Sports
Nordland Honored by Wrestling Coaches Association
Photographer and creator of The Mat Slap wins photographer of the year honors.
Tony Nordland, a longtime wrestling coach and enthusiast from Sachem, has been awarded Photographer of the Year honors by the National Wrestling Coaches Association.
A former Sachem middle school coach for 10 years and an assistant at Massapequa High School for another 10 years, he and his brother Jim started The Mat Slap wrestling magazine in 1979 and changed it to an online publication in 2002.
For the past 30 years, Nordland’s photographs have captured the essence of Long Island wrestling.
Find out what's happening in Sachemwith free, real-time updates from Patch.
His photos have also appeared on the cover of Amateur Wrestling News and in the annual program crafted by the Friends of Long Island Wrestling, among other publications.
Nordland has also worked at the High School Nationals, the Dapper Dan Classic, the NCAA Division I Championships and the 2003 World Wrestling Championships in Madison Square Garden.
Find out what's happening in Sachemwith free, real-time updates from Patch.
Get more local news delivered straight to your inbox. Sign up for free Patch newsletters and alerts.
