LJ wrestling: Q&A with Walter Fairley Jr. re: Willie Jones Tourney namesake

Walter Fairley Jr. (right), former LJHS principal

and wrestling coach emeritus, watches the Vikings'

dual meet at St. Augustine Wed., Jan. 24.

To his right is LJHS teacher Richard Babcock

(middle), an assistant coach, and to his side

Vike wrestler Jayden Williams, 165 pounds,

not wrestling that night.

(Photo by Ed Piper)

By Ed Piper

Walter Fairley Jr. is in the California Wrestling Hall of Fame. For over five decades, he has served as a teacher, La Jolla High wrestling coach, LJHS administrator, and in many other capacities with San Diego City Schools and CIF, including ensuring the continued success of the Willie James Jones Jr. Memorial Tournament (this year Jan. 27), an annual event honoring a stellar student at Lincoln High who was ASB president, class valedictorian, and CIF champion wrestler, all in 1994, who earned a full wrestling scholarship to Cornell University when he tragically fell due to random gang violence.

What does the Willie Jones Tournament mean to you?

It's the continuation of something that was started long ago with Willie and his dad. Obviously, his dad coached him. I tried to coach him. (laughing) Of course, but he wouldn't let me do that.

What weight did he wrestle at?

147? I don't remember.

The last time Willie went to the state meet (as a senior in 1994), I was in Sacramento. Believe it or not, because of the brotherhood amongst wrestlers and their coaches and what have you, before they came back to San Diego, they went all the way into Sacramento (off their route). So I was able to be with him, and to congratulate him on the effort he had given already.

It was just a shame that he was not able to continue.

He was a star student, as well as an athlete?

He was a great student. I think he was ASB president at Lincoln High. He had won CIF (San Diego), and he placed in the state meet. He was just an outstanding young man, and so was his dad. When I was a wrestler in high school, he (the dad) actually officiated some of my matches, so that's how long and how far we go back. We're very close. We were very close then, and we're very close now.

(Willie) set a standard for the wrestlers Saturday (at the Jan. 27 tournament bearing his name) to emulate?

Absolutely. A standard to emulate. This is a kid who worked for everything that he got. Nothing was given to him. It was earned. And that's what wrestlers have to get: if you're going to be successful, you've got to put in the time. It's not just a given just because you walk out there and have your hand raised. No. You work for it, and he put the time in, and it paid off. You can't ask for anything more than that.