2004 FAQ's
Today's article will be devoted to the most frequently asked questions throughout the 2003-04 season.
The majority of inquiries I receive during the year concern weight certification, the growth allowance, and minimum weights. The following Q & A session is a summary of the most frequently asked questions. It would be wise to keep this column for future reference.
Question: When is the weight certification date in West Virginia and Ohio?
Answer: It is December 23rd in West Virginia and the week of January 10th in Ohio.
Question: Where can a wrestler compete prior to the weight certification date?
Answer: A wrestler can compete in any weight class prior to the weight certification date.
Question: Where can a wrestler compete after the weight certification date?
Answer: A wrestler may weigh-in at his certified minimum weight (say 103 pounds) or one weight class above (112 pounds), and still be eligible for the 103-pound weight class.
Question: A the weight certification date, could a wrestler compete at 119 pounds and still be eligible to wrestle in the 103-pound weight class?
Answer: If the wrestler weighed-in at the 112-pound weight class, he would still be eligible to wrestle at the 103-pound weight class. However, if he weighed-in at the 119-pound weight class, he has now recertified himself at the 112-pound weight class.
Question: A wrestler competes all season at the 112-pound weight class and the
119-pound weight class. Is it possible for him to be eligible to wrestle at 103 pounds in the state elimination tournaments?
Answer: Believe it or not, yes. If 50 percent of his weigh-ins were at 103 pounds and the remaining weigh-ins were at 112 pounds, he would be eligible to wrestle at 103 pounds during the state tournament series.
Question: When do wrestlers receive the two-pound allowance in West Virginia and Ohio?
Answer: Wrestlers in West Virginia receive their two pounds on January 1st, while Ohio grapplers receive their two-pound allowance on January 10th.
Question: If a wrestler competes for the first time after the two-pound allowance has been established, must he make base weight?
Answer: Yes. For example, if he wrestles at the 103-pound weight class, the wrestler must weigh 103 pounds or less.
Question: In December, a wrestler made base weight for a competition at 103 pounds. After the two-pound allowance was given, this same wrestler decides to compete at the 112-pound weight class. Does he receive the two-pound allowance, or must he make base weight (112 or less).
Answer: The wrestler would receive the two-pound allowance because he already made base weight at 103 pounds.
Question: What happens to the West Virginia wrestler who competes in Ohio after January 1st, but before the week of January 10th? Likewise, what happens to the Ohio wrestler who competes in West Virginia during the same time frame?
Answer: The West Virginia wrestJer would have to make base weight in Ohio (103 pounds or less), whereas the Ohio wrestler would receive the two-pound allowance in West Virginia (105 pounds).
Question: Does West Virginia or Ohio have minimum weights for the 103-pound weight class and 275-pound weight class?
Answer: West Virginia does not. In Ohio, the minimum weight for the 103-pound weight class is 88 pounds, and for the 275-pound weight class the minimum weight is 210 pounds. These minimum weights never change throughout the entire season.
Question: When the two-pound weight allowance is given to the wrestlers, does that change the weight class?
Answer: In essence, yes. For example, take the 103-pound weight class after the two-pound weight allowance, making it the 105-pound weight class. A wrestler must now weigh over 105 pounds (not 103 pounds) to compete in the 119-pound weight class.
As you can imagine, these areas can get very confusing at times. Just be thankful that I don't ask such questions in my annual "Mat Talk Final Exam" at the end of the year.
Have a great day!
(Author's note: Special thanks to Dr. Vince Matteucci, the Ohio state wrestling rules interpreter, for his input regarding the above information.)