Rulon Ellis Gardner (born August 16, 1971) is an American retired

Greco-Roman The Greco-Roman civilization (; also Greco-Roman culture; spelled Graeco-Roman in the Commonwealth), as understood by modern scholars and writers, includes the geographical regions and countries that culturally—and so historically—were di ...

Olympic Gold Medalist wrestler. He competed at the 2000 and 2004 Olympics and won the gold medal in 2000, defeating Russia's three-time reigning gold medalist Aleksandr Karelin in the final. Karelin was previously unbeaten for 13 years in international competition. Gardner won a bronze medal at the 2004 Games.

Personal background

Gardner was born in

Afton, Wyoming Afton is a town in Lincoln County, Wyoming, United States. The population was 1,911 at the 2010 census. Afton is home to the world's largest arch made of elk antlers. Spanning across the four lanes of U.S. Highway 89, the arch consists of 3,0 ...

. He is the son of Reed and Virginia Gardner and the last of nine children. His second great grandfather was

Archibald Gardner Archibald Gardner (September 2, 1814 – February 8, 1902) was a 19th-century pioneer and businessman who, with his knowledge of lumber- and grist mills, helped establish communities in Alvinston, Ontario; West Jordan, Utah; and Star Valley ...

, who was one of the early settlers of Star Valley, Wyoming. He attributes his strength to the physical labor that he performed growing up and working on the family's dairy farm. In 2005, Gardner published his autobiography (co-written by Bob Schaller), ''Never Stop Pushing: My Life from a Wyoming Farm to the Olympic Medals Stand'', in which he describes his Greco-Roman wrestling career, his academic struggles (as someone who suffers from a learning disability) and an account of his near-death experience when stranded after a snowmobile accident. As of 2011, Gardner worked as a

motivational speaker A motivational speaker is a speaker who makes speeches intended to motivate or inspire an audience. Such speakers may attempt to challenge or transform their audiences. The speech itself is popularly known as a pep talk. Motivational speakers c ...

, often appearing as a keynote presenter and event host. He has appeared at corporate events, celebrity golf tournaments, trade shows, and conventions. He also has licensing deals, as well as print and television endorsements. In 2012, Gardner and his wife Kami filed for

Chapter 7 Bankruptcy Chapter 7 of Title 11 of the United States Code (Bankruptcy Code) governs the process of liquidation under the bankruptcy laws of the United States, in contrast to Chapters 11 and 13, which govern the process of ''reorganization'' of a debto ...

in a Salt Lake City Federal court, with $2.9 million in liabilities. After the Athens Olympics, Gardner gained 210 pounds, culminating in a total body weight of 474 pounds. In January 2011, he was announced as a contestant on season 11 of the American reality television show, ''

The Biggest Loser ''The Biggest Loser'' is a reality television format which started with the American TV show '' The Biggest Loser'' in 2004. The show centers on overweight and obese contestants attempting to lose the most weight; the winner receives a cash pr ...

''. After 16 weeks on the show, Gardner had lost 173 pounds. Gardner shocked the trainers, staff, and contestants on the April 26 episode by announcing he would be leaving the show "for personal reasons", and left the show without a final weigh-in. He did not appear on the final episode of the season, except in the background of scenes of other contestants.

Injuries

When Gardner was in elementary school, he was injured during a class show-and-tell, when his abdomen was punctured with an

arrow An arrow is a fin-stabilized projectile launched by a bow. A typical arrow usually consists of a long, stiff, straight shaft with a weighty (and usually sharp and pointed) arrowhead attached to the front end, multiple fin-like stabilizers ...

. In 2002, Gardner went snowmobiling with some friends in the mountains surrounding

Star Valley Star Valley is located in the United States between the Salt River Range in western Wyoming and the Webster Range of eastern Idaho. The altitude of the valley ranges from to . Three major Wyoming rivers, the Salt River, the Greys River and ...

Wyoming Wyoming () is a state in the Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. It is bordered by Montana to the north and northwest, South Dakota and Nebraska to the east, Idaho to the west, Utah to the southwest, and Colorado to t ...

. At one point, he became separated from the group. During his efforts to regain his composure and regroup, he fell into the freezing Salt River with his

snowmobile A snowmobile, also known as a Ski-Doo, snowmachine, sled, motor sled, motor sledge, skimobile, or snow scooter, is a motorized vehicle designed for winter travel and recreation on snow. It is designed to be operated on snow and ice and does not ...

. Unable to move any farther, Gardner decided to build a shelter and wait for a rescue team. He remained stranded for the next 18 hours. After several hours in his makeshift shelter, he stopped shivering, which led him to believe that he was dying. When he was eventually rescued, he was experiencing hypothermia and severe frostbite. Due to the physical damage, a saw had to be used to remove his boots. The harrowing experience cost Gardner the middle toe on his right foot, which he keeps in formaldehyde in a jar in his refrigerator, to remind him of his mortality. He told his story on a first-season episode of '' I Survived...''. On February 24, 2007, Gardner and two other men survived a crash when a light aircraft he was traveling in crashed into

Lake Powell Lake Powell is an artificial reservoir on the Colorado River in Utah and Arizona, United States. It is a major vacation destination visited by approximately two million people every year. It is the second largest artificial reservoir by maximu ...

Utah Utah ( , ) is a state in the Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. Utah is a landlocked U.S. state bordered to its east by Colorado, to its northeast by Wyoming, to its north by Idaho, to its south by Arizona, and to its ...

. The men swam an hour in 44 °F (7 °C) water to reach shore, and then spent the night without shelter. None of the three sustained life-threatening injuries.

Educational background

;High school Gardner attended Star Valley High School in

, and was a three-sport letter winner and standout in football, wrestling, and track and field. He was an All-State selection in both football and wrestling, and was also the 1989

wrestling state heavyweight champion. In track and field, as a senior, he took second at the state finals in the

shot put The shot put is a track and field event involving "putting" (throwing) a heavy spherical ball—the ''shot''—as far as possible. The shot put competition for men has been a part of the modern Olympics since their revival in 1896, and women's c ...

. ;College years Gardner attended

junior college A junior college (sometimes referred to colloquially as a juco, JuCo or JC) is a post-secondary educational institution offering vocational training designed to prepare students for either skilled trades and technical occupations and workers in ...

Ricks College Ricks may refer to: People * Andre Ricks (born 1996), American basketball player * Bob Ricks (21st century), American police chief * Christopher Ricks (born 1933), British literary critic and scholar * Doug Ricks, American politician and membe ...

(now BYU-Idaho) in Rexburg, Idaho, and as a sophomore won the NJCAA national heavyweight wrestling championship. He and his first wife Sheri lost their daughter, Stacey in a terrible car accident on December 26, 1990. He then earned a scholarship to attend the

University of Nebraska–Lincoln The University of Nebraska–Lincoln (Nebraska, NU, or UNL) is a public land-grant research university in Lincoln, Nebraska. Chartered in 1869 by the Nebraska Legislature as part of the Morrill Act of 1862, the school was known as the Univers ...

. While at Nebraska, Gardner finished fourth in the 275 lb. weight class at the 1993 NCAA Championships, earning All-American honors. He graduated from the

with a

bachelor's degree A bachelor's degree (from Middle Latin ''baccalaureus'') or baccalaureate (from Modern Latin ''baccalaureatus'') is an undergraduate academic degree awarded by colleges and universities upon completion of a course of study lasting three to si ...

in physical education. He attended both Ricks and Nebraska on

wrestling Wrestling is a series of combat sports involving grappling-type techniques such as clinch fighting, throws and takedowns, joint locks, pins and other grappling holds. Wrestling techniques have been incorporated into martial arts, combat s ...

scholarships.

Wrestling career

Afton, Wyoming, Home of Olympic Wrestling Champion Rulon Gardner (2484746382)

Olympics

Gardner is known for his defeat of three-time reigning gold medalist Aleksandr Karelin at the

2000 Summer Olympics The 2000 Summer Olympics, officially the Games of the XXVII Olympiad and also known as Sydney 2000 ( Dharug: ''Gadigal 2000''), the Millennium Olympic Games or the Games of the New Millennium, was an international multi-sport event held from ...

. Karelin had been undefeated for 13 years, and had not given up a point in six years, prior to his loss in the gold medal match to Gardner. In 2001, Gardner added a world championship to his list of accomplishments with a victory in the finals over Mihaly Deak-Bardos of Hungary. His win made him the only American to ever win both a World and Olympic title in Greco-Roman wrestling. After the 2000 Olympics he suffered a series of injuries from both a snowmobiling and

motorcycle A motorcycle (motorbike, bike, or trike (if three-wheeled)) is a two or three-wheeled motor vehicle Steering, steered by a Motorcycle handlebar, handlebar. Motorcycle design varies greatly to suit a range of different purposes: Long-distance ...

accident. These injuries included an

amputated Amputation is the removal of a limb by trauma, medical illness, or surgery. As a surgical measure, it is used to control pain or a disease process in the affected limb, such as malignancy or gangrene. In some cases, it is carried out on indiv ...

toe and a dislocated wrist, but he still went on to win the U.S. Olympic trials for his weight class and then to compete in the

2004 Summer Olympics The 2004 Summer Olympics ( el, Θερινοί Ολυμπιακοί Αγώνες 2004, ), officially the Games of the XXVIII Olympiad ( el, Αγώνες της 28ης Ολυμπιάδας, ) and also known as Athens 2004 ( el, Αθήνα 2004), ...

. He was unable to repeat his 2000 performance, coming away with the Bronze medal, and after his match, he placed his shoes in the middle of the mat as a symbol of retirement from competitive wrestling. Gardner competed once in

mixed martial arts Mixed martial arts (MMA), sometimes referred to as cage fighting, no holds barred (NHB), and ultimate fighting, and originally referred to as Vale Tudo is a full-contact combat sport based on striking, grappling and ground fighting, incor ...

, and in 2004 he became the host for a professional wrestling league called Real Pro Wrestling. Gardner served as an analyst for

NBC Sports NBC Sports is an American programming division of the broadcast network NBC, owned and operated by NBC Sports Group division of NBCUniversal and subsidiary of Comcast. The division is responsible for sports broadcasts on the network, and its ...

coverage of

Wrestling at the 2008 Summer Olympics Wrestling competitions at the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing, China, were held at the China Agricultural University Gymnasium from 12–21 August 2008. It was split into two disciplines, Freestyle and Greco-Roman which are further divided int ...

. Gardner attempted a comeback for the 2012 Olympics but was unable to make the 264.5 pound max weight limit for the U.S. Olympic Trials and therefore ineligible to compete for a position on the Olympic team.

Mixed martial arts

On December 31, 2004, Gardner fought

Hidehiko Yoshida is a Japanese gold-medalist judoka and retired mixed martial artist. He is a longtime veteran of Japan's PRIDE Fighting Championships, competing in the Middleweight (93kg) and Heavyweight divisions. He won gold at the 1992 Summe ...

in a judo vs wrestling

(MMA) bout for the

Pride Fighting Championships PRIDE Fighting Championships (Pride or Pride FC, founded as KRS-Pride) was a Japanese mixed martial arts promotion company. Its inaugural event was held at the Tokyo Dome on October 11, 1997. Pride held more than sixty mixed martial arts eve ...

at an event named

PRIDE Shockwave 2004 The year 2004 is the 8th year in the history of the Pride Fighting Championships, a mixed martial arts promotion based in Japan. 2004 had 10 events beginning with, ''Pride 27 - Inferno''. Title fights Debut Pride FC fighters The followi ...

. Yoshida, in addition to being an Olympic gold medalist in

judo is an unarmed modern Japanese martial art, Olympic sport (since 1964), and the most prominent form of jacket wrestling competed internationally.『日本大百科全書』電子版【柔道】(CD-ROM version of Encyclopedia Nipponica, "Judo") ...

, was a highly successful MMA fighter. Gardner, trained by

Randy Couture Randall Duane Couture (; born June 22, 1963) is an American actor, former U.S. Army sergeant, former mixed martial artist and former collegiate and Greco-Roman wrestler. During his tenures in the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC), he bec ...

at Team Quest, won the bout via unanimous decision. ;Mixed martial arts record , - ! style="border-style:none none solid solid; background:#e3e3e3;" , Date ! style="border-style:none none solid solid; background:#e3e3e3;" , Result ! style="border-style:none none solid solid; background:#e3e3e3;" , Record ! style="border-style:none none solid solid; background:#e3e3e3;" , Opponent ! style="border-style:none none solid solid; background:#e3e3e3;" , Event ! style="border-style:none none solid solid; background:#e3e3e3;" , Method ! style="border-style:none none solid solid; background:#e3e3e3;" , Round, Time ! style="border-style:none none solid solid; background:#e3e3e3;" , Notes , - , December 31, 2004 , Win , 1–0 ,

, Decision (Unanimous) , Round 3, 5:00 , , -

Honors and awards

Aside from his Olympic medals, his achievements include: * U.S. Champion in 1995, 1997, and 2001 *

James E. Sullivan Award The AAU James E. Sullivan Award, presented by the Amateur Athletic Union (AAU), is awarded annually in April to "the most outstanding amateur athlete in the United States". Representatives from the AAU created the AAU Sullivan Award with the int ...

for amateur athlete of the year, 2001 *

Jesse Owens James Cleveland "Jesse" Owens (September 12, 1913March 31, 1980) was an American track and field athlete who won four gold medals at the 1936 Olympic Games. Owens specialized in the sprints and the long jump and was recognized in his lif ...

Award, 2001 * United States Olympic Committee Sportsman of the Year, 2001 * ESPY award for U.S. Male Olympic athlete of the year, 2001 * Inducted as a Distinguished Member of the National Wrestling Hall of Fame, 2010

Published works

* Gardner, Rulon and Bob Schaller (2005). ''Never Stop Pushing: My Life from a Wyoming Farm to the Olympic Medals Stand'', Da Capo Press.

References

External links

* *
Rulon Gardner's page from the National Wrestling Hall of Fame and Museum

'' Deseret Morning News'', February 11, 2007
Gardner's ''Biggest Loser'' profile
{{DEFAULTSORT:Gardner, Rulon 1971 births Living people Sportspeople from Wyoming People from Afton, Wyoming Brigham Young University–Idaho alumni American male sport wrestlers Nebraska Cornhuskers wrestlers Wrestlers at the 2000 Summer Olympics Wrestlers at the 2004 Summer Olympics Olympic bronze medalists for the United States in wrestling Olympic gold medalists for the United States in wrestling Medalists at the 2000 Summer Olympics Medalists at the 2004 Summer Olympics World Wrestling Championships medalists Pan American Games silver medalists for the United States American male mixed martial artists Mixed martial artists from Wyoming Heavyweight mixed martial artists Mixed martial artists utilizing Greco-Roman wrestling James E. Sullivan Award recipients Pan American Games medalists in wrestling Wrestlers at the 2003 Pan American Games Medalists at the 2003 Pan American Games 20th-century American people 21st-century American people