Gable Steveson used his full birth name while making his way to a gold medal at the Tokyo Olympics: Gable Dan Steveson.
Who is Dan Gable? Six facts about Gable Steveson's namesake
The Apple Valley gold medalist was named for a former gold medalist who made history as a wrestler and coach in the state of Iowa.
August 6, 2021 at 8:10PM
Steveson's parents were Hawkeye fans who would often take trips to Iowa wrestling meets, where Dan Gable was putting together the greatest collegiate coaching career in NCAA wrestling history.
That's when his mother decided to name her younger son after Gable.
Here are some reasons Dan Gable was so historic and Gable Dan Steveson reveres him.
- Dan Gable went 94-1-0 over three seasons at Iowa State, winning two national titles.
- He then won gold medals at the 1971 Pan-American Games and world championships.
- At the 1972 Olympics in Munich, Gable won the gold medal in freestyle wrestling at 68 kg without giving up a single point over six matches.
- After his wrestling career was over he went into coaching, eventually taking over as head wrestling coach at Iowa in 1976 and staying until 1997.
- Over those 22 seasons, Gable's teams went 355-21-5 in 381 dual meets and won 15 national championships.
- Last year he was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom by President Donald Trump. When Trump noted that he was a little bigger than Gable, he asked if he would have a shot at beating him at wrestling. "You would have no chance," Gable responded.
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