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munity. If people don’t know wrestling, it doesn’t change your life financially. You’re not famous, but maybe more wrestlers know you. But it was a huge accomplishment for me. Up to that point in my life, it was my dream. I worked so hard and put so many hours into it. That feeling lasted for a long time,” said Wheeler. After the Olympics, Wheeler applied to the police department in both Denver and Colorado Springs. Wheeler and his wife, Marley, a Denver native, decided to
stay in Colorado Springs. Adam preferred to work for the smaller police force, Marley had a job in the Springs, and both felt it would be a great place to raise children. After starting as a patrol officer, Wheeler has advanced quick- ly and is currently a member of the SWAT team for the Colorado Springs Police Department. “For the police department, it is the elite group, as far as the physical aspect and what we do on a daily basis. The job is a lot of training. We are not 23-year-olds who are training to be the best physically.
“The average age of our team is 40. I am one of the younger ones on the team. We work out hard. A lot is geared toward injury prevention and being able to sustain the heavy equipment we have to carry around all day. The vests we wear weigh 50 pounds on your back. That job in the police department is the closest to being an athlete,” said Wheeler. Wheeler has found an another passion to fuel his desire to
stay in shape and remain competitive, the martial art of jiu-jitsu. “It is similar to wrestling, with a different way of scoring and point system. The environment of a jiu-jitsu room is more laid back than the wrestling room at the Olympic Training Center. A month after I got back from the Olympics, I went to a jiu-jitsu gym, enjoyed it and started training for it.
“A wrestler once told me it was like the wrestler’s golf. You go out there and stay active and physical in grappling. It’s a more relaxed form of wrestling,” said Wheeler. In early November, Wheeler went with some teammates to compete in the IBJJF Masters World No-Gi Jiu-Jitsu World Championships in Long Beach, Calif. He came home as a World champion in the Black Belt Open Weight division. “I trained hard for the tournament. It was the World Championships for no-gi jiu-jitsu. I was very confident. Wrestling helps you a lot, but it is another sport. It was a new challenge, a new way to test myself. I always preach to people in jiu-jitsu that you have to test yourself, not be afraid to compete. That is the best way to get better,” he said. Wheeler and wife Marley, a teacher, are very busy raising two boys, Jamison, who is five and Cal, who is two. Both are learn- ing their father’s love of sports. “Jamison does jiu-jitsu, wrestling, t-ball, soccer and bike rid- ing. Our youngest one got into his first sport, a little kids soccer team. I want them to both have fun and be active. I won’t force them into one sport. They love every sport. It’s fun,” he said. Every year, Wheeler finds time to return to his hometown in California and talks to young people at four or five local high schools. He shares a simple but powerful message. “You are the product of your environment is one thing I teach. Don’t hang out with the wrong people. If you want to be the best at something, surround yourself with other people who want to be the best at that same thing. You have to work for it. Hard work, dedication, sticking to something is important. I talk about how I failed over and over and over. I never stopped believing in myself. Every time I lost, I worked a little bit harder. If I lost, I wanted it even more. I didn’t give up. I just worked harder,” he said.
20 USA Wrestler
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