A lifetime of adversity leads to success

STAR VALLEY, Wyo. — On his way to becoming an Olympic gold medalist in wrestling, Rulon Gardner faced abundant challenges. However, every setback gave him the will to try even harder. Gardner’s resilience and grit, gained during childhood, helped to shape one of the most unlikely victories in sports history.

Gardner grew up on a third-generation dairy farm in Star Valley, Wyoming, as the youngest of nine children. Early on, his family milked 20-40 cows in an old A-frame wood barn with piston-style equipment.

“Anything nobody else wanted to do, that was my job,” Gardner said. “The manure runs downhill, and being the youngest, I got a lot of it.”

When Gardner was 8 years old, the family suffered devastating losses. The milk barn was destroyed by a fire, and later the same year, his brother, Ronald, passed away from aplastic anemia.

Gardner’s family was able to rebuild their barn with help from Westphalia Surge, increasing to three milking units and 60 cows. They went through a tough rebuilding process, sacrifices and long hours.

“We were dirt poor; it took everything we had just to keep the farm going,” Gardner said.

School and the farm were proving grounds for Gardner. He struggled from the beginning with learning disabilities. When the school wanted to hold Gardner back a grade, his mom denied it. She believed holding him back would only hurt him more.

Gardner survived a string of farm injuries growing up, including being run over by a truck, suffering a severe staph infection, being stabbed in the chest with an arrow, and other farm accidents. Yet each setback reinforced a mindset he carried into adulthood.

“You get knocked down, you get back up,” Gardner said, “You have stuff to do.”

Farm life left little room for rest or excuses. Gardner remembers working from early morning until late at night, often returning from wrestling matches only to head straight into milking.

“The chores had to be done; it didn’t matter what time it was,” Gardner said, “That kind of life defines you.”

Gardner started wrestling when he was 6 years old. His brother, Reynold, was just one year older. They were best friends and wrestling partners.

“He and I would beat the heck out of each other; it made us tough as nails,” Rulon said.

Gardner’s wrestling career continued into college.  He attended Ricks College, now Brigham Young University, for two years before transferring to the University of Nebraska-Lincoln.  His learning disabilities sprouted again, and college admissions would not allow him to be a regular student. He was on academic probation for two semesters.

“When people told me I couldn’t do something, it just made me want to prove them wrong even more,” Garnder said.

It took Gardner six years, but he graduated with a degree in physical education teaching.

While at the University of Nebraska, Gardner was introduced to Greco-Roman wrestling. It was not until after he graduated that Gardner fully committed to Olympic training.

The road to the Olympics was not smooth. Gardner was slammed to the mat during a match and broke his neck in two places and was often challenged by wrestlers better than him.

“I realized early on that if I worked just as hard as everyone else, they’d still be better than me,” Gardner said, “I had to outwork them.”

Gardner focused on small details, winning positions rather than matches, and pushing beyond his limits. He performed grueling practices, 2-hour-long matches and continuous drills, which mirrored the endurance he developed on the farm.

The work began to pay off; Gardner eventually had a winning streak. That was broken in a pre-Olympic match that lasted just 10 seconds, with Garnder on the losing end. It was a turning point, Gardner said.

“That was the best thing that ever happened to me,” he said. “It humbled me and made me realize, you’re only as good as your preparation.”

After that lesson, Gardner went on to achieve what many considered impossible in 2000. He reached the championship round at the Olympics in Sydney, facing Russian legend Aleksandr Karelin, who had not lost a match in 13 years. Karelin was easily favored for the win.

“I had nothing to lose,” Gardner said, “I did not wrestle to win medals; I wrestled to prove something to myself.”

One of the greatest upsets in Olympic history, the farm kid from Wyoming defeated the dominant Russian, earning gold and shocking the world.

Gardner credits his success not to natural talent, but to unyielding effort, mental discipline and relentless adversity throughout his life.

His story does not stop in Sydney. Gardner survived a life-threatening snowmobile accident but lost a toe due to frostbite after 18 hours in subzero conditions. Two years later, he would survive a motorcycle accident. Despite the injuries, he qualified for the world team and returned to the Olympics in 2004, where he earned a bronze medal.

“Some people see adversity as a reason to quit,” Gardner said, “For me, it was something that defined me.”

Gardner currently resides in St. George, Utah. He works as an insurance agent.  He also travels as an inspirational speaker and has partnered with Nike Wrestling Clinics to coach youth wrestling camps. He is passionate about mentoring young athletes and promoting the values that shaped him.

“The values you learn on a farm carry over into everything,” Gardner said. “Hard work, discipline, surrounding yourself with the right people and family — you can apply that anywhere.”