Champions Clinic Recap: NCAA Champion Austin O'Connor Launches the Series

On May 22, 2021, Spartan ELITE Wrestling Club launched its Champions Clinics series with a headline clinician who was, at that moment, the best 149-pound wrestler in college wrestling: NCAA National Champion Austin O'Connor from the University of North Carolina.

Who Is Austin O'Connor?

At the time of the clinic, Austin O'Connor was the reigning NCAA 149lb National Champion competing for UNC. His technique, intensity, and competitive fire made him the perfect clinician to launch a series built around bringing championship-level instruction to Greensboro.

The Inaugural Event

The turnout was outstanding. Wrestlers from across the Triad area came to train with a current national champion — an opportunity that doesn't come along often for athletes outside of major wrestling hubs.

Austin worked with athletes on the offensive techniques and chain wrestling that made him a national champion, emphasizing the importance of pace, pressure, and never giving an opponent time to recover.

The First of Many

This clinic was the first of what has become an ongoing series bringing world-class wrestling talent to Greensboro. Since Austin's clinic, Spartan ELITE has hosted an Olympic Gold Medalist (Kendall Cross), an NCAA D3 National Champion (Josh Wilson), and continues to line up elite clinicians for future events.

Why We Do This

At Spartan ELITE, we believe that exposure to greatness changes what young athletes believe is possible. When a middle school wrestler gets to drill with a national champion, it shrinks the distance between "that could never be me" and "why not me?"

That shift in belief is what Champions Clinics are built to create.