NMI Wrestling expands with new Olympic-sized mats

The NMI Wrestling Federation is growing bigger than ever after adding three brand new official-sized wrestling mats, which were rolled out for the first time during a takedown clinic at the Marianas High School Gymnasium on Wednesday, July 23.

The mats, from United World Wrestling, were purchased through a juvenile probation grant and cost more than $15,000. They also got additional equipment including crash pads, throwing dummies, and a wrestling weight scale.

NMI Wrestling Federation vice president and head coach Rick Bauer said the new equipment is an exciting step for the organization after years of work to grow the sport in the CNMI. “We’ve been working on it for years and this is our first practice with our full-sized mats,” Bauer said. “These are the same mats they use in the Olympics.”

The new mats were first put to use during the federation’s free takedown clinic, which welcomed participants of all ages, from youth athletes to adults. It also attracted athletes from other combat sports like MMA and jiu-jitsu.

After Super Typhoon Sinlaku, the federation had a limited schedule with only some beach wrestling training, making the clinic the first major training session back—and this time, on a full-sized mat.

“We’re excited to be back, get some sweat on these mats, and it’s looking up,” Bauer said. “We’ll continue to work and continue to grow and hopefully get a lot more out and just grow this sport.”

With the addition of the new mats, the federation is also looking for a larger, permanent space to continue expanding its program. Bauer said the organization is grateful for the support it has received from the Northern Marianas Sports Association, CTSI, Tan Holdings, and NMSA for providing space at the Gilbert C. Ada Gymnasium, but the federation has outgrown its current setup.

“We’re fortunate to have a lot of support—Northern Marianas Sports Association, CTSI, Tan Holdings, and NMSA giving us a space at Ada gym, but we’ve outgrown that,” Bauer said. “These mats don’t fit in that space, so we’re still working on finding a permanent home that we can spread out,” he said. “We’re still in Ada, but MHS has been great—working with their administration and allowing us to get in here for the time being and utilize this space because it’s exciting to see and it’s a lot of fun to see everyone get to spread out,” Bauer said.

Looking ahead, the federation plans to continue increasing its schedule of events while preparing for the 2027 Pacific Games in Tahiti. Interested athletes are encouraged to train with the team for a chance to earn a spot on the CNMI national team.

For updates on training schedules and upcoming events, follow NMI Wrestling on Instagram at @nmi_wrestling, the Northern Marianas Wrestling Federation on Facebook, or join the federation’s WhatsApp group.