William Smith (wrestler)


William T. Smith was an American wrestler and Olympic champion in Freestyle wrestling.
Smith was born in Portland, Oregon and graduated from Thomas Jefferson Senior High School in Council Bluffs, Iowa. He then enrolled at Iowa State Teachers College, Smith won back-to-back NCAA wrestling titles at 165 pounds in 1949 and 1950. As a team, Iowa State Teachers College finished as NCAA Runners-Up in 1949 and NCAA Champions in 1950. He also won three Amateur Athletic Union national titles.
William Smith died on March 20, 2018. Intermat Wrestling website posted an article about Bill citing all of his accomplishments.

Olympics

Smith competed at the 1952 Summer Olympics in Helsinki where he received a gold medal in Freestyle wrestling, the welterweight class.