Danny Mack "Dan" Gable (born October 25, 1948) is an American former folkstyle and freestyle wrestler and coach. He is a two-time NCAA Division I national champion, a world gold medalist, and an Olympic gold medalist. Gable was only the third wrestler to have ever been inducted into the United World Wrestling's Hall of Fame in the Legend category.
Early life
Top 20 Dan Gable Quotes - The retired American Olympic wrestler & head coach - Top 20 Dan Gable Quotes - The retired American Olympic wrestler and head coach Danny Mack "Dan" Gable. Get inspired by Dan Gable Quotes. Tell Us in a ...
Gable grew up in Waterloo, Iowa. When he was 15 years old, a teenager from his neighborhood sexually assaulted and murdered his 19 year old sister. Although Gable has called his sister's death his "biggest loss," he did not allow the tragedy to affect his focus on wrestling. Instead, he thought of it as a reason to train with even more determination:
“The more you can settle into focusing on what you have and what you would like to do and where you want to go â€" a positive point of view â€" the quicker things turn around and positive things start to happen."
Wrestling career
College
From 1967 to 1970, Gable attended Iowa State University, where he competed in folkstyle wrestling. At Iowa State University, he became an NCAA Division I national runner-up, and a two-time national champion. Gable's college career record was 117-1, with his only loss being in the final match of his final season to Larry Owings of the University of Washington.
Freestyle
From 1971 to 1973, Gable competed internationally in freestyle wrestling. Highlights of his career include gold medals at the 1971 Tblisi Tournament, the 1971 world championships, and the 1972 Olympic Games. At the 1972 Olympic Games in particular, Gable won all six of his matches without giving up a point.
Match results
Coaching career
From 1976 to 1997, Gable was the head wrestling coach at the University of Iowa. Gable's teams compiled a dual meet record of 355â€"21â€"5. He coached 152 all-Americans, 45 national champions, 106 Big Ten Champions and 12 Olympians, including eight medalists. His teams won 21 Big Ten Conference championships, and 15 NCAA Division I titles.
In addition to coaching folkstyle wrestling at the University of Iowa, Gable coached freestyle wrestling. Gable was the head coach of three Olympic teams and six world teams.
Awards and honors
Cultural impact
In April 1973, Esquire Magazine profiled Gable in an article entitled Gorgeous Dan. In November 1996, in a GQ Magazine cover story, actor Tom Cruise spoke of his admiration for Gable. More recently, in 2005, professional wrestler The Iron Sheik praised Gable at his induction to the WWE Hall of Fame. Gable also appears in the 2005 documentary film Catch: The Hold Not Taken, and is mentioned in the 2008 movie Never Back Down.
See also
- Iowa Sports Hall of Fame
Bibliography
- Baughman, Wayne. 1987. Wrestling On & Off the Mat. R. Wayne Baughman. ISBNÂ 978-0-9618446-0-8
- Chen, Albert. 2014. "Where are they Now: Catching up with Dan Gable and Larry Owings," Sports Illustrated (July 11, 2014)
- Gable, Dan. 2015. A Wrestling Life: The Inspiring Stories of Dan Gable. University of Iowa Press. ISBNÂ 978-1609383404
- Hammond, Jairus K. 2005. The History of Collegiate Wrestling. National Wrestling Hall of Fame and Museum. ISBNÂ 978-0-9765064-0-9
- Moffat, James V. 2007. Wrestlers At The Trials. Exit Zero Publishing. ISBNÂ 978-0-9799051-0-0
- Smith, Russ L. 1973. The Legend of Dan Gable. Medalist Sports Education Publication.
- Zavoral, Nolan. 1997. A Season on the Mat. Simon & Schuster. ISBNÂ 978-1-4165-3553-9
References
External links
- Official site
- Dan Gable Official Interview
- Website of film 'Catch: the hold not taken'
- Dan Gable's U.S. Olympic Team bio
- Gable's wins and losses between the years 1963 and 1973