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1
SENATE RESOLUTION

 
2    WHEREAS, The Executive Board of the International Olympic
3Committee has proposed eliminating the sport of wrestling from
4the Summer Olympic Games beginning in 2020; and
 
5    WHEREAS, The proposal remains to be approved or disapproved
6by the full committee at its September 2013 general assembly;
7and
 
8    WHEREAS, Wrestling was one of the original sports of the
9ancient Greek Olympic Games in 708 B.C. and of the first modern
10Olympic Games in 1896; it may be the world's oldest sport; and
 
11    WHEREAS, Wrestling has been a traditional strength of the
12United States Olympic team, with 124 medals having been awarded
13to the United States throughout history; and
 
14    WHEREAS, The sport of wrestling builds great strength, not
15only of body, but also of character, including the virtues of
16self-confidence, self-discipline, courage, and sportsmanship;
17and
 
18    WHEREAS, Wrestling has produced many outstanding national
19leaders, including presidents, United States supreme court
20justices, members of congress, and business and military

 

 

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1leaders, as well as many outstanding leaders in Illinois; and
 
2    WHEREAS, Wrestling provides mainstream opportunities to
3athletes of all physical builds and body sizes, including the
4visually impaired, hearing impaired, and otherwise physically
5challenged student athletes who may not otherwise have the
6opportunity to participate in athletics; and
 
7    WHEREAS, Illinois has the second most high school wrestlers
8of any state in the nation with 17,112 high school boys and
9girls wrestling in the 2011-12 year; the Illinois Kids
10Wrestling Federation, USA Wrestling's state association in
11Illinois, has the largest membership in the nation within USA
12Wrestling, with almost 19,000 members ages 5-14 last year and a
13complete program of events and opportunities for wrestlers of
14all levels in the State; and
 
15    WHEREAS, Many of these young Illinoisians dream of
16representing the United States on the international stage at
17the Olympic Games; Illinois has produced numerous Olympic team
18members including Ellis Coleman, T.C. Dantzler, Jim Gruenwald,
19Joe Williams, Kevin Bracken, Derrick Waldroup, Michial Foy, Rob
20Eiter, Mike Farina, and others plus world medalists and team
21members in all 3 styles; and
 
22    WHEREAS, Illinois is also active in college wrestling, with

 

 

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118 college programs including Division I universities Northern
2Illinois, Northwestern, Southern Illinois University at
3Edwardsville, and the University of Illinois; Division II
4McKendree University; Division III universities Augustana
5College, Elmhurst College, Knox College, North Central
6College, the University of Chicago, Wheaton College, and junior
7college programs Kennedy-King College, Lincoln College, Rend
8Lake College, Triton College, Waubonsee CC, Wilbur Wright
9College, and William Rainey Harper College; former Speaker of
10the House Dennis Hastert of Illinois was a college wrestler at
11Wheaton College and successful high school coach before
12entering public service; and
 
13    WHEREAS, Wrestling is so ingrained in the life and history
14of the United States and the State of Illinois that even the
1516th U.S. president, Abraham Lincoln, was an accomplished
16wrestler; his prowess as a grappler earned him enshrinement in
17the National Wrestling Hall of Fame and he is noted to have
18only one defeat in approximately 300 matches over 12 years;
19therefore, be it
 
20    RESOLVED, BY THE SENATE OF THE NINETY-EIGHTH GENERAL
21ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we request that the
22International Olympic Committee reinstate wrestling as a core
23sport of the Summer Olympic Games and that the United States
24Olympic Committee continue to support wrestling and work

 

 

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1actively toward the reinstatement of Olympic wrestling; and be
2it further
 
3    RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be
4presented to the International Olympic Committee and to the
5United States Olympic Committee.