CU's Friedman Center is nation's first arena solely for wrestling

Cornell wrestler Alejandro Alvarez '04 (red shorts) completes a single leg attack against Justin Lijo '04 in a practice session Jan. 16 at the university's new Friedman Wrestling Center. The building, the first one dedicated only to wrestling in the United States, opens Jan. 26 for a match with Ohio State University. Frank DiMeo/University Photography

By Blaine P. Friedlander Jr.

You have cheered baseball in a ballpark, watched football in a stadium and enjoyed basketball in a gymnasium. Now, for the first time in the United States, wrestling has its own house.

Cornell's Friedman Wrestling Center, the first arena in the nation built solely for the sport, hosts its first official match when Cornell's Big Red varsity team meets the Ohio State University Buckeyes Sunday, Jan. 26, at 2 p.m. The match will be preceded by an opening ceremony at 1:45 p.m., hosted by President Hunter Rawlings.

The $3.5 million facility is named for two Cornell alumni who made the lead gift toward the building, Stephen Friedman, who was appointed to the Bush administration in December, and his wife, Barbara Benioff Friedman. Stephen Friedman is a former Cornell wrestling star and 1959 graduate. Barbara Friedman, also Class of 1959, has been a university trustee since 1993 and currently is co-vice chair of the Cornell Board of Trustees.

The 15,000-square-foot building features state-of-the-art training and weight rooms, a student lounge for studying, computers with Internet access, a large locker room for the Cornell squad, a smaller one for visitors and an arena with 1,100 seats. "It's like owning an indoor hockey rink when everyone else plays outside," said Rob Koll, Cornell's David R. Dunlop '59 Wrestling Coach.

Barbara Benioff Friedman and Stephen Friedman Jon Reis Photography

In addition to Friedman, Arno P. Niemand '56, Scott Smith '79 and other Cornell wrestling alumni provided gifts to fund the project.

Cannon Design, Boston, the wrestling center's architects, put hundreds of hours of assessing and planning into the building's design and its special features, where wrestling takes place.

"I had a clear vision of what we needed and how I wanted the building to flow," said Koll. "I wanted it to be light, not gloomy." One feature is the floor's base, which is a foam riser, covered in plywood and finished with maple. "This kind of floor has an extra yield," said Koll. "It's not like a basketball floor at all, which is more rigid. This has plenty of give."

When the bleachers are retracted, the arena will offer four mats of wrestling space. During matches, bleachers will flank three sides of a center mat and the lighting will be similar to that of a boxing ring. "The atmosphere will be intense," Koll says.

Off to the side of the main wrestling area is a weight room and exercise facility. Koll wants his wrestlers to lift weights after practice, so he suggested an exercise area, with custom-designed weight machines. "What is wrestling but lifting weights when you're tired?" he asks.

Since 1972 when Title IX became law, 439 college wrestling programs had been discontinued, according to the National Collegiate Wrestling Association. But in recent years, men's wrestling as a collegiate sport has seen a renaissance. In the past five years, about 73 collegiate programs have either been started or reinstated.

An evening view of the Friedman Wrestling Center next to the Robison Alumni Fields, looking west toward campus. Robert Barker/University Photography

The current Big Red wrestling team has been climbing in the national rankings since December. The squad won all four of its matches at the Lone Star Duals in Dallas early in January, defeating fourth-ranked Oklahoma, 12th-ranked Nebraska, Eastern Michigan and California State-Fullerton. All-American Travis Lee, a Cornell sophomore, was named the Division 1 Most Outstanding Wrestler (lower weight) and All-American Clint Wattenberg, a senior, was named the Division 1 Most Outstanding Wrestler (upper weight) at the 19-team event.

After the Lone Star Duals, Lee and freshman Dustin Manotti improved their win-loss records to 18-0 this season. Wattenberg, 18-1 in 2002-03, moved into fourth place on Cornell's career wins chart with his 99th victory in the Nebraska match.

Cornell now is ranked fourth in the Wrestling International Magazine poll and fifth in the National Wrestling Coaches poll.