Top stars to train at Annapolis facility
Wrestlers Heil, Perez join Navy-Marine Corps RTC
Cary Kolat stunned the collegiate wrestling world when he left Campbell University to become head coach at the Naval Academy in March.
Now his presence is sending shockwaves through other areas of the sport in Annapolis.
The Navy-Marine Corps Regional Training Center, entering its sixth year of existence, made a move toward national relevance last week. That was because former Oklahoma State twotime NCAA champion Dean Heil and Campbell University 2020 All-American Quentin Perez announced they will be training on the grounds of the Naval Academy.
“I’m thankful for this opportunity the Navy-Marine Corps RTC has given me and I look forward to this next step of my journey. I am excited to get to Annapolis and get to work,” Heil said in a Twitter graphic.
Perez shared a similar sentiment in a Twitter graphic, saying, “I’m excited to start this next chapter of my wrestling career in Annapolis where I will be surrounded by the hardest working people in the world.”
Regional training centers (RTCs) have grown in popularity the last two decades, a development that correlates to the country’s increased success on the international wrestling stage.
The Navy-Marine Corps RTC is a non-profit organization that is recognized by USA Wrestling as an Olympic Regional Training Center. Its purpose is to “support and develop wrestlers by providing the coaching and training environment necessary to win national, world and Olympic championships,” said operations director Bob Rehm, who is also a resident athlete.
The program is seeking a fourth resident athlete and head coach, Rehm said..
“We’re one of the smaller RTC programs right now … we don’t want to operate that way,” Rehm said. “We want to get somebody that’s gonna be passionate about the program, wanting to grow and get the most of our wrestlers and potentially win gold medals. That’s the biggest thing, having somebody that’s going to be confident in wanting to get behind the program and everything that we’re trying to do here.”
In addition, the RTC provides financial support to senior-level wrestlers as they train at Lejeune Hall for world and Olympic championships in freestyle or Greco-Roman. Heil competes at the 65-kilogram weight class and Perez at 74 kg in men’s freestyle, and both have ties with Kolat. Heil was a volunteer assistant coach at Campbell the last two years and a member of Buies Creek Regional Training Center while Perez graduated from Campbell earlier this year.
One ripple effect of regional training centers is they have helped strengthen college programs with recruiting. While Navy-Marine Corps RTC is not part of the Navy wrestling program, they are partners. On its website, the RTC has a “Navy Wrestling Vision Statement,” noting its goal is “to establish a highly competitive wrestling program at USNA; one that can win the EIWA Championship, regularly produce champions, and consistently place in the Top 20 in the NCAA Tournament.”
Prospective student athletes that meet USA Wrestling requirements — a high schooler must live within 250 miles of the RTC and cannot practice there during the collegiate season — can train alongside resident athletes as long as they wrestle Olympic styles and meet certain competitive requirements. Moreover, more than 70% of the current Navy wrestlers are currently eligible to train there under USAWrestling criteria.
There have been direct correlations between the success of college programs and the strength of the regional training centers they are affiliated with. Cael Sanderson, who has coached Penn State to eight NCAA titles in his 11 years there, has attracted the country’s best wrestlers to the Nittany Lion Wrestling Club.