Team Duran CO: Ace Leads the Way
Duran Club Has an Ace to Lead the Way
By Bill X. Barron
If Dave and Crystal Duran were prescient, they might have known that their aptly named daughter Acelyn (Ace) would be the nation’s #1-ranked female 110-pounder by the age of fourteen.
In actuality, Coach Duran – head of the elite Duran Wrestling Club in Pueblo, Colorado – never planned for his daughter to compete in what was mostly a male sport when he founded the club in 2009.
Yet by a twist of fate, Dave’s 3-year-old son Urijah (“Yaya”) was reluctant to meet one of his first opponents. Against her dad’s initial objections, fearless four-year-old Acelyn offered to take his place.
“My younger brother threw his ankle band off and ran off the mat crying. In that moment, I decided to start my wrestling career,” Ace recalls.
Ten years later, Ace still dominates male and female foes, although she proclaims: “I prefer to wrestle girls now, as boys my age are bigger, stronger, faster. But when I do compete against boys, I don’t take it personally. Instead, I see it more as a challenge.”
A Colorado All-Star team member, 4-time Girls State Champion, and champion of more than 35 state and national tournaments, Acelyn wins with grace and loses with spirit unbeaten. Always, before and after her own matches, she can be found at matside encouraging a teammate.
While serving in Iraq, life-threatening injuries sustained from an IED led to David’s early retirement from the U.S. Army in 2008. Almost declared a wartime casualty, David was determined to celebrate the gift of life by making a difference.
Upon returning to Pueblo, an economically disadvantaged community, David immediately turned his focus to helping others. It was clear to him that wrestling was the best way to impact these kids’ lives.
His main objective was to “ensure that our kids were competitive and afforded the opportunity to travel and compete regardless of circumstance.” Funded entirely by Dave himself, Team Duran was born.
“My dad wants me to be a better person. That’s both on and off the mat,” recalls Ace.
“He is the main reason I got into wrestling and continue to wrestle. He’s willing to drive me hours away to find good practice partners. Most importantly, he reminds me to stay humble while he has helped me fall in love with the sport.”
What began as a family venture to train his kids and nephews has grown into a full-time enterprise where over a hundred wrestlers in Colorado Springs and Pueblo get their education through the online Global Sports Academy in the mornings, then train in the team’s own facility in the afternoons.
Acelyn relates that Duran coaches all work together to build champions. “We are a team! Coach Fasano is a D1 wrestler who “is very knowledgeable and compassionate; he knows the journey. Coach Ed always has words of encouragement and a hug. Everyone is there for one another.”
Anyone who knows the Duran entourage sees them as one huge family. Throughout the western United States and beyond, they descend upon events with at least forty to sixty wrestlers, tons of coaches, and a number of actively involved parents, all wearing gear sporting a large capital “D.”
Arriving in a van emblazoned with the faces of his son and daughter, like a single-celled amoeba Team Duran fills the coaching corners with match-side
The Duran Club also descends en masse upon RMN Events in locations all over the country. “I love their theatrics,” states Dave, “with the lights down, the smoke fog, motivational music, and the countdown to universal action on all mats.
“Imagine being a 6-year-old boy under all those lights! Families and kids value RMN’s superior awards. Their tournament team has found a way to make it supercompetitive on full-surface mats while getting done in time to get together with all the parents and family members who travel with us.”
Duran wrestlers are reminded that, win or lose, their ability to accept the final result reflects not only on the individual, but also serves as a reflection of the sportsmanship that is who they are as a club.
In that regard, Dave has evolved as a coach. “At first, I was all focused on winning. After many years, I’ve learned that winning is secondary. Now we teach our kids to wrestle hard and to value their competition.
“As a coach, I have learned to not get overly emotional. I know that wrestling is hard, not just for the wrestlers but for officials. In a good match, moves can go either way. An official’s call only reflects that back-and-forth action.”
Most important to Coach Duran is that “our club is our family. We spend quality time studying together in the mornings, training in the afternoons, practicing in the evenings, and traveling in one vehicle to all our events.
“In practice, we have a “no mess around” approach, yet we still have fun. We have a ton of discipline, but we respect each individual and value that everyone is different as competitors and coaches. We encourage them to be themselves
“We want our kids to be tough, in-your-face competitive, yet be good sports at the same time. If you lose, you lose. Shake hands and move on.”
Dave’s most proud of “what we have accomplished off the mat. Our kids not only do well in school, but every year they earn several state and national titles at all levels. We are building good people.”
It is not unusual to see the Duran Club heading up community fundraising initiatives, including one that supports the aHUS Foundation, a disease of the kidneys which Urijah Duran battles daily.
“I am always inspired by Yaya’s willpower and desire to fight hard on the mat,” cites his sister Acelyn. In between matches, he endures regular weekly dialysis sessions.
“When my brother became sick, I realized that life is valuable. In the blink of an eye, life can forever be changed. This experience taught me to be a fighter and to believe in myself on and off the mat.”
Because of aHUS, Urijah must compete at his own weight without the ability to cut down to a lower class. Despite this limitation, Yaya has won several RMN national events and a plethora of Outstanding Wrestler awards.
In the voice of one who has already succeeded in life as well as on the mat, Yaya comments: “I’m thankful every day to be alive. Wrestling gives me the strength and the courage to fight a lifetime illness. I will continue to battle and, one day, I know that I will win.”
Yaya looks up to his one-year older sister: “Like my mom, she’s always in my corner. I am lucky to have a sister who is a beast, a multiple state and national champion. We wrestle all the time, but only when I get lucky can I beat her.”
“When I started wrestling, there were no girls' divisions,” remembers Ace. “Now there are sixteen girls in our club. These girls look up to me, thus I must be the best student-athlete I can be. I want them to know that if they are dedicated and hard-working, they can accomplish anything in life.”
For Acelyn, “being a female wrestler is a challenge. It is also an opportunity to expose wrestling to all female athletes. Wrestling has taught me discipline, courage, and to trust the journey.
“Wrestling will mess with your confidence, but you learn that you can overcome any challenge. You will come to believe that you can get through all life’s obstacles. This sport teaches life lessons that you will use as an adult.”
“If I am to leave a legacy to those who lead the club after me, it is that building a champion begins from the inside,” reflects Coach Duran. “Once a champion in spirit, one becomes a champion in life.”
For all of Team Duran, this is a shared journey with 14-year-old female champion Ace leading the way.