The Reminder is making its archives back to 2003 available on our website. Please note that, due to technical limitations, archive articles are presented without the usual formatting.
The most crucial part of wrestling, aside from the athletes themselves, is the mat they wrestle on. And Creighton Community SchoolÕs wrestling team found out just how important having the mat is. Last May the school applied for a grant through the Northern Neighbours Foundation. And just after Christmas, the Kodiaks were looking at their brand new green and white mat. ÒThe mat is the biggest part (of the sport),Ó says wrestling coach Pat MacKenzie. ÒItÕs basically just a singlet and shoes (for the athletes), so itÕs a relatively cheap sport, other than the mat.Ó With that being said, the mat itself costs nearly $9,000, but with with the Northern Neighbours grant as well as a grant from the Saskatchewan Education office, the school needed only $500 for the equipment. ÒThis sport takes the athletes that are slightly independent and puts them together, but they still make a team when they are off the mat,Ó says MacKenzie. The coach explains wrestling is a sport where no one is blamed for things going wrong. ÒThey are on the mat alone and when they are off the mat, there is a really tight bond,Ó he says. As the school received their mat last year, they put it to good use for the Regional tournament they hosted earlier this year. Aside from their own mat, they also borrowed a regulation mat from the Many Faces Education Centre/ Hapnot Collegiate team and from the Frontier College. Without three mats, explained the coach, they would not have been able to host. Jane Robillard, with Creighton Community School, says sharing the schoolÕs mats Òshows good partnership between Flin Flon and Creighton.Ó Three years ago, when the wrestling program began at the school, there were six athletes. Then there were nine. And this year 20 athletes called themselves wrestling Kodiaks. MacKenzie says a large part of that is because of the equipment. ÒThey feel more like wrestlers,Ó he says. ÒThey know no one else is using the mat and itÕs theirs.Ó The mat itself, which comes in five sections, reaches 31Õx31Õ, just a foot larger than the standard size. ÒThe lifespan of the mat, Òsays MacKenzie, Òshould be forever if it is taken care of. ItÕs very easy to fix as long as you fix it right away.Ó
