European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - February 06, 1993, Darmstadt, Hesse Me of Snake right of Nurnberg High school wrestles at 103 pounds. Katrina Kuzyszyn is in trouble Here against Victor Kioko of Frankfurt High school. He pinned her Early in the first period of their match in Wiesbaden Germany. Katrina wrestles at 109. Katrina Kuzyszyn and Victor Kioko Circle warily As the match begins. Maricia Knowles wh6 has four pins Over boys works out with teammate James o Neil. Who says it s a Man s sport teen age girls take on More than the opponent when they step on the mat they attack the status quo is photos by Effie Batman by Effie Batman staff writer Elissa Kelly says that most boys Are afraid to wrestle her because they Don t know where to Well that goes both ways. Sometimes i Don t either answers the Petite blonde who wears a size 3 dress at prom time. She competes in the 103-Pound division. It s Winter sports season now though and she s wearing the warm up suit and togs for the Nurnberg Germany High school wrestling team. Katrina Kuzyszyn a 109 Pounder hated the internal bickering when she was on the High school cheers Ealing squad at Wiesbaden Germany. So when the coach for her weight lifting class suggested last season that she might be fit enough for the wrestling team she decided to take him up on it. On this team she says everyone listens to the coach and she has found some genuine team spirit. Now at her matches it s her male teammates who run to the Edge of the mat and cheer her on. Maricia Knowles 129 pounds has a 7-2 Mark with the Mannheim Germany High school wrestling team and says it s Tough enough on her opponents that she beats them. A student with a b average at the Middle school Maricia does t Tell her All male High school opponents that she s Only in the seventh Grade. Melissa katrina and Maricia Are among just a handful of girls on the High school wrestling Mats this season. They Are the exception rather than the Rule according to officials from the department of defense dependents schools in Germany. Officials with the Atlantic and Mediterranean regions said at mid season that no girls were in their programs though a few had wrestled in the past. High school wrestling teams May Field one or two female team members like Melissa in the lighter weight groups but once they get much heavier they generally can t Cope with the boys body strength said Nurnberg s athletic director and Melissa s wrestling coach Ken Waters. This is a Man s sport like one popular to shirt touts girls play volleyball boys play basketball men wrestle Waters said. The coach once asked one of his male football players who played both defensive and offensive end whether he would rather play an entire game or one six minute wrestling match. The All conference ballplayer and heavyweight wrestler told Waters that he d rather play two football games. Wrestling is one of the most demanding tests of an athlete s physical and mental abilities. It twists and strains the Power of even the most Wel conditioned and bends them like a pretzel. Aside from headgear to protect the ears and perhaps a knee support wrestlers use no special equipment. A match consists of three two minute periods and the object is to pin an opponent s shoulders to the mat. A match can also be won by decision. Points Are awarded for moves such As near pins control reversals and escapes. That s six minutes of going All out said Waters adding that it takes at least a month to get a typical teen into shape for his or her first match. It s a shocker when you see a girl on the mat said Darryl Schwartz Wiesbaden s athletic director and katrina s coach. But no girls allowed was never written into the Rule he is the one who first approached katrina about wrestling. Although katrina Kuzyszyn was the aggressor in the match Victor Kioko was the Winner. I would t put anyone put there who was t a real athlete. They would just get beat up and torn apart he said. And that s Why he does t give her any Slack just because she s a girl. I run a real strict disciplined hard conditioned team no matter How conditioned the girls Are they Don t always get a Chance to wrestle because Many male wrestlers refuse to face off with them. Some forfeit. Several boys at a recent meet in Wiesbaden said wrestling a girl is a no win situation. If they win they be Only beaten a girl. If they lose a girl has beaten them. Schwartz recalls How glad he was to meet a coach who had a first year wrestler in katrina s weight class. They la be evenly matched he said he told the other conch. But when it came time for the match the other coach told him that he could t find his wrestler he had disappeared. Both coaches see having girls on the traditionally All to teams As a Chance to develop More Young people As athletes. The More people we put into sports or other activities the better off we Are As a team or a society said Schwartz. He views katrina As a Good team Leader one who always gives her Best and contributes to the total team Effort. If she can go through practice without complaining then they figure they can too he said. The boys on the wrestling teams that have girls seem to agree. Several of the boys on katrina s team said they treated her like one of the Guys. The boys on the teams without girls tend to not like the idea at All. At the Wiesbaden meet members of one All boy team were Quick with catcalls As one girl wrestler approached the mat. Their remarks could easily be classified As the garbage Mouth variety. They commented on her voice her necessity to Wear a Bra and details of her Anatomy. The biggest question was what weight does she wrestle apparently each one hoped he would t have to wrestle a Sam Colby a Frankfurt wrestler in the 109-Pound weight class who took second place last season in the european championships at 103 and is 13-0 this year Sai he did t really like the idea of girls wrestling boys. He would rather see them have a league of their own. If they want to take All the sexist comments i think it s of said Michael Grimes a Ramstein High school senior who wrestles at 129. He had a match with a girl a few weeks earlier. Grimes a third season wrestler said he was nervous at first. She slapped me in the head four times then All i saw was a wrestler he said. He pinned her in the second period. Then he had to take the razing from the Guys on the team who wanted to know Why he had t pinned her in the first period. No special rules apply to the girls and Young women on the teams. The coaches treat them just As they do the boys they said. Girls with Long hair tie it up and Wear a swim Cap but so do boys with Long hair. The girls Wear a sport Bra or extra shirt under the Standard one piece wrestling suit with its skimpy tank top. The regulations say that a referee must be present for weigh ins. It s Normal for some boys to strip to make their weight. They Haven t had any problem yet with a girl making weight said Waters but they might have to work something out with a female Parent since referees Are usually male. When 103-Pounder Melissa told her parents that she wanted to join the team they thought she was kidding continued on it 20 the stars and stripes 19 18 the stars and stripes saturday february 6, 1993
