Iowa City, state score a big one

By The Gazette Editorial Board

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We couldn't agree more with the site choice for the 2012 U.S. Olympic Team Trials for wrestling: Iowa City and the University of Iowa's Carver-Hawkeye Arena.

The university and state's long, nationally recognized tradition of excellence in wrestling at all levels, the intense fan base and strong community and university support make the choice a natural. It's also an exciting opportunity to showcase the university, Iowa City and the Corridor - a chance to show the nation what wrestling and life in Eastern Iowa is all about. And the economic boost that all the visitors and media attention will bring on April 21 to 22, 2012, is certainly welcome, too.

A heavyweight lineup convinced representatives of USA Wrestling and the U.S. Olympic Committee to name Iowa City as host for the trials: UI Athletics Department; the Iowa City/Coralville Area Convention and Visitors Bureau; city leaders from Iowa City, Coralville and North Liberty; and a bevy of world-class wrestling legends, all with ties to Iowa: Dan Gable, Tom Brands, Terry Brands, Lincoln McIlravy and Mike Duroe.

This event is a really big deal in the sports world. It determines who will represent our nation at the Olympics, set for late summer 2012 in London.

It's also a coup for an entire state. Iowa State University, Northern Iowa, many small college and dozens of high school programs produce some of the nation's best wrestling every year. Our state also had another city among the three finalists for the trials site: Council Bluffs. The other was Columbus, Ohio.

This marks the first time the wrestling trials will be in Iowa since USA Wrestling began serving as the national governing body in 1984. Of course, many other major wrestling events have come to our state over the years. Carver-Hawkeye was host to four NCAA Division I national finals. The national Greco-Roman championships were in Iowa City three times. The list goes on.

Hosting the Olympic Trials crowns the heap. We salute the local committee and all those who contributed to landing this prestigious event.