By Adriana Moreno, staff writer
Wrestling is the sixth most popular sport in the world. It is truly a universal sport with participants in almost every country of the world. The sport of wrestling has come a long way, becoming a more formal and organized representation of the world’s oldest form of competition. These days, traditional and modern forms of wrestling are practiced on every continent and in almost every country.
At Indian Trail High School & Academy, the sport is open to all grades and the season began last month and continues into February. Students from freshman year to senior year participate with the help of coaches.
Jameel Massouh, ITHSA wrestling coach, motivates teammates to try their best at practices and
out on the mat. He has been a coach for four seasons at Indian Trail but practiced the sport practically his whole life and is very passionate about it.
“I love it because you get to see the wrestlers mature and grow. Sort of the same reason I like teac ing, except there’s a competitive nature to wrestling that I enjoy and I think the team does too,” Massouh said.
Cristian Ruiz, a varsity wrestler, is excited for this year’s season at the Trail. He has been wrestling since he was about 13 years old and enjoys the sport.
“I’m excited for this year’s season because it is my senior year,” said Ruiz.
Wrestling is definitely a tough sport. Wrestlers have to believe and have the self-confidence to wrestle their own match, rather than letting the opponent dictate how the match goes. Wrestlers have to be able to handle last minute negativity and self-doubts and master their fears.
“One of my major challenges while wrestling would be just believing in myself before a match,” said Ruiz.
“In wrestling there’s not a lot of excuses, when out on the mat. It’s just you and the other person, so it is easy to see what they have to improve on. It definitely builds a lot of mental toughness,” says Massouh. “Overall I think that we have success as a team when you see the everybody get better and also the team acts more like friends. It is a very rewarding experience.”