Jaclyn Bouzakis named USA Wrestling Athlete of the Week presented by U.S. Air Force Special Warfare

Jaclyn Bouzakis (Shavertown, Pa./Wyoming Seminary) has been named the USA Wrestling Athlete of the Week, presented by U.S. Air Force Special Warfare, on Feb. 21, 2024.

The 15-year-old Pennsylvania native exploded to the 43 kg gold medal in the U17 division at the always-tough Klippan Lady Open held annually in Klippan, Sweden. Bouzakis won three bouts, one by technical fall and two by pin, wrestling a total time of four minutes and 10 seconds, on her way to gold.

Her highlight victory of the tournament was an 11-0 technical fall in 2:00 over reigning U17 European champion Klara Winkler of Germany. Winkler is one of the elite U17 competitors on the international stage at this weight, holding a fifth place from last year’s U17 World Championships, an event in which Bouzakis earned a bronze medal on the opposite side of the bracket.

She tallied pins in 1:43 against Sally Malmgren of Sweden and in 0:27 over Kari Bjerge of Norway to round out her perfect 3-0 record and solidify her place atop the podium.

Bouzakis was one-of-seven U.S. women to medal at the Klippan Lady Open across the U17 and Senior divisions. Francesca Gusfa was the only other American to earn a gold medal, doing so at 40 kg in the U17 division.

In addition to her U17 World bronze medal, Bouzakis posted stellar results during the 2023 season. Her resume includes championship efforts at the USMC Women’s Nationals in the U15 and U17 divisions, a runner-up finish at the 16U Women’s Freestyle Nationals in Fargo, N.D., and a first-place finish at the Walsh Jesuit Ironman, one of the top high school events held annually. Bouzakis was a U15 Pan American Champion two years ago.

Bouzakis currently holds the No. 1 spot at 100 pounds in the National Girls High School Rankings. Additionally, she moved up to No. 4 in the pound-for-pound rankings released last week.

To nominate a wrestler for this honor please email the athlete's name, wrestling program, weekly accomplishments, and career accolades to communications@usawrestling.org.