2001 Wrestling Grand Marshals Named

Four Grand Marshals, each with special contributions to the sport for more than a combined 100 years, will lead the annual Grand March of Finalists Saturday night (Feb. 17) before the championship bouts of the 64th Illinois High School Association (IHSA) State Final Individual Wrestling Tournament.

Named Grand Marshals for 2001 are:

Jim Bowers of Bloomington, a Pennsylvania native who was head wrestling coach at Bloomington (H.S.) for 29 years.

Ray Cummings of Pesotum, former assistant wrestling coach at Tolono (Unity) who has been a wrestling official for 38 years.

Tony Parks of Addison, who started the wrestling program at Addison (A.Trail) and coached the state championship teams in 1979 and 1980.

Jack Robinson, former head wrestling coach at Dolton (Thornridge) and the University of Illinois, and for many years the manager of the IHSA Individual State Tournament.

Begun in 1975, the annual March of Finalists is conducted at the State Tournament by the IHSA in conjunction with the Illinois Wrestling Coaches and Officials Association (IWCOA) and the Assembly Hall. Each year the grand marshals are honored for their contributions to the sport and to the young men who participate in it.

The marshals play an important role in the color and pageantry of the event as they lead the 56 individual finalists and their coaches in a foot-stomping, strobe flash popping, breathtaking Grand March around the Assembly Hall arena floor just prior to the championship bouts. With spotlights shining on Old Glory, students from Jacksonville (Illinois School for the Deaf) lead the audience in the playing, singing and signing of the National Anthem. The annual crowd in excess of 10,000 witness a spectacle of high school athletics seen nowhere else in America.

Here is a closer look at the 2001 Grand Marshals:

Jim Bowers posted a career dual meet record of 303-151-7 during his career at Bloomington (H.S.) His Purple Raider teams won 14 regionals and 4 sectionals, including a string of seven straight regional titles from 1970-77. He coached 42 state qualifiers and 12 place winners. In 1972 he was IWCOA Coach of The Year, and was inducted into the IWCOA Hall of Fame in 1985.

Ray Cummings wrestled at Champaign (H.S.) and Eastern Illinois University. From 1969-73 he was assistant coach at Tolono (Unity) and again in 1980-81. In the meantime, he was already officiating the sport, beginning in 1963. He was assigned to his first regional in 1965 and over 38 years he has worked a total of 33 regionals, 26 sectionals and 17 state finals in the individual series. In the dual meet series, he has worked 9 state finals. Cummings was the IWCOA Official of the Year in 1980 and was inducted into its Hall of Fame in 1990.

Tony Parks started the wrestling program at Addison Trail when the school opened. His teams posted 213 dual meet wins. In addition to the two state team titles, his Blazers produced 39 state qualifiers, 17 place winners and six of them were individual champions. In 1979 he was named IWCOA Coach of the Year and was inducted into its Hall of Fame in 1985. Tony is a former IWCOA president and served on the IHSA Wrestling Advisory Committee.

Jack Robinson was a football player at Harvey (Thornton) but later wrestled and played football at the University of Illinois. He returned to Thornton as an assistant wrestling coach and in 1960 moved to the new Dolton (Thornridge) High School where he was the head coach in both football and wrestling. At Thornridge he coached one individual champion and two other place winners. In 1969 he returned to Illinois as head wrestling and assistant football coach. He was tournament manager of the State Final Meet for several years. In 1979, Robinson was inducted into the IWCOA Hall of Fame. He now lives in Providence, Utah.