Pat Day and Paul Wellstone named to National Wrestling Hall of Fame as Outstanding Americans

<< Back to Articles
(National Wrestling Hall of Fame)
02/15/2001


The National Wrestling Hall of Fame will induct two former wrestlers who have made significant achievements in other walks of life as this year's Outstanding Americans. The honorees are jockey Pat Day and Senator Paul Wellstone.    Pat Day's name has become synonymous with winning in the world of thoroughbred racing.    Day was raised in the small ranching community of Eagle, Colorado and dreamed of becoming a professional rodeo performer. But after two years on the circuit, his small stature convinced him to become a jockey.    All told, Day rode 6,549 winners at all levels of racing. In 29,739 career starts, his mounts finished in the money 15,756 times. He has led the country in victories six times, with a best of 484 in 1983, and won the Eclipse Award as the nation's top jockey four times between 1984 and 1991.    He won the 1992 Kentucky Derby aboard Lil E. Tee and is the all-time leading rider at Churchill Downs, where he once won seven races in one day. He has won the Preakness four times, the Belmont three times, the Breeder's Cup nine times, the Travers three times and the Washington D.C. International.    In 1991, when he was elected to the Racing Hall of Fame, he held the record for Stakes won with 60.The past two years Day has been horse racing's leading money winner.     As a wrestler at Eagle Valley High School, Day posted a career record of 77-7. Four of Day's seven losses came during his freshman campaign. As a sophomore and a senior, he finished as the state's runner-up. Day capped his wrestling career with a state championship as a junior.    Wrestling and athletics had a huge influence on Paul Wellstone's life. While growing up, he decided to try his hand at wrestling and found something in the sport that gave him the confidence he needed to be successful.    That same confidence propelled Wellstone to victory in the race for the U.S. Senate in 1990. His tireless campaign helped him spring one of the largest upsets in Minnesota's political history.    Wellstone went out for his school's wrestling squad while in the 10th grade and never lost a dual meet. In college, he still had wrestling in his blood and wrestled at the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill, where he was undefeated for two years and Atlantic Coast Conference champion in his second year.    In 1965, Wellstone graduated with a B.A. in political science and earned his doctorate in 1969. He accepted a teaching position at Carleton College, teaching for 21 years before being elected to the U.S. Senate.    While he was teaching at Carleton, he not only decided to referee wrestling, but he coached junior high and helped with Carleton's program. His interest in wrestling continued to grow when his sons began to participate in the sport.    Wellstone's former profession is reflected in his current line of work. He has made efforts in his legislation to benefit children and maintain quality education levels. Senator Wellstone serves on the Health, Education, Small Business and the Labor and Pension Committees. In addition, he works on the Foreign Relations, the Indian Affairs and the Veterans' Affairs Committees.