Kerry McCoy GARY ABBOTT’S MATSIDE CHAT WITH...
Kerry McCoy has made an impact on every level of
wrestling. As a star from Longwood High School in New York, McCoy won Cadet and Junior World medals for the United States. McCoy became a college star for Penn State, winning two NCAA titles and three All-American honors at heavyweight. He went on to become one of the world’s best freestyle stars, winning a World silver medal in 2003 and competing in both the 2000 and 2004 Olympic Games. After serving as an assistant coach at both Penn State and
Lehigh, McCoy got his first chance as a Div. I head coach at Stanford, where he helped improve the program in his three years there. McCoy was a U.S. Olympic freestyle coach at the 2008 Beijing Games. He was hired as the head coach for Maryland, where he has helped the Terps win three ACC titles and place in the top 20 at the NCAAs three times in five sea- sons. His team will make the move to the Big Ten next year.
USA Wrestler: As a member of CPOW, how effective to you
believe the United States was in making a difference in the international Keep Olympic Wrestling movement? McCoy: I have to say we were pretty effective, because we
are still in the Games. Being on the committee, I feel like we really took a leadership role in the movement. A lot of credit goes to our country’s leaders and the effort we put into it. The United States did a great job helping the cause.
USA Wrestler: What do you believe were key factors in wrestling’s success in retaining its spot on the Olympic pro- gram?
McCoy: The biggest key was the transition from thinking we deserve to be in the Olympics from an entitlement point to what do we need to do to change this and keep us in the Games. Even today, some people say they can’t believe they thought about that. If we had the strategy that we needed to prove we should have never been put in this position, it would have been detrimental to us. We said, let’s do what we need to do to be the best sport. That attitude shift was a key thing. Our sport tends to have a mentality that this is not right and we need to fight the injustice of this decision. That wouldn’t have taken us anywhere.
USA Wrestler: What lessons did wrestling learn in the past
year that will help it to advance as a sport at the Olympic level? McCoy: The true nature of our sport is never being compla-
cent. As athletes and wrestlers, we have to be ready to work hard and continue to get better every day. This situation got to the heart of what it meant to be a wrestler and never accept enough. There is always more you can accomplish. I can always do one more sprint, one more pushup. There is always one more thing we can do to make our sport a little better. If we had been that way internationally and nationally, we may not have been in that situation. Moving forward, we have to always do the best that we can do and never get complacent.
USA Wrestler: You have been an active leader within USA Wrestling for many years, serving on its Board and many key
24 USA Wrestler
Maryland coach Kerry McCoy won a World silver medal and was a two-time Olympian for the United States.
committees. Why is it important to you to take on this responsi- bility?
McCoy: I would not be where I am today if it were not for this
sport. I was always taught through this sport that once you’ve been given something, it is important that you give back. A lot of people have gone before me to give me the opportunity to do what I have done as an athlete and a coach. I had a lot of men- torship. If I can do anything to make this sport a little bit better than before I got here, it was my obligation and responsibility. I love the sport so much and I want to help it to be the best it can be.
USA Wrestler: How did you find out about wrestling, and why
did you decide to pursue the sport? McCoy: I started wrestling in seventh grade and it was really
the only thing available. I grew up wanting to play basketball. Seventh grade was the first year you could play interscholastic sports in my school district. The only sports available were wrestling and track and field, so that’s what I did. It was acci- dental almost. That first practice, I don’t know what it was, I fell in love with it and knew I would be involved for a long time. Even though I was terrible at it, I just loved doing it.
USA Wrestler: You wrestled for respected coach Mike
Picozzi and a strong team at Longwood High on Long Island. How much did that environment help you improve as an ath- lete?
McCoy: It was everything. Your surroundings, your foundation
is what makes you who you are. I was involved in one of the best high school programs in the state. Everybody I was around, parents, coaches, workout partners were engaged in us being the best we could be, not just the best in the immediate area, but the best in the country and world. We had elite ath- letes up and down the ladder. That was huge for me. The
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