Wrestling
Tommy Rowlands and the Olympic Dream
Buckeye Coach is Eight Minutes Away From Beijing
By Kevin Schlosser

(Las Vegas, NV) Tommy Rowlands is one of the most accomplished wrestlers in Ohio State wrestling history. The first four-time All-American at OSU and a two-time national champion, Rowlands has been on the coaching staff since graduating in 2004. Long before he became a Buckeye, Rowlands dreamed about wrestling in the Olympics.

This weekend at the 2008 Olympic Trials, Tommy Rowlands will be closer to achieving his Olympic dream than he ever has before. By winning his second consecutive US Senior National championship in April, he earned an automatic trip to the finals of the Olympic Trials. Rowlands doesn’t know who his opponent will be, but he does know that he only has to win two matches in a best of three series to make his first Olympic team.

“This great opportunity for me. It has taken a lot of hard work and I have had a lot of help to get this far. The Trials are one more step on the road to the Olympics,” said Rowlands.

Rowlands enters the competition on Sunday as the top ranked American heavyweight and is currently ranked third internationally. As a first-time US World Team member, he placed fifth at the 2007 World Championships. In February he won the prestigious 2008 Dave Schultz Memorial International, and in March he won the 2008 Pan American Championships by pinning the defending 2007 world champion Cuban Alexis Rodriguez.

“Obviously his quest means a lot to Ohio State,” stated OSU head coach Tom Ryan. “We want to be a program to be a destination that a young person growing up can say not only can I win a national title there, but I can put an Olympic gold medal around my neck.”Ohio State has made Tommy Rowlands the face of their Olympic movement. He expects more than one-hundred people to make the trip to the Olympic Trials to support him and knows that thousands of fans will be following him from home. When Rowlands steps on the mat in Las Vegas, he will be the favorite to make the 2008 US Olympic Team.

“We are all pulling for Tommy to bring home title,” said OSU wrestler Lance Palmer. “He is an awesome coach and he has the support

[Editor's Note: For more on Tommy Rowlands please read Kevin Schlosser recently conducted in-depth question and answer interview with Tommy Rollands.]

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