February 17, 2011...Columbus, OH.......The 19th Ohio Tournament of Champions will be held on April 16, at the Columbus Convention Center, in Columbus, OH. The Ohio TofC was recently named the top youth wrestling tournament of the past decade. Over the past five years, the event has averaged more than 2400 wrestlers, representing 30+states.
While wrestlers competing in the Ohio TofC need to qualify, the event has added several exemptions, which should make it easier for non Ohio wrestlers to qualify (these also apply to Ohio wrestlers as well). Among these are:
---All high school wrestler no longer have to qualify
---Any wrestler that has won a Tournament (other than those conducted specifically for first year wrestlers) during the current season (Oct. 2010-April 2011)
---Any wrestler that has finished top 3 in a league tournament
---Any wrestler that has finished top 6 in any organized State Tournament (on any level) during the 2009-2010 or 2010-2011 season
---Any middle school wrestler that has won 10 matches during his scholastic season, or 15 during the current wrestling season
---Any youth wrestler that has won 15 matches during the current wrestling season
A look at past competitors reveals a long list of some of the top wrestling names in the country: Jon Reader, Troy Nickerson, J. Jaggers, Kyle Dake, Logan Stieber, Hunter Stieber, Lance Palmer, Eric Tannenbaum, Kenny Courts, Dustin Schlatter, C.P. Schlatter, Darrion Caldwell, Alex Meade, Mike Benefiel, Cam Tessari, Chris Phillips, Michael Poeta, Dylan Alton, Andrew Alton, David Taylor, Coleman Scott, Kyle Ott, Roger Kish, Paul Donahoe, Josh Kindig, Hudson Taylor, Matt Hammill, Steve Luke, Ryan Bertin, Tommy Rowlands, Ryan Lange, J.D. Bergman, Jordan Oliver, Mike Pucillo, Mike Miller, Andrew Howe, Jarrod King and many more.
Headlining the list of special guests, at this year's Ohio TofC, is former New England Patriot John Hannah. Hannah, a former national prep champ in wrestling played his college ball at the University of Alabama. He is a member of both the Pro Football Hall of Fame and the College Football Hall of Fame. He is widely considered the top guard in the history of the NFL.
Other guests scheduled to appear include Zachary Gordon, Robert Capron and Grayson Russell. They play the three main kids in the movie "Diary of A Wimpy Kid," Greg Peffley, Rowley Jefferson and Fregley, respectively. With the movie sequel scheduled to be released on March 25, their appearance should prove to be a big hit with kids.
For more information on the Ohio Tournament of Champions, please visit
www.ohiotofc.com.