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If you ask Yousef Salem a question, chances are that the reply will be a simple one.
“Yeah.”
That’s usually the answer that the High Tech High School junior, who competes for the North Bergen wrestling team, will offer. Not much more. It’s just a simple “yeah” or “no.”
One can’t exactly script “War and Peace” with those responses, never mind a simple easy feature for a weekly newspaper chain.
With that, Salem earned the title of “Quiet Man.” He doesn’t exactly look like John Wayne, but the nickname fits, especially the way Salem speaks.
“He really doesn’t say much,” North Bergen head wrestling coach and athletic director Jerry Maietta said. “He just wrestles.”
Salem began wrestling when he was six years old on the encouragement of his father, Moustafa.
“He just wanted me to try it and I stuck with it,” Salem said.
Salem said that he doesn’t remember if he liked wrestling at all. He just respectfully did what his father told him.
“I honestly don’t remember at all,” Salem said. “I just remember my father telling me and me sticking with it.”
Salem said that he started to feel encouraged about the sport in fifth grade.
“My name appeared in the newspaper,” Salem said. “That’s when I started to think I could be pretty good.”
In eighth grade, Salem entered the state tournament for North Bergen Recreation and finished eighth.
“I realized I was pretty good at it,” Salem said. “I then started to focus on my technique and my moves. I started lifting to get bigger and stronger.”
By the time Salem entered high school, he was all of 106 pounds.
“I went to the gym every day to work on it,” Salem said. “I wanted to become a better wrestler.”
Maietta saw the work that Salem was putting into the sport.
“I thought he could do well,” Maietta said. “I thought he could be successful.”
Salem wrestled at 106 pounds for the first two years and was more than competitive. But as he entered his junior year, Salem had higher goals.
“He came out this year to prove he belonged,” Maietta said. “He was third in the regions [Region 4] last year and won a couple matches in Atlantic City [at the state tournament]. So he had high expectations for this year.”
However, Salem had a different challenge entering this season. He experienced a natural growth spurt and could not compete at the same weight class.
“He was going up a couple of weight classes,” Maietta said. “Usually, guys don’t maintain the same level of success. Some kids handle the adversity and turn the corner. Maybe he just needed the room to grow. He’s strong. He’s quick. He’s good on his feet.”
Salem knew that he had to work even harder this season.
“I knew that my junior year was one of the most important years in my development,” Salem said. “I had to work harder. I wasn’t sure if I could continue to win at the higher weight. Winning in Atlantic City last year made me realize that I could do it. It made me believe that I could possibly place in the states this year.”
Salem began this season wrestling at the 126-pound weight class. He has also wrestled at 120 pounds, but feels comfortable at 126.
Over the last two weeks, Salem has competed in three tournaments and won the gold medal in all three tourneys.
Salem won the prestigious George Jockish Bergen County championships at 120 pounds, then added championships in the Mahwah and Union City Tournaments at 126 pounds. He has won every match this season, winning all 10 of his matches, competing in both weight classes.
And for his efforts, Salem has been selected as The Hudson Reporter Athlete of the Week for the past week.
Salem has one goal in mind – earning a place on the podium among the top eight finishers in the state come March, winning a medal in the process.
“Things are going pretty well right now,” Salem said. “I have just this year and next year to prove myself. I don’t really have an issue right now.”
“He’s going to face the best competition,” Maietta said. “Let’s see what happens. He was always kind of a small kid. Now, he’s grown a little. He’s gotten bigger and stronger. He’s wrestling for a long time, so that’s going to pay off.”
Salem hopes to get a chance in wrestle in college. He doesn’t know where yet, but would love to major in engineering in college.
“I think about that,” Salem said about wrestling in college. “I just know that I really like it.”
And taking the quiet approach at it. – Jim Hague
Jim Hague can be reached via e-mail at OGSMAR@aol.com
