Clarissa Chun at the 2019 World Championships (Photo/Tony Rotundo; WrestlersAreWarriors.com)Today, the University of Iowa announced that Clarissa Chun would be the first head coach of their newly announced women's team. Chun comes to Iowa City after spending the last four-plus years as an assistant coach for the US women's national team. During her time with USA Wrestling, Chun was a part of a staff that helped 11 different women combine to win 21 world/Olympic medals. The US team is coming off a 2021 year that saw Tamyra Mensah-Stock become only the second American woman to win Olympic Gold, while Adeline Gray and Helen Maroulis added to their collection of world titles.
Recently, Chun was named to the National Wrestling Hall of Fame's Class of 2022. Chun was a 2008 world champion and 2012 Olympic bronze medalist. Over her stellar career she made two Olympic squads and five world teams.
Chun has ties to Iowa as the head coach of the women's team is Terry Steiner, a 1993 NCAA champion for the Hawkeyes.
The announcement of Chun's hire comes less than two months after the Iowa athletic department announced their intentions of adding a women's team. In doing so, they became the first Power-Five school to add women's wrestling. With that in mind, combined with Iowa's tradition, and Chun's track record and connections within the women's wrestling community, expect the Hawkeyes to field a formidable lineup as soon as possible.
A native of Hawaii, Chun was a 1998 state champion, winning in the first year the sport was sanctioned in the state. She also became the first Hawaiian to make an Olympic wrestling team.
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