Lee Allen (wrestler) - Misplaced Pages

American wrestler and coach

Lee Allen
Personal information
Full name	Lee Dale Allen
Born	(1934-12-28)December 28, 1934 St. Francis, Kansas, U.S.
Died	June 11, 2012(2012-06-11) (aged 77) El Granada, California, U.S.
Home town	Sandy, Oregon, U.S.
Sport
Country	United States
Sport	Wrestling
Event(s)	Greco-Roman, Freestyle, and Folkstyle
College team	Portland State University & University of Oregon
Team	USA

Lee Dale Allen (December 28, 1934 – June 11, 2012) was an American wrestler and wrestling coach.

Biography

Lee Dale Allen was born on December 28, 1934. Originally from St. Francis, Kansas, Allen and his family moved to Sandy, Oregon (near Portland, Oregon) during the Dust Bowl in 1938. Being a star athlete in high school (winning four state titles), and college level (attending University of Oregon), Allen competed in two Olympics (1956, 1960).

He is one of only two American wrestlers to make an Olympic Team in both Freestyle (1956) and Greco-Roman (1960). Allen was named the assistant coach of the 1972 and the 1976 USA Greco-Roman Olympic Team and was named the Head Coach for the 1980 Olympic Greco-Roman Olympic Team, which was later boycotted (1980 Olympic Boycott). Finally settling down in El Granada, California, he coached Skyline College in San Bruno for over 30 years, helped start BAWA (Bay Area Wrestling Association) and began the first women's wrestling program at Menlo College.

Allen's two daughters (Both alumni of Menlo College) are also wrestlers. He was able to coach both his daughters through college where they both earned a pair of national titles and Most Valuable Wrestler awards as well as earning a Coach of the Year award himself (2009) presented by the WCWA (Women’s College Wrestling Association). In May 2010, Allen announced his retirement as Head Woman's Wrestling Coach at Menlo College. The Beijing Olympian, Marcie Van Dusen, was named the new Head Woman's Wrestling Coach for Menlo College. "We are extremely fortunate to hire someone of Marcie's caliber to continue the great tradition left behind by Lee Allen," Menlo College Athletic Director Keith Spataro said. "We are pleased to be the first intercollegiate wrestling program to hire a female head coach and, in doing so, set the trend for many others to follow."

Allen died on June 11, 2012, at the age of 77.

Wrestling career

World Team Member:

1961 (Yokohama, Japan) – Freestyle (136.5 pounds ; 6th place)

World Team Coach:

1973 (Tehran, Iran) – Greco-Roman
1977 (Goteborg, Sweden) – Greco-Roman
1978 (Mexico City, Mexico) – Greco-Roman
1979 (San Diego, Calif., US) – Greco-Roman

Olympic Team Member:

1956 (Melbourne, Australia) – Freestyle (125.5 pounds ; dnp)
1960 (Rome, Italy) – Greco-Roman (134.5 pounds ; 8th place)

Olympic Coach:

1980 (Moscow, U.S.S.R.)

Hall of Fame Inductions:

1997 – Portland State University Hall of Fame
1998 – San Mateo County Sports Hall of Fame
2001 – California Wrestling Hall of Fame
2003 – Skyline College Hall of Fame
2007 – AAU Wrestling Hall of Fame
2011 – Oregon Chapter National Wrestling Hall of Fame
2013 – California Chapter National Wrestling Hall of Fame
2018 – National Wrestling Hall of Fame Distinguished Member

References

"Sara and Katherine Fulp-Allen". Archived from the original on August 7, 2018. Retrieved February 24, 2020.
"2011-12 Women's Wrestling Coaches", Menlo College Athletics, Menloathletics.com, 2011.
"Portland State Athletics Hall of Fame". 1997. Retrieved May 22, 2018.
"The San Mateo County Historical Association Online Collections Database". June 3, 1998. Retrieved May 22, 2018.
"California Wrestling Hall of Fame". 2001. Retrieved May 22, 2018.
"Skyline College Hall of Fame". 2003. Retrieved May 22, 2018.
"AAU Wrestling Hall of Fame" (PDF). 2007. Retrieved May 22, 2018.
"Oregon Chapter National Wrestling Hall of Fame". 2011. Retrieved May 22, 2018.
"California Chapter National Wrestling Hall of Fame". 2013. Retrieved May 22, 2018.
"Hall of Fame Announces Class of 2018". 2018. Retrieved May 22, 2018.

Sources

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