Rulon Gardner Biography

Rulon E. Gardner (born August 16, 1971) is a retired American Greco-Roman wrestler. He competed at the 2000 and 2004 Olympics and won the gold medal in 2000, defeating Aleksandr Karelin in the final. Karelin was previously unbeaten for 13 years in international competition. This was also the first Olympic gold medal won by an American Greco-Roman wrestler in a full international field. Gardner won a bronze medal at the 2004 Games.