Founder Ciolino made girls wrestling part of club’s diverse membership

Photo: These are some of the young men and women, from around the country, who represented Team Kong United this past year.

By Mike Finn

Anthony Ciolino, the founder and head coach of Team Kong United, the club based out of Long Island, N.Y., but features young wrestlers from all over the country, is also a father of three daughters.

None of them wrestled; perhaps because there were fewer options for girls when they were little or because they simply grew up to excel in lacrosse and soccer … while Ciolino coached Team Kong United to multiple national dual championships, including six NHSCA Nationals.

That was then.

Now, Ciolino, who has actually been coaching for the past 41 years, is getting a chance to coach both girls and boys for Team Kong United, which was started over 20 years ago.

Anthony Ciolino

And this once again was a stellar year for these young people as Team Kong won five national events, mainly in the spring and summer months, including the Spartan Nationals where both the boys and girls teams — between elementary school and high school ages — each won.

“This was the first time I experienced a girls’ team and I really liked it,” said the 63-year-old Ciolino. 

“I really loved their enthusiasm. They cheer for each other. I almost liked coaching the girls more. I never experienced some little girl going out there and beating somebody up and coming back to me and giving me a hug. 

“It was weird as I had never had one of my boys hug me like that.”

He also mentioned that he will only bring a girls team to the NHSCA National Duals, May 24-26, in Virginia Beach, Va.

Ciolino got some experience with girls’ sports watching his own girls in soccer and lacrosse, which is why he feels he relates well to females.

“I’m surrounded by girls and I have a granddaughter,” he said. “It’s made it easy on me.”

But Ciolino admits wrestling is No. 1 in his life.

“It’s the love of the sport,” he said. “There’s no other sport in this world where people come together as any race or creed and they become brothers and sisters.”

Ciolino said it continues to be exciting to bring athletes from all over the country together at these national events. Nearly three-fourths of his roster includes young wrestlers who have competed for Team Kong in the past.

This story appeared in the Dec. 25 issue of WIN Magazine. Click on the cover or call 888-305-0606 to subscribe.

“The new ones are such good kids and they mold into a Kong team so well,” he said. 

“And the guys who have been on a Kong team will take the new guys under their wings. I’ve never had a problem or a kid who says that he doesn’t want to do this.”

One of Team Kong United’s more notable wrestlers is Jude Correa, WIN’s top-ranked prep at 215 pounds, who recently won a second-straight Ironman championship for Wyoming Seminary.

“His father tells me that Jude would not go on any other team,” Ciolino said. “He said, ‘My son loves you because we have so much fun when we are there. You make it not only competitive but make it fun for the kids.’”

Ciolino points out that many wrestlers on Team Kong also do not want to lose.

“We had one kid who lost a match and sat down and cried,” Ciolino recalled. “I asked why, and he said, ‘I was the first to lose.’

“I said, ‘No, that’s OK,’ and the whole team came around him. They feel pressure because of all the other great wrestlers around them.”

Ciolino also pointed out that Team Kong United is working on building a 6,500-square foot facility on Long Island where he can work with kids on a more daily basis.

“We feel that it’s going to be a facility where everyone will want to be there,” he said. 

“It’s taken me nearly 25 years to make Team Kong what it is. I think our reputation is impeccable. 

“I try to be as fair as I can as I put a team together.”