Oklahoma State wrestling: John Smith among top wrestlers of 1990s by United World Wrestling

Oklahoma State wrestling coach John Smith earned another honor Friday when United World Wrestling named him one of the top wrestlers from the 1990s.

Smith, a two-time NCAA champion at OSU, won six consecutive world titles at 92 kilograms in men’s freestyle. After winning two World Championship titles and Olympic gold in the 1980s, the Del City, Oklahoma native matched his effort in the 1990s with World titles in 1991 and 1992 before winning his second Olympic gold at the 1992 Olympics in Barcelona, Spain.

Smith was joined on the list by fellow American freestyle wrestler and Indiana State alum Bruce Baumgartner, the Soviet Union’s Aleksander Karelin (Greco Roman) and Makharbek Khadartsev (freestyle) and Turkey’s Hamza Yerlikaya (Greco Roman).