Building a legacy, movie night at OTC

Building a legacy, movie night at OTC

We have the theater reserved for 7pm Thursday December 3rd 

We are showing a favorite film of mine “I AM”

Park at the Bolder street entrance near the visitors center at the Olympic Training Center

I want to invite the entire Greco program. Current athletes young and old, veteran athletes, USA wrestling staff, coaches, volunteers and anyone who is apart of the wrestling family, or wants to be apart of the Greco program that lives here in Colorado, kids, parents, spouses family members bring them all. 

I may not have everyone’s email so please help me spread the word. Since I am planning this from Baku I will not be making calls so let someone, know about this and join us.

The Greco team is all over the world right now some in Finland and others in Azerbaijan training and competing. We will all be back by the 30th of November. That first week back will be a rest week for all the athletes that have been traveling.

Before me there were some great Greco-Roman US wrestlers. The teams I was on had awesome Greco wrestlers. The generation after me was apart of that amazing team in 2007 that won the world championships in Baku.

The goal is not only to be the best team in the world, it’s to be the best team in the world consistently. To build the legacy of Greco-Roman in this country. To build a program that others want to be apart of athletes, donors, media, sponsors and fans. We are moving in the right direction but there is still a lot of work ahead.

You build a legacy by cultivating the right culture, leadership, expectations, beliefs, mindset, relationships and habits before you ever step on the mat. Culture drives expectations and beliefs; expectations and beliefs drive behavior; behavior drives habits; and habits create this future. 

 

It all starts with building the right culture.

I love the sport of Greco-Roman, not only do I think it’s tougher, and more fun than the other styles of wrestling or MMA. I also think it’s a better product and more exciting, especially when we perform the way we did in Las Vegas at the world championships, fighting for every point and leaving it all on the mat. 

We may not have gotten the results we wanted but the attitude and effort was there. This is something we can build on.

Are you what I'm looking for?

If you have followed my plan to build the best Greco-Roman wrestling nation in the world you know I don’t talk about getting every wrestler in the U.S. to focus on Greco.

I know in this country we have so many great athletes that wrestle. I believe we can become the best wrestling nation in the world with III%.

III% was enough to win the American Revolution. Greco-Roman is like the American Revolution, not everyone believes in the cause. Only 3% of the colonist actively fought the British for a chance to be an independent free nation.

There was another 10% that actively supported the cause. In addition to these revolutionaries there were perhaps another 20% who favored the cause but did little or nothing to support it.

A third of the population sided with England and another third that didn’t give a shit. By the end of the war there were more Americans fighting for the King than were in the field fighting to be free.

History, for good or ill is made by determined minorities.

In this country Greco-Roman is the minority. Everyone is so focused on the folk-style. A style of wrestling that is contested in high school and college that no other nation in the world competes in. Yippee! We are the best folk-style wrestlers in the world. 

I would love to see folk-style eliminated so we can focus on the international styles of wrestling like every other county in the world. I know I’m not the only one who feels this way.

This is not realistic. The powers that be have invested too much in their precious folk-style.

Coaches would have to learn and grow to be able to teach international style and not every coach out there is willing to do that. These are like the men that fought with the King or the ones that don’t give a shit.

I’m not even proposing we eliminate folk-style. What I am proposing is, if you want to win at the international level let the other kids play folk-style and focus on international wrestling. Be a patriot like the III% that fought for this nation’s independence.

A role model of mine, Jesus, lead a team of twelve disciples.

Rather than trying to preach to the greatest number of people, Jesus focused the majority of his effort on a small group of twelve men. Jesus taught his disciples about the Kingdom of God and how they must learn to truly love; "By this all men will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another" (John 13:35).

Jesus intensely taught his twelve closest disciples, he taught so they would be prepared to serve in the Kingdom of God:

"Go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them...and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you" (Matthew 28:19-20). Jesus provided a model for effective ministry. This model can be followed in building the best Greco-Roman team in the world.

In my last blog I wrote about juniors and cadets forgoing opportunities to compete in big folk-style tournaments and instead head overseas to represent the United States. These young athletes have bigger goals than winning a state title or earning a scholarship to wrestle folk-style in college. These young men are dreaming of representing their nation, the greatest nation, USA in the Olympic games, competing for world and Olympic gold.  

I’m looking for the III% of athletes that dream big about representing USA on the biggest athletic stage in the world. I’m also looking for the 10% that support what these young men are doing and I’m looking for my 12 disciples (Coaches) that are willing to serve and build up the III%. We are all blessed with different gifts and different opportunities to serve these young athletes that are brave enough to follow the Greco path and chase their dreams of winning world and Olympic gold.

I’m also looking for 12 Greco disciples, some to be evangelists, teachers and supporters to build up the III% to teach and lead them. The focus of a disciple is always to serve.

If you are willing to be a disciple let me know, I am ready to get you the tools to serve in whatever capacity you are lead to serve.