Dear Wrestling Enthusiasts,

My name is Bart Freidenberg and I would like to take this opportunity to introduce you to a wrestling tournament here in Columbus, OH. The Ohio Tournament of Champions is the largest one-day amateur wrestling tournament in the world.
This April 24, we are expecting 3500 entries to compete for top honors in 100 various age/weight categories. Wrestlers competing will come from 30+ states. This year’s event will be our 12th and recently, the tournament was also accorded the honor of being named “top national youth wrestling tournament” in the country.
The event is run at the Columbus Convention Center on 30 full-size mats, (all under one roof) and is double elimination. Weights are assigned certain mats, so that wrestlers will compete on the same mat throughout the tournament. The tournament also uses bout numbers as means of staging. These bout numbers are displayed on the electronic scoreboards at each mat.
While the majority of those competing naturally come from Ohio (1100-1200 wrestlers), we do draw more than 65% from outside the state, with Pennsylvania (600-700 wrestlers) and New York (300-400 wrestlers) leading the way. Michigan and New Jersey also generally have close to 200 of their top wrestlers competing as well.
We have had few Kansas wrestlers compete in the past and would love to see more attend in the future, as I believe there are a great number of tough youth wrestlers that reside there.
In order to compete in our event a wrestler needs to meet a level of qualification. Those various qualifications can be found on our website (www.ohiotofc.com) when you click on Tournament Information on the main page. Most wrestlers qualify by placing in the top three at an official qualifying event. However, there are other ways to qualify as well.
Among these ways are the following exemptions:

Top 6 at Rocky Mountan Nationals - (2003 & 2004)
Top 6 at the USA Kids Nationals (2002 & 2003) - as 2004 event takes place after our deadline
Top 6 at the AAU World Folkstyle (2002 & 2003) - as the 2004 event takes place after our deadline
Top 6 at the Liberty Nationals (2004 & 2003)
Top 6 at the Tulsa Nationals (2004 & 2003)
Top 6 at Reno (2002 & 2003) - as the 2004 event takes place after our deadline
all non-Ohio Cadet & Elite (basically grades 9-12) wrestlers
any wrestler that has placed 1st in a non-qualifying event during the current wrestling season (this does not apply to events conducted specifically for first year wrestlers)

I would be remiss if I did not mention that this event will close out. Once it does, no additional wrestlers will be accepted. Some years we have turned away as many as 800 wrestlers and each year several returning champions/placers get turned down because they do not get entered in time.
Let me also quickly address the issue of our entry fee, which at $55 may cause concern for some of you. Let me assure you that when you consider what it includes, you will come to realize that our event is one of the most economical national events that is run.
First, the $55 applies to the first wrestler in a family only. Additional wrestlers from the same immediate family are only $40 each. There is NO SPECTATOR ADMISSION CHARGE. There is also no fee for coaches/floor passes. Each competitor also receives a free program and souvenir lapel pin. In addition, since the event is only one day, many families need only spend one night at a hotel.
If any of you have any questions, feel free to contact me at bart@ohiotofc.com or at 614-833-5885.

Yours in Wrestling,

Bart Freidenberg, Chairman
Ohio Tournament of Champions

Actually, that doesn't sound out of line to me. I have no problem with the $55.00 if you take the time to read his post, digest what it includes, and compare it to other national tournaments. Take Rollers World of Wrestling as an example. You pay $25 (or $30 for Reno) to enter, if you need another coaches pass its $25, your wife inlaws, whoever pay at least $8.00 or so to get in, $4.00 for a program. My math says Ohio is as economical as Tulsa, Council Bluff, Reno, etc..
You cant compare YOUR tournament to these. Don't know where your from, but I would be hard pressed to beleive your awards are anywhere near what they provide, your facility is not in the $1000's of dollars to use, and what makes the $'s worth paying is that the competition level for those that are looking for it can be found there, not at your local tournament.
I responded because I like to see tournaments made aware of on this site, and if all its going to get in return is negative and unthought out comments, then they will quit providing us with the information. If you dont feel the price is equal to the benefit, dont attend. Personally I feel its right in line with the others.

This tournament is one of the best.

entry fee-$55
11 hour drive and 4 tanks of gas-$250
one night at motel-$80

wrestling tough kids you haven'y wrestled before(NJ,Penn,Ohio)
wrestling 7 matches in one day

PRICELESS

From: Bart Freidenberg, Ohio Tournament of Champions

Note: I received this e-mail from a parent, who lives in the midwest part of the United States, earlier today. I have taken the liberty to change the letter only slightly, so as not to reveal the name of the person who sent this. You will note the changes in {}. This letter was being sent to a fellow club member and copied to me.

"The Ohio Tournament of Champions is the toughest overall tournament {our sons} have been to. I looked at some of the other brackets around them and they were much the same way. I am sure there were brackets that were easier than Tulsa Nationals/USA Nationals, but it is my opinion that this tournament is tougher than either of those tournaments. The reason is that many Pennsylvania and eastern seaboard wrestlers don't travel, and as much as Oklahoma/Iowa/etc. want to think that they are the toughest wrestling states, I don't think they are as proved by the results we see in the summer (and the number of college All-Americans Ohio and Pennsylvania produce).


I absolutely endorse the idea of {our area clubs} sending a large number of kids to this tournament. I think many of our studs/stud parents will have their eyes opened that the world of elite wrestlers is bigger than they think. I know my eyes were opened last April."

A follow up letter also received from the same parent:

Bart,


"What I didn't say, and probably should have, is that your tournament is also one of the best run tournaments I have been to. My kids have placed every time they have went to Tulsa. One placed 7th at your tournament and the other lost right before being in top eight. Now to be fair that was the worst they have wrestled in a long time, but the level of competition required they wrestle at a high level i.e. there was no room for error. {My sons} will be back this year and I am going to try to bring as many {of our area} kids with me that I can. Last year you had {6}, hopefully we can get more there this year.