2000 Olympic gold medalist Rulon Gardner to be inducted into the Rice Greco-Roman Hall of Champions

The honors continue to pour in for Rulon Gardner ten years after winning the gold medal in Greco-Roman wrestling at the 2000 Sydney Olympics.

The National Wrestling Hall of Fame Dan Gable Museum announced Thursday that Gardner, the most decorated U.S. Greco-Roman wrestler, will be inducted into the Alan & Gloria Rice Greco-Roman Hall of Champions on Saturday, October 9, 2010. The event will take place at the Christensen Center Commons on the campus of Augsburg College in Minneapolis.

Earlier this summer, Gardner -- who wrestled heavyweight for the University of Nebraska-Lincoln -- was welcomed as a Distinguished Member of the National Wrestling Hall of Fame in Stillwater, Oklahoma.

The affable Wyoming dairy farmer shocked the world in the finals of the 2000 Olympics in Sydney, Australia, when he upset legendary Russian Alexander Karelin in the finals of the super-heavyweight division. Karelin -- known as the Siberian Tiger and The Experiment for his powerful physique and take-no-prisoners wrestling style -- had won 12 World and Olympic titles up to that point. Gardner won the World Championships in 2001 and also captured the bronze medal at the 2004 Olympics in Athens, Greece.

Alan and Gloria Rice, namesakes of the hall of champions, have been instrumental to the success of Greco-Roman wrestling in the United States. Alan Rice was a Big Ten champion and NCAA All-American for the University of Minnesota. In 1956 he won national titles in Greco-Roman and freestyle. He also placed 7th at the 1956 Olympics and coached the 1972 Greco-Roman Olympic team.

The Alan & Gloria Rice Greco-Roman Hall of Champions occupies a significant wing in the Dan Gable Museum in Waterloo, Iowa.

"Inducting Rulon into the Greco-Roman Hall of Champions is a great recognition for a great champion and his five peers. Many people thought that no American could ever triumph in this style of wrestling. Now the world recognizes the capacities of our great country to produce great champions," according to Alan Rice.

Gardner joins last year's inaugural class in the Greco-Roman Hall of Champions. The 2009 class included Olympic champions Steve Fraser and Jeff Blatnick and World champions Mike Houck, Dennis Hall and Joe Warren.

> Honors for the Morgans of Minnesota: In addition to Gardner's induction ceremony, the Jim and Olive Morgan family will be presented with the Hall's first Greco-Roman Legacy Award for their tremendous accomplishments in wrestling, specifically in the Greco-Roman discipline. Jim passed along his boxing and wrestling skills to his boys.  Three of them -- John, Gordy and Marty -- won a combined 10 national Greco-Roman titles and competed in two Olympics and two World championships.

Festivities begin at 5:00 p.m. with a reception. Dinner, awards presentation and autograph session will follow.

Tickets are $40 and can be purchased online at www.dgm-nwhof.ticketleap.com or by calling the Dan Gable Museum at 319-233-0745.

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Resources

National Wrestling Hall of Fame website for Dan Gable Museum

College Wrestling Examiner, June 7: Rulon Gardner inducted into the National Wrestling Hall of Fame

Photo gallery: Gardner vs Karelin @ 2000 Olympics

College Wrestling 101: Links to articles answering basic questions about wrestling, including rules, scoring, uniforms, more

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