BACK TO ITS ROOTS
EIWA returns to Philly where it began 100 years ago
Philadelphia, with its Liberty Bell and Independence Hall, tells the history of the United States more than any American city. The first U.S. capitol could also lay claim to being the birthplace of American college wrestling.
"When Ben Franklin laid out plans for this university, he included a training facility for wrestling," said Roger Reina, the former history major and long-time wrestling coach at Penn, which was founded in 1740 by Franklin. "So it appeared that while Franklin was developing this country, he also was thinking about wrestling."
This history lesson also suggests that the City of Brotherly Love is the most appropriate location to play host to the 100th Eastern Intercollegiate Wrestling Associa-tion tournament, which is the oldest college wrestling tournament in this country.
Reina believes there are two reasons why the 2004 EIWA tournament, which will be held March 6-7, at The Palestra ("A Gre
ek word meaning a house of wrestling," said Reina.) is special."There are unique aspects of this tournament," said Reina, who competed in four (1981-84) and coached in 17 (since 1987) EIWA tournaments representing Penn. "First, there is the tradition of being the oldest tournament in college wrestling. Second, there is the prestige of the schools that compete in the tournament."
Since 1905, when the first EIWA tournament was also held at Penn’s Weightman Hall, a total of 27 highly academic schools from the states of Pennsylvania, New York, Virginia, Maryland, New Jer-sey, Connecticut, Massachusetts and New Hampshire have competed in the annual event that creates a "great mix of rivalries" according to Reina.
"It’s the biggest tournament of its kind," said Greg Strobel, the head coach at Lehigh, one of 13 teams that will compete in this year’s event. And while many of the teams also are tied to the Ivy League — including Penn and Columbia, which have competed in every EIWA event — this tournament serves as a qualifier for the NCAA tournament.
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