Wrestling legend Dan Gable officially made his coaching return on Monday afternoon as he led a group of 16 freestyle wrestlers as the new USA Wrestling Interim Head Resident Freestyle Coach.    Gable was hired for the position on Feb. 7, is taking over his most significant coaching job since he retired as the head coach for the Univ. of Iowa, where he led the Hawkeyes to 15 NCAA team titles in 21 seasons. He was also the head coach of the 1980, 1984 and 2000 U.S. Freestyle Olympic teams and will coach the 2003 U.S. freestyle team at the World Cup in Boise, Id., April 4-6.    "When Rich Bender, the Executive Director at USA Wrestling, first contacted me about this position, I wasn't so sure about accepting it. Lately, I have been more involved with wrestling issues in the political forums, such as Title IX and this talk of dropping one discipline or weight classes from the Olympics. But then I figured that this would be a great way for me to get more updated on new techniques and help with those issues from within," stated Gable, a 1972 Olympic gold medalist.    Gable currently works as an Assistant to the Director for the University of Iowa Athletic Department, and will remain in that position. He will periodically come to Colorado Springs and live at the U.S. Olympic Training Center during the period that he serves as the Interim Head Resident Freestyle Coach. Gable will work directly with USA Wrestling's talented National Coaching staff, including National Freestyle Coach Kevin Jackson and Freestyle Developmental Coach Dave Bennett.    Gable takes over for 2000 Olympic bronze medalist Lincoln McIlravy, who had been the Head Resident Freestyle Coach for over one year. Ironically, McIlravy competed for Gable at the Univ. of Iowa, winning three NCAA titles (1993, 1994, 1997) with a 96-3 career record.    McIlravy resigned his position in January to train to become a 2004 Olympian.    "This is kind of unique," McIlravy stated before his first workout under his new and old coach. "I tried to pattern myself after him as both a wrestler and a coach. When I decided to compete again, I was hoping that USA Wrestling would bring someone in that had a great knowledge and was a great teacher. Who better than Dan Gable?"    After addressing the men's freestyle resident athletes along with newly hired Assistant Resident Freestyle Coach Mike McArthur, Gable went right to work, drilling the residents in par terre offense and defense along with the clinch for nearly an hour.    Between drills, Gable took periodic breaks to deliver short, motivational messages to the resident athletes. Many of the resident freestyle wrestlers, including Tony DeAnda, were appreciative of the effort that Gable gave in his first practice.    "It was fun to work under Coach Gable," DeAnda said. "He has always been a great motivator, and that showed today, but we all look forward to working for him. He is one of the top men in our sport, and hopefully the results of his coaching abilities will be evident this summer and beyond."    Jackson decided to be a spectator during practice and let Gable get a feel for his new position.    "Dan has been around the block," Jackson said. "He has proven himself as an athlete and a competitor at all levels of competition, and his knowledge is only going to help our resident athletes grow. His addition to our staff also adds credibility to the resident program here at the USOC."    The International Olympic Committee (IOC) Executive Board recently announced that a discipline of wrestling will not be dropped, but made a recommendation that more weight classes be taken away before the 2008 Olympics.    Since 1996, men's freestyle and Greco-Roman disciplines have lost three weight classes per style. Four women's weight classes have been added to the 2004 Olympic program.    Gable feels that his infinite drive to succeed can only help amateur wrestling in both the United States and internationally.    "I have a passion for the sport of wrestling," Gable said. "I want to see things start turning around. That is a big reason I took this position. Wrestling continues to grow at all youth levels, yet colleges are losing programs every year and we have consistently lost weight classes for the men since 1996. Things need to change."    Gable will remain as the Interim Head Resident Freestyle Coach while USA Wrestling conducts a national search for a full-time coach to serve in the position.