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Gophers wrestler Gable Steveson named Big Ten male athlete of year

andy greder, pioneer press
·1 min read

Gophers wrestler Gable Steveson was named the Big Ten Conference’s Jesse Owens Male Athlete of the Year on Wednesday.

Steveson won his second straight NCAA championship and his third consecutive Big Ten tournament title in March. The Apple Valley heavyweight won the gold medal in freestyle wrestling at the Tokyo Olympics last August.

Steveson becomes the fifth Gophers athlete to win the Big Ten’s top individual honor in its 41-year history. He follows Cole Konrad (wrestling, 2007), Damion Hahn (wrestling, 2004), Jordan Leopold (hockey, 2002) and John Roethlisberger (gymnastics, 1993).

“It is a great honor for Gable to be chosen as Big Ten Male Athlete of the Year among many other remarkable athletes,” Minnesota wrestling coach Brandon Eggum said in a statement. “He is such a great representative for the University of Minnesota, our program, and the sport of wrestling. We could not be more proud of his accomplishments.”

Steveson has been exploring the use of his remaining year of collegiate eligibility in the upcoming wrestling season, the Pioneer Press reported in May. Eggum told the newspaper Wednesday that there was no update on that possibility right now.

Steveson has an 85-2 career record in college, including a current 52-matches winning streak. His only two losses occurred during his freshman season.

He graduated from the U in May.

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