Tars find inspiration in Landers’ success

Steve Virgen

The payoff for all of Paul Landers’ hard work as a wrestler came

earlier this season in an early-season match at Orange High.

During the four-way meet, Landers, an inspirational leader of the

Newport Harbor High wrestling team, earned his first varsity win.

And it came in dramatic fashion.

Landers recorded a five-second pin, the fastest takedown by a

Newport wrestler in the last five years and one of the quickest in

the program’s history.

Landers’ teammates cheered wildly for him, as he stood in the

middle of the mat with his hand being raised in victory. After all

the hard work Landers has put into wrestling throughout his four

seasons at Newport, some sort of personal celebration might have been

expected. But Landers quickly put the memorable moment behind him.

“I had another match right after that,” Landers said. “Even if I

do win, I have to forget because there’s more to come.”

Committed and determined are labels that Landers wants to be

associated with. He doesn’t want people to know the story of his

disability. But for the sake of inspiring teammates and others, he’s

willing to share his story.

Landers has attention deficit hyperactivity disorder. But he said

that is not an issue in whatever he does.

“I’m not one of those people who think, ‘I have something wrong

with me. I can’t do it,’ ” Landers said. “I overlook my disabilities.

I look at my disability as if I don’t have it and I just do what

everyone else does.”

When Landers was 11, his parents and teachers came to realize his

learning disability. In social settings, he can be extremely shy, yet

he is friendly. ADHD also involves inattention and impulsiveness,

which Landers deals with daily.

Landers’ learning disability is not severe, yet still challenging.

He is working toward continuing his education in college, at Cal

State Fullerton or Orange Coast College, he said.

He has had the ability to tone down his hyperactivity and his

attentiveness has also improved while working out with the wrestling

team, Newport Coach Dominic Bulone said.

When Landers completed the five-second pin, Bulone also reveled in

the moment. He, too, cheered for the wrestler who has provided a

greater sense of purpose for coaching.

“He has been with me for four years,” Bulone said. “He works hard,

and he has taken his fair share of beatings. But he just keeps coming

back for more. He brings the team a lot of satisfaction when he does

well.”

Whether it be in training or during a match, Landers always brings

his best effort, Bulone said. And with that, the Newport Harbor

senior has been an example for his teammates.

“He’s very dedicated,” said fellow senior Kyle Codey, who has also

been in the program for four seasons. “Every day he comes to

practice, he always has a determined look on his face. He always

wants to get better. Usually when people see him work hard, that

makes people want to work harder.”

Both Bulone and Codey have seen the improvements Landers has made

each season. That’s why the five-second pin proved to be so special

for the Sailors. Aside from the victory, Landers is simply pleased to

be in the sport and possesses a sense of pride in the fact that he

will never quit.

“I feel as if wrestling is something that I have to be a part of,”

Landers said. “It’s one of those things that I have to do. I don’t

want to quit. If I quit, it’s not going to feel right.”