Cael Sanderson

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Cael Sanderson
Weight191 lb (87 kg)
Born (1979-06-20) June 20, 1979 (age 42)
Salt Lake City, Utah
High schoolHeber City (UT) Wasatch
State championships4 (Utah)
CollegeIowa State University
NCAA championships12 (4 competing, 8 coaching)
Olympic teamUnited States of America
Olympic medalGold
StatusHead Coach for Penn State Nittany Lions Wrestling
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Medal record
Men's freestyle wrestling
Representing the  United States
Olympic Games
Olympic rings.svg
Gold medal – first place 2004 Athens 84 kg
World Championships
Silver medal – second place 2003 New York 84 kg
World Cup
Gold medal – first place 2003 Boise 84 kg
University World Championships
Gold medal – first place 2000 Tokyo 85 kg
Pan American Games
Bronze medal – third place 2003 Santo Domingo 84 kg
Cadet World Championships
Bronze medal – third place 1994 Frankfort 55 kg
Collegiate Wrestling
Representing the Iowa State Cyclones
Iowa State Cyclones logo.svg
NCAA Division I Wrestling Championships
NCAA logo.svg
Gold medal – first place 1999 State College 184 lb
Gold medal – first place 2000 St. Louis 184 lb
Gold medal – first place 2001 Iowa City 184 lb
Gold medal – first place 2002 Albany 197 lb
Big 12 Championships
Gold medal – first place 1999 Ames 184 lb
Gold medal – first place 2000 Lincoln 184 lb
Gold medal – first place 2001 Stillwater 184 lb
Gold medal – first place 2002 Norman 197 lb

Cael Norman Sanderson (/ˈkeɪl/ KAYL; born June 20, 1979) is an American former folkstyle and freestyle wrestler who is the current head coach of Penn State University's wrestling team. As a wrestler, he won an Olympic Gold medal and was undefeated in four years of college wrestling at Iowa State University (ISU) (159–0), becoming a four-time NCAA Division I champion (1999–2002). He is the only wrestler in NCAA Division I history to go undefeated in official matches with more than 100 wins. Sports Illustrated named his college career as the second most impressive college sports feat behind the setting of four world records by Jesse Owens in a single hour at the 1935 Big Ten track and field conference championship meet.[1]

Early life[]

Born in Salt Lake City, Utah to Steve and Debbie Sanderson, Cael attended Wasatch High School in Heber City, Utah, where he was coached by his father, a former wrestler at the Brigham Young University. As a high school wrestler, Sanderson was a four-time UHSAA state champion (1994–97), like his brother Cody, and compiled a record of 127 wins and 3 losses.[2]

Wrestling career[]

College[]

Upon graduation, Sanderson followed his brothers, Cody and Cole, to ISU. After redshirting in 1997-98, Sanderson won all 39 of his matches to his first NCAA and Big 12 Conference titles at 184 pounds (his brother, Cody, was the runner-up at 133 pounds). He was also the first freshman in NCAA history to be named the Outstanding Wrestler (OW) at Nationals.[3] His next three seasons were virtually identical, compiling 40 wins and no losses in each and finishing with the only perfect record in NCAA Division I history at 159-0. By winning all of his matches, he became only the second wrestler in history to that point to win four NCAA Division I titles. He was also named the OW in all of the NCAA tournaments he competed in.[4]

Sanderson was a three-time Dan Hodge Trophy winner (equivalent to the Heisman Trophy), being the first to win the award multiple times and the only person to win it three times.[3] He holds the longest win-streak across all NCAA divisions.[5] All of this combined, makes him the most accomplished collegiate wrestler in the history of the sport.[6][7]

In 2017, Sanderson was inducted into the ISU Hall of Fame.[8]

Freestyle[]

Sanderson was a two-time US Cadet World Team Member, placing third and fourth in 1994 and 1995, respectively.[9] He was also a US University National Champion in 1999 and a University World Champion in 2000.[10]

He became the US National Champion in 2001, 2002 and 2003.[11] He was also an original US World Team Member in 2001 and 2002, however, he chose not to participate at the 01' World Championships to focus in folkstyle,[12] and the USA team chose to not compete in 2002.[13]

In 2003, he won the Manitoba Open in Canada in February,[14] placed second at the World Cup in April, third at the 2003 Pan American Games[15] and second at the World Championships.[16] In 2004, he once again claimed the Manitoba Open title[14] and won the US Olympic Team Trials.[17]

At the 2004 Summer Olympics, Sanderson claimed wins over Magomed Kurugliyev, Siarhei Borchanka, Majid Khodaei, Yoel Romero and Moon Eui-jae to become an Olympic Gold medalist in Athens, Greece.[18]

While already a full-time coach at Penn State, Sanderson came out of retirement in 2011[19] and took home an Ion Corneanu Memorial title,[20] won the US World Team Trials[21] and placed fifth at the World Championships.[22]

Freestyle record[]

World Championships & Olympics
Res. Record Opponent Score Date Event Location
2011 World Championships 5th at 84 kg
Loss 13–3 Russia Albert Saritov 0–1, 0–3 September 17, 2011 2011 World Wrestling Championships Turkey Istanbul, Turkey
Win 13–2 Iran Alireza Goudarzi 6–0, 1–0
Win 12–2 Kazakhstan Yermek Baiduashov 4–3, 0–1, 2–1
Win 11–2 South Korea Yoon Chan-uk Fall
Loss 10–2 Azerbaijan Sharif Sharifov 1-3, 1-4
Win 10–1 Mexico Alejandro Gallardo 6–0, 7–0
2004 Summer Olympics 1st place, gold medalist(s) at 84kg
Win 9–1 South Korea Moon Eui-jae 3–1 August 28, 2004 2004 Olympic Games Greece Athens, Greece
Win 8–1 Cuba Yoel Romero 3–2
Win 7–1 Iran Majid Khodaei 6–5
Win 6–1 Belarus Siarhei Borchanka 9–1
Win 5–1 Kazakhstan Magomed Kurugliyev 4–2
2003 World Championships 2nd place, silver medalist(s) at 84 kg
Loss 4–1 Russia Sazhid Sazhidov 3–4 September 12, 2003 2003 World Wrestling Championships United States New York, New York
Win 4–0 Georgia (country) Rezav Mindorashvili 4–2
Win 3–0 Armenia Mahmed Aghaev 3–0
Win 2–0 Iran Majid Khodaei 8–2
Win 1–0 Finland Tero Perkkioe 8–2

Coaching career[]

Iowa State[]

Sanderson began his coaching career with the season ending in 2004 as a special assistant for the wrestling team at ISU. After short stints in associate head coaching positions, he became the head coach for the season ending in 2007. In three seasons, Sanderson led ISU's wrestling team to NCAA Division I national placements of second, fifth, and third.[23] He also coached his wrestlers to two individual NCAA Division I national titles.

Penn State[]

Before the 2010 season ended, Sanderson became the head coach of Penn State's wrestling team. As of 2019, Sanderson's Penn State teams have won eight NCAA Division I team titles.[24] During that time, he also coached his wrestlers to 23 individual Division I titles.

Coaching results[]

Coaching Record
Season Team Finish Dual Record All Americans National Champions
Iowa State University
2007 2nd place, silver medalist(s) 13-3-0 4 1
2008 5th 16-4-0 7 0
2009 3rd place, bronze medalist(s) 15-3-0 4 1
Pennsylvania State University
2010 9th 13-6-1 3 0
2011 1st place, gold medalist(s) 17-1-1 5 1
2012 1st place, gold medalist(s) 13-1-0 6 3
2013 1st place, gold medalist(s) 13-1-0 5 2
2014 1st place, gold medalist(s) 15-1-0 7 2
2015 6th 11-4-0 5 1
2016 1st place, gold medalist(s) 16-0-0 6 2
2017 1st place, gold medalist(s) 14-0-0 6 5
2018 1st place, gold medalist(s) 14-0-0 8 4
2019 1st place, gold medalist(s) 14-0-0 7 3
2020 DNC 12-2-0 5 0
2021 2nd place, silver medalist(s) 6-0-0 6 4
Career 202-24-2 84 29

Awards and honors[]

2011
  • 1st place, gold medalist(s) Ion Corneanu Memorial
2004
2003
2002
2001
2000
1999

Other honors[]

See also[]

References[]

  1. ^ Anderson, Kelli (2002-04-01). "The Top 10: SI picks the most impressive college sports feats ever". Sports Illustrated. Retrieved 2009-02-05.
  2. ^ "15 years ago: Cael concludes perfect college career". InterMat. Retrieved 2020-10-29.
  3. ^ Jump up to: a b "Cael Sanderson: College statistics, records, championships | NCAA.com". www.ncaa.com. Retrieved 2020-10-29.
  4. ^ "15 years ago: Cael concludes perfect college career". InterMat. Retrieved 2020-10-29.
  5. ^ "NCAA Wrestling Unbeaten Streak Leaders". mwolverine.com. Retrieved 2020-10-29.
  6. ^ "NCAA weighs in: Top 5 NCAA wrestlers of all time". InterMat. Retrieved 2020-10-29.
  7. ^ "Ranking top college wrestlers of all time". InterMat. Retrieved 2020-10-29.
  8. ^ "Cael Sanderson (2017) - Hall of Fame". Iowa State University Athletics. Retrieved 2020-10-29.
  9. ^ "Cael Sanderson (State College, PA) | Trackwrestling Profile". Trackwrestling. Retrieved 2020-10-29.
  10. ^ "Cael Sanderson named U.S. Men's Freestyle World Team coach | Penn State University". news.psu.edu. Retrieved 2020-10-29.
  11. ^ "BeUndefeated.com - Undefeated Sport Nutrition – Sport Cookies – Custom Sport Drink". beundefeated.com. Retrieved 2020-10-29.
  12. ^ "EGGUM, PAULSON CLAIM SILVER MEDALS AT WORLD WRESTLING CHAMPIONSHIPS". University of Minnesota Athletics. Retrieved 2020-10-29.
  13. ^ "Cael Sanderson, 3-time Hodge Trophy winner". WIN Magazine. 2010-10-07. Retrieved 2020-10-29.
  14. ^ Jump up to: a b "Cael Sanderson". Key Speakers Bureau. Retrieved 2020-10-29.
  15. ^ Grundmeier, Lucas. "Overtime loss for Sanderson in Pan American Games semifinals". Iowa State Daily. Retrieved 2020-10-29.
  16. ^ "Cael Sanderson loses final at World Championships". Iowa State Daily. Retrieved 2020-10-29.
  17. ^ "Match of the Day: Cael Sanderson defeats Lee Fulhart in match three to make the 2004 Olympic Team". Team USA. May 1, 2020.
  18. ^ "Perfection: Sanderson wins wrestling gold". ESPN.com. 2004-08-28. Retrieved 2020-10-29.
  19. ^ News, Deseret (2011-07-28). "Cael Sanderson excited to be back on the wrestling mat". Deseret News. Retrieved 2020-10-29.
  20. ^ "Cael Sanderson captures title at Ion Corneanu Memorial in Romania". Team USA. August 6, 2011.
  21. ^ "Sanderson wins spot in worlds with trials title". ESPN.com. 2011-06-12. Retrieved 2020-10-29.
  22. ^ "Sanderson Takes Fifth at World Championship and Varner Wins Bronze". Penn State University Athletics. Retrieved 2020-10-29.
  23. ^ "Cael Sanderson Bio :: Penn State :: Official Athletic Site". Gopsusports.com. Archived from the original on 2016-07-08. Retrieved 2018-04-22.
  24. ^ "WR: Two Lions Up for the Hodge! :: Penn State :: Official Athletic Site". Gopsusports.com. 2018-03-20. Archived from the original on 2018-05-03. Retrieved 2018-04-22.
  25. ^ Abbott, Gary (2005-04-28). "Cael Sanderson named 2004 John Smith Award winner, as the Freestyle Wrestler of the Year by USA Wres | TheMat.com - USA Wrestling". Content.themat.com. Archived from the original on 2018-03-24. Retrieved 2018-04-22.
  26. ^ Abbott, Gary. "Cael Sanderson named 2003 John Smith Award winner, as the Freestyle Wrestler of the Year by USA Wres | TheMat.com - USA Wrestling". Content.themat.com. Archived from the original on 2018-03-24. Retrieved 2018-04-22.
  27. ^ Hamilton, Andy (21 July 2012). "Cael Sanderson elected to Des Moines Sunday Register's Iowa Sports Hall of Fame". Des Moines Register. Archived from the original on 21 January 2013. Retrieved 22 July 2012.

External links[]

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