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March
3, 2008: Wrestling USA
Magazine
UtahWrestling.org Turns Four
UtahWrestling.org, recognized or sanctioned by the Utah
Wrestling Coaches Association, USA Wrestling-Utah, the
Junior High Wrestling General Committee and AAU Wrestling
Utah, has now been online for more than four years. In
that time, it has grown to become the source for Utah
wrestling information. Since its inception in October
2003, the site has grown in the number of visitors going
to the site, as well as participation from coaches,
athletes and parents, submitting tournament and/or dual
meet results, letters to the editor, and event dates. In
January 2008, the site had its greatest number of visitors
yet - 18,716 visits. This is a drastic increase from the
12,445 visits from the same month in 2007, not to mention
the massive growth from it's first January, back in 2004,
when it had 2,901 visits. "This year has been a great
experience," said Bill Kilpack, editor of
UtahWrestling.org. "By far, the 2007-2008 high-school
wrestling season has had the most support from coaches,
parents, wrestlers and team managers sending me
information. Each year, the number of people participating
goes up a little, but this past six months or so has shown
a really significant increase. I still remember the coach
who called to scream and swear at me about what a horrible
job I was doing the first year but, now, I have coaches
and parents calling and e-mailing me to thank me and tell
me about how much they use the site. What a great change.
And it's all because of the increased participation from
coaches, parents and athletes. It's not physically
possible for me to be everywhere. So, for this to work, I
had to have help statewide. It's been happening, thus far.
I think that things will only continue to improve." In
addition to providing information for upcoming
tournaments, the site provides results and rankings by the
Utah Wrestling Coaches Association, as well as its own
rankings, for high school, junior high and youth athletes.
Information is posted for wrestling opportunities
nationwide, ranging from the high-school tournament
schedules to junior-high tournaments, to freestyle and
Greco-Roman tournaments, and national tournaments offered
through the various venues and sanctioning bodies around
the country. Local and national media come to the site to
gather information and contact Kilpack for information
about events, programs and athletes. "UtahWrestling.org
is and always will be an open book," Kilpack said. "If
there's an opportunity for Utah athletes out there, I'll
try to make sure that the information is available. Utah
wrestling has a lot to offer. We have quality athletes who
are every bit as qualified and worthy of college
scholarships as any other state in the nation." In
addition to the 66 percent growth in visits from the same
month last year, highlights have included support from the
online wrestling community nationwide. This includes
linking to UtahWrestling.org, as well as being officially
recognized by wrestling governing bodies as a central
communication hub for their organization. The site was
created at the request of the Utah Wrestling Coaches
Association in October 2003, unofficially adopted by USA
Wrestling-Utah in 2004 (followed by official adoption in
2006), supported as the communication hub of the Junior
High Wrestling General Committee in 2005, and recognized
by AAU Wrestling Utah in 2007. In addition to the site's
success, Kilpack has been asked to serve as the Utah
Editor for Wrestling USA Magazine, American Adrenaline
Magazine and Intermat. "It's very gratifying to have the
participation and support of the parents and the athletes
themselves," Kilpack said. "It's amazing to have averaged
about 604 visits a day. Not bad for a sport being cut by
some colleges. It's information like this that can help
the people making those decisions realize that support for
wrestling is stronger than they might have previously
understood. The new program at Utah Valley State College
is a perfect example. That resulted from grassroots
support and an open-minded administration." Wrestling
USA Magazine has been the voice of national high school
wrestling since 1965. For more information, see
www.wrestlingusa.com.
American Adrenaline Magazine started in 2004, and is
dedicated to becoming the national voice of youth
wrestling. For more information, see
www.americanadrenaline.com. Intermat is the official
media Web site of the National Wrestling Coaches
Association. For more information, see
www.InterMatWrestle.com.
Kilpack is editor of UtahWrestling.org, a past AAU
national champion, a seven-time national silver medalist,
an AAU All-American, and earned an alternate position on
the U.S. Pan-Am Team in Greco-Roman. He is Utah Editor for
Wrestling USA Magazine, American Adrenaline Magazine and
Intermat. He is a member of the Board of Directors for USA
Wrestling-Utah, coaches an independent freestyle and
Greco-Roman wrestling program through Salt Lake County
Parks and Recreation, Mountain Top Wrestling Club, and is
co-founder of the Intermountain Champion Series,
established to recognize the greatest athletes in the
Intermountain West. He is also director of AAU Wrestling
Utah. |
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