Dan Gable the Amazingly Successful

Dan Gable

The amazingly successful sports career of Dan Gable led him to another career after his wrestling and coaching careers were finished. He became a motivational speaker, and brought his enthusiasm and intelligent insights to a number of venues nationwide. This paper reviews his life and his sporting successes, along with other aspects of his life.

Gable's Wrestling Achievements

Dan Gable was born in Waterloo, Iowa, on October 25, 1948. His father (Mack) was a real estate salesman and investor and according to ESPN Classic, police were called to the house because Mack -- who was known as a hard drinker -- was beating up on his kids. There was a tragedy in his family in 1964, on Memorial Day, when the family was away on a fishing trip and Dan's 19-year-old sister Diane was sexually attacked and murdered in the family's living room. When they returned, Dan told Mack about a 16-year-old boy (Tom Kyle) who at one time had told Dan he wanted to have sex with Diane. After an investigation, Kyle confessed to murdering Diane and was sentenced to live in prison (ESPN).

"My life tightened up," said Dan Gable. "It made me even more of a horse with blinders as far as wrestling went" (ESPN).

While attending Waterloo West High School, and from his freshman through senior years in high school he won 64 matches without a defeat. He was state champion for his last three years in high school, according to Premier Athlete & Celebrity Magazine (PAC). When he went to Iowa State University he enjoyed similar success; in fact according to the Iowa Wrestling Hall of Fame Gable won 118 matches and lost only 1 in his Iowa State career. That record, plus his high school wrestling record, meant that he had amassed a sterling record of 182-1, including a run of 181 consecutive wins. His only defeat was in the championship match in the NCAA finals in his senior year, not a great way to go out but when a wrestler wins 181 matches in a row, one loss as he closes his career is but a tiny sidebar story to an otherwise splendid career.

He graduated with a Bachelor of Science from Iowa State in 1971, and he and his wife Kathy have four daughters (Annie, Molly, MacKenzie and Jennifer) and four grandchildren (Gable, Jake, Danny and Elsie) (www.cstv.com). He is quoted as saying, "Right out of high school I never had the fear of getting beat, which is how most people lose. They're scared of somebody.

Among the achievements Gable is credited with include: a) two NCAA titles at Iowa State; b) three-time All American and three-time Big Eight champion for Iowa State; c) a Gold medal at the Summer Olympics in 1972 (as he was winning matches leading up to the Gold medal, Gable never gave up even one point to his opponents); d) Gable won three titles at the Pan-American Games, the Tbilisi tournament, and the World Wrestling Championships; e) he won six Midlands championships; f) he was named to the U.S. Wrestling Hall of Fame in 1980 and to the Olympic Hall of Fame in 1985; g) he won the Gorrarian Award in his junior and senior years at Iowa State for "…the most pins in the least amount of time in an NCAA Tournament; h) he was named the most outstanding wrestler in the U.S. By the U.S. Wrestling Federation; i) as a coach he earned "NCAA Coach of the Year" three times; and j) while he was working his way up to qualify for the Olympics in 1972, Gable scored 12 falls and outscored his nine other opponents, 130-1 (he won 21 matches to get to the Olympics) (www.tseworld.com).

Gable's Coaching Experiences

As a head wrestling coach at Iowa, Gable and his assistant Gary Kurdelmeir put together a record of 51-7-5 over a four-year span of dual meet success, according to the Iowa Wrestling Hall of Fame. He was an Olympic wrestling head coach (1980, 1984, and 2000). His Olympic team in 1984 won seven gold medals -- and it is no surprise that four of those wrestlers on that Olympic team were Hawkeyes from Iowa (www.cstv.com). Under coach Gable, the Iowa Hawkeyes 21 straight Big Ten championships and at the Carver-Hawkeye Arena Gable's teams have a 95-1 record. His teams averaged over 17 wins and a single loss per season, a remarkably successful run of successful seasons.

His coaching resume includes serving as head coach of the World Team in 1977, 1978, 1979, 1983, 1994, and 1999, according to www.cstv.com. It also includes the fact that he was the head coach of the Goodwill Games' wrestling team in 1981; his team won the Bronze medal. He retired from coaching in 1997, ESPN writes, because after a dozen knee and back surgeries, he was no longer physically able to get down on the mat in order to "…demonstrate holds and escapes" (ESPN).

In Gable's book, Coaching Wrestling Successfully, he covers many issues that of course revolve around wrestling, but he also delves into subjects that coaches may need to know no matter what sport they are coaching. For example, the skill of communicating is important for a coach, so he recommends starting "in small groups" that a person feels comfortable with. Once a coach's confidence is built up, and he (we'll use "he" though this applies to female coaches as well) believes he is ready to speak to larger groups, the best advice from Gable is to "…tag along with another coach or friend who is an accomplished speaker" to a speaking appointment. Carefully observe how that person first prepares the speech, then how he delivers his speech.

Gable said he watched Olympic champion Bob Richards (who used to be on the cover of Wheaties) speak, and gained insights on how to "entertain" as well as inform. On the other hand, he warns readers not to try to copy a polished speaker.

When it comes to relating to a wrestling team as a coach, he says wrestling is "one of the most honest sports" Gable (p. 13). Why? The coach can't hide, he explains, his emotions are going to be known by the wrestlers so he can't pretend to be nonchalant because they will know he is churning inside. "Very simply, be yourself as good as you can be." And along with that he urges coaches to be honest with their players and be open to listening -- and if a wrestler "…has a problem, he's more likely to come to you for help if he knows he's going to be dealt with honestly (p. 13).

Yes, Gable admits, having an incredibly impressive won-loss record brings respect, but those records and "fame" do not constitute "real respect. Real respect is earned among the people who really know you" (p. 13). A coach can't be a role model for younger wrestlers all by himself, he has to first establish leaders on the team, "typically upperclassmen" and their leadership will "rub off on some of the younger wrestlers" (p. 15).