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BY VAL TSOUTSOURIS
Sports Editor, RTC
Wrestling
The National Federation of State High School Associations Wrestling Rules Committee votes at its annual meeting April 7-9 to allow individual states to choose between 12, 13 or 14 weight classes for both boys and girls wrestling, beginning in the 2023-24 season.
States must select one of three sets (12, 13 or 14) for girls and one of three sets for boys (12, 13 or 14).
Weight classes start at 100 for girls regardless whether a state chooses 12, 13 or 14. Weight classes for boys start at 108 (for 12 classes), 107 (for 13 classes) and 106 (for 14 classes). The top weight will be 285 for all sets of weight classes.
“Previous surveys have indicated a varying number of weight classes that states wanted, so the committee attempted to meet the needs of as many people as possible,” said Elliot Hopkins, NFHS director of sports and student services and liaison to the Wrestling Rules Committee, said in a press release. “We have more and more state associations sponsoring girls wrestling and holding state championships for girls, so the committee believed it was time to establish uniform weight classifications for girls. The recommended weights were established based upon more than 215,000 assessments from the National Wrestling Coaches Association. We are excited about these changes to weight classes in high school wrestling as we believe it will provide more opportunities for male and female student-athletes to be involved in this great sport.”
The NFHS also changed the maximum number of matches a wrestler can wrestle in one day from five to six. That rule comes into effect next season.
