Northern Illinois wrestling coach Ryan Ludwig tried to find positives when he heard the International Olympic Committee recommended wrestling be removed from its list of core sports for the 2020 games. 

“I can’t look at the decision negatively,” Ludwig said. “I’ve got to be positive about things. It’s a chance to battle hard and overcome adversity, that’s a lesson wrestling teaches. The decision to leave wrestling out of the Olympics was a flawed one. It’s a staple. It’s one of the original sports and is one in which anyone can participate.”

The decision would seem to represent a death knell for wrestling, a sport with participation numbers on an upward trajectory.