The latest episode of the Five Point Move Podcast welcomes back previous guest Joe Uccellini, who was recently named as an assistant coach for the West Point Academy’s Regional Training Center.
Prior to his coaching career, Uccellini was a wrestler in New York State where he had in large part come of age under the tutelage of legendary American Greco-Roman coach Joe DeMeo at the Adirondack Three-Style Wrestling Association (ATWA). Following high school, Uccellini went on to attend Northern Michigan University’s US Olympic Education Center for Greco-Roman and began competing on the international level of the sport. This was during the Ivan Ivanov-era at NMU, which provided to Uccellini the distinction of having moved on from one Hall of Fame coach to another. Whilst at NMU, Uccellini’s development expanded all the more thanks to Ivanov as well as the presence of many top-caliber talents who would later enjoy immense success such as Andy Bisek, Harry Lester, Spenser Mango, the late Jacob Curby, Joe Betterman, Cheney Haight, and, future-brother-in-law, Jake Fisher.
Eventually, Uccellini founded the Curby 3-Style Wrestling Club in Troy, New York, named in honor of his friend. The massive facility has over the past decade become a destination for young athletes from the Northeast to train in all three major wrestling disciplines, though it has naturally morphed into a hub for Greco-Roman and includes several Senior competitors who call the place home.
But now there are more responsibilities on the horizon for Uccellini. In September, it was announced that he had accepted the aforementioned assistant coaching role for the West Point RTC. This is a crucial matter worth discussing (hence Uccellini’s involvement in this episode) for multiple reasons. One is that the West Point RTC now boasts a collection of tough, promising athletes such as lightweights Joe Couch and Fabian Gutierrez; the other is Uccellini’s own personal workload as he navigates coaching Curby athletes in addition to those from the West Point RTC.
A Few Highlights
Uccellini on how he was approached by the West Point RTC
“Scott Green reached out recently about my interest in joining the RTC. I do have a couple of wrestlers who wrestle at West Point, who have wrestled for me since they were on the age-group level. I do have some other kids who want to wrestle at West Point, and some of it has to do with Greco-Roman support for after the college season is over. They got to Vegas and Ohio to compete, and we have a similar vision. Scott Green and I have ties to Joe DeMeo, and Scott Green was my National Team coach. I would say that we have the same brand when it comes to the technical, as well as the appreciation for certain positions and styles.”
Uccellini on coaching both at Curby and for the West Point RTC
“I’m not taking this position as a sacrifice to the club but as a complement to the club. I think that if it were going to take me away from the kids at the developmental level that I would have a harder time with it; but being able to coach the kids who are now 20 or 21 who came through the program, and to now be part of their Olympic goals? It’s fantastic.”
Listen to “5PM57: Kamal Bey and David Stepanyan” on Spreaker.
Listen to “5PM56: Rich Carlson and Spencer Woods” on Spreaker.
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