In Roanoke, Virginia in 1963, the brand-new Northside High School wrestling program began when a 95-pound sophomore stepped to the mat for the first match. That youngster was Larry Hall, whose devotion to his sport would span the next 60 years.

Wrestler, coach and official, he was for decades the "Director" and known throughout the Roanoke Valley for running the tournaments that paced the growth of our sport in the region.

At Northside, Hall won a bronze at states when all schools were in one division. This was good enough to earn him a scholarship to Appalachian State University in North Carolina, where he graduated from in 1970 and began what would become 40-plus years of officiating.

He would eventually rack up 12 Virginia High School League state tournament assignments and 12 years of college officiating while also taking countless scorekeeping shifts. He loved the action and always said that “The best seat for a match is to be the referee, and the next best is to be the scorekeeper.”

Hall would return to his high school alma mater as a coach and achieved excellent results. His teams were district champs for seven out of seven years, regional champions three times, and Hall was named the Roanoke Times Coach of the Year twice.

Off the mat was also a happy time as he married his loving and patient Deborah with whom he had two talented daughters, athletic Hollie (state champ softball team and 1,000-point scorer in basketball) and accomplished singer Carla. He also prospered as director of operations for Botetourt County Schools.

His prime contribution, however, was as the "Director" for events, including 37 state tournaments and two NCAA Division III Championships. Hall says that he has run about 99 tournaments that have started in November and gone all the way into March.

Before he stepped back in 2022, Hall was involved in more than wrestling. The citizens of Buchanan, Virginia, elected him mayor, an office he held from 2011-17, and he also served as a member of the Botetourt County Safety Commission. On behalf of the Roanoke Valley Wrestling Association, Hall continues to help raise around $100,000 in scholarships for deserving local wrestlers and served as the organization's president for 10 years.

Carey Harveycutter, who was Hall's local government partner in opening up the Salem Civic Center in 1990 for VHSL state tournaments, sums it up best when he says that “Larry is ‘Mr. Wrestling’ in Southwest Virginia.”