Dan Gable

Last updated

Dan Gable
Dan Gable.jpg
Gable in April 2014
Personal information
Full nameDanny Mack Gable
Born (1948-10-25) October 25, 1948 (age 76)
Waterloo, Iowa, U.S.
Height5 ft 9 in (175 cm)
Weight68 kg (150 lb)
Sport
CountryUnited States
Sport Wrestling
Event(s) Freestyle and Folkstyle
College team Iowa State
TeamUSA
Coached by Harold Nichols
Medal record
Men's freestyle wrestling
Representing the Flag of the United States (23px).png  United States
Olympic Games
Olympic rings.svg
Gold medal icon (G initial).svg 1972 Munich 68 kg
World Championships
Gold medal icon (G initial).svg 1971 Sofia 68 kg
Pan American Games
Gold medal icon (G initial).svg 1971 Cali 68 kg
Collegiate Wrestling
Representing the Iowa State Cyclones
NCAA Division I Championships
Gold medal icon (G initial).svg 1968 State College 130 lb
Gold medal icon (G initial).svg 1969 Provo 137 lb
Silver medal icon (S initial).svg 1970 Evanston 142 lb

Danny Mack Gable (born October 25, 1948) is an American former folkstyle and freestyle wrestler and coach. Considered to be one of the greatest wrestlers of all time, Gable 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 be inducted into the United World Wrestling's Hall of Fame in the Legend category. [1] [2] In 2014, Gable was inducted into the International Sports Hall of Fame [3] and awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2020. [4]

Contents

Early life

Gable was born and grew up in Waterloo, Iowa. When he was 15 years old, a teenager from his neighborhood murdered Gable's 19-year-old sister. Although Gable called his sister's death his "biggest loss", [5] 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—a positive point of view—the quicker things turn around and positive things start to happen. [6]

He attended high school at West High School in Waterloo. [7] During high school he was a three-time Iowa state champion with a 64-0 record. [8]

Wrestling career

College

From 1967 to 1970, Gable attended Iowa State University, where he competed in wrestling. At Iowa State, he became a two-time NCAA Division I national champion and three-time finalist. Gable's college career record was 118–1, with his only loss being in the NCAA final match during his senior season to Larry Owings of the University of Washington. [9]

Freestyle

From 1971 to 1973, Gable competed internationally in freestyle wrestling. Highlights of his career include gold medals at the 1971 Tbilisi Tournament, the 1971 world championships, and the 1972 Olympic Games. At the 1972 Games, Gable won all six of his matches without giving up a point. [10] After competing sporadically from 1974 to 1975, Gable retired and became a full-time coach. In 1991, Gable was awarded with the Art Abrams Lifetime Achievement Award by Cauliflower Alley Club. [11]

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 355–21–5. He coached 158 All-Americans, 50 national champions, 106 Big Ten champions, and 12 Olympians, including eight Olympic medalists. His teams won 21 Big Ten championships and 15 NCAA Division I titles. [9]

In addition to coaching folkstyle wrestling at the University of Iowa, Gable coached freestyle wrestling. Gable was the head coach of three USA Olympic teams and six USA World teams. [9]

Legacy

Gable has been written about in many magazines and numerous books, including Two Guys Named Dan (1976), From Gotch to Gable: A History of Wrestling in Iowa (1981), The Toughest Men in Sports (1984) and Legends of the Mat (2006), all by wrestling historian Mike Chapman. [12]

The 2008 film, Never Back Down, mentioned Dan Gable. The antagonist and protagonist early in the film seem to bond over this Iowa athlete as the, 'greatest Olympic wrestler ever... the '72 Games, never surrendered a point.'

The Dan Gable museum is named for him, which is located in his hometown of Waterloo, Iowa, part of the National Wrestling Hall of Fame and Museum.

Professional wrestler Chad Gable's WWE in-ring name was named after him. [13]

Olympic gold medalist freestyle wrestler Gable Steveson was named after him. [14]

The Gable grip used in wrestling and mixed martial arts was named after him. [15]

Awards and honors

Gable receives the Presidential Medal of Freedom from Donald Trump on December 7, 2020 President Trump Presents the Medal of Freedom to Dan Gable (50694617103).jpg
Gable receives the Presidential Medal of Freedom from Donald Trump on December 7, 2020
2020
1980
1972
1971
1970
1969
1968
1967

Match results

World Championships & Olympic Games Matches
Res.RecordOpponentScoreDateEventLocation
1972 Olympic Gold medal icon.svg at 68 kg
Win12–0 Flag of the Soviet Union.svg Ruslan Ashuraliyev 3–0August 27, 1972 1972 Summer Olympic Games Flag of Germany.svg Munich, West Germany
Win11–0 Flag of Poland.svg Włodzimierz Cieślak Fall
Win10–0 Flag of Japan.svg Kikuo Wada 6–0
Win9–0 Flag of Greece.svg Stefanos IoannidisFall
Win8–0 Flag of Germany.svg Klaus Rost 20–0
Win7–0 Flag of Yugoslavia (1946-1992).svg Safer Sali Fall
1971 UWW world Gold medal icon.svg at 68 kg
Win6–0 Flag of Bulgaria.svg Ismail Yuseinov 8–3August 27, 1971 1971 World Wrestling Championships Flag of Bulgaria.svg Sofia, Bulgaria
Win5–0 Flag of Japan.svg Kikuo Wada Fall
Win4–0 Flag of the Czech Republic.svg Josef Engel Fall
Win3–0 Flag of Turkey.svg Nihat KabanliFall
Win2–0 Flag of Finland.svg Eero SuvilehtoFall
Win1–0 Flag of the Soviet Union.svg Vasily Kazakov5–1

See also

Bibliography

References

  1. "Bio : Dan Gable – 15 National Championships. Olympic Champion. World Champion". dangable.com.
  2. "Dan Gable – United World Wrestling". unitedworldwrestling.org.
  3. Dr. Robert Goldman (March 11, 2014). "2014 International Sports Hall of Fame Inductees". www.sportshof.org. Retrieved July 14, 2023.
  4. "Trump honors legendary Iowa wrestler Gable at White House". AP NEWS. December 7, 2020. Retrieved December 8, 2020.
  5. "Dan Gable among speakers discussing victims' rights".
  6. ERICSON, JON (December 9, 2012). "Himself the victim of a violent tragedy, Gable says loss can result in some good".
  7. Andrew Wind (October 31, 2007), West High officially opens its athletic addition in grand style, Waterloo Cedar Falls Courier, retrieved August 10, 2011
  8. Dan Gable - Iowa Wrestling Hall of Fame. Retrieved June 17, 2023.
  9. 1 2 3 "Bio: Dan Gable – 15 National Championships. Olympic Champion. World Champion". dangable.com.
  10. "Wrestling legend Dan Gable is born". This Day in History. History . Archived from the original on March 31, 2015. Retrieved December 8, 2020.
  11. "Honorees". Cauliflower Alley Club . Archived from the original on July 6, 2022. Retrieved September 27, 2020.
  12. "Books and Products by Mike Chapman". mike-chapman.com.
  13. Rose, Bryan (October 13, 2017). "Chad Gable Training With His Namesake Following Number One Contendership Win | Fightful News". www.fightful.com. Archived from the original on August 8, 2023. Retrieved August 8, 2023.
  14. Schwerdt, Joseph (August 6, 2021). "Named for an icon, Gable Steveson becomes a legend in his own right". NBC Olympics. Retrieved August 6, 2021.
  15. "The Gable Grip". June 12, 2019.
  16. Dan Gable. National Wrestling Hall of Fame. Retrieved September 16, 2022.
  17. Chen, Albert (July 10, 2014). "Where are they Now: Catching up with Dan Gable and Larry Owings". Sports Illustrated . Retrieved December 8, 2020.