-annual Board of Directors meeting at the Doubletree Spokane City Center in Spokane, Wash., April 5.

President Bruce Baumgartner conducted the meeting, which included Board of Directors members from wrestling constituent groups at many levels. This Board of Directors meeting was held alongside the 2002 Northern Quest World Cup of Wrestling.

The Board of Directors approved a statement of support for the on-going lawsuit by the National Wrestling Coaches Association and other organizations against the Department of Education, which seeks to restore Title IX to its original intent - providing equal opportunity without discrimination against any student-athlete.

The statement approved by USA Wrestling was:

“USA Wrestling approves a statement of support for the lawsuit filed by the National Wrestling Coaches Association, the National Coalition of Athletics Equity and other organizations against the Department of Education concerning the interpretation and enforcement of Title IX. USA Wrestling agrees with the goals of the legal action, and encourages its members to support the case.”

In another Title IX-related action, the Board approved a grant of $5,000 to attorney Mark Martel to support his efforts on the Neal vs. Board of Education lawsuit concerning Cal-State Bakersfield wrestling.

The Board of Directors approved three by-laws amendments which changed the name of the Public Relations Committee to the USA Wrestling Marketing Committee, and adjusted the mission of the committee. In the bylaw change, the committee “shall develop ideas and evaluate proposals for the marketing of wrestling to the public. It shall create strategies to build fan support, increase public awareness and market the programs and activities of USA Wrestling.” Toby Steward is the current chairperson of the USA Wrestling Marketing Committee.

In accepting the report from the Junior Olympic Wrestling Committee (JOWC), presented by Chairperson Duane Morgan, the Board also accepted some new grassroots programs for the organization. Including was a program of grants for state associations for support from USA Wrestling for specific projects to build wrestling in their areas. The major new event program created was the inclusion of women athletes at the ASICS Junior Nationals in Fargo, N.D. this summer. The JOWC also presented a plan for the creation of an ad-hoc committee to research and advise on the development of a membership drive strategy for the organization.

The Board also approved the medical assignments for USA Wrestling tours this year.

In his report to the Board, President Baumgartner gave a summary of activities within the sport and the organization since the last Board of Directors meeting.

He provided information to the Board about the conclusion of the historic capital campaign for wrestling, “Wrestling for the Next Millennium,” which provided substantial funds for USA Wrestling, the National Wrestling Hall of Fame and the National Wrestling Coaches Association. The campaign, which was created in 1998, completed in January 2002 with donations and pledges of $7.5 million to the organizations. USA Wrestling and its partner organization will be collecting pledges for the campaign throughout the upcoming decade.

Baumgartner also discussed the addition of women’s wrestling to the 2004 Athens Olympic Games, as well as the decision by the IOC and FILA to reduce the number of weight classes in international men’s wrestling to seven. He also indicated that USA Wrestling will participate in a special meeting with the international wrestling federation to discuss USA Wrestling’s views concerning the sport worldwide.

“FILA has invited USA Wrestling, including Larry Sciacchetano, Rich Bender and I, to a meeting at their headquarters to discuss our relationship and the future,” said Baumgartner. “We will take them up on it.”

Baumgartner reported on the decisions that led to the postponement then relocation of the 2001 World Championships, set for New York City in 2001, which was affected by the September 11 attack on the United States. He also noted that plans were moving forward to receive approval for the World Championships to return to New York in 2003.

“I want to thank the Executive Committee for its tremendous effort and commitment,” said Baumgartner. “We met numerous times to discuss the cancellation of the World Championships, plans about whether to host the event and decisions about the safety of our World Teams competing overseas. I also want to thank all of our volunteers, who are the reason that the organization has done so well since the last meeting.”

Executive Director Rich Bender presented his report to the Board, discussing numerous activities of the national staff on behalf of the Board and the membership.

“The first thing I wish to do is say thanks,” said Bender. “About 16 months ago, I was given a dream job. It is hard to verbalize how much that means to me. The success of the organization is not because of my efforts. It is a result of the efforts of our national staff and countless volunteers that dedicate countless hours to the betterment of the organization and the sport. The commitment that these individuals have to USA Wrestling and to the sport is amazing.”

In the Treasurer’s report, Treasurer Bill Stecklein reported to the Board about the financial position of the organization. He reported that USA Wrestling was now debt-free, and gave credit to the leaders of the capital campaign for the leadership and financial support that allowed USA Wrestling to achieve its financial goals. He also commended the national staff for its ability to control expenses and allow the organization to surpass its budget goals for the year. Stecklein indicated that the Finance Committee will once again form a subcommittee to address USA Wrestling’s investments.

Associate Executive Director for Administration Dwaine Cooper reported to the Board on the decision by USA Wrestling to subcontract its merchandise operation to All-American Wrestling Supply.

Each of USA Wrestling’s standing committees provided updates to the Board, as well as the organization’s constituent groups.

In new business, the Board discussed how staff and various committees could work together to set up guidelines for the scheduling of major wrestling events in order to avoid conflicts. Included is ongoing discussions with other wrestling groups to cooperate on creating a more efficient schedule for wrestling activities each year.

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