Wrestling at a young age has been dwindling over the past decade, so one local high school teacher decided to do something about it.
Centre Wellington District High School (CWDHS) teacher and wrestling coach Dave Ritter discovered elementary school wrestling programs and an annual Upper Grand District School Board tournament had folded.
“As a high school coach, I recognized that wrestling is not a ‘glamorous’ sport and if kids aren’t exposed to it at elementary school, very few would give it a try in high school,” he said.
A couple of years ago, Ritter decided to contact local elementary schools to build back up the programs and participants.
“We started small; if I recall correctly we had only 40 or 50 kids from three schools,” he said.
This year, the tournament held at CWDHS had over 200 Grade 7 and 8 students participating, with athletes from public and Catholic schools from Fergus, Elora, Guelph, Barrie and Toronto.
The May 1 tournament is the culmination of the wrestling season for the students.
Ritter also gets his high school wrestling team involved too.
“The CWDHS wrestling team has been involved in both the elementary school season and tournament,” he said.
The high school students help at the elementary schools and coach the younger students during the tournament.
“I truly believe that no other sport prepares a young person for life better than wrestling,” said Ritter.
“Wrestling has both the team aspect and the individual component.
“Kids learn how to be a good team member, cooperate with one another and work towards a common goal. However, they also face the ups and downs as an individual – much like everyday life.”
