2021 Midlands Championships to stream exclusively on B1G+, Dec. 29-30, including new women's division

CHICAGO, Ill. – The 58th annual Ken Kraft Midlands Championships, the nation’s premier non-conference wrestling tournament, returns this year on Dec. 29-30 and will be available exclusively on B1G+.


In addition to assembling the top men’s wrestlers from more than 35 teams across the country, the Midlands will also make history this year by adding a women's division. For the first time ever, more than 150 women's wrestlers from 11 different schools will participate in the championships and wrestle on Dec. 30. 


Big Ten Network veteran wrestling broadcasters Shane Sparks and Jim Gibbons will anchor the four sessions on B1G+. For sessions one and two on Dec. 29, B1G+ will feature 10 individual mat cameras as well as a whip-around coverage focused on best action at a given moment. On Dec. 30, B1G+ will once again be home to individual mat cameras for both the men’s and women’s divisions in sessions three and four, along with the whip-around feed.   


For fans interested in streaming the Midlands, more than 40 Big Ten duals this winter and Big Ten wrestling championships coverage it the spring, an annual wrestling pass is available on B1G+ for 15% off ($59.49) when using the code ‘MIDLANDS’. To subscribe, visit www.bigtenplus.com, click on subscribe and choose the wrestling sport pass. After you create a B1G+ account, enter code ‘MIDLANDS’ under the payment details. 


Eight Big Ten teams, including seven ranked in Intermat’s top 25, are scheduled to compete. The list includes No. 1 Iowa, No. 4 Michigan, No. 12 Rutgers, No. 15 Northwestern, No. 16 Wisconsin, No. 17 Illinois, No. 18 Purdue and Indiana. 


Additional 2021 Midlands coverage can be found on the B1G Wrestling Instagram page and Big Ten Network YouTube wrestling page.

Midlands Championships Schedule

Day	Date	Session Coverage	Platform	Time (ET)
Wednesday	Dec. 29	Session 1	B1G+	10:30 a.m.
Wednesday	Dec. 29	Session 2	B1G+	8 p.m..
Thursday	Dec. 30	Session 3	B1G+	Noon
Thursday	Dec. 30	Session 4	B1G+	7 p.m.

About Big Ten Network

A joint venture between the Big Ten Conference and Fox Networks, Big Ten Network is the first internationally distributed network dedicated to covering one of the premier collegiate conferences in the country. With more than 1,700 events across all platforms, the 24/7 network is the ultimate destination for Big Ten fans and alumni across the country, allowing them to see their favorite teams, regardless of where they live. The Fox Sports App is the digital extension of the Big Ten Network, delivering live games and on-demand programming to Big Ten Network customers via the web, smartphones, and tablets. Network events include football, men’s and women’s basketball games, dozens of Big Ten Olympic sports and championship events, studio shows and classic games. Original programming highlights activities and accomplishments of some of the nation’s finest universities, including the Emmy-nominated The Journey. The network is carried by all the major video distributors across the United State and Canada, such as DIRECTV, DISH, Verizon FiOS, AT&T U-Verse, Charter Spectrum, Xfinity, Altice USA, Cox Contour TV, Mediacom, RCN, WOW!, and approximately 300 additional video providers across North America. Big Ten Network is also available through the majority of streaming providers, including DIRECTV Stream, fuboTV, Hulu + Live TV, Sling TV, Vidgo and YouTube TV. For additional information, please visit www.btn.com.