BY EMILY TEW
Girls Wrestling Coach
Los Alamos High School
Hello, my name is Emily Tew. I am the girls wrestling coach at Los Alamos High School. I am also deeply involved in wrestling at the state level as the NM USA Wrestling Director of Women’s Wrestling. Wrestling has been a large part of my life ever since I picked it up in 7th grade. Back then, there were far less opportunities for women. I competed against boys in middle school and high school. I had the opportunity to wrestle females at only a select few tournaments a year. All that has since changed. Now girls wrestling is a sanctioned high school sport in 36 states. It is currently the only scholastic combat sport for women in the area. There are also over 100 colleges that offer women’s wrestling and scholarships to wrestle at the next level. Opportunities abound and they keep increasing.
My love and passion for wrestling led me to compete at the collegiate level. I was given the opportunity to obtain an education while doing something that I loved. Throughout the process I gained so many lifelong friends through my teammates, coaches, and even rivals. I also earned opportunities to represent the United States at various overseas tournaments. All of this I am so incredibly grateful for, but the most important things that wrestling gave me were the skills I learned along the way. It helped me to hone my work ethic, understand the importance of sacrifice, made me comfortable in uncomfortable situations, and so much more that would take up too much space to list. The discipline that I gained from wrestling has led me to be successful in life. I owe so very much to wrestling, and that is precisely why I pen this letter.
Women’s wrestling is growing across the country. It is a newer sport, and the opportunities increase daily. Your daughters could greatly benefit from all the things that wrestling has to give. Wrestling is not for the faint of heart. It is a challenging sport mentally, physically, and emotionally. It is one of the most intimate sports in which you face an opponent completely alone with only your body and mind as tools. There is no one to rely on but yourself when you compete. Wrestling is very much an individual sport, but there is also a team dynamic to it. The team is with you while preparing for competitions. Your team is there to challenge you in practice and support you in events. The friendships made through tests in the wrestling room can last forever. Wrestling does not forgive, but it does teach you self-defense, gets you in shape, and helps to instill proper nutrition habits. It also challenges you in ways that other sports will not, all the while boosting your self-confidence as you face and eventually overcome obstacles that non-wrestlers will never understand. Furthermore, we live in a relatively easy world; hardships in the developed world are far less than they have been in the past. By putting yourself through the challenges that wrestling offers, you can be annealed through the fire that is the trials of this great sport.
Wrestling is not for everyone, but it is something that I believe everyone should try. I encourage All young people to wrestle. It is no longer a sport just for boys and men. This sport will grow strong, independent, successful women.
For more information about wrestling in Los Alamos, please contact me directly at: e.tew@laschools.net You can also follow the Los Alamos Girls Wrestling team on Facebook at: Los Alamos Girls Wrestling | Los Alamos NM | Facebook
For more information about Women’s wrestling, you can visit: Wrestle Like A Girl The Women’s Collegiate Wrestling Coalition (thewcwc.com).