OKLAHOMA CITY – Cael Sanderson is ready to return to the mat.

The 2004 Olympic gold medalist and four-time NCAA champion plans to wrestle at the U.S. World Team Trials on Saturday at the Cox Convention Center.

He plans to compete at 84 kg/185 lbs.

Sanderson, 31, won the Northeast Regional at 96 kg/211.5 lbs. in March in Brockport, N.Y. It was his first competition since the 2004 Olympic Games in Athens, Greece.

Sanderson, who coached Penn State to the 2011 NCAA title, is scheduled to weigh in Friday afternoon in Oklahoma City and would compete in the Challenge Tournament on Saturday.

The winner of the Challenge Tournament at 84 kilos will face 2009 World silver medalist and U.S. Open champion Jake Herbert in the finals.

Sanderson talked to USA Wrestling’s Jason Bryant on Thursday prior to his induction into the National Wrestling Hall of Fame in Stillwater, Okla.

Interview with Cael Sanderson