Every Saturday in April and May, middle school boys and girls across San Diego lace up their wrestling shoes, snap on their headgear, and face off against each other in an ancient sport that comes straight from Mount Olympus.
The San Diego Unified School District is the largest district in the United States to have a middle school wrestling program.
It is also the largest middle school girls’ wrestling district in America, in a sport that year after year continues to be the fastest-growing sport in America.
For comparison, three years ago, girls’ wrestling had two divisions, and Division I had a total of 50 girls in 14 weight classes. This year, a fourth division was added, and at Division I, there were 150 girls competing. That’s only 50 fewer than the boys at Division 1.
At this pace, girls’ wrestling will be on par with boys in numbers.
On the rise
Their talent is rising fast as well. This year, the NCAA is holding its first-ever girls Division 1 Championship.
All thanks to the many middle school wrestling teams that have created the opportunities for young boys and girls to discover the sport early.
As a result, boys’ wrestling has also been growing every year.
There were over 300,0000 boys wrestling last year compared to 235,000 in 2018.
Why the growth?
The growth of the sport is directly affected by the middle school opportunity.
Without wide exposure through mass media, as is the case with baseball, football and other major sports, most kids whose parents didn’t wrestle don’t learn about the sport until ninth grade.
In ninth grade, many students are navigating the new stressful environment of high school.
Wrestling is often not seen as a popular sport, and we see many kids being apprehensive about joining something new that might not make them popular with other kids.
Once they are sophomores, they have their social circles set and feel more confident to join a team, but by that point, they only have three years to learn and develop for a sport their club wrestling counterparts have been part of for many years. This is why having an opportunity in middle school is such a game-changer.
This year, schools like Patrick Henry, Mira Mesa, San Diego and Crawford all saw freshmen boys and girls with experience in middle school enter high school. They were able to wrestle and find success at the varsity level.
What’s most important, however, is the changes that the sport provides.
It not only teaches self-defense, resilience and healthy way of life, but a confidence that is unparalleled.
The ability to learn from losses and find success on the mat translates into success at school. It provides for better mental health by reducing anxiety and depression through physical movement and self-empowerment.
This year will be the third year of the San Diego Middle School Athletics Wrestling program.
In the age of social media and video games, sports like wrestling are more than a sport; they are a path to a lifetime of success.
Sam Litvin is the head wrestling coach at Patrick Henry High School.
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