Wrestling… During a Pandemic?

When the pandemic began in California in March 2020, wrestling was put on hold. Coach Emilio Saavedra had to get creative to keep his wrestlers practicing.

“We actually held zoom practices, virtual practices,” said Saavedra.

Tournaments held outside of California through organizations like U.S.A Wrestling, Newman Wrestling, and Iron Man Events allowed the team to continue to travel and compete. To stay healthy, they practiced safe social distancing when possible and wore masks.

In October, local restrictions started to lift in the Central Valley. Saavedra was able to coach a limited number of wrestlers in person.

“We’ve adapted to do certain things, like training in a lot smaller sessions, like kind of like pods I guess you could say,” said Saavedra.

The staff and wrestlers sanitize the mats before and after each session. Saavedra is confident his team is adapting well. The parents of his wrestlers are also very confident that they’re going about this in a safe manner.

“We feel comfortable and we feel safe. While we’ve been doing this she has been tested for Covid and she’s still been testing negative,” said Rademes Garcia, whose daughter wrestles for Saavedra.

Whether that was through online Zoom meetings or in their small pods in the wrestling room, they’ve found a way to continue to stay in shape and compete.