John William Smith (born August 9, 1965)[1] is an American folkstyle and freestyle wrestler and coach. Smith was a two-time NCAA Division I national champion, and a six-time world level champion with two Olympic Championships and four World Wrestling Championships. Smith is the only American wrestler ever to win six consecutive World and Olympic championships as a competitor. At the end of his competitive career, Smith had won more World and Olympic gold medals in wrestling than any other American. Smith was widely known for his low single leg takedown,[2][3] and is considered one of the greatest freestyle wrestlers of all time.[4][5][6]
| Personal information | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Full name | John William Smith | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Born | August 9, 1965 (age 59) Del City, Oklahoma, U.S. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Height | 5 ft 7 in (170 cm) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Weight | 62 kg (137 lb) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Sport | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Country | United States | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Sport | Wrestling | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Weight class | 62 kg | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Event(s) | Freestyle and Folkstyle | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| College team | Oklahoma State | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Club | Sunkist Kids Wrestling Club | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Team | USA | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Medal record
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Wrestling career
editHigh School
editSmith wrestled at Del City High School in Del City, Oklahoma. While in high school Smith had a 105–5 record, and was a two-time Oklahoma state champion.[7]
College
editSmith competed collegiately at Oklahoma State University. While at Oklahoma State University, Smith's college career record was 154-7-2. At the NCAA Division I Wrestling Championships, Smith was a three-time national finalist and a two-time national champion. After losing in the 1985 finals to future US House representative Jim Jordan, he finished his college career with 90 consecutive victories.
Senior level
editBeginning 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, his international freestyle wrestling record was 100–5, with an overall record of 177–8.[8] He is the only American wrestler to ever win six consecutive World and Olympic championships as a competitor.[9]
Coaching career
editSmith 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 2022, his overall dual meet record was 490-73-6.[10] He had also coached 33 NCAA Division I individual national champions, and coached his wrestlers to 152 All-American honors. Smith has brought 21 team conference titles and 129 individual conference championships to Stillwater as a coach, as well. On April 11, 2024 he announced his retirement and departure from OSU.[9] David Taylor was appointed as his successor.
Awards and honors
edit- 1992
- 1991
World Wrestling Championships- Pan American Games
- Pan American Championships
- 1990
- World Wrestling Championships
- 1990 Goodwill Games wrestling tournament
- Grand Masters of Olympic Wrestling
- UWW Master of Technique award winner
- Amateur Athletic Union James E. Sullivan Award winner
- 1989
- 1988
- 1987
- World Wrestling Championships
- Pan American Games
- Pan American Championships
- NCAA Division I
- Big Eight Conference
- 1986
- 1985
Other honors
edit- Smith was inducted into the National Wrestling Hall of Fame as a Distinguished Member in 1997.
- He was inducted into the Oklahoma Sports Hall of Fame with the class of 1997.[11]
- In 2020, Smith was inducted into the Oklahoma Hall of Fame.[12]
- The high school Smith graduated from, Del City High School in Oklahoma, named its field house after him.
- Smith has a wrestling move named after him, the John Smith low single.
Family
editSmith's older brother Lee Roy Smith and younger brother Pat Smith are NCAA Division I wrestling national champions, with Pat being the sport's first ever four-time NCAA national champion. 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.[13] Another nephew of Smith, J. T. Realmuto, is a Major League Baseball player.[14]
See also
editBibliography
edit- 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
edit- ^ 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 December 4, 2016.
- ^ Brownlee, Shannon. (March 14, 1988). How Low Can You Get?. Sports Illustrated. Retrieved July 17, 2022.
- ^ History Of The Low Single Leg and Overlooking the Legend who Invented it – John Smith. bjjee.com. Retrieved September 23, 2022.
- ^ John Smith Named Greatest American Wrestler of All Time. okstate.com. Retrieved July 17, 2022.
- ^ Steen, Alex. (September 3, 2016). Top 10 Greatest Olympic Wrestlers of All Time - Men's Freestyle. The Open Mat. Retrieved July 17, 2022.
- ^ Binoy, Allan. (July 26, 2021). Top 5 American Wrestlers to Ever Compete at the Olympics. Essentially Sports. Retrieved September 23, 2022.
- ^ Wojciehowski, Gene. (July 19, 1992). Wrestling With Himself : Olympic Champion John Smith Blocks Out Everything Else, Then Beats Everyone Else. Los Angeles Times. Retrieved September 17, 2022.
- ^ Abbott, Gary (November 19, 2004). "Smith vs. Sarkissian is the new "Bout of the Week"". content.usawmembership.com. Retrieved October 31, 2024.
- ^ a b "John Smith - 2018-19 Wrestling Coaching Staff - Oklahoma State University". okstate.com. Retrieved June 7, 2019.
- ^ "John Smith". okstate.com.
- ^ "Class of 1997". April 8, 2020.
- ^ "Smith, John W. | 2020".
- ^ "Joe Smith - 2019-20 - Wrestling - Oklahoma State University Athletics". Okstate.com. Retrieved November 21, 2021.
- ^ "Playing first base? That's nothing for J.T. Realmuto, former QB/power forward/shortstop/wrestler - South Florida Sun Sentinel - South Florida Sun-Sentinel". March 22, 2017.