John Smith » John Smith Reacts to 2020 Olympic Wrestling Decision

like i keep sayin in all my posts. yall are a bunch of cry baby wussies. all you do is sit on here and complain about how wretslin is out of the olympics. boo freakin who. we still have collage and thats all you really need. people like yall is why wretslin isnt as popular

It's simple--you can't have an olympic games without the USA and Russia participating. So the USA and Russia need to let the IOC know that "we're out" until wrestling is reinstated (Goodwill Games, anybody)? Putin is a huge wrestling fan, just need to convince Obama.

The very small consolation prize (from the idiotic move of the IOC-to omit wrestling) is that wrestling is the number one national pastime of Iran. This ommission will hurt them most, a sanction like no other! While the boycott of 80' and 84' (during the cold war), was the defining factor, (as I left high school wrestling even though at that time our team, PHHS ranked 1# in the nation) to leave wrestling (and take all I gained from the sport and channel it into the only other career I had passion for) (which worked for me, I'm now a very successful artist due to the passion and perseverance I ganed through wrestling), one of my teammates & training partners stayed with wrestling, going to the world cup to track down and beat the best of the east (pinning the Russian in the Greco-Roman final 85'). The moral, while this IOC move may dash the dreams of the youth (to persue wrestling beyond high school), it will spread the rewarding traits and tough learned skills to other places where it's needed. And for those who do stay with wrestling despite the lack of Olympic glory, the grit to overcome anything will be at hand! Forever Wrestle

I love this guy. Makes me proud to be a wrestler.

These are the people who voted to drop wrestling from the Olympics.Jacques Rogge Belgium yachting, rugbySer Miang Ng Singapore sailingThomas Bach Germany fencingNawal El Moutawakel Morocco athleticsCraig Reedie Great Britain badmintonJohn Coates Australia rowingSam Ramsamy South Africa swimmingGunilla Lindberg Sweden Ching-Kuo Wu Taiwan boxingRené Fasel Switzerland ice hockeyPatrick Joseph Hickey Ireland judoSergey Bubka Ukraine athleticsJuan Antonio Samaranch Jr Spain modern pentathlonWilli Kaltschmitt Luján Guatamala boxing, baseballClaudia Bokel Germany fencingThat's 8 western European officials out of 15.The top 3 countries in the medal count for the past several Olympics have been the USA, China, and Russia. None of those countries are even on the board.It isn't hard to see how fencing and sailing have so much support. It's also easy to see how rugby got added to the Olympics with Australia, South Africa, Britain, and Ireland on the board and the President was a former player.

International Olympic CommitteeChâteau de Vidy1007 Lausanne, SwitzerlandTel. +41-21-621-61-11

President of the International Olympic Committee jacques.rogge@ioc.olympic.org -- Give him a piece of your mind.

jacques.rogge@ioc.olympic.org -- Give him a piece of your mind.

I have a voice and I will be raining it down on the IOC! Promise you that! You better too!

wrestling is my life having a goal of being an olympic champ being taken away is really gay

Thank you John Smith because i know some kids that want to be an olympic champ. We need to everything that we can as a community to get this desicion over ruled.

I don't want to sound like a sissy, but, Coach Smith's comments brought tears to my eyes. I love the passion; I love the eloquence; I love the fire; I love the steel. Most of all I love wrestling. Nobody, certainly not the IOC, can stand up to the wrestling nation.

Its good that wrestlers have the discipline and objective oriented mindset to get things done. We know they make the best employees (and employers) so we are uniquely positioned to get our hand raised on this bout too!

Thank you John Smith!

The sport of wrestling is being stomped on yet again for one reason, and that is b/c the leadership in our sport doesn't know how to play hardball politics. Previous is forgivable, as no one can excel at everything, but they should have hired advocates who know how to play hardball on their behalf. Fifty percent of the college wrestling programs in America were dropped since Title IX passed in the early '70's, and the wrestling community leaders did virtually nothing, unless we count pathetic, fruitless begging to the people who passed it, using powerpoint presentations. It's reminiscent of recent election politics, when one side sent a boy scout out to fight against the mafia-like Chicago machine....The outcome was predictable, and until American and international wrestling gets leadership that is more savvy, this outcome will be predictable also.

John Smith is one our greatest assets to American wrestling and a great ambassador to our cause. I know he will fight and so will Tom Brands and Cael Sanderson and all of our coaches past and present. This fight has only just begun and I feel confident that they will get it done. Like John said it's not just us it's all the republics and countries that only have wrestling in the Olympics that will also join the fight. I feel better too after listening to this interview that this fight will be won. The pinnicle of wrestling achievment is winning the Olympic metal. You take that away and you take away the dream.

+2 because one is just ain't enough. Mr. Low single speaks!

John Smith is a great man and even better ambassador for the sport. Im thankful he is one of the many worldwide who WILL stand and fight. This thing aint over, and I am feeling a bit better after watching this interview. Thanks Flo!