In 1989, the first U.S. women's World wrestling team consisted of two wrestlers and one coach. In the early days, champions were presented with appliances, not trophies. Contrast those early days with the tremendous growth in women's wrestling -- at least 30 women's college wrestling programs, and now seven states with officially sanctioned competition for high school girls -- along with recent successes such as Helen Maroulis becoming the first U.S. woman to win a gold medal at the 2016 Olympics in Rio de Janeiro.
Now, a new book -- "Wrestle Like a Girl" by esteemed wrestling writers Craig Sesker and Jamie Moffatt -- shares the stories of women who overcame stereotypes, discrimination and other obstacles to make their mark in the sport ... from pioneers such as Afsoon Roshanzamir, Tricia Saunders and Kristie Marano to current stars Maroulis and Adeline Gray.
Well-respected wrestling writers, reunited
Craig Sesker and Jamie Moffatt are writers well-known and well-respected within the wrestling world. Sesker, former Senior Communications Manager at USA Wrestling who is now a sports copy editor at the Colorado Springs Gazette has authored two wrestling books on his own -- "Bobby Douglas: Life and Legacy of an American Wrestling Legend" and "Driven to Excellence." Moffatt has penned a handful of books on wrestling, including "Wrestlers at the Trials" and "Adam Frey: A Collection of Blogs and Stories." In 2013, the two writers collaborated on "Saving Wrestling: The Inside Story of the Sport's Epic Fight to Stay in the Olympics" which provided an inside perspective behind the decision of the Executive Board of the International Olympic Committee to eliminate wrestling from the Olympics in February 2013 ... only to reinstate the sport seven months later.
How the book came together
"After working on 'Saving Wrestling' with Craig (Sesker), I was looking for a topic for a new book," Jamie Moffatt told InterMat. "I thought of women's wrestling. I looked to see what had already been written, and could find nothing. I talked to USA Wrestling and they were very encouraging."
"I wanted to tell their stories, not just write their wrestling histories."
"My original plan was to write about a couple athletes from each decade -- the 1990s, the 2000s, and the current decade -- along with coach Terry Steiner."
"I started doing interviews about a year ago."
Then the two writing partners on "Saving Wrestling" reconnected with each other on this project.
"I've wanted to write a book about women's wrestling," said Craig Sesker in a separate interview with InterMat. "Jamie (Moffatt) called me in early spring with a question, as he was working on a book about that subject."
"He asked me to write the Afsoon Roshanzamir chapter."
"We met in Iowa City for the (2016 U.S. Olympic) Trials," Sesker continued. "Working with USA Wrestling, I knew a lot of the wrestlers."
"We kept the same format, but added more wrestlers to be covered," according to Moffatt.
"By (Sesker) knowing these people, he did a lot of the writing," Moffatt continued. "I did the editing and worked with Exit Zero (the company that designed and published the book). I'd say I was more the producer of the book ..."
The inside story
"Wrestle Like a Girl" devotes an entire chapter to significant individuals in women's wrestling in the U.S., including Afsoon Roshanzamir, Marie Ziegler, Tricia Saunders, Iris Smith, Kristie Marano, Elena Pirozhkova, Leigh James, Adeline Gray, Helen Maroulis and coach Terry Steiner. In addition, there are individual chapters on the 2016 World championships, as well as the 2004, 2008, and 2012 Olympics.
As for the title ... the authors were aware of the group Wrestle Like a Girl, founded by Sally Roberts, a two-time World bronze medalist and three-time U.S. National champion "to help empower and educate girls and women across the United States through the sport of wrestling," to quote the organization's mission statement. Headquartered in Colorado Springs, WLAG is a non-profit 501(c)3 organization.
Sesker and Moffatt met with Roberts, who gave her blessing to using her organization's name as the attention-getting, very appropriate title of their new book on women's wrestling. The authors emphasized that 100% of the proceeds from sales of their book "Wrestle Like a Girl" will go directly to the organization of the same name.
As Roberts wrote in the foreword to the book, "Throughout this book you will find more than stories of women dominating on the mat. You will find more than lessons learned to win a match. You will find the grit that makes women strong in personality, an overcomer of any obstacle, a force to be reckoned with. These stories dive deep into the lives of women who are making history by not being intimidated. Wrestling is a sport for anyone -- regardless of background, life challenges, socio-economic status, color, size, shape, culture -- or gender."
Or, as Craig Sesker put it to InterMat, "We wanted to make the book real. We did not want to gloss over anything."
"These women really had to persevere over tough challenges on and off the mat."
"We need heroes and heroines to build the sport of wrestling, to help build interest," Sesker continued. "With Afsoon and Tricia Saunders as coaches, women's wrestling will continue to grow. Young women idolize them."
"I think the book will appeal to a broad audience, but especially to women wrestlers of all ages, their parents, and their coaches," said Jamie Moffatt.
"Wrestle Like a Girl" is must reading for those in the wrestling community. Even the most knowledgeable wrestling fans will find the individual athlete profiles and presentations of major wrestling events to be fascinating, chock-full of tales of perseverance and overcoming obstacles that will inspire readers of all ages and backgrounds. The quality of the presentation -- the text, as well as the photos of the athletes -- is top-notch, as one would expect from Craig Sesker and Jamie Moffatt ... making "Wrestle Like a Girl" a valuable addition to any fan's library, especially knowing that all proceeds from the sale of the book go to support women's wrestling.
To order copies of "Wrestle Like a Girl" visit the Wrestle Like a Girl organization's website.
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