Dave SchultzDave Schultz is among the honorees in the men's freestyle wrestling category. Among Schultz's accomplishments: Olympic Champion 1984; World Champion 1983; World Silver medalist 1985, 1987, and 1993; World Bronze medalist 1982 and 1986. Schultz was welcomed into the National Wrestling Hall of Fame as a Distinguished Member in 1997, one year after being murdered by John du Pont at the multi-millionaire's Foxcatcher Farm training facility outside Philadelphia.
Rick Tucci is an honoree in the Officials category. Among Tucci's achievements: Officiated eight Olympic Games; International Instructor from 1990-2012; officiated 75 World Championships at the Senior, Junior, and Cadet levels; presented with FILA Golden Whistle in 1988; awarded two FILA Gold Stars; President of USA Wrestling Officials Association since 1986. Tucci was inducted into the National Wrestling Hall of Fame as a Distinguished Member in 2001 and received the Meritorious Official award in 1994.
William "Bill" Farrell is being inducted posthumously into the Coaching category. Among Farrell's accomplishments: New York Athletic Club President and Coach; Coach of 1972 USA Freestyle Olympic Team and medalists Dan Gable, Wayne Wells, and Ben Peterson; coached 13-time World and Olympic medalist Bruce Baumgartner. Farrell was welcomed into the National Wrestling Hall of Fame as a Distinguished Member in 1987. He passed away in June 2012.
Being welcomed posthumously into the Leadership category is Joe Scalzo. Among his career achievements: Vice President. Founder and Organizer of FILA World Cup in 1973 and hosted the first 13 World Cups in the USA; organizer of 1962 and 1966 World Championships. Scalzo died in June 1986; he was inducted into the National Wrestling Hall of Fame as a Distinguished Member in 1987.
The Hall of Fame class will include one Order of Merit recipient, two Leadership recipients, one Officials recipient, two Coaching recipients, two Female freestyle recipients, three Men's freestyle recipients, and four Greco-Roman recipients. Wrestlers from 11 countries are represented in the class with a total of seven individual Olympic gold medals and 17 individual World Championship titles included in their combined accomplishments.
"I want to thank our Hall of Fame Commission and wrestling vice president Stan Dziedzic for their work in selecting the honorees for the Hall of Fame Class of 2016," said United World Wrestling president Nenad Lalovic. "This is the 13th anniversary of the Hall of Fame and this class pays special tribute to individuals in our sport with legacies of excellence which are worthy of recognition and preservation."
"This year's ceremony is special for me," said Dziedzic, who was inducted into the National Wrestling Hall of Fame as a Distinguished Member in 1996. "Bill Farrell was my coach at the NYAC and I was the USA National Coach when Dave Schultz won his 1983 World title and 1984 Olympic Gold Medal."
For a complete list of honorees, click here.
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