#SanctionIA
What is SanctionIA
SanctionIA is a movement to grow opportunities for girls wrestling in Iowa through cooperation with local schools, the Iowa High School Athletic Association and the Iowa Girls High School Athletic Union. Currently IHSAA sanctions wrestling (along with 10 other "boys" sports) and serves as the key contact for coaches and schools to address Iowa's scholastic wrestling rules and opportunities. IGHSAU sanctions 10 sports for girls and has established a new process for considering additional sporting opportunities for Iowa girls. The goal of SanctionIA is for 50-100 schools in Iowa to formally support girls HS wrestling and ultimately have the sport sanctioned at the state level. This movement is supported by local and national organizations, including the Iowa Wrestling Coaches and Officials Association, USA Wrestling, AAU Wrestling, Female Elite Wrestling, Wrestle Like a Girl, LuchaFit, and the National Wrestling Hall of Fame Dan Gable Museum.
Sanction Support Letter
Has your High School submitted a letter to support sanctioning yet? If not, please click this link for a template of an accepted letter in MS Word. ighsau_wrestling_sanctioning_support_letter_.docx
Support from Coaches & Officials Girls Division Ogden, IA
January 2018
In 2016 leaders from the Iowa Wrestling Coaches and Officials Association (IWCOA), USA Wrestling, and Female Elite Wrestling (FEW) began working collaboratively toward an official state championship for girls wrestling in Iowa. The proposal to add a girls division at the existing state championship event was denied in January 2017 but across the state coaches and officials continued to support the cause.
In January of 2018 Ogden and Independence added girls divisions to their annual JV tournaments. In the 2018-2019 season more than a dozen schools added girls divisions and IHSAA supported growth by leading communication for schools. Unofficial Championships--- In January of 2019, just one month after the idea was pitched to Iowa wrestling leaders, nearly half of Iowa's 189 female wrestlers braved the weather to compete in the first IWCOA girls state championships. This past season, more than 500 girls wrestled for their schools and over 300 girls took the mats in the second year IWCOA unofficial girls state wrestling tournament.  IWCOA Girls State Champions
January 2019
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National Support for Local GrowthUSA Wrestling's Girls High School Development Committee supports grassroots efforts across the nation and has been integral to communication to key stakeholders at the state and national levels impacting interscholastic wrestling. USAW's 2017 resolution in support of sanctioning was revised in 2019 to reflect the substantial progress achieved (see image below). The USAW Girls HS Development Committee has resources available online including documents for your school's coaches, athletic directors and athletes.
USAW Womens High-School-Sanctioning-Resources The National Wrestling Hall of Fame Dan Gable Museum located in Waterloo, Iowa offers lessons in wrestling history and a learning center to train the next generation of Iowa wrestlers. Museum Director, Jim Miller joined Olympian Dan Gable support sanctioning Iowa Girls HS Wrestling. * Proposals for IGHSAU sanctioning of "new" sports will be judged on several criteria including documentation of support for the application. Letters of support already sent in to IGHSAU will be among the submitted attachments to the official proposal to #SanctionIA. 
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Women's Wrestling OrganizationsLeading by example, women's wrestling advocates are providing education and empowerment opportunities for female athletes of all ages, sizes, and ability levels.
Click the letters to see messages of support sent to IGHSAU on behalf of #SanctionIA. Click the logos for websites/social media links.       |
Mapping Out Our Progress
Iowa HS wrestling grew from 187 girls to
over 500 wrestlers in one season!
Landscape Map includes link to FEW's presentation at the Iowa APHERD 2020 Virtual Conference
2021 IWCOA Girls State Moves to Xtream Arena in Iowa City
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Until IGHSAU sanctions girls wrestling
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Iowa Has 5 Collegiate Women's Wrestling Programs
You Guessed It--- They Support SanctionIA
