LOYAL. LOCAL. COMPLETE.
For Paris Cooperative High School senior Joshua Lamour, the road to the state wrestling tournament did not begin in childhood gyms or youth leagues. It began with curiosity, family legacy and a sophomore-year leap of faith that transformed into purpose.
Now it’s three years later, and while preparing to compete Feb. 19 to 21 in the IHSA state finals at the State Farm Center in Champaign, Lamour carries more than his school’s hopes onto the mat. He carries the weight of growth, the lessons of perseverance and the quiet determination of someone who discovered his path.
“My family is a wrestling family. My grandpa wrestled, my uncle’s done wrestling,” Lamour said. “I didn’t know about wrestling my freshman year… but once I found out sophomore year, I got really excited, and I wanted to try it out.”
He joined the team after football season. What he found was not just a sport, but a community.
“Honestly, it wasn’t the sport I loved in particular,” he said. “It was the people. The team was amazing. There’s an amazing connection there. It made me really appreciate all the hard work everyone put into it; the dedication and the mentality you have to have.”
Lamour’s early matches were not defined by wins, but by the lessons he learned along the way.
“I’d definitely say mentality,” he said when asked about his biggest area of growth. “A lot of those matches I gave up on. I let people pin me. I was physically tired, but mentally I was probably more tired. I could have pushed myself harder.”
Something shifted after that first season. Watching older teammates, attending camps and reflecting on what effort truly looked like reshaped his approach.
“Junior year, I came back and thought of all the seniors … how they truly push themselves,” he said. “I wanted to know that once I left the mat, I had pushed myself, that my body would give up before my mind would.”
That philosophy now guides every match.
“I don’t really care about winning before it even starts,” Lamour said. “I want to make sure that when I walk off the mat, I know I did everything I could… I’m not wrestling just for myself. I’m trying to set an example for the next people.”
Behind Lamour’s quiet resolve stands a powerful influence: his grandfather, Stan Lee Horton, a former state medalist.
“He placed third at state,” Lamour said. “He’s definitely been a big influence on why I’ve stayed in wrestling and why I’ve grown to love it so much more.”
Family tradition may have opened the door, but Lamour walked through it on his own terms: late, uncertain and determined to catch up.
“I’m a third-year wrestler,” he said. “I’ve talked to a lot of guys who’ve been wrestling for 11 years, basically since elementary school, and they don’t get to go. Some don’t even make it out of regionals. It’s definitely a privilege.”
While wrestling is often portrayed as solitary, one athlete alone under bright lights, Lamour insists the sport is defined by relationships, not isolation.
“I’ve done a lot of sports, and wrestling is the only sport where you can go up to someone on another team and be completely friendly,” he said. “Even the people you wrestle. You can lose to them and walk off the mat and talk perfectly fine. There’s no hostility.”
At sectionals, Lamour spoke with every wrestler on the podium in his weight class, regardless of results.
“It’s really a cool thing to see,” he said.
Head coach Seth Rohrbach said that spirit is one of Lamour’s defining traits.
“He’s nice to everybody. He’s respectful to all the refs, to other coaches,” Rohrbach said. “This past weekend, he had a ref come up and hug him after he made it to state because everybody likes him. He’s just such a likable person.”
Rohrbach believes Lamour’s character elevates the entire program.
“Having a person like that on the team is helpful. He’s such a leader, and everybody looks up to him,” he said.
State qualifiers are often forged in the unseen hours; early mornings, aching muscles and routines repeated long after others have gone home.
Lamour’s training regimen is relentless. He spends hours each day at The Rec in Paris building endurance through intense cardio, including extended sessions on the StairMaster. He also runs outdoors daily.
“I always do at least an hour and a half to three hours of cardio,” he said. “It gets your stamina right really well. I’m usually never out of breath after a match.”
Rohrbach said that extra effort is what separates Lamour from others.
“He’s working out every morning, after work, two or three times a day,” he said. “He’s doing a lot of extra, and it proves itself. He’s trusting the process.”
Rohrbach added that Lamour’s mental approach is just as significant as the physical work.
“The only thing that sets him apart from everybody else is the mental side of it,” Rohrbach said. “He just goes straight at every single person with a winner’s mentality.”
Lamour enters the state tournament knowing the bracket will be unforgiving, likely facing a top-seeded opponent early. His coach believes success will depend on staying true to his style.
“If he sticks to his style of wrestling and what he knows is best, he shouldn’t have any problems,” Rohrbach said.
Lamour, however, is focused less on outcomes than on experience.
“Just being able to go to state is a privilege,” he said. “I definitely want to keep that in mind.”
As a senior, Lamour understands he is wrestling not only for himself, but for the underclassmen watching from the stands and practice room. His advice is rooted in personal experience.
“Don’t compare yourself to seniors,” he said. “That held me back, wanting to be as good as them or live up to their standards. Think about yourself and how you can improve.”
For newcomers considering wrestling, he offers encouragement rather than warning.
“It’s a hard sport; one of the hardest I’ve ever done,” he said. “A lot of new guys quit that first week. But if you stay and get to know the team, it won’t even be about wrestling anymore. It’ll be about the bond and how you grow as a person.”
Lamour plans to pursue a career as an electrical lineman through the trades, but he does not plan to leave wrestling behind entirely.
“I’d love to continue being part of it,” he said. “Maybe as an assistant coach, helping the next generation. I’d want them to gain a secure place to go. A lot of student-athletes use sports as an escape. I’d want wrestling to build their confidence, help them mature and grow.”
For Lamour, success is not measured solely by medals. It is measured by effort. And when the final whistle blows, regardless of outcome, Lamour will walk off knowing he did exactly what he set out to do: leave nothing behind.
“I just want to know I gave everything I had,” he said.