A 146-pound wrestler
– he competes on the junior varsity team at 153 pounds – Manny
Jaquez was born blind with a condition where Jaquez’ eyes were
underdeveloped at birth. Without sight, he also wrestles by what he
hears – cheers, clapping, words of encouragement or words for
improvement.
HOLLISTER
Manny Jaquez walks gingerly toward the center of the mat, grasping to the straightened elbow of his coach, Matt Flores. In just a few seconds, though, after the initial wrestler introductions are out of the way and Flores explains the proper wrestling format to the referee, the whistle blows and Jaquez explodes like a linebacker toward his opponent.
For a moment, it’s easy to forget Jaquez’ slow walk toward the center of the mat. It’s easy to forget the 15-year-old San Benito High freshman is blind.
“In wrestling, it’s all about laying somebody down on the mat, and then being on top of them and winning with the whistle,” Jaquez says. “I’ve taken some down. There was one time where I scored points for a takedown at Rancho (San Justo). So I know how to score and I’ve won a couple of matches before. I know how to win a fight.
“I take it as a challenge, so I just go ahead and do it.”
A 146-pound wrestler – he competes on the junior varsity team at 153 pounds – Jaquez was born blind with microthalmic cystic eye syndrome, a condition where Jaquez’ eyes were underdeveloped at birth.
“I sure was,” Jaquez says, almost proudly. “I don’t see light or anything, but I can feel the sun.”
And on the mat, he can feel his opponent. Jaquez’ matches start in the center of the mat with each wrestler clenching to the other’s forearms – an unorthodox style that Jaquez’ coaches try and take advantage of. Hence, the bull-rush-like beginning the wrestler employs.
“That’s the game plan that we’re doing – right off the whistle,” varsity coach Brian DeCarli says. “It’s a unique starting situation and not a lot of people are used to it. So we try to use that to our benefit, working off the whistle and working off his hands, trying to get in a shot and get after it.
“And I know he’s just having a blast. He’s having fun and that’s the most important thing.”
From there, though, the fearless freshman maneuvers around on the mat, grasping to his opponent while also looking to stay off his back. Without sight, Jaquez also wrestles by what he hears – cheers, clapping, words of encouragement or words for improvement.
And, of course, the undeniable sound of a pin.
“When I get the pin, I know it by the whistle and when they touch the mat,” he says. “And when my mom does cheer, she’ll be like, ‘Yeah!’ if I’m doing it right.”
Jaquez’ mother, Linda, says her son was always physical, outgoing and enthusiastic, despite his impairment. He recently took up boxing at the Bull Dog Boxing Gym in Hollister, but stopped because wrestling was getting under way.
“Whatever he wants to do, we’re 100 percent behind him,” she says. “You can’t hold the horse back from the starting gate; you’ve got to let him go.”
Jaquez fell in love with wrestling when he was just 4 years old, grappling with cousin Zachary Leyva. But it wasn’t until Jaquez returned from attending the California School for the Blind in Fremont for four years did his knowledge surrounding the sport fully blossom.
He joined Razorback Wrestling earlier this year attending Rancho San Justo, while his skill, Jaquez’ mother says, has escalated under the tutelage of Flores.
“He’s become more aggressive in wanting to get someone down (on the mat),” his mother says. “Everybody has always been good about helping him to learn the (sport).”
The entire experience has been a “blast” for Flores, who is amazed by Jaquez’ natural ability on the mat. Flores practices with Jaquez one-on-one during the week, working on different positions and different approaches and different techniques.
But it’s not necessarily just Flores, as Jaquez’ wrestling counterparts are always quick to lend a helping hand.
“The other kids will always jump right in,” Flores says. “They’re great with him.”
Nick Angelo, a junior varsity wrestler who seemed more than willing to escort Jaquez around Saturday at the Wildcat Invitational in Los Gatos High, finds inspiration in his teammate.
“He inspires us all to wrestle,” says the sophomore Angelo, who wrestles in the 215-pound weight class. “He has no fear. He just goes out there and does it.
“Whenever I think about him (on the mat), he pushes me. If he can do it, I can do it, too.”
That’s because, DeCarli says, Jaquez never makes excuses. He simply tries his hardest.
“No matter what physical disability you may have, you can still do whatever you want to do. It’s all about how much heart you have,” Flores adds. “He’s always out there pushing the kids and he’s really fun to be around.
“It opens up your eyes that nothing is impossible … He comes off the mat with a smile and goes off the mat with a smile.”
