Clarissa Chun Media Day News Conference Transcript

CLARISSA CHUN: Good morning. Thank you all for being here. Means a lot because getting the exposure for women's wrestling is huge. Thank you for getting the stories out there of our incredible and talented young women.

We are excited for the season to start. We have new faces, new energy with the addition of coach Jenna Burkert. We have a new AT, Dr. Andrea Roth. Got her doctorate yesterday or two days ago. So that's exciting to have those two new people on the program.

This year will be kind of like a tough year for me in the sense of our first recruiting class is in their final and fifth year. We have six out of 15 of them that from our very first year that will be like graduating officially, and exhausting their fifth year of eligibility this year.

It's going by fast. I still can remember like recruiting them in this time period just like it was yesterday.

We start our season with Luther Hill Open next week Sunday already. It's crazy that season is here. We have a busy schedule ahead of us. We jam packed it. Any weekend we wanted to find open we wanted to fill I guess.

So we have some great competitions that we're going to. Last year we went to Yorktown; going back again this year. It's a two-day tournament. Unique event that it's on an aircraft carrier. If you find yourself going out east to Charleston, I recommend it highly. Fun event to go to.

National Duals is obviously a big one. It's one that we strive for to claim a title as a team, as a dual program.

And then we go to Lehigh this year. They came to us last year. It will be fun to go to a hotbed of wrestling in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania.

And For her Duals. Awesome event that Josh Schamberger and his team puts together. This year it will be double the size compared to last season. He's adding JUCO and club programs, so hope to see you there January 23rd, 24th at Xtream Arena.

Two home dates on the schedule. First one November 22nd against King, and then January 15th against Quincy and Quincy and Fort Hays, and also an awesome opportunity to attend the NCAA National Championships at Xtream Arena March 5th, 6th.

So we had a busy spring and summer season. Our women, our student-athletes strive to represent on the national stage collegiate national stage for the Hawkeyes and also on the international stages for Team USA.

We had a lot of great success over the spring and summer with our student-athletes representing team USA on Pan Am teams and Age Group World Group teams.

Everest is currently in Kazakhstan. Next week she competes Thursday, Friday for a senior world title.

We had just got back from Vegas U23 world Championships. We had three for three of our athletes bring home medals. Everest got a bronze, her first U23 world bronze, pairing up with that up with her Youth 20 world title in back in August.

And then Reese Larramendy, she's made U20 teams a couple times in the past and claimed her world medal at U23 World Championships last week.

Kylie Welker, Iowa's first recruit, defended her title not once, but twice. She got her third U23 world title last week as well.

Q. You mentioned the offseason. Not really an offseason for wrestling. Just entering a new college season, how is the overall health status of the team and is there anybody not available for you guys when you start next Sunday?

CLARISSA CHUN: Feel good where we're at. Everyone is pretty healthy. We had maybe one postseason-like injury that requires surgery that they're returning to mat, so they won't be in this first part of the season.

But looking forward to having them on the spring term, so, uh-huh.

Q. How you want to replace Kennedy Blades' leadership. Her talent will be very difficult to replace. I mean, her leadership quality and what she means to the culture of this team and what you guys are trying to do to help rebuild and fill that hole that she left you guys last season.

CLARISSA CHUN: Yeah, we have great women on our program. We have a lot of great leaders all across the board from 103 to 207. They really lean into each other and rise each other up -- you know, that 160 spot, it will be filled. I'm excited to see what our women at that weight can do.

Let's see how this shakes out, so...

Q. You mentioned that first recruiting class you have now in the last year of eligibility. When you first set out to recruit them and what you sold them on to come to Iowa, do you feel like you've delivered on that or is there still something you want to achieve with these fifth years?

CLARISSA CHUN: I think a little bit Iowa sells itself, right? These young women wanted to like have the opportunity to strive not only on the wrestling mat but in the classroom.

I would say I'm super grateful for all the women that joined the program in the infancy, inaugural, because really we had to learn about how to do things together. It was like we were flying a plane and putting together at the same time. So they're special, you know. I feel like we grew together, we learned together, and no better group of young women to do it together with.

So they were excited to be a part of something historical, and with that comes their individual leadership, you know, in the sense of this is how we see our program going. They're building the program. They're building the culture.

So, I think like I'm very pleased with that.

Q. Obviously we know how important that first group has been for you. You've seen a lot of the success from your younger wrestlers, too. Four on the U20 team. What can you tell us about some of that as your first recruiting class starts to roll out? What are you seeing as that program turns over with the younger wrestlers?

CLARISSA CHUN: Yeah, it's a tribute to the growth of women's wrestling, right? The investment of girls wrestling. It's no longer opening a door. No longer, here you have a space to wrestle, but you're still wrestling boys. There's investment now into developing young girls.

It's really fun to see the growth of this sport in this way, and the younger ones do push our seniors and veterans and they do make each other better.

The cool thing is seeing our veterans -- I say veterans, but they're still 23, 22 years old -- or freshmen. They work together to make them better, they make each other better.

That's at awesome thing to watch.

Q. Coming off the inaugural NCAA Championships, what did you learn most about the team coming off that runner-up finish?

CLARISSA CHUN: Yeah, that like how they took that, you know, their character and some might have felt like they left some things short, but can't hang their heads too low because of their effort that they've given. It was just a tough tournament.

Really it's how to keep moving forward and learn from how that unfolded. It was four points. That sucks in one aspect, but in another aspect it's like, the sun came up the next day; they got themselves on different teams for age group competitions and things like that.

Yeah, it hurts. It sucks. It's in the history books that McKendree is the national champ in the inaugural year. Individually, we have had great success individually, and then it just didn't turn out our way.

Q. Can you put into words what Kylie has meant to the program? Not necessarily her results, but how she's driven this forward in her time with her wrestling and leadership.

CLARISSA CHUN: Kylie is a great leader in to the room. She's not only success full on the mat but in the classroom, too. She does bring the team together in so many ways that helps them grow.

That's what it's about, doing it together and enjoying those moments together. She's an awesome person to be around, and she has so much resiliency and has gone through so much in her personal life -- if Kylie can do it, anyone can.

She's very competitive in whatever she does and it only raises the women, her teammates around her.

Q. I think it's been almost five years since you were announced as head coach of this program in this very same room. As you reflect on the last five years and another five, what is something you want to take from this first five and really make sure you continue to carry into the next half decade?

CLARISSA CHUN: I think I've learned a lot in the first five years. You know, it being my first time coaching college, I just want to continue to lean into like our student-athletes as a whole. Like each year has been different. It might be familiar faces, but also new faces throughout the program year after year.

You pair that with like changes in the environment of the NCAA and the rules and everything, and so it's constant learning, constant asking questions to compliance and whatnot, what we can't and can't do.

Because we still -- always want to do things the right way, and that was first and foremost when starting the program, was knowing that we want to make sure we're doing everything the right way so that way more programs can look and say, women's wrestling, yeah, why not? They're doing things to the best of the ways of things to be done.

We want to give them reasons it add women's wrestling. So that doesn't change like with the new addition of Jenna Burkert, she has brought new energy in a way that maybe this generation shows there will be more visibility on social media and more interactions in that regard.

You know, I don't think I've been as active as I had on social media. She encourages me to be more active because it is important in ways that maybe I didn't realize.

I'm always learning, always growing for the betterment of the program. There is still a lot to learn. I don't know what the next five years is going to look like, but I just take it day by day.

Q. One of the returners Naomi Simon, can you talk a little bit about kind of the growth that she had over the last year and maybe where she's kind of improved or next expanded her strengths?

CLARISSA CHUN: Yeah, Naomi Simon is great. She chose Iowa because she wanted to train with the best. She wanted to train alongside Kylie Welker. She didn't fear any of that.

She knew that her and Kylie would be in the same weight class, but she's like, I just want to be better. I want to be great. I want to see what I can do and how much I can learn and grow in an environment that can help develop her, right?

So Naomi is a great person, great leader in the program; awesome on and off the mat. She's one that knows what she wants to do. She planned out her five years and she's executing. She's one that she will keep herself accountable and share her goals so that way us coaches can help keep her accountable to her growth and development. She's awesome.

Q. We've seen Iowa State add women's wrestling and last year you guys brought in Oklahoma State's club team. How have you seen the Power 4 level continue to embrace the sport? Also, have any of those programs reached out to you about helping build a women's wrestling program at those schools?

CLARISSA CHUN: Not Oklahoma State or Iowa State, but I did reach out to coach Alli St. John when she got the position. Kent State has a program and I'm friends and Lauren Louive, and she had reached out. They're a D-I program, and really I'm available to talk through anything with anyone, because as much as we want to be competitive on the mat, at the end of the day we want to grow the sport.

It's a good thing that Iowa State has started. It's a good thing that Oklahoma State has a club and hopefully they get started. It only makes us better like as competitors and, you know, it's the reason I'm more active on social media, things like that, you know.

It's good for women's wrestling, the young girls that want to have options and opportunities to go to whatever institutions that might align with what they want to study and where they want to be, whatever coach they want to grow with.

I know I reached out to Coach Kenya Sloan at Delaware State when she got that position, and Coach Brazel, because it's good for the sport, yeah.

Q. I wanted to go back it Coach Jenna. Did you guys pursue her when that spot opened up on your staff, and what made her stand out that you really want to bring in?

CLARISSA CHUN: Yeah, I've had previous relationships with Coach Jenna when we were athletes and when I was a coach for USA Wrestling and she was an athlete.

I knew she was going to fill something that I don't have. The energy that she brings to the room just lightens up the mood, and at the same time, energizing the room.

I think with a lot of experience that Coach Jenna has as an athlete and person, what she's gone through in her life, has the ability to connect with people.

I think she's a great person and that's what I was looking for. Someone who can really connect with people. Really at the end of the day that's what it's about. When we are working with our young student-athletes it's how we can connect with them and help them along their journey.

Q. You mentioned that the first few years you all didn't lose. This past year National Duals and the National Championships, that sense of complete dominance isn't there. Some other schools caught up. It's healthy for the sport. Has that changed how you prepared this offseason?

CLARISSA CHUN: A little bit, yeah. It might not be anything technical or tactical, anything like that. I think it's just about like how we are leaning in more as a team, as a program.

So I think there is always something that you want to keep and move forward with and always something that, okay, what was missing? What can we do better? It's always constant assessing and striving.

Q. You mentioned your home dual against King. Was just announced that's going to be the first-ever home double header for men's and women's wrestling here at Iowa. What kind of exposure do you hope that can bring for Iowa men's wrestling fans to might now have an opportunity to get a taste of what the women's side looks like?

CLARISSA CHUN: Yeah, I'm excited for that. I'm excited that we are going right after that dual against Iowa State men's dual. I hope people stay because I like freestyle wrestling. It's a fun style to watch.

Our women are awesome to watch and I think it it's a missed opportunity if they don't stick around for that dual. King will be tough. They have great athletes on their team that have represented not only their school but team USA as well on the world stages, so be a good one.

I secretly want the matchup between the sisters. We have Rianne Murphy and her sister Amelia goes to King, but we'll see.

Q. You mentioned the Luther Hill invite and the dual with King. Where is the biggest area the team needs to improve on before that home opener?

CLARISSA CHUN: You know, for the opener as an open, just go compete. See where we are at. For some they haven't competed since February; for some since March. It's kind of like what work shows up that has been done over the summer, spring and summer.

It's always a fun one like to just go out and just compete at the end of the day and then for the home dual, I think the energy just comes by being in Carver.

I know our women, they all want to compete in it. We still have a little bit of time until that's decided as far as who is competing in Carver as the home opener.

For Luther Hill, it's just go compete and see where we are at at the start the season.

Q. Everest is out at the senior worlds, but as a true freshman that's going to have five years under the new age -- based eligibility, how exciting is it as a coaching staff when you have someone that really can be the face of the program after this class as you mentioned is moving out and can carry the torch in that way?

CLARISSA CHUN: It's exciting. She definitely elevates the room. She wrestling with anyone and everyone and makes everyone around her better. That's just who Everest is. She loves wrestling. Enjoys it so much where you might have to try to pull her off the mat. She'll try to negotiate not being on the mat.

After she comes back from senior worlds you need to take some time off and she'll try to negotiate not taking time off because she loves wrestling so much. That's infectious, right? She brings the fun and the exploration of wrestling and the creativity of the wrestling around her, like to the team, so, yeah. It's exciting. Five years with her would be awesome.

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