Dave Auble, Ithaca, N.Y.
Distinguished Member

From the moment he saw his first wrestling match in the eighth grade, Dave Auble began a lifetime love affair with the sport.

A year later, he was a stalwart in the lineup for Ithaca High School in New York, suffering the only loss of his prep career in the finals of the sectional tournament. (There was no state championship in New York at the time.) Auble went on to a stellar 79-1 high school record, winning three sectional tournament titles, earning the conference Outstanding Wrestler award and placing third in the national AAU tournament. 

He stayed in Ithaca for college, attending Cornell University where he won two NCAA championships and three Eastern Intercollegiate Wrestling Association titles. He compiled a collegiate record of 51-1 and was twice named EIWA Outstanding Wrestler. He earned the same honor at the 1960 NCAA Wrestling Championships, in spite of wrestling much of the season with a knee injury.

Auble continued wrestling after college, pursuing dreams of Olympic glory. He won the Olympic Trials in 1960, but lost a disputed decision to Terry McCann at the training camp finals. Four years later, he won his spot on the Olympic team, finishing fourth, losing only to eventual champ Yojiro Uetake of Japan. He also finished fourth in the 1962 World Championships after winning the U.S. national freestyle title.

After retiring from competition, Auble shared his love for the sport as a coach. As head coach at UCLA, he led the Bruins to a 12th place finish in the NCAA tournament and coached their first and only national champion, heavyweight Fred Bohna. He also served a head coaching stint at Campbell University as well as working as an assistant at Cornell, Michigan State, Ithaca College, Stanford and North Carolina State.

In 1993, he returned to competition, winning a Masters World Championship.

For his championship contributions to the sport of wrestling, Dave Auble is honored as a Distinguished Member of the National Wrestling Hall of Fame.