Wrestling is something that a lot of people do not really get. This is especially true for people who have never been on a wrestling mat. When you watch wrestling from the outside it can seem weird. The wrestlers are really close to each other. Some people think that wrestling is about being strong or trying to win. For people who really do wrestling it is a lot more than that. Wrestling is much more than being strong or winning matches.
Alex Van Horn, who is a wrestler right now and Coach Jones, who has been coaching wrestling for a long time. What they told was really helpful in understanding why wrestling is so important, to the people who participate in it. Wrestling teaches people a lot of things that have nothing to do with winning or losing. They helped me see what wrestling really means. That is how many people have learned what it takes to succeed in wrestling.
Alex Van Horn said that wrestling is something he got into when he was a kid. He was just looking into it at 
first but the more he did it the more he liked it. The thing about wrestling is that it is really hard. When Alex Van Horn was at practice it was very tough. He had to do a lot of running and exercising which made him very tired. When he was in a match he had to pay attention all the time and try his best.. Wrestling being hard did not make Alex Van Horn want to stop. It actually made him want to do it more. Alex Van Horn became more serious about wrestling because of the challenges.
Wrestling is really important to Alex. But he says that is because wrestling isn’t just a walk in the park. Alex explained that wrestling is hard so wrestlers have to try hard. This sport makes them do more than they think they can do. Wrestling taught Alex how to work hard and it showed him what wrestling can do for him when he does not give up. Alex learned a lot from wrestling that is why wrestling means so much to Alex.
Alex said that sometimes he thought about giving up wrestling. The season is long and he has some tough losses. Like in his varsity event against Freedom High School where he lost all of his matches. It was hard for Alex to balance school and wrestling at the same time. This made him feel very tired and stressed out all the time. “I always questioned why was I even doing this dumb sport” said Alex. There were times when Alex felt like he just could not do it anymore. Quitting seemed like the easy way out. Wrestling taught Alex how to keep going even when things got really tough. Alex thinks that wrestling helped him to become stronger, on the inside. He learned how to deal with his feelings and not give up when things got hard. Wrestling really helped Alex to grow as a person and become stronger mentally and emotionally.
Alex found out that wrestling is not about the sport, it is about life. He learned a lot of things like being disciplined, taking responsibility and being strong when things get tough. When Alex gets on the wrestling mat he knows that it is all up to him. There is no one to help him out he is, on his own. If he wins or loses it is because of how he worked and what he did to get ready. Wrestling also taught Alex that when he loses he should not give up. Instead he should use that loss to make himself better and try harder. Wrestling taught him to keep going and to never stop trying.
Coach Jones has been coaching wrestlers for a long time. Much like his student Alex Coach Jones got into wrestling at the ripe age of 8. He thinks that you really need to love wrestling to be good at it. “Wrestling is very hard on your body and mind,” said Jones. Coach Jones says that wrestling is not something that just anyone can do. “You have to love wrestling to keep going”. Coach Jones believes that if you do not have a passion for wrestling it is hard to stick with it. Coach Jones thinks that wrestling requires a lot of dedication and you have to want to do it.
Coach Jones said that being mentally 
tough is really important for a wrestler. He thinks that being strong and knowing the right moves is good. It is the mindset of the wrestler that really makes a difference. Wrestling is a sport that often puts you in situations that make you feel uncomfortable. It can be hard on your confidence. The wrestlers who do well are the ones who can stay focused on what they want to achieve and keep going even when things get really tough for the wrestler. Coach Jones feels that mental toughness is what sets wrestlers apart from other wrestlers.
He also said that a lot of wrestlers think about quitting at some point because they get hurt, they get really tired or they lose a lot. He is now at a young age of 60 but all those years can add up. Coach Jones thinks that the tough times are when wrestlers really learn and get better. When wrestlers keep going even when things are hard they often become stronger people and they feel more confident and that helps them in other parts of their lives too. Wrestlers like that can handle situations and they become better people because of wrestling.
Coach Jones said that wrestling is not about competition. It teaches you things that you will use for the rest of your life. You learn how to manage your time, be responsible and stay humble. Wrestlers have to balance school work and sports at the time. They have to take responsibility for how they do and learn from the things that go well and the things that do not go well. Coach Jones thinks that the discipline and hard work you learn from wrestling will stay with you even after you are done wrestling. Wrestling teaches you skills, like time management and responsibility. Coach Jones believes that these skills will help wrestlers in the run.
These two experiences are living proof that wrestling is more than just a sport. It’s a way of life that shapes people’s lives. Wrestling has taught both Alex and his coach the importance of perseverance and not giving up even when the sport can get tough. It brought people together and created bonds that last forever. From coach to student they have both shown that wrestling is more than just a sport.
