Tervel Dlagnev (Photo/Tony Rotundo, WrestlersAreWarriors.com)COLUMBUS, Ohio -- The "new normal" in the Ohio State wrestling room is about to be ratcheted up a notch.
Tervel Dlagnev, a two-time Olympian who has trained for the several years at the Ohio Regional Training Center under the guidance of Ohio State associate head coach Lou Rosselli, will join the Ohio State staff as an assistant coach on September 12 following his competition at the Summer Olympic Games in Rio. He fills the spot previously held by Ross Thatcher. With his addition, the Buckeyes will now have 1/3 of the 2016 Olympic team's roster in its training room. The collective credentials of head coach Tom Ryan's staff [Ryan, Rosselli, J Jaggers and Dlagnev] now includes four NCAA titles, five NCAA finals appearances and nine All-America honors.
"This is a great day for the Buckeyes," said Ryan. "Tervel Dlagnev was far and away the top choice for us to bring in as a coach. More than the credentials he has on the mat, he brings a cerebral approach. He's an amazing teacher, a great father, a great friend. Our guys really gravitate to him."
"We're very fortunate that thanks to a lot of supporters, we have the elite training center in the country. Tervel has been an integral part of that for a long time. Right now the environment in our program is very good. With multiple NCAA champions and All-Americans and now two Olympians, it's north of normal - and it needs to be. Because normal won't cut it."
Dlagnev was a two-time NCAA Division II national champion for the University of Nebraska at Kearney in 2007 and 2008; in 2008, Dlagnev led the Lopers to their first-ever team title. Following graduation, he moved to Columbus in order to be trained by Rosselli at the Ohio RTC. Since then, he has made eight national teams, winning the World Team Trials seven times.
In international competitions, Dlagnev has won two bronze medals at the World Wrestling Championships (2009 and 2014). At the 2012 Summer Olympic Games in London, he finished in fifth place and will take another shot at earning a medal at the Rio Games on August 20. Other tournaments won by Dlagnev include the US Open (2011-2015), World University Games in 2008, Pan American Games in 2011, Alexander Medved International (2010, 2013), Cerro Pelado International in 2012, and the New York AC International Open (2008-2010, 2012).
"Ohio State and the RTC have been staples in the wrestling world," said Dlagnev. "They've given me all the resources to achieve my dreams. I want to add to that and hopefully better the future of the program."
A native of Sofia, Bulgaria, Dlagnev moved to the United States when he was five years old and went on to finish fourth in the Texas state tournament as a junior in 2002, just his second year of organized wrestling. From there, he was third as a senior in 2003 before taking his talent to Nebraska-Kearney where he was a four-time All-American, the 2006 Midlands champion and a NCAA champion in 2007 and 2008.
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