MU Mizzou Wrestler Ben Askren Earns No. 1 Seed at U.S. Olympic Wrestling Trials

bowener · 06-11-2008, 03:30 PM

Pretty cool deal! He is a nice guy too, so its nice to see guys like him do so well. His 'little' brother is ranked 5th for his weight class.

Quote:

Ben Askren Earns No. 1 Seed at U.S. Olympic Wrestling Trials
Three Tiger Grapplers Compete For Spot on Olympic Team

June 11, 2008

Columbia, Mo. -Missouri's two-time National Champion Ben Askren (Hartland, Wis.) was awarded the No. 1 seed in the 74 kg freestyle weight class in preparation for the U.S. Olympic Wrestling Team Trials, June 13-15, Las Vegas, Nev. Joining Askren in the freestyle competition are former Missouri wrestler Matt Pell (Luxemburg, Wis.), seeded sixth in the 84 kg weight class, and current Tiger grappler Maxwell Askren (Hartland, Wis), seeded fifth in the 96 kg bracket.

The trio will compete for a coveted spot on the Olympic team, Sunday, June 15, in the Thomas & Mack Center on the campus of the lace University of Nevada. Wrestling will begin at Noon (CT) with NBCOlympics.com providing a live webcast of the championship finals beginning at 7 p.m. (CT). A two-hour tape delayed broadcast of the event will air Sunday, June 22, at 11 a.m. (CT) on MSNBC.

Askren, a four-time All-American who claimed the 174 pound NCAA Division I Wrestling title his junior (2006) and senior (2007) seasons enters the all-day tournament after taking top honors at the U.S. Nationals, April 26. Askren earned the title after besting Tyrone Lewis (Gator Wrestling Club), 3-0 and 3-2. Lewis enters the tournament as the No. 2 seed. In his last run through the Olympic Trials, 2004, Askren finished fifth in the 84 kg weight class, defeating 2001 World Silver Medalist Brandon Eggum, 6-2.

Two-time All-American Pell is making his first appearance at the Olympic Trials and will face Tyrel Todd (New York Athletic Club), the No. 11 seed, in his opening round match. Pell, a current assistant coach with the UVA wrestling team, finished sixth at the U.S. Nationals. To Pell's name, the former Tiger wrestler finished third at the Pan American Championships in Guatemala City, Guatemala in the summer of 2005. Pell earned All-America honors in 2005 at 184 pounds and 2007 at 165 pounds.

Current junior Maxwell Askren enters the Olympic Trials as the No. 5 seed at 96 kg. Askren earned his first All-America honor after taking seventh in the 197-pound weight class at the 2008 NCAA Division I Wrestling Championships in St. Louis. Five weeks later, Askren finished sixth at the U.S. Nationals. Askren lost the fifth-place match to Damion Hahn (New York Athletic Club), his opening round opponent at the Trials June 15, by a score of 7-0, 3-0. Askren was a member of the 2006 FILA Junior World Team, and wrestled at 211.5 pounds.

Both Askrens will be wrestling for Sunkist Kids and are one of five sets of brothers competing in the Olympic Trials.

Link here.

Rooster · 06-11-2008, 03:32 PM

That's cool.

SPATCH · 06-11-2008, 03:35 PM

he still have that tight ginger fro??

bowener · 06-11-2008, 03:41 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by the_spatula

he still have that tight ginger fro??

I think he grew it back out, yeah.

SPATCH · 06-11-2008, 03:55 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by bowener

I think he grew it back out, yeah.

awesome

Duck Dog · 06-11-2008, 03:47 PM

Moral of the story?

Wait for it.....

Wisconsin has some bad azz wrestlers.

ChiefsFire · 06-11-2008, 03:50 PM

Leave it to a Missouri grad to win a gold medal in a sport that involves men in unitards rolling around on the ground grabbing at each others meat.

Rooster · 06-11-2008, 03:53 PM

Is Iowa still the wrestling power house of the nation?

Duck Dog · 06-11-2008, 03:57 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Rooster

Is Iowa still the wrestling power house of the nation?

Oklahoma State, Minnesota and Iowa. OKS won I believe 4 straight years in the early to mid 2K'S. Iowa won in '08, Minnesota in '07.

bowener · 06-11-2008, 03:58 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ChiefsFire

Leave it to a Missouri grad to win a gold medal in a sport that involves men in unitards rolling around on the ground grabbing at each others meat.

My understanding is he doesnt roll around much. Its more of a 'wham, bam, thank you mam' type of thing. Ive seen him wrestle a few times when I work, and Ive never seen a match of his go past the first period and rarely did I see him go beyond 2 minutes. But yeah, Mizzou seems pretty proud to have the #1 ranked wrestler.

Pitt Gorilla · 06-11-2008, 09:37 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by bowener

My understanding is he doesnt roll around much. Its more of a 'wham, bam, thank you mam' type of thing. Ive seen him wrestle a few times when I work, and Ive never seen a match of his go past the first period and rarely did I see him go beyond 2 minutes. But yeah, Mizzou seems pretty proud to have the #1 ranked wrestler.

Askren is one of the most dominant athletes I've ever seen. When he won the National title a few years ago, he gave interviews where he would challenge his competitors to bring their best match because he didn't like beating someone without effort. He then went in and beat everyone badly. I watched a sequence where he began a move, the other guy countered, Askren countered, the other guy did the same, and Askren made the final adjustment that resulted in a point. This all happened in less than a second. Unreal ability.

Duck Dog · 06-11-2008, 03:59 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ChiefsFire

Leave it to a Missouri grad to win a gold medal in a sport that involves men in unitards rolling around on the ground grabbing at each others meat.

Yeah, because that's what wrestlers do.

Valiant · 06-11-2008, 04:00 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ChiefsFire

Leave it to a Missouri grad to win a gold medal in a sport that involves men in unitards rolling around on the ground grabbing at each others meat.

And the funny thing is it is more of an athletic sport then that gay ass basketball...

**Rausch** · 06-12-2008, 07:54 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ChiefsFire

Leave it to a Missouri grad to win a gold medal in a sport that involves men in unitards rolling around on the ground grabbing at each others meat.

Yeah, all those UFC and Pride guys are homos...

steve_minor · 06-12-2008, 09:35 AM

I live in MN, and have met Jake Deitchler, an 18 yr old who is also going to the Olympic Trials this year. He would be one of the youngest if he qualifies. His goal was the 2012 Olympics, but has worked hard enough to be the #2 seed in this years trials. That is very impressive.

06-11-2008, 03:32 PM	#2
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06-11-2008, 03:35 PM	#3
SPATCH birth of spatch Join Date: May 2008 Casino cash: $10006207	he still have that tight ginger fro??
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06-11-2008, 03:47 PM	#6
Duck Dog Reap the whirlwind Join Date: Aug 2000 Location: Olathe Casino cash: $10004900	Moral of the story? Wait for it..... Wisconsin has some bad azz wrestlers.
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06-11-2008, 03:50 PM	#7
ChiefsFire Eh Join Date: Jan 2004 Location: on top Casino cash: $10004900	Leave it to a Missouri grad to win a gold medal in a sport that involves men in unitards rolling around on the ground grabbing at each others meat. __________________ Rock Chalk Championship.
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06-11-2008, 03:53 PM	#8
Rooster Draft a QB Join Date: Feb 2006 Location: JoCo Casino cash: $9961689	Is Iowa still the wrestling power house of the nation? __________________ When Reno Hightower was a prick he was the best damn quarterback in the history of Kern County.
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06-12-2008, 09:35 AM	#15
steve_minor Starter Join Date: Jun 2001 Location: Minnesota Casino cash: $6515524	I live in MN, and have met Jake Deitchler, an 18 yr old who is also going to the Olympic Trials this year. He would be one of the youngest if he qualifies. His goal was the 2012 Olympics, but has worked hard enough to be the #2 seed in this years trials. That is very impressive.
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