“THE EXTRA MILE IS NEVER CROWDED”
What does it take to become a State Champion Wrestler?
Above all, it takes discipline, commitment, belief, a great practice partner, and the willingness to do “whatever it takes”.
Discipline is a fundamental building block that every successful wrester will take w/ them for the rest of their lives. Focus on the task at hand, and don’t allow yourself to travel off the planned path to your goal. What are you willing to sacrifice? What are you willing to give up, to call yourself a State Champion? I can’t tell you how many times I missed parties, Spring Breaks, Holidays, etc… so that I could stand on the top and call myself State Champ. Some things are easier to sacrifice then others, but I always remind myself that “the extra mile is never crowded,” and that I needed to do more then anyone else did. The more I sacrificed and the more discipline I showed, the more deserving I felt.
Commitment, by definition, is a pledge to do something in the future; the state of being emotionally impelled. You can’t just set yourself the goal to become State Champion, and hope the pieces fall into place. You have to emotionally and physically commit yourself to becoming a State Champ. I can remember a day in 4th grade class my teacher asked the class to give her a few “words” that we could use for our spelling test that week. I raised my hand and said “Cary Kolat”. Sure enough Cary Kolat was a spelling word for us that week. I watched Cary Kolat become a 4x PA State Champion and my dream was born. Physically committing yourself is much easier said then done, but here is where the true Champions rise to the top. How much are you willing to give physically in the practice room? How often do you push yourself to your breaking point? While at FoxCatcher, Dave Schultz once told us “it’s not a net gain, unless you’ve passed your breaking point.” He was referring to conditioning at the time, and I learned to believe that theory. I made a conscious effort to exhaust myself in EVERY workout.
Belief is the single most important quality you need to become a State Champion. This is the mental battles you deal with day in and day out. It’s imperative that you believe in the system that is in place around you, and of course yourself. Believe in your Coach’s and believe in their guidance. Believe in practice, and believe you are practicing like a State Champion. Believe that you are working harder then any of your opponents. Believe in your conditioning, and believe no one else is pushing themselves past their breaking point more often then you are. I can remember doing late night sprints by myself, outside on an empty football field. I remember hitting the wall and not being able to sprint anymore, so I began shadow wrestling. I was imagining 3rd period of State Finals, and things got intense quick, but after 30 seconds, I threw my arms up in the air and chills ran up and down my spine. My eyes swelled up w/ tears and my body went numb. I became a State Champion on an empty football field that night. Nobody witnessed it, and it was never documented, but I kid you not, I felt those chills, tear’s, and numbness a couple months later when I was crowned State Champion for the first time.
There is no substitute for a great practice partner. You need a practice partner that will challenge you on a daily basis. You need someone good enough to make you pay for your mistakes. I credit most of my success to my practice partner, Nate Wachter. He and I grew up together and became very successful together, because of each other. We consistently tried to outdo one another in practice and in the weight room. Many of the times that I pushed passed my breaking point, was in an attempt to outdo Nate.
The willingness to do whatever it takes has everything to do w/ heart. It has to do w/ the heat of the moment, and finding ways to make things happen for yourself. When your back is against the wall and you’re down in a match, how will you handle yourself? Are you going to pack it in, and take the loss. Or are you going to take the bull by the horns, and find a way to win? My Junior year in High School was the first year I won States, and each of my 4 match’s I won in the final 10 seconds of the match. With 5 returning place finishers, nearly everyone in the weight class felt deserving of the State Title. Each match was a welcomed dog fight, and I was willing to fight tooth and nail, one match at a time, doing whatever it takes, to be the last man standing.
It’s been just over 10 years since I won my 2 State Titles, and not a single day passes that I don’t think about those moments. It is something that I will cherish and remember for the rest of my life. Even to this day, if I close my eyes and allow myself to get into a deep though. I can bring myself back to those moments, and relive the feelings over and over again. There is NOTHING like winning a State Title!
Justin Giovinco
2x PIAA AAA State Champion
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