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March 17, 2000/10 Adar II, Vol. 52, No.28
Hard knocks strengthen wrestler
TAMI BICKLEY
Associate Editor
Throughout those years when Jeff Schwartz endured "beatings" from his two older sisters, he was really taking mental notes.
Sometimes being bullied by your siblings pays off.
When Schwartz turned 12, he applied those fighting skills in a more organized manner. He joined the wrestling team at his then-junior high school, Mountain Sky in Phoenix. Pretty name, considering what went on in the school's gymnasium. It was there that Schwartz learned the real meaning of pain.
"I just kept thinking about what my dad had told me, 'the harder you work, the luckier you get,' and that's what has kept me going," Schwartz says.
It's been five years now since Schwartz began wrestling. Within that time, he has grown from an amateur young wrestler to a Triple-Crown Award and second-place state winner. The 17-year-old junior at Thunderbird High School in Phoenix is wise beyond his years. He knows the glory of winning and the agony of defeat. He knows what it's like to replace fun with hard work. And he has experienced the misery of self-deprivation.
Weight is a vital factor in the sport. If a wrestler doesn't "make weight," he or she must do what's needed to achieve the desired weight.
"I don't try to cut weight like a lot of wrestlers do because of my mom," Schwartz says, explaining that his mother, Moira, can't bring herself to allow her only son to starve. He tells of bizarre ways to shed pounds quickly, such as running a few laps in the Arizona heat; tough diets that must be dreadful for a growing, teenage boy; and once upon a time, plastic sweatsuits, which are now illegal. He admits that such extreme practices can be dangerous for someone his age who is perhaps at the height of his physical and mental development. Right now, Schwartz is 5'7", and at his ideal wrestling weight of 119 pounds.
Another danger he addresses is steroids. When asked if they're an issue among high-school wrestlers, Schwartz assures that they're not, and "you'd have to be dumb to use steroids."
"In wrestling, steroids are the last thing you want to use. You're trying to get smaller, not bigger."
Because he's in exceptional condition, Schwartz is able to withstand a full day of school, wrestling practice afterward and a six-mile run when he returns home. His only injury so far has been a few broken fingers. Like most athletes, Schwartz understands that something more serious may await him. But he puts into perspective how he reasons with the possibility of getting hurt.
"It's dangerous, I know, but I'd rather take the risk than live my life without wrestling." And then, this clear-minded teen compares the physical risk associated with the sport to a risk that most adults cannot comprehend.
"When you go to school, you have to worry about being shot. But you still go to school."
Although the season ended last month, Schwartz continues to practice and enter various tournaments throughout the country.
"If you want to be a good wrestler, you have to do it all year," he explains. A handful of local high schools hold special practice sessions for off-season wrestlers.
With all the time Schwartz spends trying to pin his opponents, it's hard to imagine that he would have time to do his schoolwork. But he does. He boasts a 3.71 grade-point average, and says he is ready to take his ACT and SAT college entrance exams. Although he separates wrestling from academics, they will have a common purpose pretty soon.
"I really hope wrestling helps get me into a good college (by way of a scholarship)," he says, adding that he'd like to attend an Ivy-league school or Stanford University in California. He also plans to attend medical school because his career goal is to be a plastic surgeon.
As much as wrestling is a part of his life now, Schwartz doubts it will always be. Wrestling is either a career or a memory. Besides, Schwartz would like to concentrate on his three life goals: to make friends; improve his physicality; and become a better person.
The latter goal he is finding to be easier as he delves deeper into the spirituality of Judaism. Although he is not a ritualistically observant Jew, he is proud of his heritage. From the outside it may be hard to tell, but under the bill of his favorite Oklahoma State baseball hat is an embroidered Israeli flag.
Schwartz says he's especially thrilled to be one of a small number of Jewish wrestlers.
"I am so proud of the fact that I am Jewish," he says. "Even though I am not active in the Jewish community and I'm not religious, every day I try to be the best person I can.
"What I have learned about Judaism from my parents makes sense - to make myself a better person."
After he acknowledges the long-running support from Moira and his father, Alan, Schwartz maintains his politeness when mentioning his sisters, Britton, a junior at Columbia University, and Melissa, a senior at Thunderbird High School. Sure, they roughed him up a bit, but that only helped to strengthen his physique and character.
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