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