University of North Carolina Athletics
UNC's Paul Wellstone to Be Inducted into National Wrestling Hall of Fame
May 30, 2000 | Wrestling
May 30, 2000
By Dave Lohse
Director of Media Relations for Olympic Sports
United States Senator Paul David Wellstone, a former Atlantic Coast Conference champion wrestler at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill will be inducted June 3 into the National Wrestling Hall of Fame's Hall of Outstanding Americans in Stillwater, Okla.
That wing of the Hall recognizes wrestlers who have achieved prominence in other fields such as businessand industry, science and technology and government and the military and the arts and the humanities. Wellstone is being inducted along with Dennis Hastert, Speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives at the the 24th Honors Banquet Saturday. Their induction will bring the total membership to 34.
An accomplished athlete while an undergraduate at UNC, Wellstone compiled an undefeated record in the 126-pound weight class during his two years as a varsity wrestler at UNC. Wellstone competed at UNC at a time when the wrestling program gave no scholarships but he was able to parlay his athletic ability with his drive and sheer tenacity to claim the individual championship at 126 pounds at the 1964 Atlantic Coast Conference championships.
A native of Washington, D.C., Wellstone earned his Bachelor of Arts degree in political science from UNC in 1965 and his Ph.D. from the Unviersity in 1969. He was a professor of political science at Carleton College in Minnesota from 1969-90 before he was elected to the United States Senate in 1990, unseating two-term incumbent Rudy Boschwitz by 47,000 votes. A right-wing Republican, Boschwitz attempted a comeback against Wellstone, a progressive Democrat, in 1996 but Wellstone won the rematch in a rout.
While at Carleton College, Wellstone served as a wrestling official for high school and college meets, coached a junior high team in Northfield, Minn. and also assisted with the Carleton program.
Wellstone still follows the UNC wrestling program closely and attended the NCAA Championships when they were held at UNC's Dean E. Smith Center in 1994. The Senator says wrestling gave him a foundation of discipline and self-confidence that has helped in politics. "Wrestling has always been a big thing for me," Wellstone says. "I've had a love affair with the sport for most of my life. It helped me as a kid. I was a tough kid, I got in some trouble, then I found a sport I was good at, and that transferred to better things in other areas."
Wellstone has attended the state wrestling championship in Minnesota for the past 31 years. His son, Mark, was a state high school champion in the Gopher State.
Wellstone's former profession has served him well in his current line of work. He has made efforts in his legislation to benefit children and maintain quality education levels. He has supported such causes as the nation's veterans, health care, domestic violence and economic development. Wellstone has been a fierce advocate for Minnesota farmers and rural communities. He serves on the U.S. Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pension Committee, the Foreign Relations Committee, the Small Business Committee, the Indian Affairs Committee and the Veterans' Affairs Committee.
