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July 2004: Wrestling USA
Magazine
Three Utah National Titles; Nine Utah Wrestler
All-American Finishes at Kids National Championships
Nine Utah wrestlers traveled to Menomonie, Wis., for the
Kids National Freestyle and Greco-Roman Championships held
June 30July 3, 2004, at the Johnson Fieldhouse on the
University of Wisconsin-Stout campus. From that pool of
elite athletes, three national titles were earned, as well
as nine All-American finishes between the two styles.
"This was a great showing for Utah," said Craig LaMont,
Kids Director for USA Wrestling Utah. "It was a long way
to go, which really thinned the numbers of Utahns able to
make the trip so soon after the Western Regional
Championships. It pretty much added up to one tournament
two weeks long with those families going home one or two
days before hitting the road again. That's hard on anyone,
let alone these nine wrestlers ranging from nine to 14
years old. Nontheless, Utah can really be proud about the
state's showing."
Utah wrestlers earned two freestyle national championships
and one national title in Greco-Roman:
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Freestyle National Champion: Carson Kuhn of Sandy, with
Salt Lake City-based Specialized Wrestling Club, Novice
(ages 11 and 12) 65 lbs.
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Greco-Roman National Champion: Jason Chamberlin of
Springville, with Specialized Wrestling Club, Schoolboy
(ages 13 and 14) 100 lbs.
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Freestyle National Champion: Matthew Brown of West Valley
City, with Specialized Wrestling Club, Schoolboy 105 lbs.
All-American finishers included
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Fourth Place Greco-Roman: Brandon George of Riverton, with
Salt Lake City-based Specialized Wrestling Club, Midget
(ages 9 and 10) 60 lbs.
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Second Place Freestyle: Kuhn, Novice 65 lbs.
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Second Place Freestyle: Chamberlin, Schoolboy 100 lbs.
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Fifth Place Greco-Roman: Brown, Schoolboy 105 lbs.
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Second Place Freestyle and Greco-Roman: Matthew
Fairbrother of Murray, Specialized Wrestling Club,
Schoolboy 250 lbs.
Finishing one round short of medaling in both styles was
William Kilpack of Sandy, with Sandy-based Jordan
Freestyle Wrestling, Midget 60 lbs.; and Ryker
Vandertoolen of Sandy, with Specialized Wrestling Club,
Schoolboy 80 lbs. In Greco-Roman, Kilpack's final match
finished in a wrenching one-point loss by decision with a
score of 17-16. Nine-year-old Kilpack was the youngest
Utahn to compete in the tournament.
Finishing one round short of medaling in freestyle was
George, Midget 60 lbs.
Also competing in the Kids National Championships were
Braxton Vandertoolen of Sandy, Novice 60 lbs.; and Kade
Moss, Schoolboy 70 lbs., both with Specialized Wrestling
Club. Moss was forced to withdraw following an elbow
injury in the first round of the Greco-Roman tournament.
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