The beach behind the Hilton Singer Island Resort will be the site of the first U.S. Beach National Championships. They’re part of a wrestling weekend that also includes national and Pan American championships in Sombo wrestling on Sunday at the North Palm Beach Community Center. Sombo wrestling is similar to judo.
Wrestling on sand is nothing new – people have done it for thousands of years. But “beach wrestling “as an organized sport is relatively new. Saturday’s tournament, sanctioned by USA Wrestling, is the first U.S. national championship in the sport. Some of the winners will go on to the World Beach Wrestling Championships Nov. 1-5 in Antalya, Turkey.
Beach wrestling was created for similar reasons as beach volleyball, to try to expand the popularity of the sport as a whole. FILA, wrestling’s international governing body, announced its sanction of the sport in 2004.
“Somebody got the idea, in their marketing department, that maybe with beaches all around the world, they should get involved in it, “said Mark Scott, director of state services for USA Wrestling.
As in beach volleyball, participants compete in swimsuits, which can be one- or two-piece for women.
Matches are held in a circle with a diameter of 6 meters.
Each match lasts for just one three-minute period and scoring is done by taking an opponent down or pushing him or her out of the ring.
“They made it simple so people could understand the rules, “Scott said.
“It seems to be popular, “Scott said, noting that a tournament in New York this month drew “a couple of thousand people.
“You find a lot of (beachgoers) come over to see what’s going on. People will be out on the beach running – all of a sudden you’ll notice them coming in to see what’s going on.”
Nic Chase of Delray Beach, a senior at Atlantic High, was one of several local wrestlers attending a demonstration of the sport on Wednesday. Never having beach-wrestled before, he wasn’t quite sure what to make of it.
“It’s different, “said Chase, who will wrestle on Saturday in the 211-pound class. “You don’t have traction. It’s going to be like Greco-Roman wrestling – all upper body.
“It’s a lot different than high school.”Wrestling championships
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