For the week prior to the Worlds, the Sooners hosted the Kyrgyzstan wrestling team, who held its pre-competition training camp in Norman at Oklahoma's practice facility, SoonerSports.com reported Thursday.
The Kyrgyzstan wrestlers didn't choose Norman by throwing a dart on a map. Kyrgyzstan coach Ruslan Madzhinov had served as an assistant for three seasons to current Sooner coach Mark Cody when Cody was at the helm at American University in Washington, D.C.
"A month ago I talked to Mark and told him we were going to Las Vegas for the World Championships and we needed a camp," Madzhinov said. "I asked if it was possible that we could have camp with his team and he told me it was no problem. This is a very nice school and he has a very good team, and I'm so happy to be here."
What's more, the Oklahoma wrestling facility is home to one of USA Wrestling's Olympic practice facilities. That proved to be a win-win situation for both the host and visitors. The Kyrgyzstan team gained a training facility to use to prepare for the World Championships here in the U.S., while Sooner wrestlers who have a USA Wrestling Card were allowed to get into the facility to practice and learn from the visiting team.
It wasn't all wrestling, all the time for the Kyrgyzstan mat squad. Their Sooner hosts served up a taste of America by treating their guests to dinner in Norman, then introduced them to American college football at the Oklahoma home opener against University of Akron.
Recommended Comments
There are no comments to display.
Create an account or sign in to comment
You need to be a member in order to leave a comment
Create an account
Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!
Register a new accountSign in
Already have an account? Sign in here.
Sign In Now