John Smith (wrestler)

John William Smith (born August 9, 1965)[1] is an American folkstyle and freestyle wrestler and coach. Considered to be one of the greatest wrestlers of all time, Smith is a two-time NCAA Division I national champion, and a six-time world level champion with two Olympic Championships and four World Wrestling Championships. As of October 2019, he has won more world-level gold medals in wrestling than any other American.[2]

This article is about the American Olympic wrestler. For the Zambian wrestler, see John Smith (Zambian wrestler). For the American professional wrestler, see J.T. Smith (wrestler).
John Smith
Personal information
Full nameJohn William Smith
BornAugust 9, 1965 (1965-08-09) (age 55)
Del City, Oklahoma, U.S.
Medal record
Men's freestyle wrestling
Representing the  United States
Olympic Games
1988 Seoul 62 kg
1992 Barcelona 62 kg
World Championships
1987 Clermont-Ferrand 62 kg
1989 Martigny 62 kg
1990 Tokyo 62 kg
1991 Varna 62 kg
Goodwill Games
1986 Moscow62 kg
1990 Seattle62 kg
Pan American Games
1987 Indianapolis 62 kg
1991 Havana 62 kg

Wrestling career

College

Smith attended Oklahoma State University, where he competed in folkstyle wrestling. At Oklahoma State University, he became an NCAA Division I national runner-up, and a two-time national champion. Smith's college career record was 154-7-2.

International

Beginning in his teenage years, Smith competed internationally in freestyle wrestling. Highlights of his career include four UWW world gold medals, and two Olympic gold medals. At the Senior level (ages 20 and up) his international freestyle wrestling record was 100-5. He won 6 consecutive world championships as a competitor.[3]

Coaching career

Smith became the head wrestling coach at Oklahoma State University in 1991. During his tenure, Oklahoma State University won five NCAA Division I national team titles, with titles coming in 1994, 2003, 2004, 2005, and 2006. As of 2020, his overall dual meet record was 439-65-6.[4] He had also coached 32 NCAA Division I individual national champions, and coached his wrestlers to 129 All-America honors.[5]

Awards and honors
1992
1991
1990
1989
1988
1987
1986
1985

Other honors

Family

Smith's older brother Lee Roy Smith and younger brother Pat Smith are NCAA Division I national champions. Smith's youngest brother, Mark, was also a successful NCAA Division I wrestler, having placed in the top five nationally three times. Smith's nephews Mark Perry and Chris Perry are also NCAA Division I national champions. His son, Joe Smith, earned NCAA All-American honors twice while wrestling at Oklahoma State under his coaching.[6] His nephew J.T. Realmuto is an all-star Major League Baseball player for the Philadelphia Phillies.[7]

See also

Bibliography
  • Dellinger, Bob & Doris. 1994. The Cowboys Ride Again. Oklahoma Bylines Inc. ISBN 978-1-882336-04-3
  • Zavoral, Nolan. 1997. A Season on the Mat. Simon & Schuster. ISBN 978-0-684-84787-0
  • Hammond, Jairus K. 2005. The History of Collegiate Wrestling. National Wrestling Hall of Fame and Museum. ISBN 978-0-9765064-0-9
  • Moffat, James V. 2007. Wrestlers At The Trials. Exit Zero Publishing. ISBN 978-0-9799051-0-0
  • Parrish, Kim D. 2007. Cowboy Up. Oklahoma Heritage Association. ISBN 978-1-885596-61-1

References
  1. Evans, Hilary; Gjerde, Arild; Heijmans, Jeroen; Mallon, Bill; et al. "John Smith". Olympics at Sports-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Archived from the original on 2016-12-04.
  2. "Jordan Burroughs is named a 2017 Comeback Wrestler of the Year by United World Wrestling".
  3. "John Smith - 2018-19 Wrestling Coaching Staff - Oklahoma State University". okstate.com. Retrieved 2019-06-07.
  4. "John Smith". okstate.com.
  5. "John Smith - 2018-19 Wrestling Coaching Staff - Oklahoma State University". okstate.com. Retrieved 2019-06-07.
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