Posted on 02/18/2011 10:36:48 AM PST by BenLurkin
I still remember the last JV tournament of my freshman year.
My teammate Deborah Kavalar was down a few points in the third period. I don't recall the exact move, but I remember her flipping her opponent, the excitement and the pin.
More than that, I remember the reaction.
The ultra-masculine 145-pounder threw his headgear across the gym and stormed out the door as Deborah stood there awaiting a handshake.
It was embarrassing. Not because the guy lost to a girl -- Deborah had crumpled plenty of overconfident XY chromosomes over her three years on the mat. But because I was the same gender as the guy who couldn't handle a loss to a girl.
I don't bring this up as a slight to Joel Northrup, the Iowa high school wrestler who defaulted in his state wrestling match rather than wrestle a girl. Beliefs, religion -- whatever. I get it.
Aside from that, boys mostly view wrestling girls as a lose-lose situation. If you win, well, obviously you should have. She's a girl. If you lose, well, then you just lost to a girl.
My take: get over it.
Three ladies rolled around with the 2001 Nicolet Knights in Fox Point, Wis. I was a tiny tike at the time, only reaching 100 pounds by the end of the year. Our wrestling squad featured six 103-pounders. Of those six, two were girls.
I'd like to say it was never weird wrapping my arms around equally miniature members of the opposite sex during practice. I can't. It was a bit, oh, "interesting" at times. Still, it was no more awkward grabbing and jostling a girl at times than it was a guy.
But the guys weren't alone in their awkwardness; the ladies had to deal with the gender difference, too. They changed in different locker rooms, they weighed in after everybody else and they had to pretend they didn't notice the disdain on their male opponent's face who was entering a lose-lose situation.
Despite all this, I never once felt our ladies wanted to be treated differently or winners by forfeit. They did all the same drills and workouts and, most of the time, lost just as pitifully as I did.
Part of Cassy Herkelman likely was excited about receiving her first win in the state tournament. It was not the first time she's had her hand raised without a fight. I can also guarantee that she left with mixed emotions. Three years from now, when she is likely placing in the state tournament on her own accord, I bet she'll have wished she could have taken her freshman lumps.
Everybody else does.
Wrestling isn't fighting. If it were, women would have a better chance of winning.
Wrestling isn't fighting. If it were, women might have a better chance of winning.
There is no legal 'hitting' in wrestling. I've seen situations where your 'ever' certainly didn't apply as well.
You would have “punished” her?
Whatever.
Mixed gender wrestling still normalizes that it’s ok to get physical with women and that should not be encouraged.
Thanks for acknowledging your lack of knowledge on the sport.
Mixed gender wrestling still normalizes that it’s ok to get physical with women and that should not be encouraged.
I don't think HS girls should wrestle against males. But since it isn't illegal if the girls want to take their lumps, I'm ok with that.
I guarantee you I would NOT have risk my years of hard work and a state championship to let some girl have the win. I would have punished her - in the hopes of her never, ever, ever wanting to wrestle again.
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And boy o boy howdy, that would have made you feel like a real man, eh? Intentionally inflicting injury such that she would never do that again, huh?
On one hand, we have a real man (the kid who didn’t wrestle due to his convictions - whether I agree with them or not) and then we have you, the kind of man who relishes teaching women a lesson when they go places you don’t think they should go.
I knew you don’t hit in Greco-Roman style wrestling.
That is beside the point. It still normalizes physical combat contact between males and females.
Good for you, that's progress. The story isn't about GR wrestling. This is the HS tourney, folkstyle where there is no hitting either..
Just a couple of thoughts.
1. I never liked wrestling when we had to wrestle in physical education class in high school. I have no interest in touching other guys in close quarters. I’ll leave that to those who enjoy that sort of thing.
2. I would much rather wrestle a female...they smell better. Would even let her win to avoid having to wrestle a guy.
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