Gable and Brands discuss becoming an Olympic champion

IOWA CITY - Dan Gable and Tom Brands have stood atop the wrestling world, and have coached some of the world's most accomplished competitors.

The former University of Iowa coach and the current Hawkeye leader will share their experiences with the public next Monday.

Gable and Brands will talk about what it takes to be a world champion Monday, July 13, at the Iowa City Public Library, beginning at 7 p.m. The discussion will be held in Meeting Room A and can be watched live on The Library Channel, which is cable channel 20 in Iowa City. The event is free and open to the public, serving as part of the 2015 Adult Summer Reading Program.

Gable, a Waterloo native, who was an undefeated three-time state champion for Waterloo West, was a 1972 Olympic gold medalist in Munich, Germany. He recorded the most dominant Olympic performance by not allowing a single point.

Brands also dominated his way to Olympic gold, winning a 1996 championship in Atlanta. He was a four-time All-American for the Hawkeyes, claiming three NCAA titles.

Both have also served as U.S. National team coaches. Gable led Iowa to 15 NCAA titles and 21 Big Ten championships. Brands coached Iowa to NCAA team titles from 2008-2010. He recently guided the Hawkeyes to a share of the Big Ten Championships title in March.

Below is the news release from ICPL:

ICPL hosts What It Takes to Become a World Champion with Dan Gable and Tom Brands

(Iowa City, IA) - July 6, 2015 - Spend the evening with Olympic Gold Medalists, and former and current Iowa Hawkeyes wrestling coaches Dan Gable and Tom Brands, on Monday, July 13, at the Iowa City Public Library as they share what it takes to be a champion.

Gable was a two-time NCAA champion and three times was an All-American, Big Eight champion and Iowa High School state champion. He claimed the gold medal at the 1972 Summer Olympics in Munich, Germany, without surrendering a single point.

Gable joined the University of Iowa wrestling coaching staff in 1972 and took over the program in 1976. Under his leadership, Iowa won 15 NCAA titles and 21 Big Ten team titles. Gable was named the NCAA Coach of the Year three times. He was head coach of the United States Olympic team in freestyle wrestling in 1980, 1984, and 2000, and coached 12 Iowa Hawkeye Olympians.

Brands was a four-time All-American, three-time NCAA champion, and three-time Big Ten Conference champion before winning gold at the 1996 Summer Olympics in Atlanta. He served 12 years as an assistant wrestling coach at Iowa before taking the head coach position at Virginia Tech. He returned to Iowa as head wrestling coach in the spring of 2006 and led the Hawkeyes to national titles in 2008, 2009, and 2010.

Gable and Brands will be in Meeting Room A at the Library at 7 p.m. as part of the 2015 Adult Summer Reading Program. This event is free and open to the public. It will be broadcast LIVE on The Library Channel, Iowa City cable channel 20.

For more information, contact the Library at (319) 356-5200.

l Comments: (319) 368-8679; kj.pilcher@thegazette.com