#WomensWednesday: Women’s Nationals participation numbers through roof last weekend in Irving
Photo: Kayla Miracle competing in the U23 World Team Trials. Photo by Wrestling Texas.
The 2019 Women’s Nationals in Irving, Texas, last weekend played host the UWW U15, Cadet, Junior and U23 World Team Trials as well as national championships for the 9U, 12U and 14U age divisions.
In 2018, the Irving Convention Center was home to 728 athletes for Women’s Nationals. This year, that number increased by more than 300 to 1,094 competitors.
It was the first year that the event featured U15 and U23 Trials, giving it a boost in numbers. But even still, participation increased in four of the other five divisions that were held in Irving in 2018.
When looking at just the 9U, 12U, 14U, Cadet and Junior tournaments, numbers went up from 728 to 807.
In 2017 and 2018, the U23 Trials were held alongside Girls Folkstyle Nationals in Oklahoma City. Last year, 121 women entered the tournament. This year, there 144 entrants.
The U15 World Team Trials is a new event as the inaugural U15 World Championships will take place later this summer. 143 young ladies from all over the nation showed out to compete for 10 spots.
Here’s a breakdown of the numbers at the women’s nationals events mentioned above:
2017 | 2018 | 2019 | |
9U/Intermediate | 36 | 24 | 32 |
12U/Novice | 63 | 80 | 96 |
14U/Schoolgirl | 91 | 109 | 122 |
UWW Cadet Women | 257 | 331 | 297 |
UWW Junior Women | 183 | 184 | 260 |
U23 Women | 96 | 121 | 144 |
U15 Women | – | – | 143 |
Total | 726 | 849 | 1094 |
Not only was the weekend successful in numbers but also in talent. The USA put together four tough women’s freestyle World Teams to compete at various age-groups.
Check out the Trials recaps from the weekend!