Chooljian Enters Hall-of-Fame

PLAISTOW, N.H.—In this spangled world of athletics, being inducted into one Hall-of-Fame is a marked achievement. Two is even better while three selections are rare.

Coach Barry Chooljian with one of his talented wrestlers at Timberlane Regional High School in Plaistow, N.H.

Barry Chooljian has accomplished a milestone that is almost unheard of in the sports field. The celebrated wrestling coach at Timberlane Regional is about to be inducted into the charmed circle for the 5^th time over a prominent 29-year career.

The latest nod came from the New Hampshire Interscholastic Athletic Association to complement four other inductions he already enjoys. The ceremony will take place Nov. 15.

Chooljian is already enshrined in two national wrestling halls—the National Wrestling Coaches Association and National High School Coaches Association—along with the Timberlane Hall of Fame and New England Wrestling Hall of Fame.

In 2010, he was selected National Coach of the Year by two organizations, both of them unanimous choices.

It’s been an honorable career for the veteran Armenian mentor who owns a glittering 517-48-5 record. Under his tutelage, the Owls have won a record 10 New England titles and 15 straight Division 1 state crowns.

No other team in the Granite State owns up to such dominance, capturing 12 straight Meet of Champion titles. Timberlane has won the last 110 straight dual meets in the state and owns an incredible 309-3 record since 1993.

Over that span Chooljian’s coached five NHSCA Senior All-Americans, along with a national champion. If he isn’t the top high school wrestling coach in America, then he’s certainly created a strong case for himself.

Not once in all that time did Chooljian ever experience a losing season.

“I’m really quite humbled by all this,” said Chooljian, a proud Armenian American who takes no exception to his heritage. “Such recognition is something I never envisioned happening. I coach because I love working with kids. All the success we’ve had is due to their hard work and dedication.”

Much of it is the good fortune of working inside a school that has been extremely supportive of its wrestling program. Of all the major sports like football and basketball, it’s wrestling that traditionally rises to the surface, thanks to Chooljian and a motivated coaching staff. He packs the stands like an NCAA play-off game.

“This is good for the athletes and good for the program,” he added. “That’s what I care about the most.”

It’s so good, Timberlane often jets forth with both an “A” and “B” squad. Each complements the other when it comes to high-level competition. A suburb middle school feeder system is unlike most districts. In short, prospects come to Timberlane anxious to wrestle and land that elusive college scholarship.

The adage is simple. Success breeds success, and Chooljian maintains that motive nicely.

Anything he can do to promote the sport has taken him outside the school like a roving ambassador. He is vice-president of the New Hampshire Wrestling Coaches Association and has been state chairman for more than a decade. He is currently on the National Wrestling Rules Committee.

“The variety of career fields my guys end up with make me extremely proud,” Chooljian said. “The common theme is discipline. The lessons they learn through wrestling has helped them become leaders in the outside world and successful family people. In the long run, that’s the biggest gain.”

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Tom Vartabedian

Tom Vartabedian is a retired journalist with the Haverhill Gazette, where he spent 40 years as an award-winning writer and photographer. He has volunteered his services for the past 46 years as a columnist and correspondent with the Armenian Weekly, where his pet project was the publication of a special issue of the AYF Olympics each September.