Helo Blackwell Builds Toward a Big Summer of National Competition
Central Catholic’s wrestling room had the feel of a high-level summer training session as wrestlers from across California came together for an open mat filled with live wrestling, technical work, and national-level preparation.
Among the athletes getting important work in was Helo Blackwell, who also goes by Jonah. Blackwell is preparing for a busy stretch of summer wrestling that includes National Duals next week in Milwaukee and Fargo Nationals later in July in Fargo, North Dakota.
The open mat gave Blackwell a chance to sharpen his positioning, focus on small technical details, and test himself against a variety of wrestling styles.
“It was a lot of fun,” Blackwell said after the workout. “It was a lot of live goes, a lot of good guys, and I got to work on a lot of positioning and a lot of small details, so it was a lot of good wrestling.”
The workout featured wrestlers from several different areas, including Santa Cruz, Turlock, Los Banos, Aptos, Bakersfield, and Central Catholic. That variety was one of the most valuable parts of the session for Blackwell, who said different partners help prepare him for the range of opponents he expects to see at national events.
“I feel like it’s good to get a lot of different looks to translate to tournaments,” Blackwell said. “When you’re going to see guys from different states with different styles, wrestling people from these different areas helps me stay on my feet, keeps me on my heels, and helps me improve in more areas than just wrestling the same partners every single day.”
Blackwell has prior national dual experience, having competed at Schoolboy National Duals three years ago. This time, he enters the event with more experience, a stronger understanding of the sport, and another opportunity to compete in both Greco-Roman and freestyle.
After National Duals, Blackwell’s summer schedule continues with Fargo Nationals in July. At Fargo, he expects to be alongside familiar names including Eli Swartz, Cole Cronan, and Cruz Contreras, adding another important national-level opportunity to his summer.
For Blackwell, the summer work is about more than just one event. It is about continuing to grow, learning from different styles, and gaining the kind of experience that can carry over into the high school season and beyond.
With each live go, each new partner, and each detail sharpened, Helo Blackwell is continuing to build momentum for a major summer on the national stage.
