Q&A: Olympic wrestler Daniel Cormier

By Jenni Carlson

Published: August 16, 2008

Olympic wrestler Daniel Cormier will vie to be the best in the world next week. The former Oklahoma State standout can already lay claim to being the best in at least one area. Then again, as he revealed before leaving for Beijing, he isn't the greatest in every sport.

Jenni Carlson: I read somewhere that you've been dubbed the greatest wrestler in Louisiana history.

Daniel Cormier: It's good to be called the greatest in anything, especially with all the great athletes that they have down there. But not many people wrestle. If you say John Smith is the greatest wrestler in Oklahoma history, now that's big. It means a lot for me, because it's my home state, but the sport's not that big down there. It's not like being the best football player from down there or best baseball player.

JC: Didn't you sort of stumble into wrestling? Something about mattresses in the backyard?

DC: We were huge WWF fans. When I was invited to go and try out by the high school coach, I really thought I was going to be doing what I was doing (in the backyard).

JC: You thought there'd be chairs over the head and guys bouncing off ropes?

DC: I really did. I really did believe I was going to do the WWF thing. Looking back, it's kind of insane ... but I went in there and saw the guys wrestling and said, "What in the world is this?” Then, they gave us our uniforms, and I said, "Look at this.” But it was fun. I've always been a rough kid. I was into basketball, but then once I found contact sports, it was over. I never played basketball again in my life. I'm so bad at baseball, I can't even hit now. I almost popped my rib out the other day when I tried to play.

JC: That wouldn't make a good headline — Olympic wrestler hurt playing baseball.

DC: How bad would that have been? It was right after I made the team, and I went home for something. We had a family gathering, and I was trying to play. I tried to hit the ball so hard, I hurt myself. It's funny, people always pick me. Then, when I get out there, I'm really bad. (Laughs.)

JC: Now, I hear that you've got lots of family going to the Olympics and that your wife gets pretty excited during matches.

DC: She screams. Man, she screams really loud. I can hear her.

JC: Really?

DC: Just at random spots in the match. I don't know if she's timing it when everybody's not screaming or something, but I can hear her.

JC: Does that ever work against you in married life when you try to claim that you didn't hear her?

DC: Robin talks so loud when she gets excited, there is no way that I can pretend not to hear her. She is getting her point across.

Want to know what cool trinket Daniel Cormier already has in his trophy room? Check out my blog at NewsOK.com.

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