Abbott Blog: With no Fargo in 2020, let’s celebrate the first 49 years of Junior Nationals!

Photo of the USMC Junior and Cadet Nationals in the Fargodome courtesy of FargoMoorhead.org


A large part of the wrestling community was expected to either be in Fargo, N.D. today, or would be on the way there. COVID-19 has brought our sport and the world to a screeching halt. One of the victims of the pandemic is the annual USMC Junior and 16U Nationals in the Fargodome, which was ultimately cancelled on May 27.


Today was supposed to be the final set-up day, plus registration, medical checks and weigh-ins for 16U men’s freestyle and 16U women’s freestyle. The raised platform would have been set up, with mats all over the floor of the Fargodome. Brackets would be finalized and posted. Competition was scheduled to kick off tomorrow promptly at 9:00 a.m.


This year was set to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the Junior Nationals portion of the event. It has been 50 years, a full half-century of great high school wrestlers battling for national championships and All-American honors in the Olympic styles.


Since we will all be needing our Junior Nationals fix in the upcoming days, I will post one story each day for seven days, the length of the tournament if it were held. These features will be called Junior National Memories. They will be my own personal memories and research about key historical moments at Junior Nationals. I was there in person for many, many great moments and want to share a few.


In my opinion, based upon my experiences, the Junior Nationals was the single most important event in the history of USA Wrestling.


The first Junior Nationals was held in 1971 in Iowa City, Iowa at the University of Iowa. It was held by a fledgling organization, the U.S. Wrestling Federation (USWF), which was not the national governing body of the sport. The Amateur Athletic Union (AAU) was the governing body at the time, and would keep that status until 1983, when USA Wrestling was formed after over a decade of court battles.


The founders of the USWF were dissatisfied with how the AAU ran wrestling, and partnered with the NCAA in forming an alternative group to hold events and build the sport. The USWF had a clear focus on youth wrestling, not just because the Senior-level was owned by the AAU. They put great time and effort into the development of the sport, creating terms like “Fun and Fundamentals” and “Seven Basic Skills.” The success of the Junior Nationals helped build the USWF, which later became the foundation for USA Wrestling.


As a wrestler on Long Island, N.Y., I was a USWF athlete in the off-season, because it was the prominent organization in my community. My mentors and coaches included people like Al Bevilacqua, Sonny Greenhalgh, Mark Faller and many others. If I hadn’t wrestled freestyle and Greco-Roman in the summer, I would never have been a college wrestler, and I certainly would never have stayed in the sport and become part of the USA Wrestling staff.


I participated in the Junior Nationals as a high school senior in 1978, the eighth year of the event. I started returning to the Junior Nationals in either 1983 or 1984, as the Greco-Roman coach for Team Massachusetts. I was hired by USA Wrestling in 1988, and began attending the event as a staff member reporting on the tournament year after year after year.


I can by no means match the 48 Junior Nationals that Hall of Fame announcer Sandy Stevens has attended. She was at the first one, and she would have been there this year to help celebrate the 50th one. I missed a few after joining USA Wrestling because of other assignments, but clearly have attended well over 30 different Junior Nationals. I was in attendance in every city where it has been held – Iowa City, Cedar Falls, Warrensburg, St. Paul and Fargo. It has been a prominent part of my life for decades.


What makes the Junior Nationals so special is that it truly is the best showcase of high school talent in the nation. It always was and continues to be the toughest tournament to win for high school wrestlers, and also the toughest tournament to become an All-American. The wrestling is always exciting to watch. This was the event which made kids want to win one of those USA Wrestling stop-sign trophies.


So many Olympic and World champions and medalists have competed in this tournament, some of them winning Junior titles, and others not able to. The NCAA Championships have been loaded with Junior Nationals alumni. The path from the Junior Nationals podium to the NCAA podium to the Olympic and World podium for men wrestlers is well documented. The progression of Junior National medalist, WCWA medalist and World or Olympic medalist for women wrestlers is also in the history books.


Speaking of Junior Nationals history, anyone who has any interest in this competition must get a hold of the masterpiece written by Jason Bryant of MatTalkOnline about the Junior and Cadet Nationals, called the Cadet and Junior Nationals All-American Almanac. Last year’s version was 187 pages long, with every single stat, record and fact on these events that you can imagine. I will refer to his guide as I complete my memories in the next seven days. Jason has been updating the guide and more information on the newest Almanac will be provided this coming week.


I hope you enjoy these daily updates on Junior Nationals history and memories. Like many of you, I wish I was in Fargo today. Something seems wrong without the Junior and Cadet Nationals as the centerpiece of my summer. I am looking forward to seeing many of you there for the actual 50th Junior Nationals in 2021.