Wood to represent USA at World Championships

He’s appeared on some high-level stages in the course of his youth and high-school wrestling careers.

This summer, Jordan Wood will be part of an even bigger venue: The FILA Cadet World Championships being held in Slovakia.

Wood qualified to represent the USA in the World wrestling team with a championship performance this past weekend. The soon-to-be Boyertown junior won the FILA Cadets 85-100 KG freestyle weight class in the competition at the University of Akron Field House, scoring a 9-4 decision over Lucas Warren of Illinois.

Wood and Warren head a list of six guaranteed placers in their bracket. Joining them — in third through sixth places — are Andrew Marsden (Illinois), Landon Pelham (Michigan), Gannon Gremmel (Iowa) and Isaac Florell (Minnesota).Champions in all the weight classes, except 125 kg, qualify for the July 15-20 tournament in Snina, Slovakia. Champions in the FILA Cadet freestyle classes of 46 kg and 54 kg will be considered for the Youth Olympic Games to be held Aug. 25-27 in Nanjing, China.

Wood recently completed a second solid run through Pennsylvania’s 220-pound high-school wrestling ranks. He compiled a 42-2 record en route to a second silver-medal finish at the Pennsylvania Interscholastic Athletic Association (PIAA) Championships — that after winning Pioneer Athletic Conference and District 1-AAA West titles and finishing second in Southeast Region AAA.

For his two-year scholastic career at Boyertown, Wood boasts an 87-4 record with 55 pins. Along with his two league and district championships, Wood also has a regional gold medal to his credit from his 2012-13 freshman campaign.