Zain Allen Retherford ( ; born May 21, 1995) is an

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, p ...

freestyle wrestler Freestyle wrestling is a style of wrestling. It is one of two styles of wrestling contested in the Olympic Games, along with Greco-Roman wrestling, Greco-Roman. scholastic wrestling, High school wrestling and men's collegiate wrestling in the U ...

and graduated folkstyle wrestler who competes at 70 kilograms. In freestyle, he is a

gold Gold is a chemical element; it has chemical symbol Au (from Latin ) and atomic number 79. In its pure form, it is a brightness, bright, slightly orange-yellow, dense, soft, malleable, and ductile metal. Chemically, gold is a transition metal ...

and

silver Silver is a chemical element; it has Symbol (chemistry), symbol Ag () and atomic number 47. A soft, whitish-gray, lustrous transition metal, it exhibits the highest electrical conductivity, thermal conductivity, and reflectivity of any metal. ...

medalist at the

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, as well as a Pan-American champion. One of the most successful Penn State Nittany Lion wrestlers of all time, Retherford was a two-time

Dan Hodge Trophy The Dan Hodge Trophy is awarded each year to the United States of America’s best college wrestler. The trophy is presented at the end of the season by '' WIN'' magazine and Culture House. It is the collegiate wrestling equivalent to the Heisman ...

winner and a three-time NCAA Division I National champion.

Early life and education

Retherford was born in

Kenosha, Wisconsin Kenosha () is a city in Kenosha County, Wisconsin, United States, and its county seat. It is the List of cities in Wisconsin, fourth-most populous city in Wisconsin, with a population of 99,986 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. S ...

. Early in life, he moved to Benton, Pennsylvania. He attended Line Mountain High School, where he won a state

wrestling Wrestling is a martial art, combat sport, and form of entertainment that involves grappling with an opponent and striving to obtain a position of advantage through different throws or techniques, within a given ruleset. Wrestling involves di ...

title as a

freshman A freshman, fresher, first year, or colloquially frosh, is a person in the first year at an educational institution, usually a secondary school or at the college and university level, but also in other forms of post-secondary educational in ...

and took third place as a

sophomore In the United States, a sophomore ( or ) is a person in the second year at an educational institution; usually at a secondary school or at the college and university level, but also in other forms of Post-secondary school, post-secondary educatio ...

. He went on to compile a record of 84–3 before moving to Benton High School in his junior year. As a result of the move, Retherford was declared unable to compete the 2011-12 season. Russ Hughes, his high school coach, states that it was in this time when Retherford started to really focus and grow as a wrestler. As a senior, he compiled an unbeaten record of 47–0 and collected his second Pennsylvania state title. After the season, he became a Cadet World Champion in freestyle at 65-kilograms. Retherford graduated from high school with a 131–3 record and two PIAA state titles.

College career

Retherford was considered the #3 recruit in the country in 2012. He committed to the

Nittany Lions The Penn State Nittany Lions are the athletic teams of Pennsylvania State University, except for the women's basketball team, known as the Penn State Lady Lions basketball, Lady Lions. The school colors are navy blue and white. The school mascot ...

Penn State University The Pennsylvania State University (Penn State or PSU) is a Public university, public Commonwealth System of Higher Education, state-related Land-grant university, land-grant research university with campuses and facilities throughout Pennsyl ...

2013-14

Retherford had incredible success as a

true freshman The following terms are used in American football, both conventional and indoor. Some of these terms are also in use in Canadian football; for a list of terms unique to that code, see '' Glossary of Canadian football''. 0–9 ...

, going 27–0 in regular season. He made his way to the

Big Ten Conference The Big Ten Conference (stylized B1G, formerly the Western Conference and the Big Nine Conference, among others) is a collegiate List of NCAA conferences, athletic conference in the United States. Founded as the Intercollegiate Conference of Fa ...

finals to face defending NCAA champion (eventual four-timer)

Logan Stieber Logan Stieber (born January 24, 1991) is an American former freestyle and folkstyle wrestler, who competed internationally at 61 and 65 kilograms. In the Olympic year of 2016, he won the non-Olympic weight World Championship at 61 kg, and in ...

, whom he lost to by 4 points, making him the runner-up of the tournament. At the NCAA championships, Retherford defeated an unseeded opponent in the first round and also the eleventh and fourteenth seeds before losing to the second-seeded

once again. After losing in the semifinals, he faced and lost to top-seeded Mitchell Port in the consolation semis, ending his run at the tournament and placing fifth, which earned him All-American status.

2014-15

In this season, Retherford chose to

redshirt Redshirt, Red Shirt, or Redshirts may refer to: Sports * Redshirt (college sports) Redshirt, in United States college athletics, is a delay or suspension of an athlete's participation in order to lengthen their period of eligibility. Typically ...

to focus on training and

freestyle Freestyle may refer to: Brands * Reebok Freestyle, a women's athletic shoe * Ford Freestyle, an SUV automobile * Coca-Cola Freestyle, a vending machine * Abbott FreeStyle, a blood glucose monitor by Abbott Laboritories Media * '' FreeStyle'', ...

, placing second at the Junior World Team Trials and fourth at the 2015 Dave Schultz Memorial International.

2015-16

As a

, Retherford moved up to 149-pounds and closed the regular season undefeated with a 26–0 record before the Big Ten's. At the tournament, he defeated the eight and fifth seeds to make his way to the finale. where he downed second-seeded Brandon Sorensen to win the championship. At the NCAA's, he dominated with a

technical fall In amateur wrestling, a technical fall, or technical superiority, is a victory condition satisfied by outscoring one's opponent by a specified number of points. It is a mercy rule. It is informally abbreviated to "tech" as both a noun and verb. Hi ...

(21-6) to start the tournament, accumulated 3

pins A pin is a device, typically pointed, used for fastening objects or fabrics together. Pins can have the following sorts of body: *a shaft of a rigid inflexible material meant to be inserted in a slot, groove, or hole (as with pivots, hinges, an ...

in a row and a

major Major most commonly refers to: * Major (rank), a military rank * Academic major, an academic discipline to which an undergraduate student formally commits * People named Major, including given names, surnames, nicknames * Major and minor in musi ...

in the finals to close the tournament and claim his first NCAA title. He was named the year's ''NCAA Most Dominant Wrestler'', ''

Penn State #Redirect Pennsylvania State University The Pennsylvania State University (Penn State or PSU) is a Public university, public Commonwealth System of Higher Education, state-related Land-grant university, land-grant research university with ca ...

Male Athlete of the Year'', ''Big Ten Wrestler of the Year'', and received the 2016 Wade Schalles Award for best collegiate pinner.

2016-17

In his

junior year A junior is a person in the third year at an educational institution in the US and some other countries, usually at a secondary school or at the college and university level, but also in other forms of post-secondary educational institutions. I ...

, he continued to establish dominance, staying in the top-spot of the division through the regular season. At the Big Ten Championships he downed four opponents with three falls and a

(16-1) to become a two-time Big Ten Champion. At the

NCAA Championships The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) is a nonprofit organization that regulates student athletics among about 1,100 schools in the United States, and 1 in Canada. It also organizes the athletic programs of colleges and helps ...

, he went 5–0 with four

s and a

pin A pin is a device, typically pointed, used for fastening objects or fabrics together. Pins can have the following sorts of body: *a shaft of a rigid inflexible material meant to be inserted in a slot, groove, or hole (as with pivots, hinges, an ...

at the tournament to claim his second-straight NCAA Championship, making him the seventh

Nittany Lion The Nittany Lion is the eastern mountain lion mascot of the athletic teams of the Pennsylvania State University, known as the Penn State Nittany Lions. Created in 1907, the "Nittany" forename refers to the local Mount Nittany, which overlooks ...

to do so. Due to his efforts, he was named the ''NCAA'' and ''Big Ten Championships Outstanding Wrestler''. He ended the season with a 28–0 mark with seventeen pins, seven techs and a major, near to a 90 percent of bonus points in matches. He then earned the

award as the most dominant wrestler in

NCAA Division I NCAA Division I (D-I) is the highest division of intercollegiate athletics sanctioned by the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) in the United States, which accepts players globally. D-I schools include the major collegiate athlet ...

along with that year's ''NCAA Most Dominant Wrestler'' and Wade Schalles Award winner for the second time in a row.

2017-18

As a

senior Senior (shortened as Sr.) means "the elder" in Latin and is often used as a suffix for the elder of two or more people in the same family with the same given name, usually a parent or grandparent. It may also refer to: * Senior (name), a surname ...

, he remained unbeaten at 149-pounds with a 31–0 record. At the Big Ten's, he defeated three ranked wrestlers with two majors and one decision by points to claim his third-straight B1G Championship. At the

, he opened up with a

tech Tech or The Tech may refer to: * An abbreviation of technology or technician A technician is a worker in a field of technology who is proficient in the relevant skill and technique, with a relatively practical understanding of the theoretical ...

(16-1) and a

before another tech (20-2) in the quarterfinals. In his next two matches he won by decision (10-4 and 6-2), claiming his third-straight

NCAA The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) is a nonprofit organization that regulates College athletics in the United States, student athletics among about 1,100 schools in the United States, and Simon Fraser University, 1 in Canada. ...

title. After the season, he became only the fourth person to be awarded the prestigious

twice. He was also named ''NCAA Most Dominant Wrestler'' for the third straight time and ''Big Ten Wrestler of the Year'' for the second time. In his four seasons at PSU, he graduated with a 128–3 record (all of his losses coming as a

). Overall, Retherford is a two-time

winner, three-time NCAA Champion, four-time

All-America The All-America designation is an annual honor bestowed on outstanding athletes in the United States who are considered to be among the best athletes in their respective sport. Individuals receiving this distinction are typically added to an Al ...

n, three-time Big Ten Champion and four-time Big Ten finalist.

Freestyle career

As a cadet and a junior, Retherford already had prestigious

accomplishments; Cadet World and National champion and three-time Junior National

runner-up {{Short pages monitor