D3 Week Wildcat Spotlight: Klaira Flatt

By Kellen Wiggins '27

04/12

A HIGHER CALLING

An unrelenting commitment to her sport and her faith keeps Linfield wrestler Klaira Flatt focused on achieving her best every day.

Klaira Flatt began her wrestling career later than most, but once she experienced it, she never looked back.

Flatt loves wrestling. The sport has taught her to be tough-minded and self-disciplined. Along with her extraordinary commitment to her sport, Flatt is devoted to her Christian faith, which has come to be a driving force in her everyday life, on and off the mat. Flatt one day hopes to use her faith and the lessons she’s learning at Linfield to provide aid to people as a healthcare professional.

Growing up in Siletz, Oregon, a small community in the Oregon Coast range, Flatt enjoyed playing basketball, especially guarding other players. Unlike wrestling, being overly physical in basketball usually results in a foul.

As a sophomore at Toledo High School, Flatt attended her first wrestling tournament.

“I had never watched wrestling or been to a tournament before,” she says, looking back. “I was in complete awe.”

After the tournament, Flatt immediately knew she wanted to give wrestling a try. She wasted no time in finding the wrestling coach at the tournament and asked to join the team. Once Flatt began practicing, she only had one week to prepare for regionals. Despite limited practice time, she earned fifth place at regionals, a truly impressive milestone considering her minimal preparation and familiarity with the sport.

“I’ve never looked back since,” she says with a smile.

Flatt has taken away many things in her time in the sport. She points specifically to the commitment level and individual mindset as things she has taken away from wrestling. An extremely demanding sport, wrestling requires both physical and mental commitment to achieve success.

“The area of wrestling that I see applying to my life is being committed,” she says. “I know that every day when I have to get up at 5 a.m. for morning practice that I have a choice. And that choice is to show up regardless of the tiredness, soreness and pain. I choose to show up for my team and my sport because I am committed.”

In wrestling, athletes must be fully committed. Without the correct mindset, grinding through the demanding workload in hopes of achieving the desired results can be difficult at best, if not impossible.

“The mindset that you have when wrestling can make or break you,” says Flatt. “Without a good mindset, you can’t get anywhere. When I’m cutting weight, working out on Day 3 of no food or water, I have to be mentally strong.”

Being mentally and physically committed to showing up – and having the proper mindset – allows Flatt to not only thrive on the mat against her opponents but also in life when times are hard. The day-to-day grind of wrestling prepares her be ready to push through challenging times and come out better for them.

Flatt has a strong commitment to wrestling and her studies at Linfield University, but she also has a significant commitment to her Christian faith. Flatt loves God and He serves as her guiding light even when times are tough.

“I am a Christian. I love God and Jesus and I wouldn’t be here without the Lord guiding me. Every day I read my Bible and pray. God has been my light every day since I accepted Him in my heart. I wouldn’t be able to do anything without Him.”

Flatt uses God’s words to guide her in all aspects in life, whether that’s on the mat or in the classroom. God gives her the strength to be able to perform at her best in all aspects of her life.

“I use His word as a guidance for my life. He is what gives me strength when I am on the wrestling mat, in the classroom and everywhere I go,” she says. “I allow wrestling to be a platform to glorify Him through spreading His word, His love, and sacrificing everything that I have to Him.”

Klaira Flatt, Linfield Women's Wrestling Roster

At Linfield, Flatt is majoring in nursing while minoring in religious studies. She chose nursing because she wants to positively impact others. Her choice stems back from a time when Flatt suffered with an eating disorder and was inspired by the thoughtful care she received as a patient herself.

“I chose nursing as my major because I have always had a deep calling to help others,” she says. “I want to not be looked at as just a nurse, but as a loving, helping hand that does everything they possibly can do for their patients the same way I got care when I was going through a horrible eating disorder.”

A HIGHER CALLING

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