"I HOPE Bob doesn't want any redundancy money," said Tom Harrington when Robert Carter of Wigton stepped down as chairman of the governing board of Cumberland and Westmorland Wrestling, for he had been in the job for 32 years, writes Roger Robson.

His successor is County Councillor Jim Bland who was also county chairman of the National Farmers Union and has had a long association with Kendal Academy.

The governing board allocated Championships to venues throughout the North of England.

The Heavyweight title goes to Lancaster Show.

Powburn Show, which had to cancel last year's 14st championship when the showfield was under two inches of rain, have been given another chance to host the event.

Cockermouth Show is on the same day as Powburn so the lightweight wrestlers will be heading to Cockermouth for the 11st Championship while the heavier men travel through to Northumberland.

Cumberland and Westmorland Wrestling Championships 2003: U15 Years/8st: Forestburngate, near Rothbury, August 10; U15 Years: Alwinton Show, October 12; U18 Years/10st: Millom and Broughton Show, August 30; U18 Years: Stanhope Show, Co. Durham, September 14. 10st: Killington Sports, May 29. 11st: Cockermouth Show, August 2. 12st: Morpeth Fair, June 8. 13st: Grayrigg Show, September 4. 14st: Powburn Show, August 2. 15st: Kirkheaton, June 21. All Weights: Lancaster Show,

August 9.

The board meeting also put in hand the selection of a team to represent the association in the European Championships of Celtic Wrestling in Sardinia in July. Five selectors from the main wrestling areas are to contact wrestlers who may be interested and assess them at one or two trials next month.

In the meantime wrestlers can learn or practise their skills in Breton Wrestling at Currock House, Carlisle on Wednesday evenings (7.30pm) and on Sunday afternoons (2pm)

Milnthorpe Wrestling Academy will close for the summer after sessions on May 1 and 8.

Last week Laurence Stannard confirmed his talent by not only winning his own age-group as usual, but by felling the usually dominant Alex Parsons in an early round of the U14-years, and going on to wrestle with "much vigour", as his coach David Parsons said, before rounding off his final with Dennis Sharpe with a leg-up buttock.

April 17, 2003 14:30