Quick Facts
Biography
Wayne Alton Wells (born September 29, 1946 in Abilene, Texas) is an American wrestler and Olympic champion in Freestyle wrestling.
Olympics
Wells competed at the 1972 Summer Olympics in Munich where he received a gold medal in Freestyle wrestling, the welterweight class. At the University of Oklahoma, Wayne was a three-time Big Eight champion and a three-time All-American. NCAA runner-up as a junior, he won the championship the following year and went on to earn fourth place in the Olympic Games of 1968. While turning his attention to law school and the foundation of his professional career, Wayne intensified his wrestling efforts. He captured the silver medal in the 1969 World Championships, then returned a year later to win the gold.
He won two national freestyle titles and placed second in the Pan American Games. In the months leading up to the 1972 Olympics he completed his final year of law school, passed the state bar exam, assisted the OU coaching staff and trained five hours a day.
He is a Distinguished Member of the National Wrestling Hall of Fame (1982).