Gene Mills

Last updated
Gene Mills
Personal information
BornSeptember 28, 1958 (1958-09-28) (age 66)
Home town Pompton Lakes, New Jersey, U.S.
Sport
CountryUnited States
Sport Wrestling
Event Freestyle
College teamSyracuse University Club Wrestling
TeamUSA
Medal record
Men's freestyle wrestling
Representing the Flag of the United States (23px).png  United States
World Super Championships
Gold medal icon (G initial).svg1980 Japan52 kg
World Cup (team)
Gold medal icon (G initial).svg1980 Toledo52 kg
World Cup (individual)
Gold medal icon (G initial).svg1980 Toledo52 kg
Gold medal icon (G initial).svg1981 Toledo52 kg
Pan American Games
Gold medal icon (G initial).svg 1979 San Juan 52 kg
Tbilisi International Tournament
Gold medal icon (G initial).svg1980 Tbilisi52 kg
Collegiate Wrestling
Representing the Syracuse University Club Wrestling
NCAA Division I Championships
Gold medal icon (G initial).svg 1979 Ames 118 lb
Gold medal icon (G initial).svg 1981 Princeton 118 lb

Gene Mills (born September 28, 1958) is an American freestyle wrestler and wrestling coach. Mills and Leroy Kemp were key members of the 1980 U.S. Olympic freestyle wrestling team. He won the gold medal at the 1980 World Super Championships in Japan, where he wrestled in the 52 kilogram weight class.

Contents

Early career

Raised in Pompton Lakes, New Jersey, Mills wrestled for DePaul Catholic High School in Wayne, New Jersey, where he won a state title. [1] [2] He wrestled collegiately for Syracuse University where he was a four time All-American and won twice the NCAA Championship in 1979, 1981. [3] Mills earned a B.A. in psychology in 1981 and his master's in physical education from Syracuse University in 1998. [2]

Highlight achievements

Career accomplishments include: [4] [5] [3]

Mills posted a career record of 1,356-45-1 with 866 of his wins won by fall. He beat the strongest wrestlers in three weight categories:

In 1980, Mills was considered one of the best wrestlers in the world, but the boycott of the 1980 Olympics by the United States deprived him of the opportunity to win an Olympic gold medal.

Coaching

After college he served as an assistant coach at Syracuse University for 16 seasons, ending with a record of 147-81-4. He also served as a head coach for the Mohawk Valley Wrestling Club and U.S. Wrestling team from 1985 to 1991. Mills went on to become camp director of the Syracuse University Big Orange Wrestling School in 1986. He also coaches at Phoenix high school. [3] [16]

References

  1. "Mills, Catalfo pace Syracuse", The Record , February 2, 1981. Accessed June 16, 2025, via Newspapers.com. "Former New Jersey State wrestling champions Gene Mills of Pompton Lakes and Tim Catalfo of Montvale helped lead Syracuse to a 19-16 college wrestling victory over Navy yesterday. Mills, a former DePaul High School standout and an All-American for the Orangemen last year, pinned Doug Heinmbach in the 118-pound bout."
  2. 1 2 "NYAC to honor wrestling legend 'Mean' Gene Mills". Syracuse NY Local News, Breaking News, Sports & Weather. Retrieved 2025-06-13.
  3. 1 2 3 "Gene Mills". Greater Syracuse Sports Hall of Fame. Retrieved 2025-06-13.
  4. "Gene Mills". NATIONAL WRESTLING HALL OF FAME.
  5. "Gene Mills". UWW.
  6. "Olympic team history". USA Wrestling.
  7. "Gene Mills and Ed Banach to go 'On the Mat' this week". USA Wrestling.
  8. "Kenny Monday". Internet Archive. Archived from the original on 2023-04-14. Retrieved 2023-09-05.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
  9. All about freestyle wrestling (in Russian). Vladikavkaz: Project-Press. 1997.
  10. "It's been 15 years since Syracuse's wrestling program folded and Gene Mills is trying to bring it back" . Retrieved 2025-06-13.
  11. 1981 Worldcup - Gene Mills vs Anatoli Beloglazov. YouTube (Documentary). Retrieved 2025-06-13.
  12. 1981 EIWA Championship Mean Gene Mills vs Olympic Champion Bobby Weaver. YouTube (Documentary). Retrieved 2025-06-13.
  13. Gene vs Bulgarian World Runner up. YouTube (Documentary). Retrieved 2025-06-13.
  14. "Year by Year at the Midlands" (PDF). Retrieved 2025-06-13.
  15. 1985 Midlands Tournament Gene Mills vs Kevin Dresser. YouTube (Documentary). Retrieved 2025-06-13.
  16. "Gene Mills". Section III Wrestling Hall of Fame Member.