Fox Fire wrestlers hope world-class mat turns to gold

An unusually soft, blue, hand-me-down wrestling mat at Fox Fire Wrestling Club has been smudged by shoes worn on the feet of some the world's very best wrestlers.

The hope is the mat - which was used when Toledo hosted the world cup in the 1980s - also will serve as a training zone for aspiring Olympians.

Fox Fire, a few turns off Airport Highway in Springfield Township, recently signed a contract to fall under the jurisdiction of USA Wrestling and become its 29th junior regional training site in the country.

What this means is that Fox Fire will answer to the brass of the nation's governing body of the sport and will teach the same techniques and training principles the country's top senior wrestlers learn at the Olympic Training Center in Colorado Springs.

Part of a new USA Wrestling initiative is to reach out to middle-school wrestlers by making it easier for them to find top-level instruction within a short distance of their homes.

Ohio's first two regional training sites popped up in Columbus - one in conjunction with Ohio State - and another one is in Ann Arbor, attached to the University of Michigan program.

"We have to start looking at the kid that's 10 years old, 14 years old, and ensure that he has all the things he needs to be successful, so that when I get him 10 years from now, he's ready to go," Zeke Jones, head coach of the U.S. Freestyle Senior National Team, said.

Jones provided a recent clinic at Fox Fire and was joined by Oak Harbor native JD Bergman, who won last weekend's U.S. world team trials.

Because Fox Fire is now affiliated with USA Wrestling, wrestlers from anywhere in the country, provided they have purchased a USA Wrestling membership card, can drop in for a workout.

Under the guidance of Central Catholic coaches Richard "Doc" Leffler and John Mossing, the four-year-old club has about 60 members, most of whom are in junior high.

Technique taught at the club is geared toward freestyle and Greco-Roman wrestling, the two styles participated in internationally.

Folkstyle is most prevalent in the United States and is the style at the high school and college levels.

Freestyle and Greco-Roman wrestling are strictly off-season disciplines in the United States, and Jones, a freestyle silver medalist at the Barcelona Olympics in 1992, is trying to eliminate any disadvantages the United States is facing from countries whose athletes are brought up under the styles from an early age.

Jones, trying to buck the trend of many American grapplers migrating toward Mixed Martial Arts, raises money so that any U.S. wrestler who wins an Olympic gold medal will be rewarded with $250,000.

But Jones needs help from all over, and that's where Fox Fire becomes so integral to the process.

"That model is something we're trying to build here at the junior level," Mossing said.

Jones said he's pleased with the quality of instruction being offered at the club and believes the facility is conducive to a strong training environment.

A sprawling building that has housed numerous businesses over the years, Fox Fire is the envy of the wrestling community.

It includes showers, coaching offices, wireless Internet access, and a roped-off area with weight training equipment. That says nothing of two wrestling rooms whose combined space allows for about seven full mats.

"We want to see our best athletes and our best coaches working in concert with our program," Jones said.

"Leadership, athletes, with a well-thought-out plan connected to the national plan. That's the ingredients we're looking for," Jones said.

Contact Ryan Autullo at:

rautullo@theblade.com

or 419-724-6160.