ILLINIWrestlingBlog

Snyder versus Torres (Cuba) final about to start.

Before Bob Dole bans me for the sketchy meme, I did research it. The original photo was posted to Reddit by a family who was trying to teach their boy to swim. He was having none of it.

I'm sorry, but I'm a Gentleman. Most importantly, though, Contest Rule #7(d) specifically provides: "No employee or family member of an employee of The ILLINI Wrestling Blog & Forum & Beyond may enter said contest."

Snyderman with the tech, moves into the finals.

Don't forget what day it is! Use hashtag #NationalSingletDay or #SingletChallenge on social media with photos/videos of you wearing a Singlet in a unique or hilarious (though safe) setting. You could win a prize package valued at $9.

Berger versus Valencia (Mexico). In first :10 Berger is warned for hands to the face. He points at Valencia apparently blaming him for putting his face on his hand. Berger with takedown and two back points. 4-0, but a challenge. Challenge won. I would've scored it 4-2, but it is now 2-2. Berger with a takedown and three guts. 10-2 USA. Break. Berger takedown, Valencia reversal 12-3. Match should've stopped there at 12-2. Berger with a double for 4. 16-3, challenge requested. (He either got the takedown or a stepout. Match should be over in either case. Challenge lost. 17-3 USA.

Mason Paris on now. Quick takedown and two guts to lead 6-0 against Jamaica. A double and a "Heavyweight Leglace" and it's all over in :58.

Zane Richards is the 8-2 winner in the semifinals. I didn't get to see his first match. He had the toughest opponent so far in Darian Cruz. Two step-outs, a passivity point, a beautiful single leg before Cruz got on the board with a takedown. Zane finished up with another takedown.

Snyder with a pushout, then a go-behind. 3-0 USA. Another pushout. Canadian bad shot = 2 more for USA. Then, a gut wrench. 9-0 USA. A caution and one added for the 10-0 tech.

Kyle Snyder up now versus Canada.

Anthony Valencia for Mexico down early to Brazil. 0-2. Quickly 4-0 for Brazil. Valencia using his Sidakov to pull Brazil twice for two takedowns. 4-4 at the break. Four point double leg for Valencia, then another Sidakov for 2. 10-4. Brazil with a pushout, 10-5 Mexico. Pin after a pancake. Viva Mexico!

Berger up now against Venezuela. Quick ankle grab from Berger. 2-0 USA. Berger with a passivity point. 3-0 USA. Venezuela with a takedown cutting it to 3-2. Venezuela in on another single, but Berger chest wraps him over for two. 5-2 final. My favorite memory of Tyler Berger: Him getting pissed off that he didn't beat IMAR. Delusional, bruh.

The Cuban heavyweight just got pinned from a suplex. Larf.

Mason Paris on the mat now. :10 takedown. He's wrestling the Dominican Republic. Already 8-0 with another takedown and gut wrenches. Four point double-leg makes it a 12-0 tech fall. Couple other observations: First, they have two mats and only one camera, which points only at one mat. That's bad. Maybe Flo doesn't need these guys? Second, the announcer is a damn Scot. I hate Scots. Red noses. Slurred speech. Dark hearts. Most importantly, this Scot is hardly mentioning what's taking place on the other mat. Did Puerto Rico's Darian Cruz win? Don't know. Third, they always show the rules in graphic form. They called it a "pin" when the shoulders were held to the mat for one second. They also called it a "drop." What? Anybody heard of that before?

Use hashtag #NationalSingletDay or #SingletChallenge on social media along with photos or videos of you wearing a Singlet in a unique or hilarious (though safe) setting, and you could win a prize package valued at $9.

I'm trying to be serious here, and you folks are making me larf! I haven't seen a copy of the actual Proclamation yet, but the Mayor's Office was kind enough to email the wording. This is the part I like the best: " ... current and former wrestlers are encouraged to wear their singlets on the mat and off the mat in support of the team." I'm a fan of the Bulls!

I had to look up this meme. Haven’t seen the movie. Haha! Well played. But you’re wrong. It’s happening! Singlets are cool, and National Singlet Day is November 1, 2023. We even have a proclamation from the Mayor of Buffalo, New York to that effect! All we need is for somebody to pick it up. I have received the following instructions from the Office of the Mayor: “It will be on the security guard’s desk in front of the Mayor’s office, on the second floor of City Hall." The problem is that I’m in Myrtle Beach. Are there any Buffalo residents on this board? I have emailed the Buffalo Bulls wrestling coach and their athletic department. Since the Proclamation, in part, touts their program for getting the D1 season rolling, they oughta have a copy. Today's Meme:

If you mean Viktor Sveda, then yes, I remember him quite well. Fantastic wrestler.

There's even more Olympic-style wrestling right around the corner. The wrestling portion of the Pan Am Games starts on Wednesday, November 1 at 9:00 am (Eastern), 8:00 am (Central). There is a free streaming service that will supposedly cover all of the matches. It requires a signup. I've already signed up and tested it out: Flo should give them a call. Here's the link. I've watched a little of the Opening Ceremonies, some volleyball and some handballish-type thing. Video was clear, uninterrupted, and there were English-speaking commentators. Lots of world teamers in the mix, even though this isn't an Olympic qualifier. Of course, I'm most interested in the ILLINI, IRTC and ILLINOIS folk, including Zane, Zac, Kennedy, Kamal and Joe Rau. Still, Kyle Snyder will be adding to his trophy room, and although Nick Lee and Helen Maroulis are scratches, we've now got Nashon Garrett and Xochitl Mota-Pettis to watch. And since the wrestling starts on National Singlet Day:

I love this idea. The World Champion wrestles in a special singlet until a new world champion is crowned. A great marketing idea. Make it part of the award ceremony. Of course, the 11-page UWW singlet guidelines would be even longer! Tim Johnson talks about something similar in the video below. He was discussing the coolest singlets in the B1G, and he mentioned the ILLINI tradition of having a wrestler in the National Finals wear the all-orange singlet. That discussion starts at 3:20 -- My picks of the best B1G singlets: GOLD: ILLINI all-Orange (B1G or National finals) SILVER: ILLINI all-White (with the old school ILLINOIS lettering) BRONZE: OSU all-White BRONZE: Mich all-Yellow My picks for the worst B1G singlets: GOLD: Maryland’s two-piece (looked like a pajama party) SILVER: Wisconsin Camo (Who you sneaking up on?) BRONZE: Purdue & Minnesota (Not much you can do w/crappy colors) BRONZE: Northwestern (Same. Purple and Black. Ugh.) But even an ugly singlet is better than a speedo. Today's meme:

The UWW has very specific tastes when it comes to singlets. In fact, that organization spends 11 pages, including a table of contents, describing what is and is not allowed. This attention to detail is probably because, "The singlet is the standard uniform which is used across all Olympic styles." Don't forget that National Singlet Day is November 1, 2023. Wear your singlet proudly!

Anybody using "NSD" for National Singlet Day is already cool. Bonus Meme:

Brian Smith, head coach at the University of Missouri, offered his opinion on singlets: "There is a lot of peer pressure when they are younger, especially in junior high school. We need kids to think of this as a really cool-looking outfit….” There it is, my friends, laid out plain as can be. There is an unwarranted stigma associated with the singlet. When it should be viewed as the starter kit for a super hero uniform, it is looked down upon by too many. One way to change opinions is to show that wrestlers are comfortable in their skins (and singlets) on National Singlet Day by popping into the local 7-Eleven or McDonald's in yours, grab a soda, talk to the people. Today's Meme:

We fell short in the last couple Pan Ams at that weight. At the 2022 Pan Am Championships at 67 kg, the medals went to Colombia, Brazil, the Dominican Republic and Peru. Most recently, at the 2023 Pan Am Championships, the medals went to Cuba, Chile, Colombia and Ecuador. Only the winner at the 2021 Junior Pan Am Games qualified his country. The winner in that contest was from Cuba.

You may recall that we asked the Mayor of Buffalo to issue an official proclamation making November 1, 2023 “National Singlet Day.” Well, we just heard back from the Office of Mayor Byron W. Brown. They had a very good question and wanted additional information to include in the proclamation. First, their question was, Should the Mayor of Buffalo make a proclamation of any “National” day. I suggested that they were exactly correct. Although it will be National Singlet Day on November 1, perhaps the Mayor should proclaim it “Singlet Day” or “Buffalo Singlet Day.” As for additional information for the proclamation, we noted that the Buffalo Bulls open the D1 wrestling season for everybody on November 1 with a big meet. Our response continued as follows: The day is significant to honor and remember the original Olympic sport: Wrestling. The Singlet is the official apparel of amateur wrestlers of all ages and genders. In fact, the State of New York, in the last two weeks, became the most important engine for the progress of women's high school wrestling in the country. This quote from FloWrestling describes what recently happened: "As far as announcements are concerned, none could be bigger for the future of girls' high school wrestling than the one New York just dropped. The New York State Public High School Athletic Association (NYSPHSAA) tweeted that it approved freestyle wrestling for the Girls Wrestling State Championships." That's big. It is the style of wrestling you see in the Olympics. Every state will eventually follow New York's lead, I believe. So, a proclamation of "Singlet Day" would honor the local Buffalo Bulls team, the sport in general, and the increased opportunities it has to offer women. Now for today's Meme: