Traveling can be a nerve-wracking concept. This may seem even scarier when you aren’t traveling with family. Three Liberty wrestlers took on this challenge as they went to compete for gold in a completely new environment.
All girls on the wrestling team were given the opportunity to wrestle in the Netherlands. Though only three decided to go: Taylor Cavanh (she/her), 11, Harper Johnson (she/her), 11 and Callum Wu (she/her), 11. Many questioned why these girls even wanted to go across the world just to wrestle.
“I wanted to experience new techniques of wrestling and a whole new culture for sightseeing. I was excited to live through this trip with some of my teammates. This was truly a once-in-a-lifetime trip and nothing would’ve stopped me from experiencing it,” said Johnson.
Although Freestyle wrestling is the same sport in every country, the way that countries do it varies. America and Iowa specifically, have their own ways of doing things that make it harder to get the hang of.
“It was more and less stressful than wrestling in America. They (Netherlands) don’t have a set time or round… they just keep going until they think enough matches have been wrestled,” said Cavanh, “I was also surprised at the quality of wrestlers. I expected tougher competition but I only got two tough matches.”
Wrestling in a whole new country is a very different experience. While many people think it’s too scary, Johnson considered it a wonderful new atmosphere.
“Wrestling in a different country was a blast. I was able to meet so many new people and learn different things, all wrestling-related. Everything was just a little different from wrestling in the U.S.. Every girl wrestles Freestyle, and every guy wrestles Greco-Roman. Here in the U.S., all high schools wrestle folkstyle, which is not done anywhere else in the world,” said Johnson.
Wrestling is a sport that causes anxiety for many. When you want to perform at a high level, it can make you more anxious.
“During the wrestling parts I was stressed about making weight, but that ended up fine. Performance wise I wasn’t super stressed, once I got that first match out of the way I was okay. I definitely didn’t wrestle my best but that’s okay. Having my actual teammates there helped me feel more calm because I knew them,” Cavanh said.
Traveling across the world for sports is an amazing opportunity. These girls gained new experiences and new wrestling skills.
