Director of Athletics Rick Comley sent the email saying that the last remaining varsity sport in the university’s National Training Site program will be terminated on June 30, 2027.

“As the higher education landscape continues to evolve and institutions navigate increasing resource constraints, we have determined that this is the appropriate time to transition away from our support of the National Training Site program for Greco-Roman Wrestling,” Comley’s email said.

“We appreciate the contributions of the many athletes and coaches who have been part of the Greco-Roman Wrestling program. Your dedication and impact have been meaningful to our institution.”

Comley also said that all existing scholarships would be honored, and that current student-athletes in the program would be able to continue under their current scholarship agreements for up to 10 semesters.

Northern Michigan University Greco-Roman wrestler Max Black, center, stands with his coaches, head coach Andy Bisek, left, and Parker Betts, assistant coach, at the U.S. Open national championships held in Las Vegas in April 2022. (Photo courtesy NMU)

He added that he’s planning a meeting with those involved in the program at the start of the fall semester in August.

The National Training Center for Greco-Roman wrestling has existed at NMU in some form since 1999, including when the NTS was originally called a U.S. Olympic Education Center.

U.S. Olympic alumni from the Greco-Roman program include Spenser Mango and Payton Jacobson.

The idea for an Olympic training center at NMU has been around since 1965, according to a report on the NMU website, nmu.edu.

With several other names used in a few years preceding it, the USOEC came into being in 1988 with sports that included short-track speedskating, boxing, handball, cycling, badminton, biathlon, nordic skiing, ski jumping, weightlifting and freestyle wrestling.

Northern Michigan University National Training Site Greco-Roman wrestler Payton Jacobson celebrates his bronze medal victory at the Under-23 World Championships held in Novi Sad, Serbia, on Oct. 21, 2025. (Photo courtesy USA Wrestling, themat.com)

The USOEC name was changed to the NMU National Training Site in 2020 to show its transition from partnering with the U.S. Olympic & Paralympic Committee to a similar status with USA Wrestling.

Andy Bisek has been head coach of the Greco-Roman wrestling program since 2019 after he was a 2016 graduate and wrestled in Greco-Roman at NMU. He first became a Northern assistant coach in 2016 and associate head coach in 2018, according to his biography on the NMU athletics website, nmuwildcats.com.

Bisek is the fifth head coach of the Greco-Roman wrestling program over the 27 years of its existence at the university.

Annie Lippert can be reached at 906-228-2500, ext. 550. Her email address is alippert@miningjournal.net.

Northern Michigan University National Training Site Greco-Roman wrestler Otto Black, right, gets Adomas Grigaliunas of Lithuania in a hold during their 67-kilogram match at the Under-23 World Championships held in Novi Sad, Serbia, from Oct. 20-22, 2025. (Photo courtesy NMU)