Danny Felix, Trent Paulson, Jake Varner weigh in, receive draws as World Championships are set to begin
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by Craig Sesker
HERNING, Denmark - Danny Felix, Trent Paulson and Jake Varner have combined to wrestle a grand total of zero matches in World Championships competition.
But the U.S. has a history of first-timers excelling in this event.
U.S. National Freestyle Coach Zeke Jones can see that trend continuing as the seven-day tournament kicks off on Monday at the MesseCenter in Herning. The first session is set for 1 p.m. Monday with the finals scheduled for 7:30 p.m. local time.
"The quality of competition is very good," Jones said. "Our guys are very excited about this tournament - they are ready to get out there and crank it up. Our preparation has been very good. Our guys have high expectations."
Felix, Paulson and Varner each made weight Sunday morning and received their draws for Monday's competition.
The 35-year-old Felix will meet Azerbaijan's Namig Sevdimov in the first round at 55 kg/121 lbs. Sevdimov placed fifth in the Olympics after losing a three-period semifinal battle to eventual Olympic gold medalist Henry Cejudo of the U.S.
World champion Radoslav Velikov of Bulgaria also is on Felix's side of the bracket.
Trent Paulson, a past NCAA champion for Iowa State, will battle Kazakhstan's Leonid Spiridonov in his first match at 66 kg/145.5 lbs. Spiridonov placed fourth at the 2004 Olympics and fifth at the 2008 Olympics.
2008 Olympic silver medalist Andriy Stadnik of Ukraine also is on Paulson's side of the bracket.
Reigning NCAA champion Jake Varner, a senior-to-be at Iowa State, will face Japan's Takao Isokawa at 96 kg/211.5 lbs. It is Isokawa's first World Championships.
Varner is on a tough side of the bracket that also includes Olympic and World champion Khadzhimurat Gatsalov of Russia, World champion George Gogshelidze of Georgia, and World silver medalist Saeid Abrahimi of Iran.
The U.S. freestyle team trained in Germany before arriving in Denmark on Wednesday.
"This is a great group of guys," Jones said. "Off the mat, they're very close and just a fun group of guys to be around. On the mat, they're very serious and focused. They want to be the best."
The format for the tournament has changed this year. The wrestling will run pretty much straight through.
"Wrestling is going to happen fast," Jones said. "You will have a lot of matches in a short period of time. Conditioning will certainly be a big factor. When you get into the third and fourth round, guys will really start to feel it. And the finals are only about two hours after the semifinals, so it will go fast.
But the U.S. has a history of first-timers excelling in this event.
U.S. National Freestyle Coach Zeke Jones can see that trend continuing as the seven-day tournament kicks off on Monday at the MesseCenter in Herning. The first session is set for 1 p.m. Monday with the finals scheduled for 7:30 p.m. local time.
"The quality of competition is very good," Jones said. "Our guys are very excited about this tournament - they are ready to get out there and crank it up. Our preparation has been very good. Our guys have high expectations."
Felix, Paulson and Varner each made weight Sunday morning and received their draws for Monday's competition.
The 35-year-old Felix will meet Azerbaijan's Namig Sevdimov in the first round at 55 kg/121 lbs. Sevdimov placed fifth in the Olympics after losing a three-period semifinal battle to eventual Olympic gold medalist Henry Cejudo of the U.S.
World champion Radoslav Velikov of Bulgaria also is on Felix's side of the bracket.
Trent Paulson, a past NCAA champion for Iowa State, will battle Kazakhstan's Leonid Spiridonov in his first match at 66 kg/145.5 lbs. Spiridonov placed fourth at the 2004 Olympics and fifth at the 2008 Olympics.
2008 Olympic silver medalist Andriy Stadnik of Ukraine also is on Paulson's side of the bracket.
Reigning NCAA champion Jake Varner, a senior-to-be at Iowa State, will face Japan's Takao Isokawa at 96 kg/211.5 lbs. It is Isokawa's first World Championships.
Varner is on a tough side of the bracket that also includes Olympic and World champion Khadzhimurat Gatsalov of Russia, World champion George Gogshelidze of Georgia, and World silver medalist Saeid Abrahimi of Iran.
The U.S. freestyle team trained in Germany before arriving in Denmark on Wednesday.
"This is a great group of guys," Jones said. "Off the mat, they're very close and just a fun group of guys to be around. On the mat, they're very serious and focused. They want to be the best."
The format for the tournament has changed this year. The wrestling will run pretty much straight through.
"Wrestling is going to happen fast," Jones said. "You will have a lot of matches in a short period of time. Conditioning will certainly be a big factor. When you get into the third and fourth round, guys will really start to feel it. And the finals are only about two hours after the semifinals, so it will go fast.
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