Cary Joseph Kolat (born May 19, 1973) is an American wrestler and wrestling coach who earned two NCAA championships in 1996 and 1997 for

Lock Haven University of Pennsylvania Commonwealth University-Lock Haven (LHU) is a public university in Lock Haven, Pennsylvania, United States. It is part of the Pennsylvania State System of Higher Education (PASSHE). The main campus covers and the branch campus in Clearfield, Pe ...

and was a member of the United States Men's Freestyle Wrestling Team from 1997–2001. During that time he won silver and bronze medals at the 1997 Krasnoyarsk and 1998 Tehran

FILA Wrestling World Championships The World Wrestling Championships for Greco-Roman wrestling (men, since 1904) and freestyle wrestling Freestyle wrestling is a style of wrestling. It is one of two styles of wrestling contested in the Olympic Games, along with Greco-Roman wr ...

, as well as competing for the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

freestyle wrestling Freestyle wrestling is a style of wrestling. It is one of two styles of wrestling contested in the Olympic Games, along with Greco-Roman wrestling, Greco-Roman. scholastic wrestling, High school wrestling and men's collegiate wrestling in the U ...

at the

2000 Summer Olympics The 2000 Summer Olympics, officially the Games of the XXVII Olympiad, officially branded as Sydney 2000, and also known as the Games of the New Millennium, were an international multi-sport event held from 15 September to 1 October ...

. In 2017, Kolat was inducted into the National Wrestling Hall of Fame as a Distinguished Member. Kolat is currently the head wrestling coach at

United States Naval Academy The United States Naval Academy (USNA, Navy, or Annapolis) is a United States Service academies, federal service academy in Annapolis, Maryland. It was established on 10 October 1845 during the tenure of George Bancroft as United States Secre ...

Early life

Kolat was born in Rices Landing, Pennsylvania. He began wrestling at age five and by age seven, he had won his first national championship, an AAU age-group competition in Lincoln, Nebraska. As a young child, Kolat revered Iowa wrestler Dan Gable as an inspiration. Kolat competed successfully in high school and international tournaments, finishing his career at Jefferson-Morgan High School with an undefeated (137–0) record and four

Pennsylvania Pennsylvania, officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a U.S. state, state spanning the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern United States, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes region, Great Lakes regions o ...

state titles. He also won a Cadet World gold medal at 55 kg in 1989. During this time he was named Outstanding Wrestler four times at state meets, an honor no one else had achieved even twice. His achievements led to him being profiled in ''

Sports Illustrated ''Sports Illustrated'' (''SI'') is an American sports magazine first published in August 1954. Founded by Stuart Scheftel, it was the first magazine with a circulation of over one million to win the National Magazine Award for General Excellen ...

'' in April 1992.

Collegiate career

In 1993, Kolat began his collegiate career at

Pennsylvania State University The Pennsylvania State University (Penn State or PSU) is a Public university, public Commonwealth System of Higher Education, state-related Land-grant university, land-grant research university with campuses and facilities throughout Pennsyl ...

, where he went 22–5 as a freshman and advanced to the

NCAA The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) is a nonprofit organization that regulates College athletics in the United States, student athletics among about 1,100 schools in the United States, and Simon Fraser University, 1 in Canada. ...

title bout before falling to T. J. Jaworsky from

University of North Carolina The University of North Carolina is the Public university, public university system for the state of North Carolina. Overseeing the state's 16 public universities and the North Carolina School of Science and Mathematics, it is commonly referre ...

. The following year, Kolat earned

All-America The All-America designation is an annual honor bestowed on outstanding athletes in the United States who are considered to be among the best athletes in their respective sport. Individuals receiving this distinction are typically added to an Al ...

honors for the second straight season and at 134 pounds was named

Big Ten The Big Ten Conference (stylized B1G, formerly the Western Conference and the Big Nine Conference, among others) is a collegiate athletic conference in the United States. Founded as the Intercollegiate Conference of Faculty Representatives in 1 ...

Wrestler of the Year. He ended his sophomore season 39–1. After two years at Penn State, Kolat transferred to

where he won his first national championship in 1996, and ended the year 25–1. Kolat picked up his first undefeated season in 1996–97 going 25–0 at 142 pounds leading to his second straight national title. During his attendance at Lock Haven, Kolat was a two-time PSAC champion (1996–97) and an Eastern Wrestling League champion in 1996–97 as well as being named the Most Outstanding Wrestler at the Eastern Wrestling League Championships in both his junior and senior seasons. He ended his college wrestling career with an impressive .941 winning percentage (111–7) and 53 career falls.

International competition

After college Kolat participated in 13 international events for the United States, as member of the United States Men's Freestyle Wrestling Team from 1997–2001 at 63 kg. During that time he won a silver and a bronze medal, respectively, at the 1997 Krasnoyarsk and 1998 Tehran

. He also competed for the United States in freestyle wrestling for the

in Sydney, Australia, where he finished ninth. Kolat was also a three-time World Cup gold medalist (1998, 1999, 2000) and World Cup silver medalist in 2001. He was also a

Pan American Games The Pan American Games, known as the Pan Am Games, is a continental multi-sport event in the Americas. It features thousands of athletes participating in competitions to win different summer sports. It is held among athletes from nations of th ...

gold medalist in

1999 1999 was designated as the International Year of Older Persons. Events January * January 1 – The euro currency is established and the European Central Bank assumes its full powers. * January 3 – The Mars Polar Lander is launc ...

and a Pan American gold medalist in 2000.

Return

After much time off, Kolat returned to national freestyle competition in early 2011 at the Asics US Open, where he finished 2nd behind Teyon Ware, losing 1–0, 0–4, 1–1. In 2012, he also qualified for the 2012 US Olympic Trials.

Coaching career

After his college wrestling career ended, Kolat finished his degree in criminal justice at Lock Haven, graduating in July 2003. He then coached at Lock Haven, Lehigh,

Wisconsin Wisconsin ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Great Lakes region, Great Lakes region of the Upper Midwest of the United States. It borders Minnesota to the west, Iowa to the southwest, Illinois to the south, Lake Michigan to the east, Michig ...

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, and North Carolina. He now runs a wrestling instructional website called Kolat.com. In April 2014, Kolat was named the head coach of Campbell University's wrestling program in

Buies Creek, North Carolina Buies Creek ( )
, from the North Carolina Collection's website at the

< ...

. Kolat replaced Joe Boardwine and, after Dave Auble, is the second Olympian wrestler to serve as Campbell's head coach. In March 2020, he was hired as head coach at the

U.S. Naval Academy The United States Naval Academy (USNA, Navy, or Annapolis) is a federal service academy in Annapolis, Maryland. It was established on 10 October 1845 during the tenure of George Bancroft as Secretary of the Navy. The Naval Academy is the sec ...

Annapolis, Maryland Annapolis ( ) is the capital of the U.S. state of Maryland. It is the county seat of Anne Arundel County and its only incorporated city. Situated on the Chesapeake Bay at the mouth of the Severn River, south of Baltimore and about east ...

Mixed martial arts record

Kolat also trained with Team Quest and competed in

mixed martial arts Mixed martial arts (MMA) is a full-contact fighting combat sport, sport based on strike (attack), striking and grappling; incorporating techniques from various combat sports from around the world. In the early 20th century, various inter-s ...

. He fought Enoch Wilson at SportFight 12 on September 16, 2005, losing by a

triangle choke A triangle choke, or sankaku-jime (三角絞) in judo, is a type of figure-four chokehold that encircles the opponent's neck and one arm with the legs in a configuration similar to the shape of a triangle. Applying pressure using both legs and ...

in the second round. , - , Loss , align=center, 0–1 , Enoch Wilson , Submission (Triangle Choke) , SF 12 - Breakout , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 4:06 ,

Portland, Oregon Portland ( ) is the List of cities in Oregon, most populous city in the U.S. state of Oregon, located in the Pacific Northwest region. Situated close to northwest Oregon at the confluence of the Willamette River, Willamette and Columbia River, ...

, United States , , -

Personal life

Kolat is married to his wife Erin and has two daughters, Zoe and Gracie, and youngest son, Ryder.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Kolat, Cary 1973 births Living people American male sport wrestlers Campbell Fighting Camels wrestling coaches Lehigh Mountain Hawks wrestling coaches Lock Haven Bald Eagles wrestlers Lock Haven Bald Eagles wrestling coaches Medalists at the 1999 Pan American Games North Carolina Tar Heels wrestling coaches Pan American Games gold medalists for the United States in wrestling Penn State Nittany Lions wrestlers People from Greene County, Pennsylvania Olympic wrestlers for the United States West Virginia Mountaineers wrestling coaches Wisconsin Badgers wrestling coaches World Wrestling Championships medalists Wrestlers at the 1999 Pan American Games Wrestlers at the 2000 Summer Olympics Sportspeople from Pennsylvania 20th-century American sportsmen Navy Midshipmen wrestling coaches