March 31, 2020 – With unanimous support of the USA Wrestling COVID-19 Advisory Committee, USA Wrestling has suspended all sanctioned events and national events through May 10.
This is an extension of a previous suspension of activities announced on March 16, which discontinued sanctioned events through April 6 and postponed or canceled national events through April 20.
For USA Wrestling, our number one priority is always the safety of our athletes and their families, all our members, our national staff and the entire U.S. wrestling community.
This decision aligns USA Wrestling with the U.S. Center for Disease Control’s guidance from March 16 that no gatherings of 50 or more people take place for the following eight weeks.
The USA Wrestling COVID-19 Advisory Committee includes Dr. Tom Price, a physician who is past U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services and past member of Congress; Dr. Bernard Feldman, UWW Medical Commission member and Hall of Fame wrestling physician; and John Bardis, past U.S. Assistant Secretary of Health and Human Services, and a longtime USA Wrestling leader who has a successful career in the medical industry.
Also included on the COVID-19 Advisory Committee calls are USA Wrestling President Bruce Baumgartner, Executive Director Rich Bender and all of USA Wrestling’s staff directors, so they can communicate directly to their constituent groups.
In addition to the seven USA Wrestling National and Regional events postponed in March and April, three additional events have been postponed:
o Northeast Regional Championships, Manalapan, N.J. – May 1-3, 2020
o USA Wrestling Women’s National Championships, Irving, Texas – May 8-10, 2020
o U.S. Beach and Belt National Championships, Carolina Beach, N.C.– May 8-9, 2020
There are many things that USA Wrestling members can do in the short term. USA Wrestling has launched TheMat.tv, an expanded video portal, as well as a COVID-19 section on its website TheMat.com with other resources. Many state associations and clubs are having online practices. Many of USA Wrestling’s partner organizations are also providing programs and materials. In-home training, cross training and running are also great ideas as allowed by local government and health authorities.
USA Wrestling is monitoring this situation daily. Please understand that this situation is fluid, and there may be further changes to this and other USA Wrestling policies based on national and local government regulations and advice from medical experts, including the Center for Disease Control, and the World Health Organization, and USA Wrestling’s COVID-19 Advisory Committee. Additionally, USA Wrestling advises all of its members to refer to their state and local health agencies for guidance about the COVID-19 situation in their area.
USA Wrestling has been, and will continue to meet regularly with state leaders, National Team athletes and others to inform and support them, as well as receive their input.
USA Wrestling has pledged to increase its direct communication with its members moving forward, including opportunities to receive information directly from members of the COVID-19 Advisory Committee.
USA Wrestling is updating a page on its website solely devoted to COVID-19 at https://www.teamusa.org/USA-Wrestling/Features/2020/March/14/COVID-19-Special-Section. This page includes links to resources for the wrestling community, as well as lists of statements, press releases and articles that will update and educate all members about the COVID-19 pandemic.