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Frequently asked questions

Lebanon Mat Club Membership

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Q. How much does it cost to join the Lebanon Mat Club and when is payment due?

A. The annual membership cost is $100.00 and should be paid in full prior to the beginning of the season, November 13th.

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Q. What does an annual membership include?

A. An annual membership includes admittance into team practices, a team shirt and shorts, and paid entry to three local tournaments each year. Membership also includes practices for freestyle and greco competition, at the conclusion of the collegiate/folkstyle season.

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Q. Is membership only for males?

A. Absolutely not! Our memberships are open to males and females. The wrestling community in Oregon strives to promote female wrestling at all levels. Our state is one of the nation's leaders in promoting, establishing, and growing female wrestling.

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Q. Can I enroll more than one wrestler?

A. Sure can! Many of our families have multiple wrestlers within the household. Each wrestler will need a membership and their own form and waiver.

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Q. Why do I need a USA Wrestling card?

A. Not only is a current USA Wrestling card required for entry into tournaments, each wrestler is required, by our national governing body (USA Wrestling), to have a card in order to keep our Club in good standing. It also serves as a secondary insurance for its cardholders.

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Practices

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Q. What should my wrestler wear to practice?

A. Practice attire should include a CLEAN athletic shirt and shorts. Please do not wear denim or clothing with buttons, zippers, clasps, any other attachments that could harm another wrestler or the wrestling mats. CLEAN socks and wrestling shoes are also required. Your wrestler should wear their street shoes from the parking lot to the Mat Room, then take their street shoes off and change into their wrestling shoes once they get to the Mat Room. No one, including parents/guardians, are allowed to wear street shoes in the Mat Room. Please do NOT allow your wrestler to wear previously worn or dirty shirts, shorts, or socks into the Mat Room; this can easily spread infections, despite thorough daily cleaning of the mats.

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Q. How long are practices?

A. Practices for beginners are 1 hour (T & Th 5:30-6:30PM). Practices for advanced are 1 hour and 30 minutes (M & W 5:30-7:00PM).

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Q. Can my wrestler bring food and drinks with them to practice?

A. Wrestlers may bring water, in a sealed container (nothing with straws or an open lid) with them. No other drinks are allowed in the Mat Room, either by wrestlers or parents/guardians. Food is not allowed in the Mat Room by anyone.

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Q. Can I come watch my wrestler(s) at practice?

A. Yes, absolutely! We want to encourage a family environment full of comradery and support. This also gives parents/guardians time to form friendships with one another. However, we ask that parents/guardians allow the coaches to coach without parent/guardian help. We also ask that parents/guardians refrain from allowing their wrestlers to stop practice to interact with them. This does not help wrestlers to prepare for matches and tournaments properly. It also hinders the formation of trust with the coaches and friendships with teammates that we strive to create.

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Q. Can I drop my wrestler off for practice?

A. If your wrestler is in 3rd, 4th, or 5th grade, then yes, you may drop them off and they can go to practice unattended by a parent/guardian. If your wrestler is 5 years old-2nd grade, then no, a parent/guardian needs to attend practice with them.

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Q. Who will my wrestler be practicing with?

A. At practices, our coaching staff tries to make sure your wrestler will be practicing with other members closest to his/her weight/ability.

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Tournaments

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Q. Is my wrestler required to go to tournaments?

A. No, we want our wrestlers to feel comfortable attending tournaments, which is not always the case at first. Please speak with one of the coaches if you would like help determining if your wrestler is ready to wrestle at a tournament.

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Q. How much do tournaments cost?

A. To give back to our families, encourage tournament attendance, and support other mat clubs, the Mat Club pays the entry fees of all members for 3 of our local tournaments, which are attended as a team. The general cost of entry fees for tournaments is between $20 and $25.

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Q. Who will my wrestler wrestle against in tournaments?

A. In tournaments, wrestlers are separated by age, then weight, then ability, as much as is possible.

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Q. What happens in a wrestling match and how is it scored?

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General

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Q. My child is in ___ grade, is it too late to start wrestling?

A. No, it is never too late to start! The Lebanon Mat Club has carefully created a structure of practices designed to support beginner to advanced wrestlers. Many times, wrestlers who are older acquire skills and knowledge more quickly, which allows them to move from beginner practices to advanced practices, as needed.

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Q. What equipment do I need to buy?

A. Wrestlers will need to wear clean shirts, athletic shorts, and socks; most of which wrestlers already own. Wrestling shoes will need to be purchased or acquired. Headgear is an optional purchase that is left to the decision of parents/guardians and their wrestler(s). If your wrestler is planning to attend tournaments, they will be issued a Lebanon Mat Club team singlet in exchange for a $100  deposit. We strongly encourage our wrestlers to wear team singlets to support each other as team and represent our Club at tournaments.

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Q. How do I care for a singlet that has been issued to my wrestler?

A. Wash the singlet after every tournament. DO NOT put the singlet into the dryer; hang it or lay it out to dry. Failure to do so could cause the singlet to warp, shrink, and/or fade. If the singlet is returned in poor condition at the end of the season and needs to be replaced, the singlet deposit will not be returned.

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Q. How dangerous is wrestling?

A. Wrestling is actually one of the safest sports an athlete can compete in, statistically. Practices are monitored closely by trained and certified coaches and volunteers. Live competition matches are even more closely monitored, as the referee is focused only on the two wrestlers. At all levels, wrestling has many rules that are followed in order to create safe practices and matches.

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Q. Are the coaches background checked?

A. Yes! All Lebanon Mat Club coaches are required to complete a comprehensive background check, as part of their USA Wrestling coaching membership. In fact, any volunteer who will be on the mat with our wrestlers is required to complete this background check, as well. USA Wrestling also requires coaches and volunteers to complete an intensive training program, called SafeSport.

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Lebanon Mat Club Philosophies

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Q. Will my wrestler need to "cut weight" or "make weight"?

A. No. The Lebanon Mat Club does not encourage or support their wrestlers purposely changing their weight to compete.

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Q. How competitive is the Lebanon Mat Club?

A. The Lebanon Mat Club has produced numerous state champions at all levels of competition through current and alumni wrestlers, in its more than 40 year history in Lebanon. The Lebanon Mat Club is the foundation of Lebanon Warrior Wrestling, which was established more than 70 years ago, and we strive to instill a deep and lasting love of wrestling that stays with our wrestlers into higher levels of competition within the middle school program and then on to the high school program, with college wrestling being the ultimate goal. Competition is a natural part of wrestling; the importance put on competition is low at the Mat Club level and increases as wrestlers move up through the Lebanon Warrior Wrestling programs.

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