"Once you’re a wrestler, you’re always a wrestler. But, until now, there hasn’t been a way to share this bond throughout your business career."
That quote sums up the idea behind Wrestlers in Business -- a non-profit organization designed for former wrestlers to network and interact with each other in the business world, as well as save the sport.
Wrestlers in Business started as a LinkedIn page in early 2009. Now the group has launched a new website.
Aaron Grossman, one of the founding partners -- and a former wrestler at Miami University in Ohio -- told Jessica Cullin of r USA Wrestling, “I’m an entrepreneur, and a part of an entrepreneur’s group. At the beginning of the down economy, I was looking for support. I’ve considered myself a wrestler for life, and I wanted to connect with other wrestlers. I searched out for wrestlers and their profiles (on LinkedIn) and invited them to join the group,” he said.
Grossman has partnered with Jason Effner, who once wrestled at Cleveland State University. Together, they have created the website, which describes itself as "the destination for networking, employment, advocacy for the sport, and more." The website describes the benefits of joining Wrestlers in Business as networking opportunities with other former wrestlers, posting individual professional profiles online, and participating in events and discussion forums.
What's more, Wrestlers in Business seeks to raise money to support wrestling wherever it can. Effner and Grossman are especially concerned about saving high school and college wrestling programs that are marked for elimination.
Effner and Grossman are also encouraging the establishment of local chapters beyond theirs in Cleveland, where former wrestlers can get together in their own communities.
Membership in Wrestlers in Business costs $60 per year.
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Resources
TheMat.com article: Wrestlers uniting through business
Wrestlers in Business: Official website... LinkedIn page
College Wrestling 101: Links to College Wrestling Examiner articles answering basic questions about wrestling, including rules, scoring, uniforms, more
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