No. 1 Senior women Velte and Francis to try out for the U23 World Team, seeking another chance for a medal
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by Gary Abbott, USA Wrestling
Photos of Mallory Velte (left) and Victoria Francis (right) at the 2017 Senior World Championships by Tony Rotundo, Wrestlers Are Warriors.
When United World Wrestling announced the creation of a new U23 World Championships for 2017, it provided another opportunity for wrestlers to win a World Championships gold medal. The age group, which features 18-23 year olds, has been a popular division in Europe, and has now been extended to the rest of the world.
In the United States, this age group includes college wrestlers, as well as athletes who may have already graduated college, or those who are competing in the military. It could also include some talented high school athletes. This is a six-year spread, which encompasses a ton of talented wrestlers who compete in all three Olympic disciplines. That opens a lot of new opportunities.
The new age division features many athletes who are already competing at a very high level at the Senior level, including numerous members of the U.S. Senior National Team in all three styles. The U23 World Team Trials will be in Rochester, Minn., Oct. 6-8.
Among the National Team members planning to try out for the U23 World Team in women’s freestyle are a pair of No. 1 athletes who wrestled at the Senior World Championships in Paris, Mallory Velte at 63 kg/138.75 lbs. and Victoria Francis at 75 kg/165 lbs. Both were competing in their first Senior Worlds.
Each fell short of their goals in Paris, and both have specific takeaways from their performance there.
Velte dropped her first match to veteran Blessing Oborududu of Nigeria. Oborududu did not pull Velte back into repechage. Velte has identified some things to work on based upon the Senior Worlds.
“Mostly, it’s about winning those close matches in ways maybe I don’t want to. In my match against Nigeria, she was giving me a counter offense, go-behind match which isn’t my favorite. It is those kind of matches I will have to wrestle and win to have success on the Senior level,” she said.
Francis also was beaten in her opening match by Gulmaral Yerkebayeva of Kazakhstan and did not get to come back in repechage.
“I am on the right path. That is for sure. I know I didn’t win that match. Looking back on the match, I could see that there are things I was working on that were starting to show. It showed me that I just have to put in those reps in practice. It did shine a light on some new areas that need working on, or things we didn’t think were too much of an issue. I have already started working on them in practice and I am already starting to feel better about those different situations,” she said
Velte returned from Paris to attend her senior year at Simon Fraser University, where she is a two-time WCWA national champion. The U23 World Championships will become her focus for training this fall.
“If at the Senior Worlds, I end up with a medal or do well, or end up with an injury, then I wouldn’t do the U23s. Since I wasn’t happy with my performance, this is another chance to compete on a world stage, and hopefully have better results,” she said.
Being back in college with her SFU coaches and teammates played an important role in deciding to attend the U23 Trials and seek another shot at a World medal.
“I wasn’t sure how I would feel about wrestling. Coming back to Vancouver to a super-motivated women’s team kind of got me excited to wrestle again. So I will come back a little sooner than I was planning to, but by my own choice,” said Velte.
Francis did not even have the U23 events circled on her calendar, as there was some confusion about the new age group.
“I didn’t even know I was qualified for U23. I thought I had to be under 23. One of the coaches told me that I was eligible, as long as I was born in 1994. So, yes, we will do this. It was a change of plans, but it definitely doesn’t hurt the process with me this year. I had plenty of time off and spent time with family and my husband. It was a quicker turnaround than I expected,” said Francis.
She sees the U23 Trials and the U23 Worlds as a great opportunity to continue her improvement and make her mark on the World scene.
“I didn’t complete goals that I wanted to at the Senior Worlds. With this new age-group level we have available to us, I figured why not? Right now, I am at the top of the country at the Senior level, so I figured I should be able to win the U23 Trials coming up and try to get a World medal elsewhere. It is a good opportunity for me, a stepping stone between the Junior and college level to the Senior level. It is a good time to compete and work on some things I have been doing in training,” said Francis.
Normally, there are no Trials events or World competitions in the fall, which traditionally has been a time for Senior athletes to take a break. Both Velte and Francis feel good about getting involved right now, in spite of other things going on in their lives.
Velte will have to train and compete during her fall semester of classes, something that works well in her world. Juggling school while preparing for high-level wrestling is something she has learned to master.
“It is getting easier if anything. I am getting used to managing my course load and communicating with all my coaches to make a schedule that makes sense. I like being in school and wrestling. It is nice to have something else happening in my life besides wrestling. I don’t think that will change next year, when I am thinking about going to grad school. They complement each other,” she said.
Francis got married this summer to Jacob Weiss, who serves in the military and is living in Augusta, Ga., stationed at Fort Gordon. Victoria continues to train in Colorado Springs at the U.S. Olympic Training Center, where she moved after completing her college career at Lindenwood in 2016. They are not currently together on a daily basis, something which most newlywed couples do not have to deal with.
“It is difficult because he lives so far away. We are both very busy human beings. It helps that we are busy. It’s not like I am just sitting in Colorado working a desk job. I am chasing my dreams and he is doing exactly what he wants. We are both very supportive of each other’s dreams. He will be with me in Rochester, Minn. to cheer me on at U23 Trials. I am excited to be at his competitions and to support him at whatever he is doing. Those things help a lot. It is difficult, but I wouldn’t have it any other way right now,” said Francis
This is a short-term situation for Victoria, but something she knew was in the plans for both of them.
“If I had a training opportunity like I do here in Colorado Springs down in Augusta, I would move in a heartbeat. It is just not there right now. The time is coming. We will be moving in together within the next year. I am excited for that. Things will be coming together soon,” she said.
Although improvements are very important to both of them, winning a medal (specifically a gold) is paramount to both Velte and Francis as they train for a new opportunity. Both previously competed on a U.S. Junior World Team, with Francis winning a bronze medal in 2014 and Velte placing fifth in 2015.
“Any chance you have to go win a medal, it is huge. It doesn’t matter the age group. They are all gold medals in my book. A Senior World medal for me would be higher than the Junior Worlds. It is important to me because it helps me get onto a competitive level. The Senior Worlds were competitive for me and I didn’t get to wrestle more than one match. It is good to have stepping stones, where you are upping the competitive level. It is important for me to win it,” said Francis.
“It is very exciting to be able to contend for a medal. I know a few people who might end up in my weight, but I don’t know much about who might come from around the world. It will be exciting to get some new foreign opponents, maybe some people who are on the come-up, like some Junior World medalists from the past year. I think it is going to be a tournament to try to win which is definitely feasible,” said Velte.
Francis will be looking at more than just victory when she evaluates what a good performance will be at the U23 Trials and the U23 Worlds.
“A good performance for me would be obviously winning matches, but also pushing myself, putting myself in situations I have been working recently and basically showing improvement in things I have been lacking in past competitions. We have been doing stats on my matches and can see where I am falling and what I do well. I don’t have to tech everybody or pin everybody. As long as I get to work on techniques and situations I have been working on, I will be very happy,” said Francis.
Neither is overlooking the fact that they have to win the U23 Trials in order to make the U.S. team that will compete in Poland in November. Both feel confident that they can win the Trials in Rochester based upon their recent performance against domestic opponents. They see this new age group as a chance to improve themselves right now, and build towards even more success on the Senior level in the future.
Velte and Francis were members of a very young 2017 U.S. Senior World Team which placed second at the World Championships in Paris. They are looking to be part of a very strong U.S. women’s program which has set some very high goals for this Olympic four-year cycle.
“We definitely have an opportunity to win the Worlds. It was a building year for Japan, but it was a building year for us too. We will see how it goes, but we have a lot of talent. Even in the age groups, we have a lot of really good Juniors and Cadets coming up. It will be interesting to see how it goes with the new weight classes,” said Velte.
“I am so excited to see the future of U.S. women’s wrestling. We were right there this year. Looking at my team, there are several girls we know should have done better. It’s not that we aren’t working hard. I know we have more potential, including myself. We are all capable of medals on this team. It is going to come. It will be there very soon,” said Francis.
The U23 World Team Trials will be held in Rochester, Minn., Oct. 6-8 and will be broadcast live on TrackCast. Wrestlers in all three Olympic disciplines, born between 1994 and 1999 are eligible to compete. The USA is looking to have a great Trials event and put together strong teams in all of the styles. There is still time to register for the U23 World Team Trials.
Click here for event website and registration for U23 Trials.
When United World Wrestling announced the creation of a new U23 World Championships for 2017, it provided another opportunity for wrestlers to win a World Championships gold medal. The age group, which features 18-23 year olds, has been a popular division in Europe, and has now been extended to the rest of the world.
In the United States, this age group includes college wrestlers, as well as athletes who may have already graduated college, or those who are competing in the military. It could also include some talented high school athletes. This is a six-year spread, which encompasses a ton of talented wrestlers who compete in all three Olympic disciplines. That opens a lot of new opportunities.
The new age division features many athletes who are already competing at a very high level at the Senior level, including numerous members of the U.S. Senior National Team in all three styles. The U23 World Team Trials will be in Rochester, Minn., Oct. 6-8.
Among the National Team members planning to try out for the U23 World Team in women’s freestyle are a pair of No. 1 athletes who wrestled at the Senior World Championships in Paris, Mallory Velte at 63 kg/138.75 lbs. and Victoria Francis at 75 kg/165 lbs. Both were competing in their first Senior Worlds.
Each fell short of their goals in Paris, and both have specific takeaways from their performance there.
Velte dropped her first match to veteran Blessing Oborududu of Nigeria. Oborududu did not pull Velte back into repechage. Velte has identified some things to work on based upon the Senior Worlds.
“Mostly, it’s about winning those close matches in ways maybe I don’t want to. In my match against Nigeria, she was giving me a counter offense, go-behind match which isn’t my favorite. It is those kind of matches I will have to wrestle and win to have success on the Senior level,” she said.
Francis also was beaten in her opening match by Gulmaral Yerkebayeva of Kazakhstan and did not get to come back in repechage.
“I am on the right path. That is for sure. I know I didn’t win that match. Looking back on the match, I could see that there are things I was working on that were starting to show. It showed me that I just have to put in those reps in practice. It did shine a light on some new areas that need working on, or things we didn’t think were too much of an issue. I have already started working on them in practice and I am already starting to feel better about those different situations,” she said
Velte returned from Paris to attend her senior year at Simon Fraser University, where she is a two-time WCWA national champion. The U23 World Championships will become her focus for training this fall.
“If at the Senior Worlds, I end up with a medal or do well, or end up with an injury, then I wouldn’t do the U23s. Since I wasn’t happy with my performance, this is another chance to compete on a world stage, and hopefully have better results,” she said.
Being back in college with her SFU coaches and teammates played an important role in deciding to attend the U23 Trials and seek another shot at a World medal.
“I wasn’t sure how I would feel about wrestling. Coming back to Vancouver to a super-motivated women’s team kind of got me excited to wrestle again. So I will come back a little sooner than I was planning to, but by my own choice,” said Velte.
Francis did not even have the U23 events circled on her calendar, as there was some confusion about the new age group.
“I didn’t even know I was qualified for U23. I thought I had to be under 23. One of the coaches told me that I was eligible, as long as I was born in 1994. So, yes, we will do this. It was a change of plans, but it definitely doesn’t hurt the process with me this year. I had plenty of time off and spent time with family and my husband. It was a quicker turnaround than I expected,” said Francis.
She sees the U23 Trials and the U23 Worlds as a great opportunity to continue her improvement and make her mark on the World scene.
“I didn’t complete goals that I wanted to at the Senior Worlds. With this new age-group level we have available to us, I figured why not? Right now, I am at the top of the country at the Senior level, so I figured I should be able to win the U23 Trials coming up and try to get a World medal elsewhere. It is a good opportunity for me, a stepping stone between the Junior and college level to the Senior level. It is a good time to compete and work on some things I have been doing in training,” said Francis.
Normally, there are no Trials events or World competitions in the fall, which traditionally has been a time for Senior athletes to take a break. Both Velte and Francis feel good about getting involved right now, in spite of other things going on in their lives.
Velte will have to train and compete during her fall semester of classes, something that works well in her world. Juggling school while preparing for high-level wrestling is something she has learned to master.
“It is getting easier if anything. I am getting used to managing my course load and communicating with all my coaches to make a schedule that makes sense. I like being in school and wrestling. It is nice to have something else happening in my life besides wrestling. I don’t think that will change next year, when I am thinking about going to grad school. They complement each other,” she said.
Francis got married this summer to Jacob Weiss, who serves in the military and is living in Augusta, Ga., stationed at Fort Gordon. Victoria continues to train in Colorado Springs at the U.S. Olympic Training Center, where she moved after completing her college career at Lindenwood in 2016. They are not currently together on a daily basis, something which most newlywed couples do not have to deal with.
“It is difficult because he lives so far away. We are both very busy human beings. It helps that we are busy. It’s not like I am just sitting in Colorado working a desk job. I am chasing my dreams and he is doing exactly what he wants. We are both very supportive of each other’s dreams. He will be with me in Rochester, Minn. to cheer me on at U23 Trials. I am excited to be at his competitions and to support him at whatever he is doing. Those things help a lot. It is difficult, but I wouldn’t have it any other way right now,” said Francis
This is a short-term situation for Victoria, but something she knew was in the plans for both of them.
“If I had a training opportunity like I do here in Colorado Springs down in Augusta, I would move in a heartbeat. It is just not there right now. The time is coming. We will be moving in together within the next year. I am excited for that. Things will be coming together soon,” she said.
Although improvements are very important to both of them, winning a medal (specifically a gold) is paramount to both Velte and Francis as they train for a new opportunity. Both previously competed on a U.S. Junior World Team, with Francis winning a bronze medal in 2014 and Velte placing fifth in 2015.
“Any chance you have to go win a medal, it is huge. It doesn’t matter the age group. They are all gold medals in my book. A Senior World medal for me would be higher than the Junior Worlds. It is important to me because it helps me get onto a competitive level. The Senior Worlds were competitive for me and I didn’t get to wrestle more than one match. It is good to have stepping stones, where you are upping the competitive level. It is important for me to win it,” said Francis.
“It is very exciting to be able to contend for a medal. I know a few people who might end up in my weight, but I don’t know much about who might come from around the world. It will be exciting to get some new foreign opponents, maybe some people who are on the come-up, like some Junior World medalists from the past year. I think it is going to be a tournament to try to win which is definitely feasible,” said Velte.
Francis will be looking at more than just victory when she evaluates what a good performance will be at the U23 Trials and the U23 Worlds.
“A good performance for me would be obviously winning matches, but also pushing myself, putting myself in situations I have been working recently and basically showing improvement in things I have been lacking in past competitions. We have been doing stats on my matches and can see where I am falling and what I do well. I don’t have to tech everybody or pin everybody. As long as I get to work on techniques and situations I have been working on, I will be very happy,” said Francis.
Neither is overlooking the fact that they have to win the U23 Trials in order to make the U.S. team that will compete in Poland in November. Both feel confident that they can win the Trials in Rochester based upon their recent performance against domestic opponents. They see this new age group as a chance to improve themselves right now, and build towards even more success on the Senior level in the future.
Velte and Francis were members of a very young 2017 U.S. Senior World Team which placed second at the World Championships in Paris. They are looking to be part of a very strong U.S. women’s program which has set some very high goals for this Olympic four-year cycle.
“We definitely have an opportunity to win the Worlds. It was a building year for Japan, but it was a building year for us too. We will see how it goes, but we have a lot of talent. Even in the age groups, we have a lot of really good Juniors and Cadets coming up. It will be interesting to see how it goes with the new weight classes,” said Velte.
“I am so excited to see the future of U.S. women’s wrestling. We were right there this year. Looking at my team, there are several girls we know should have done better. It’s not that we aren’t working hard. I know we have more potential, including myself. We are all capable of medals on this team. It is going to come. It will be there very soon,” said Francis.
The U23 World Team Trials will be held in Rochester, Minn., Oct. 6-8 and will be broadcast live on TrackCast. Wrestlers in all three Olympic disciplines, born between 1994 and 1999 are eligible to compete. The USA is looking to have a great Trials event and put together strong teams in all of the styles. There is still time to register for the U23 World Team Trials.
Click here for event website and registration for U23 Trials.
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