OLDS — The École Olds High School Spartans wrestling team is gearing up for its first two tournaments of the season, both of which will be held in December.
The first one will be held Dec. 2 and 3 in Calgary.
The second one will occur Dec. 9 and 10 in Wetaskiwin.
Head coach George Grant says that second one is extra special.
“It’s a fantastic tournament," Grant said during an interview with the Albertan. “It’s great for some of the new kids coming in.
“They do a rookie tournament on the Friday and then a regular tournament on the Saturday, so it’s a great opportunity for some of the young kids to really get their feet wet and test themselves in a tournament setting.”
Like other sports, life is returning to normal, now that COVID restrictions appear to be in the rear view mirror, Grant said.
He noted the school had complete football and volleyball seasons so he’s optimistic the same will happen with wrestling.
“Our season is nice and compact,” he said. “It’s almost like a regular season. Last year we had, three tournaments before Nationals.
“This year, we’ll have like, nine tournaments before Nationals, so it’s back to regular scheduled programming.
“So it’s a great opportunity for us to build off of last year’s season and build the program, moving forward and hopefully get more and more kids involved, because I think that’s what a lot of the kids are missing in our community, is just being active.
“Those two or three years of the pandemic shut everything down and there wasn’t much to do.
“I think now that all the sports are up and running, it’s a great opportunity for those kids that aren’t playing on the basketball team or aren’t involved in hockey to get involved in something and work with us.”
Grant said the team’s wrestlers will get a chance to compete in tournaments every month, although January will be light, due to exams.
Then things pick up in earnest.
Grant said the team is scheduled to compete in tournaments every week in February and a couple in March, including Nationals.
“This will be the first time we’ve ever had nationals done before April. Last year, we were into June,” he said.
However, the Spartans won’t be hosting any tournaments this year, due to scheduling problems. Grant is hopeful they can host one next season.
“We’re hoping that we can get ourselves a tournament in here because it’s a great location for it in central Alberta and a lot of teams I’m sure would come from both Calgary and Edmonton to participate in it,” Grant said.
