North Carolina State University Athletics
Our Wolfpack RTC from a Coach’s Perspective
3/29/2021 11:38:00 AM | Wrestling
Editor's Note: Adam Hall joined the NC State Wrestling program for the 2015-16 season. Not only to the Wolfpack coaches serve the current roster, but they are heavily involved with the Senior-lever athletes in the Wolfpack's RTC. As we head toward the U.S. Olympic Team Trials this weekend, here is one perspective about all the work that goes into the job.
Hall: In the summer of 2019, I spent eight days in Colorado Springs with Michael Macchiavello, Tommy Gantt, and Jacob Kasper as they helped Nick Gwiazdowski and other members of the 2019 U.S. Senior World Team prepare for the World Championships. Aside from World Team members and their selected training partners, other athletes and coaches must pay for their room and board, flights, and any additional travel costs. The trip opened my eyes to the resources it takes to help athletes prepare for one of the biggest tournaments of their lives. We lived on the Olympic Training Center's campus and trained multiple times a day in their facilities. We ate at a high-performance dining hall and utilized all resources for lifting and recovery as well in their state-of-the-art strength and conditioning center. A significant part of our Wolfpack RTC's success comes from the outside support we receive from generous donors. Training camps, competitions, and athlete's salaries are all funded by contributions to the RTC. I appreciate our RTC donors even more, especially after having had the opportunity to coach our RTC internationally.
International trips have given our wrestlers a dynamic experience, but comes with high cost. After the U.S. Training Camp, Nick, Mike, Jacob and I spent two weeks overseas. The first week was spent in Germany at the Ramstein Air Force Base for a final team training camp. The second week was spent in Nur-Sultan, Kazakhstan for the World Championships. Ramstein afforded the opportunity to acclimate to a similar time zone before heading to Kazakhstan to compete. We lived in their on-base hotel, practiced in their community recreation center, and had meals catered for specific dietary needs. Again, the respective RTCs of coaches and athletes who were not paid for were responsible for all associated costs. Flights alone, I departed Raleigh for Munich for the training camp, left Munich heading to Nur-Sultan for the World Championships, flew back to Munich after the tournament, then finally returned to Raleigh. That travel plan was not cheap. Fiscal responsibility plays a strong role for each coach, especially in travel planning. However, sometimes we are at liberty of USA Wrestling's plan to maximize the athlete's training schedule. Thus, we must cover costs necessary for whatever transpires on the trip. The trip highlighted the reliance of RTCs on people who love wrestling and want to support athletes' dreams of representing their country on the biggest stage.
Just as opportunities at the highest level happen by key contributors, so does the day-to-day work that is put in behind the scenes. Balancing a successful RTC with a successful college team is no easy task. Our RTC coaching staff of Pat Popolizio, Donnie Vinson, Ed Ruth, and myself works with each athlete individually on what areas they need to improve on and prepare them for competitions. We usually have four to five college practices and RTC practices each a week. Coaching successful teams requires strategic practice and competition planning, good management skills, and an extensive time commitment. Our staff balances our role as evenly as we can for coaching, planning, and competitions. A key focus for our program is development. Development often comes from results in the wrestling room and at competitions. It is well known that off-season work often leads to in-season success. Our ability to take our guys to off-season tournaments and focus our time on making gains is made possible by the support we receive from our donors. They are an integral part of our athletes' successes. RTC donors fund the opportunity to train, compete, and add more world medals to the Wolfpack RTC.
Hall: In the summer of 2019, I spent eight days in Colorado Springs with Michael Macchiavello, Tommy Gantt, and Jacob Kasper as they helped Nick Gwiazdowski and other members of the 2019 U.S. Senior World Team prepare for the World Championships. Aside from World Team members and their selected training partners, other athletes and coaches must pay for their room and board, flights, and any additional travel costs. The trip opened my eyes to the resources it takes to help athletes prepare for one of the biggest tournaments of their lives. We lived on the Olympic Training Center's campus and trained multiple times a day in their facilities. We ate at a high-performance dining hall and utilized all resources for lifting and recovery as well in their state-of-the-art strength and conditioning center. A significant part of our Wolfpack RTC's success comes from the outside support we receive from generous donors. Training camps, competitions, and athlete's salaries are all funded by contributions to the RTC. I appreciate our RTC donors even more, especially after having had the opportunity to coach our RTC internationally.
International trips have given our wrestlers a dynamic experience, but comes with high cost. After the U.S. Training Camp, Nick, Mike, Jacob and I spent two weeks overseas. The first week was spent in Germany at the Ramstein Air Force Base for a final team training camp. The second week was spent in Nur-Sultan, Kazakhstan for the World Championships. Ramstein afforded the opportunity to acclimate to a similar time zone before heading to Kazakhstan to compete. We lived in their on-base hotel, practiced in their community recreation center, and had meals catered for specific dietary needs. Again, the respective RTCs of coaches and athletes who were not paid for were responsible for all associated costs. Flights alone, I departed Raleigh for Munich for the training camp, left Munich heading to Nur-Sultan for the World Championships, flew back to Munich after the tournament, then finally returned to Raleigh. That travel plan was not cheap. Fiscal responsibility plays a strong role for each coach, especially in travel planning. However, sometimes we are at liberty of USA Wrestling's plan to maximize the athlete's training schedule. Thus, we must cover costs necessary for whatever transpires on the trip. The trip highlighted the reliance of RTCs on people who love wrestling and want to support athletes' dreams of representing their country on the biggest stage.
Just as opportunities at the highest level happen by key contributors, so does the day-to-day work that is put in behind the scenes. Balancing a successful RTC with a successful college team is no easy task. Our RTC coaching staff of Pat Popolizio, Donnie Vinson, Ed Ruth, and myself works with each athlete individually on what areas they need to improve on and prepare them for competitions. We usually have four to five college practices and RTC practices each a week. Coaching successful teams requires strategic practice and competition planning, good management skills, and an extensive time commitment. Our staff balances our role as evenly as we can for coaching, planning, and competitions. A key focus for our program is development. Development often comes from results in the wrestling room and at competitions. It is well known that off-season work often leads to in-season success. Our ability to take our guys to off-season tournaments and focus our time on making gains is made possible by the support we receive from our donors. They are an integral part of our athletes' successes. RTC donors fund the opportunity to train, compete, and add more world medals to the Wolfpack RTC.
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