Dan Gable

Personal information
Born	(1948-10-25) October 25, 1948 (age 64) Waterloo, Iowa
Alma mater	Iowa State University
Height	1.75 m (5 ft 9 in)
Weight	68 kg (150 lb)
Sport
Sport	Freestyle wrestling
Club	Iowa State Cyclones
Medal record Competitor for the  United States Olympic Games Gold 1972 Munich Lightweight Wrestling World Championships Gold 1971 Sofia 68 kg

Danny Mack "Dan" Gable (born October 25, 1948) is a retired American amateur wrestler. He is famous for having only lost one match in his entire Iowa State University collegiate career – his last – and winning gold at the 1972 Olympic Games in Munich, Germany, while not giving up a single point.^[1] He was the head coach at the University of Iowa where he won 16 NCAA team titles from 1976–1997, after which he turned over his head coaching duties to Jim Zalesky. In 2006, after the program took a downfall, Gable asked Tom Brands to become the head coach^{[citation needed]}. October 25, 2013, will be recognized as Dan Gable Day in Iowa.

High school career [edit]

Although Gable was not permitted to wrestle on the varsity wrestling squad during his freshman year, he was an undefeated state champion during his sophomore through senior years. The only recorded high school loss suffered by Gable was during his freshman year when he lost an unofficial match to teammate Michael DePaschalis.

As a sophomore in high school, Gable experienced a personal tragedy. His older sister, Diane, was brutally raped and murdered May 31, 1964, in the Gable family home, while Dan and his parents were on vacation. Diane Gable's killer, John Thomas Kyle (a classmate of Dan Gable's), pled guilty to charges in connection with her death and was sentenced to life in prison. Kyle died in a Kansas state penitentiary on June 17, 2011; Gable was in northeast Iowa—the same area where he was vacationing when his sister was killed—when he learned of Kyle's death.^[2] Gable later recalled that the event gave him a singular passion for wrestling as a way to uplift his shattered family. In his documentary Gable, he said, "I needed to give them enough entertainment that they didn't have to look other places."

Collegiate and freestyle career [edit]

After high school, Gable wrestled for the Iowa State University Cyclones of the Big Eight Conference. Gable wrestled for Iowa State's varsity squad for three years and won two NCAA titles. Gable's overall collegiate mark was 181–1. His only collegiate defeat was in his final match where he lost to Larry Owings of the University of Washington.^[1]

Gable wrestled on the national freestyle wrestling circuit between 1967 and 1976 where he earned a record of 67–4. He wrestled internationally between 1971 and 1973 where he earned a record of 30–1. Overall, his freestyle record was 97–5.

1967 [edit]

• Gable was not permitted to wrestle on the varsity wrestling squad at Iowa State University because of NCAA rules that did not permit freshmen to wrestle.
• 1966–67 Midlands Tournament Champion, wrestling unattached
• Gable's domestic freestyle record in 1967 was 3–0. He went 3–0 at the U.S. Freestyle Nationals

1968 [edit]

• Lost to Trent Sonsteng (Durham Wrestling Team)
• Big Eight Champion
• NCAA National Champion
• Gable's domestic freestyle record in 1968 was 8–2–1, including a 3–2–1 mark at the Olympic Trials

1969 [edit]

• 1968–69 Midlands Tournament Champion
• Big Eight Champion
• NCAA National Champion
• U.S. Freestyle National Champion

1970 [edit]

• 1969–70 Midlands Tournament Champion
• Big Eight Champion
• NCAA Runner-up
• U.S. Freestyle National Champion
• Dual champion with wins against Kajuan Mawe and Wade Stalling

1971 [edit]

• 1970–71 Midlands Tournament Champion, wrestling unattached
• Gable's international freestyle record in 1971 was 17–1–0.
• Tied Nasrulla Nasrualaev in a dual meet with Russia.
• Pan-American Games Champion
• World Freestyle Champion in the 68 kg category at Sofia, Bulgaria.^[3]

1972 [edit]

• 1971–72 Midlands Tournament Champion, wrestling unattached
• Gable's international freestyle record in 1972 was 11–0.
• Tblisi Tournament Champion.
• Olympic Champion. Did not surrender a single point in Olympic Games.
• Accepted coaching job in Grinnell Iowa with assistant Josh Larson

1973 [edit]

• Gable's international freestyle record in 1973 was 1–0, defeating Pavel Pinigan in a dual meet with Russia.

Coaching career [edit]

Gable became head wrestling coach at the University of Iowa in 1976. He formed a dynasty matched by none. From 1978 to 1986, the Hawkeyes won the NCAA title each year, a record nine in succession. He continued to coach the team until a sabbatical after the 1997 season.

As the University of Iowa's all-time winningest wrestling coach from 1976 to 1997, Dan Gable compiled a dual meet record of 355–21–5. He coached 152 all-Americans, 45 national champions, 106 Big Ten Champions and 12 Olympians, including four gold, one silver and three bronze medalists. The Hawkeyes won 25 consecutive Big Ten championships, 21 under Gable as head coach and four while he was an assistant coach and administrator. He led them to an unprecedented 16 National titles.

Despite his unprecedented success, Gable was first honored as Big Ten Coach of the Year in 1993. ^[4] That was his 17th year as Iowa’s coach and his 17th Big Ten championship. By comparison, J Robinson of Minnesota has been given the award seven times in his career.

In 1997, the Hawkeyes were expected to lose to the favored Oklahoma State Cowboys. But Gable, who was by this time coaching on crutches after hip replacement surgery, led his team to its 17th NCAA team title and to an unprecedented NCAA-record 170 points. A documentary following him that year "Freestyle: The Victories of Dan Gable" directed by Kevin Kelley and produced by David L. Gould aired on HBO 2.

In addition to his leadership at the college level, Gable was head coach of the United States Olympic team in freestyle wrestling in 1980, 1984, and 2000.^[1]

Gable's successor at Iowa, Jim Zalesky, won three NCAA titles under him. It was announced on April 14, 2006, that Gable would be rejoining the coaching staff at Iowa as top assistant coach to current coach and former Gable national champion Tom Brands.^[5] Currently, he is an assistant athletic director at the University of Iowa.

Gable remains involved with the team, but stepped down from his assistant coach role in October 2011.^[6]

Popularity [edit]

• A popular expression among Iowans is "Michael Jordan is the Dan Gable of basketball," which while alluding Jordan's dominance of his sport during the latter half of the 1980s and most of the 1990s, it remains comparatively inconsequential against Gable's imprint on U.S. wrestling as both athlete and coach.
• In an Esquire interview, actor, and high school wrestler Tom Cruise considered Gable his greatest hero^{[citation needed]}. Gable himself was profiled in Esquire by the novelist and former University of Pittsburgh wrestler John Irving. The story was entitled "Gorgeous Dan". ^[7]
• Gable has perennially been on the wishlist for a Republican candidate for Governor of Iowa or Congressional positions^{[citation needed]}.
• Gable was praised extensively during the speech given by the Iron Sheik at his induction to the WWE Hall of Fame in 2005.
• In 1999, Sports Illustrated selected Dan Gable as the greatest sports figure in the history of the state of Iowa.^[8]
• During Gable's tenure as coach, the teen sitcom Saved by the Bell referred to the University of Iowa and a fictional coach that had appeared to scout AC Slater portrayed by Mario Lopez for their team^{[citation needed]}.
• Gable appears in the documentary film Catch: The Hold Not Taken in which he speaks of the origins of amateur wrestling. He recalls that, growing up, he knew high school wrestling as 'Catch as catch can', which is the name of the traditional style from Lancashire, England.
• In the movie Never Back Down, Dan Gable is mentioned in a scene as the greatest Olympic wrestler ever.
• In 1999 Gable published Coaching Wrestling Successfully in which he shared his blueprint for developing wrestling champions.^[9]
• Gable has also hosted a series of successful instructional DVDs: Dan Gable's Wrestling Essentials: Bottom Position, Dan Gable's Wrestling Essentials: Standing Position], Dan Gable's Wrestling Essentials: Top Position; All three are also available in one comprehensive DVD: Dan Gable's Wrestling Essentials DVD. Gable's Advanced Wrestling DVD demonstrates more advanced wrestling techniques from a standing position and from the top and bottom positions. ^[10]

See also [edit]

• Iowa Sports Hall of Fame

Bibliography [edit]

• Smith, Russ L. 1973. The Legend of Dan Gable. Medalist Sports Education Publication.
• Baughman, Wayne. 1987. Wrestling On & Off the Mat. R. Wayne Baughman. ISBN 978-0-961-84460-8
• Zavoral, Nolan. 1997. A Season on the Mat. Simon & Schuster. ISBN 978-1-4165-3553-9
• Hammond, Jairus K. 2005. The History of Collegiate Wrestling. National Wrestling Hall of Fame and Museum. ISBN 978-0-976-50640-9
• Moffat, James V. 2007. Wrestlers At The Trials. Exit Zero Publishing. ISBN 978-0-9799051-0-0

References [edit]

External links [edit]

Biography portal

Wikiquote has a collection of quotations related to: Dan Gable

• 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