The U.S. Olympic Committee has announced its Twitter voting is now open for February Male & Female Athletes of the Month.

Fans are encouraged to vote and re-tweet the poll links. 

Representing USA Wrestling are Greco-Roman wrestler Dremiel Byers and women's freestyle wrestler Deanna Rix. Both won gold medals on international tours during February.

Vote for Dremiel Byers

Vote for Deanna Rix




SportsMan of the Month for February 2010
Sport: Men's Greco-Roman Wrestling
Athlete: Dremiel Byers
Position: 120 kg/264.5 lbs. in Greco-Roman wrestling

Byers won gold medals at 120 kg/264.5 lbs. in two major international wrestling events in February.

He won a gold medal at the Dave Schultz Memorial International on February 4. He opened the event by defeating 2008 Olympian Deli Liu of China. In the semifinals, Byers stopped Dhamender Dalal of Inida. IN the finals, he defeated Brandon Rupp of the New York AC, 1-0, 1-0.

It was Byers' fifth career Dave Schultz Memorial International title, tying women's wrestler Patricia Miranda of the USA with the most career Schultz gold medals.

He also won a gold medal at the Granma Cup in Havana, Cuba on Feb. 18. He opened the tournament with victories over Alain Rivas of Cuba and Rafael Barreno of Venezuela. In the semifinals, he defeated Nico Schmidt of Germany in a tight three-period match. In the finals, he defeated Ramon Garcia of the Dominican Republic, 1-0, 5-0.

Byers was a 2002 World champion, 2009 World silver medalist and 2007 World bronze medalist. He was also a 2008 U.S. Olympian.

SportsWoman of the Month for January 2010
Sport: Women's Freestyle Wrestling
Athlete: Deanna Rix
Position: 59 kg/130 lbs. in women's freestyle wrestling

Rix won a pair of medals at 59 kg/130 lbs. in major international wrestling events in February.

She claimed a gold medal at the Dave Schultz Memorial International on February 6. Rix opened with victories over Yvonne Englich of Germany and Othella Lucas of the U.S. Army. In the semifinals, Rix defeated 2006 World bronze medalist Alka Tomar of India. In the gold-medal finals, Rix stopped Fengming Liu of China, 3-0, 1-0.

Rix also captured a silver medal at the Outstanding Ukrainian Wrestlers Memorial International in Kiev, Ukraine, Feb. 21. She openied with three straight victories, beating Alena Filipova of Belarus, Katsiaryna Yanushkevich of Belarus and Ganna Vasylenko of Ukraine. Her only loss came in the finals, when she lost to Sona Ahmadli of Azerbaijan.

Rix placed fifth in both the 2008 and 2009 World Championships.