When the 2017-18 high school wrestling season kicks off, wrestlers will have something they’ve never had before: a choice in uniforms. A rule change approved by the National Federation of State High School Associations (NFHS) Wrestling Rules Committee means that singlets are no longer required for competition.
High school grapplers who prefer the classic wrestling singlet can still choose to wear one, but they’ll also have the choice to wear a two-piece wresting uniform comprised of compression shorts or shorts designed for wrestling and a form-fitted compression shirt.
The move is being applauded by many long-time wrestling coaches as a move that could help to grow the sport nationwide. “One of the first things that most of the students complain about are the singlets,” said Trent Ditto, a wrestling coach from Burlington, KS. “Singlets are such a foreign concept to kids who didn't grow up in the sport. I truly believe that this [new uniform rule] will help grow wrestling in our country.”
Walt Karrenbauer, a veteran high school wrestling coach from the Cedar Rapids, IA area seconded those sentiments adding that “for the past 15 years…the singlet is the number one negative perception that hinders drawing new kids.”
Of course, some wrestling traditionalists are less enthusiastic about the change and point to other causes for declining participation in wrestling, including changing attitudes about the value of competition and concerns about injury. One particularly vocal opponent of the new wrestling uniform rules went so far as to say, “In the next 20 years there won't be a single NCAA champion who took up wrestling because he didn't have to wear a singlet.”
Time will tell whether two-piece uniforms will play a part in reversing the decline of participation in wrestling or whether an NCAA champion will ever be crowned from among athletes who wouldn’t have otherwise participated, but if a simple change in uniform means more kids participate in a sport that emphasizes hard work and self reliance, how can that be a bad thing?