Clarissa Chun signs autographs for young wrestlers during her appearance on Sunday afternoon in Fargo. John Sachs photo.

FARGO, N.D. – The sport of women’s wrestling has grown by leaps and bounds since Clarissa Chun burst onto the scene internationally.

Chun wrestled in her first World Championships as a 19-year-old in Bulgaria in 2000. 

Now nearly 11 years later, Chun has established herself as one of the top wrestlers on the planet. She placed fifth at the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing, China at 48 kg/105.5 lbs. before coming right back to win a World title in Tokyo, Japan a couple of months later.

Chun placed ninth in the World in 2009 despite being slowed by a shoulder injury. She missed most of last season before bouncing back to make her fourth World Team this year. She is scheduled to compete at the World Championships on Sept. 14 in Istanbul, Turkey.

Chun has been in Fargo the past two days for the Junior and Cadet Nationals while making an appearance for ASICS. She signed autographs and watched the inaugural Cadet Nationals for women on Saturday night.

Chun, who turns 30 next month, sat down with USA Wrestling communications manager Craig Sesker for an interview between sessions on Sunday afternoon in the FargoDome.

What were your impressions of the first Cadet Nationals for women?

It was a great tournament and it’s great to see a lot of these young girls competing. These girls are tough. Some of them have been wrestling for 10 years. It’s fun to see girls from all over the country. This tournament provides another opportunity for girls to wrestle on a national level.

What is coming up for you over the next two months as you prepare for the World Championships?

We have a training camp starting tomorrow in Colorado Springs, and then we will go over to Poland to train and compete. The camp will be intense. It’s an important time. We will work on every little detail to give us the best opportunity to be prepared to make the top of the podium.

You were dominant in winning the U.S. Open and U.S. World Team Trials. How much momentum did you build in winning those events?

I feel good. I need to roll it into the international level now and continue it on that stage.

How excited are you to battle the best women in the World?

It’s going to be fun. Sitting out last year was tough, not being able to compete. It’s the year before the Olympics, so this is big. I need to qualify the weight for the Olympics.

You are one of only eight American women to wrestle in the Olympics. How big of a motivator is it to get back there?

It was unbelievable to wrestle on that stage. I live for it. Ever since the first Olympics I experienced, as an alternate in 2004, you want to be able to compete against the best of the best on the biggest stage we have in wrestling. The energy is amazing.

What was it like meeting a lot of the other Olympic athletes at the Opening Ceremonies in 2008?

I was star struck. I met all the pro athletes. That was fun. We are at the same level in our sport. It was a great experience.

How much have you seen women’s wrestling grow in the last 10 or 12 years?

It’s grown a lot. When I started, Hawaii and Texas were the only states that offered high school wrestling. Now that number has grown and hopefully it will continue to grow. California, Washington and New York have high school wrestling for girls now. When I went to college at Missouri Valley, I was at the first college that had a scholarship program for women’s wrestling. That number has really grown and there are a lot more opportunities for girls now. That’s great to see.

You have talked about retiring after next season. Is that your plan?

Yes, it is. I will be 30 next month. I’ve had a lot of injuries. It’s a tough sport and I’ve been in it for a long time. I love the sport, I absolutely love it. But my plan is to be done after the Olympics next year.

How much do you think about the World title you won in 2008?

It was exciting and it was a great moment. It was a tough tournament. I won a close match in the semifinals and I could’ve very easily been going for third. I was losing in the semifinals (against Japan’s Makiko Sakamoto) before I came back to win right at the end. Winning the Worlds was awesome, but I really wanted that Olympic gold medal that year. I’ll still take the World title. I want to win another one and add to my collection.

How hard was it to refocus for the 2008 Worlds right after nearly making the finals at the 2008 Olympics?

My coach, Keith Wilson, told me after the fact that I was probably more prepared to win the Olympics than the Worlds that year. It just ended up the other way around. I felt the best I’ve ever felt in my life at the Olympics. Things didn’t go the way we wanted it to in Beijing. After the Olympics, I had some time off and then I got sick before the World Team Trials. I was still in good shape from the Olympics and I was able to carry it over into the Worlds.

What would it mean to go out on top next year?

It would be awesome. I talked to John Smith last year at the Worlds and I picked his brain. He’s a legend in the sport with all the Olympic and World titles he won. He gave me some good advice and told me to keep that balance in my life. He told me that I can be a legend in the sport. That’s pretty amazing to be at that level. Kristie Davis is a legend in the sport. She’s a nine-time World medalist and two-time World champion. I feel the only way I can attain that level is to win the Worlds this year and win the Olympics next year.

What is it going to take to win the Worlds this year?

I just need to be prepared and give it everything I have. I have to do everything I can between now and the Worlds to prepare myself to win it again.

Many of the Cadet Nationals finalists in Fargo listed you as their favorite wrestler. What does that mean to you to see that?

I think that’s awesome. I’ve talked to a lot of the young girls and I hope I can inspire some of them. I’ve done camps with (2008 Olympian) Marcie Van Dusen and she has talked to the girls about following some of the girls that have done well on the Senior level. The Doi sisters (Marina and Regina) from California are going to the Cadet World Championships and they asked me about competing on that level. I told them they have a great opportunity and to make the most of it. I think they can do really well.