News - MTC Storm

Minnesota Storm: A Year in Review

By Markos Tsegaye After another year of competition and growth for the Minnesota Storm, tournament season has come to an end. The organization continued to make strides this season as Patrick Smith just earned his 4th U.S. World Team spot and Christian DuLaney has risen in the ranks as he now finds himself to be one of the top wrestlers in 97 kg. This is just a glimpse of what the Storm achieved as a collective over the past year. Storm coaches Dan Chandler and Brandon Paulson have worked alongside their team on a daily basis throughout the season, preparing the Storm for another year of development and battles against the world’s best. Chandler, a former Olympian and USA […]

Minneapolis builds its reputation as premiere location to learn Greco-Roman wrestling

By Alex Karwowski Minneapolis has always been a hub for international wrestlers to train and perfect their art. Recently, the Minnesota Storm welcomed the Puerto Rican national team to their facilities for two weeks of training to help them prepare for the Central American Games in El Salvador this month. With so many athletes from all over the world coming to Minneapolis to train, The Storm built a reputation for itself as being a premiere international training hub. Jose Jordan, a wrestler for the Puerto Rican national team said the facilities in Minneapolis had bigger mats, more exercise equipment, and much more partners allowing him to have versatility in his training. “The different partners – it’s great because I can […]

Three Storm Wrestler's to compete at Final X

By Markos Tsegaye Three members of the Minnesota Storm earned a spot in the 2023 Final X after qualifying at the World Team Trials. The event features the two best wrestlers of each weight class matching up in a best-of-three series to earn a spot on the United States World Team. Patrick Smith, Christian DuLaney and Ryan Epps will travel to Newark, NJ, to represent the Storm in the event on June 10 at the Prudential Center. After earning qualification, the wrestlers are looking forward to capitalizing on the opportunity. While Epps didn’t have much time to prepare for the physicality he would see at the World Team Trials, he said his mental preparation allowed him to put on a […]

Minnesota Storm welcomed Ukrainian wrestlers after they fled war-torn home

By Alex Karwowski When Russian forces launched a series of missile attacks on Ukraine, world renowned wrestlers for the Ukraine national team, Zhora Abovian, and his wife Khrystyna, were left with no choice but to flee their home country. When the war first broke out, Abovian said he and Khrystyna spent time traveling between various European countries including Germany, Poland, and the Netherlands, before finally coming to the United States. With the help of Arsen Julfalakyan, a wrestler on the Armenian national team and friend of Abovian, the couple connected with Pat Smith and the Minnesota Storm community. The two now train with the Minnesota Storm in Minneapolis. “I said I want to go USA, can help me? Arsen […]

The Storm set to compete in Las Vegas

By Markos Tsegaye The 2023 US Open wrestling tournament is set to begin at the South Point Hotel Casino and Spa in Las Vegas, Nevada on April 26. The tournament will feature wrestlers of multiple levels and styles. Members of the Minnesota Storm will be participating in the tournament and say they’re excited for the tournament would be an understatement. Among the Storm’s representatives in Las Vegas are Fritz Schierl, Christian DuLaney and Christian Rouleau. After practice on April 21, they spoke about their expectations for the tournament. “I’m excited to see how I wrestle against the competition with a few months of only greco training,” Schierl said. “Pressure makes diamonds, I’m excited to feel the pressure and just […]

2008 Olympian talks emotional journey of competing at the international level

By Alex Karwowski Former Minnesota Storm wrestler Jake Deitchler earned his spot on the Olympic team as an 18-year-old high school graduate. Deitchler, now a retired wrestler, had the opportunity to reflect on the emotional buildup that came with competing for Team USA at the Beijing 2008 Olympics and share the wisdom he gained from wrestling among the best in the world. In preparing for the Olympics, Deitchler said a lot happened behind the scenes. He would often go to the gym late at night and early in the morning before school started to get weight training in. “What nobody sees is the things at night,” said Deitchler. “You know everybody’s in bed and you’re getting a workout […]

Four Storm Athletes To Compete In Denmark

By Markos Tsegaye Published 3/21/2023 Four of the Greco-Roman wrestlers from the Minnesota Storm are now in Denmark as they will be competing in the Thor Masters tournament from March 24-25. Richard Carlson, Christian DuLaney, Fritz Schierl, and Lukas Poloncic will be those four representatives, an opportunity they are all looking to make the most of. The Thor Masters tournament offers one of the better international tournaments and training camps in Greco-Roman wrestling. DuLaney said the Storm will be well prepared for what’s to come in Denmark. “We’ve got world-class coaches,” DuLaney said. “They [Carlson, Schierl, and Poloncic] are around my weight and are great practice partners as well.” The coaches DuLaney is referring to are Brandon Paulson and Dan […]

Pat Smith's Croatia Recap

By Markos Tsegaye Published 3/21/2023 Patrick Smith, wrestler for the Minnesota Storm, was in Croatia in February to compete in the Zagreb Open Ranking Tournament. Smith says the experience in Croatia was a good test to see where he was at in terms of his preparation for the World Championships this September in Serbia. He came into the Zagreb Open at 159 pounds or 72 kilograms. “It’s always one of the better tournaments in the world,” Smith said. “I had three really good matches and saw a lot of different looks.” Smith won his opening match against Krisztofer Klanyi (Hungary) before losing his next two matches to Saijad Ali (Iran) and Jamol Jumabaev (Uzbekistan). After competing, Smith participated in […]

How Did the Storm Athletes do at Fargo?

The 2018 US Marine Corps Junior and Cadet National tournament kicked off over the weekend, representing for most high school aged athletes the culmination of the 2018 season. The event draws close to 5,000 unique entrants from across the country all in search of bringing home a coveted “stop sign;” a representation that the individual has earned a place on the podium and became an age group All-American. This age group tournament also serves as a stepping stone for future Olympic hopefuls, most members of the Minnesota Storm Senior Roster competed in the tournament at some point in their career. For some the tournament was their first opportunity to test their skills on the national stage, for some it’s where […]

Bill Farrell Memorial Open Preview

The historic Bill Farrell Memorial Open has been a marquee international tournament in the United States for over 50 years. Located in downtown Manhattan, the New York Athletic Club is usually reserved for New York’s high class elite. However every year, singlets are added to the sport coat minimum dress code, opening its door to showcase some of the best wrestling in the United States and the world. On March 30th, six of Minnesota Storm’s top Greco prospects will step to the mats of the sixth floor gym overlooking the south side of Central Park. Not only will this tournament provide a good measuring stick for these athletes heading into the U.S. Open at the end of April, it also […]