Rulon Gardner visited Palmer last Friday during a school-wide assembly at Erps Gym.

Mr. Gardner told his story of being the the underdog in the 2000 Olympics when he drew the lot to wrestle Aleksandr Karelin, the defending gold medal winner from the Russian team.  Karelin had won the gold medal in Greco-Roman wrestling for the past three Olympics:  1988, 1992, and 1996; he expected to win gold in 2000.  Rulon Gardner didn’t let that happen.

Gardner talked about being the youngest in a family of nine children growing up on a dairy farm in Wyoming, and how, as the youngest, he had to be tough.  He attributes his great strength to the daily work on the farm, often starting at 5AM and ending late in the night.  As a special education student in his Wyoming school, Gardner described his struggles to read and comprehend schoolwork.

Mr. Gardner told students about his Seven Steps to Success:

• Go Back to Basics:  decide what is the most important and focus on that.  For Gardner, that was reading and wrestling from the age of six. He told of his refusal to be distracted by friends who encouraged him to party instead of focus on college. In one vignette, he told the story of having the opportunity to meet country singer Garth Brooks and choosing to study for his anatomy exam. He said, “The story had a happy ending, after my victory at the Olympics, when I was able to meet Garth Brooks and become his friend.”
• Turn Negative into Positive:  With many people telling him he couldn’t, he decided firmly that he could.  When a college counselor told him it was impossible to train for the Olympics and work on his teaching degree at the same time, Gardner refused to give up on his goals. He earned his degree during the time he trained.
• Enlist Those around You:  Gardner spoke lovingly about his mother, who encouraged him not to listen to the negative people and follow his dreams.  He spoke of coaches and trainers who didn’t hold back and challenged him while encouraging him.
• Train Hard Every Day: Gardner attributed his success in the 2000 Olympics to his physical stamina; he simply exhausted his opponent.  While training, he would wrestle for two hours straight without taking a break.  If he felt he hadn’t done as well as he might, he would run sprints afterwards.
• Take Care of Business: While teammates were enjoying the attention of the media and attending parties, Gardner kept training.  His focus gave him the ability to wrestle longer and harder.
• Aim High When You’re Feeling Low:  During a snowmobiling accident, Gardner was stranded in the Idaho wilderness for 15 hours in sub-zero temperatures. He lost toes to frostbite and was left not being able to feel his feet.  Despite this setback, he continued to do what he loved:  training for the Olympics.  He wrestled in the 2004 Olympics and won a bronze medal.
• Don’t Rest on Your Laurels: Life wasn’t over for Gardner after the Olympics.  He continues to this day, sharing his story and encouraging students to reach high and work hard.

The bright spot for students was that afterward, they got to meet Mr. Gardner and touch his gold medal.