Florida wrestler eyes 2012 Olympics

For America’s elite wrestlers, the 2008 calendar already has been circled for August, when the Olympics will take place in Beijing, China.

But Eric Grajales has a different timetable. He plans to be in Beijing this August for the junior world championships, with a long-term goal of making the 2012 Olympics in London.

“Getting to China would be awesome,” Grajales said Wednesday at the Western Junior Greco-Roman Regionals at the U.S. National Wrestling Championships at the Las Vegas Convention Center. “I’d love to go. But I’ve got a lot of work to do before I can get there.”

Grajales, 17, is wrestling at 125 pounds after spending the year at 111 for his high school team in Brandon, Fla. The double jump in weight class has been a difficult adjustment, he said, but it wasn’t noticeable in this tournament.

Grajales won the 125-pound title Wednesday, defeating Dylan Carew of Iowa City, Iowa, in the finals 5-5, 4-2, 4-2 to finish 8-0.

“It’s definitely a challenge,” Grajales said. “But it’s a weight I feel comfortable at, and I think I can have some success.”

He has had a pretty good run. Grajales was named USA Wrestling’s Junior Greco-Roman Wrestler of the Year after winning the FILA Juniors and the junior national championship a year ago. He is a two-time Florida high school state champion in freestyle.

Although he excels in both disciplines, Grajales’ future as an elite performer probably will be in Greco-Roman. He’ll wrestle today in the Western Junior Freestyle Regionals, then will be back in Las Vegas on June 9 and 10 for the U.S. World Team Trials, where he’ll try to make the team that will compete in China.

“He’s very good. Technically, he’s right there,” said Ike Anderson, USA Wrestling’s national junior development coach. “What makes him so good is he wrestles like guys from Europe. He can throw and reverse lift with the best of them. He has excellent technique.

“But he’s lacking power and strength. At 125, there’s a lot of really strong guys, and he needs to get in the weight room and get stronger. He’s only 17. He’s got so much upside. You can definitely see him making it come 2012” in London.

Grajales has wrestled since he was 4 years old. His father, Cesar, was an accomplished wrestler, and Grajales’ brother, Cesar Jr., is a sophomore wrestler at Pennsylvania, competing at 141 pounds.

But Eric could be the family’s best. And he’s not taking anything for granted. He stays humble and grounded and continues to work on his skills.

“I’ve been around wrestling my whole life, and I’ve learned that if you get too cocky, you’re going to get beat,” he said. “Every time I step on the mat, it’s important. It doesn’t matter what the competition is.

“I want to do well this week and get myself ready for the world trials. That’s going to be a big competition.”