Ortonville resident Kent Bailo can now be listed among some of the top names in amateur wrestling.
Bailo was recently named the 2004 Man of the Year award from Wrestling USA Magazine, a publication devoted to amateur wrestling. He is the first person in the state of Michigan to be so honored.
With this award, Bailo joins such past winners as Dan Gable, an Olympic champion and the renowned former University of Iowa coach; Rulon Gardner, who won an Olympic gold medal in Greco-Roman wrestling at the 2000 Olympics; Cael Sanderson, an undefeated four-time NCAA wrestling champion and Olympic hopeful; and Russ Hellickson, current Ohio State University wrestling coach and Olympic Silver medalist.
Bailo served as Brandon High School’s wrestling coach this season, but resigned April 27 to devote more time to promoting girls wrestling and the United States Girls Wrestling Association, as well as his General Motors job and his family.
He said juggling his duties at GM, the USGWA and Brandon would have been too much to handle for another year.
‘In order to coach (at Brandon) and do it well, I’d have to devote my time to do that,? he said.
He received this award for his work with girls wrestling and for proposing several changes which were eventually adopted by the Michigan High School Athletic Association. They include:
‘The dual meet state tournament, adopted in 1988. Bailo said dual meet wrestling is more exciting than tournament wrestling, particularly at the state finals. ‘The concept involves coaches coaching even their less talented wrestlers and bringing them into the spotlight,? he said.
‘Allowing two wrestlers in a weight class for individual state competition.
‘One-site MHSAA state championships, which began in 1980. The current tourney, now held at The Palace of Auburn Hills, is the largest high school wrestling tournament in the country.
‘Four equal divisions for wrestlers to compete in during the team and individual state wrestling tournaments, taking the schools that have wrestling and put them in four equal groups based on school enrollment of the schools that fielded wrestling teams.
In addition, Bailo has proposed having girls wrestling become a MHSAA championship sport. He said the time from initial proposal submission to adoption is about ten years.