HILDEBRANDT Sarah Ann

General
WEIGHT CHANGES
In January 2020 she announced her intention to compete in the 50kg class at the Olympic Games in Tokyo, dropping down from the 53kg category. "With my safety in mind, the coaches and I agreed that I would go down only if I could do it carefully, slowly and wisely. The transition has been about cleaning up my diet a little more, even though I already eat pretty clean. It might also mean that I have to add an extra cardio session here or there and maybe wear a long-sleeve shirt instead of a short-sleeve." She had previously decided to drop down to 53kg from the 55kg category in 2017 after dislocating her elbow. "When I dislocated my elbow I had so much time to reflect on what I wanted to do and what I needed to do to get there. It shuffled me on to changing my diet and led me on to changing who I hung out with because I didn't want to go out eating and drinking anymore. Every day, one by one, more good habits fell in place. The wake-up call was a little blessing in disguise, I guess." (Twitter profile, 17 Nov 2020; wreaperwrestling.com, 04 Jan 2020; USA Wrestling, 19 Jan 2019; teamusa.org, 23 Jun 2018)

SISTER SUPPORT
She describes her sister Amy Hildebrandt, who was appointed head women's wrestling coach at Trine University in 2020, as a key member of her entourage. "We have these moments where it's like maybe for a month she's the person I'm completely leaning on. She's a professional at this point in Sarah breakdowns. As we get closer to competitions, especially the big, important ones, I am very impatient. She knows when I'm getting to that point of getting short on patience. She's so good at handling that and she's really just a happy person to be around. That counters me being uptight. She calms me down and that puts me into a good mindset. On top of that, she's a philosophy major so I lucked out because I got my therapist." (trackwrestling.com, 29 Oct 2020)

COMPETITIVE PAY
She believes female wrestlers should be paid a fair fee for participating in professional competitions. "As a woman and, I feel, one of the top wrestlers in the US, it's my responsibility to accept the cards where I'm adequately paid because that sets a precedent for women who will follow me to make sure they are paid what they are worth and deserve." (Track Wrestling Twitter page, 26 Oct 2020)