Frank Molinaro

Frank Molinaro (born December 27, 1988) is a nationally recognized American wrestler and coach. He was the 2012 NCAA Champion with an undefeated season record of 33-0 at 149 pounds, helping him become a four-time NCAA Division I All-American.[3] In 2016, Molinaro won the U.S. Olympic Trials, earning the ability to qualify and represent the United States at the 2016 Summer Olympics at 65 kg. Molinaro would finish the Rio Olympics in 5th place, after losing to Italy's Frank Chamizo Marquez in the bronze medal match 5-3.[9]

Frank Molinaro
Molinaro at the 2016 Olympics
Personal information
CitizenshipUnited States
Born (1988-12-27) December 27, 1988
Barnegat Township, New Jersey
ResidenceTempe, Arizona
EducationSouthern Regional High School
Height5 ft 5 in (1.65 m)[1]
Weight149 lb (68 kg)[2]
Spouse(s)Kera Bolen
Websitewww.gorillahulk.com
Sport
SportMen's freestyle wrestling
Weight class65 kilograms (143 lb)
College teamPenn State
ClubTitan Mercury WC
Team United States
Achievements and titles
Olympic finals2016 Olympics Games 65 kg Bronze medal match - 5th place
Medal record
Representing the  United States
Men's Freestyle wrestling
World Cup
2016 Los Angeles65 kg
2017 Kermanshah65 kg
Pan American Championships
2016 Frisco70 kg
2014 Mexico City65 kg
Golden Grand Prix Ivan Yarygin
2018 Krasnoyarsk70 kg
Grand Prix of Germany
2016 Dortmund65 kg
Grand Prix of Spain
2015 Madrid65 kg
Continental Cup
2019 Khasavjurt 70 kg
Bill Farrell International
2019 New York65 kg
Dave Shultz Memorial International
2019 Colorado Springs70 kg
2014 Colorado Springs (OW)65 kg
New York Athletic Club International
2013 New York (OW)65 kg
US Open Championships
2017 Las Vegas65 kg
Men's Collegiate Wrestling
Representing the Penn State Nittany Lions
NCAA Division I Wrestling Championships
2012 St. Louis149 lb
2011 Philadelphia149 lb
Big Ten Championships
2012 West Lafayette (OW)149 lb
2011 Evanston149 lb

Career

High school

A native of Barnegat Township, New Jersey, Molinaro was a three-time New Jersey State Champion at Manahawkin's Southern Regional High School and placed second at High School Nationals.[4]

College

After a redshirt season in his freshman year at Penn State, Molinaro claimed All-American honors four times, becoming the fifth Penn State wrestler to be a four time All-American. Molinaro was also a two-time Big Ten champion in 2011 and 2012.

At the 2012 Big Ten championships, Molinaro earned a pin and two technical falls on his way through the finals without giving up a point, winning the Outstanding Wrestler Award.

ClassYearWeightRecordNCAA National Finish
Freshman2008-0914123-198th
Sophomore2009-1014933-75th
Junior2010-1114932-32nd
Senior2011-1214933-01st

[5]

While Molinaro was at Penn State University, Cael Sanderson was hired as head coach of the program, developing a national championship program with Molinaro claiming an individual title in 2012 at 149 lbs.

Professional

Molinaro is a Competing Member of the Association of Career Wrestlers. He is also currently pursuing an international wrestling career training with the Nittany Lion Wrestling Club. In 2017, Molinaro was hired as an assistant for the Virginia Tech wrestling program. He left in December 2018 to train at the Oklahoma Regional Training Center.

International

Molinaro won the Gold medal in 2019 & 2014 at the Dave Shultz Memorial International, winning the Outstanding Wrestler Award in 2014. Also in 2019, he won Silver at both the Continental Cup and the Bill Farrell International. In 2018 he won a Bronze medal at the Golden Grand Prix Ivan Yarygin. In World Cup competition he took silver in 2017, and in 2016 during the Olympic year, Mulinaro peaked at the right time becoming the 2016 World Cup champion at 65 kg. going 4-0 for Team USA. At the Pan American Championships, Molinaro won the Gold medal in 2016 and Bronze in 2014 for the United States.

Other International tournament results for Molinaro include, a Silver medal at the 2016 Grand Prix of Germany, a Gold medal at the 2015 Grand Prix of Spain, and a Gold medal at the 2013 New York Athletic Club International, winning the Outstanding Wrestler Award.

  • Molinaro is a five-time USA Freestyle National Team Member - (2019, 2018, 2017, 2016, and 2014).

At the 2017 US Open Final - Frank Molinaro vs. Jordan Oliver, was a match that lived up to the excitement surrounding it. Molinaro went up 2-0 after the first period, but a takedown and exposure put Oliver up 4-2. With less than 45 seconds left in the match, Molinaro scored a go-behind takedown to tie it, but in the end, it was Oliver holding criteria, 4-4. However, after a doping violation by Oliver, USA Wrestling announced that Molinaro would in turn be named the 2017 U.S. Open champion at 65 kilograms.

2016 Summer Olympics

In 2016, Molinaro won the U.S. Olympic Trials, earning the ability to qualify and represent the United States at the 2016 Summer Olympics at 65 kg. Molinaro originally failed to qualify in Istanbul after losing to Borislav Novachkov. Molinaro eventually gained entry to the Olympics due to other wrestlers being disqualified for doping offenses and the transfer of licenses from other qualifying tournaments. In his case, it was Novachkov's license transferred to the earlier Mongolia qualifier that opened a spot for Molinaro.[6] After his loss in the quarterfinals to Toghrul Asgarov, Molinaro was pulled into the repechage to wrestle Andriy Kvyatkovskyy. Molinaro defeated Kvyatkovskyy with a score of 8–5.[7] In a moment of controversy, a frustrated Kvyatkovskyy bit the arm of Molinaro.[8] Molinaro would finish the Rio Olympics in 5th place, after losing to Italy's Frank Chamizo Marquez in the bronze medal match 5-3.[9]

Coaching History
UniversityPositionStart yearEnd yearTeam Accomplishments
Arizona State UniversityAssistant Coach2020
Virginia TechAssistant Coach201720182017 ACC Champions
Penn State UniversityVolunteer Assistant Coach201420162016 NCAA Champions / 2016 Big 10 Champions
Rutgers UniversityAssistant Coach20122014

Personal life

Molinaro lives in Tempe, Arizona with his wife, Kera and three sons.[10]

gollark: Actually, none of these are "intelligence" really, what's a better word...
gollark: That sounds like possibly excessive pessimism. Intelligence would be coming up with long term plans which are flexible enough to be able to deal with changing circumstances, and being able to execute on them.
gollark: I tend to over*research* stuff in advance a lot, but not actually plan based on it because I would never stick to it anyway.
gollark: I see.
gollark: You seem to be doing interesting stuff, though.

References
  1. Christopher, Chris (8 July 2016). "Manahawkin Wrestler Heads To Olympics". The Southern Ocean Times. Micromedia Publications, Inc. Archived from the original on 6 August 2016. Retrieved 12 July 2016.
  2. "Frank Molinaro". GoPSUSports. Pennsylvania State University. Retrieved 12 July 2016.
  3. "National Champion and 4X All-American Frank Molinaro to Join Rutgers Wrestling". flowwrestling.org. Retrieved 9 October 2013.
  4. "Frank Molinaro Bio - Wrestling - Penn State University Official Athletic Site". gopsusports.com.
  5. "Penn State Wrestlers Named Big Ten Team of the Year while Sanderson Earns Conference Coach of the Year Laurels". caelsanderson.com. Retrieved 9 October 2013.
  6. "Adjustments to Olympic Qualifiers Announced". Archived from the original on 2016-08-05. Retrieved 2016-05-23.
  7. "Frank Molinaro wrestles back to win repechage match". NBC Olympics. 21 August 2016.
  8. http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-3752069/Andriy-Kvyatkovskyy-bites-Frank-Molinaro-men-s-freestyle-65-kg-quarterfinals.html
  9. http://www.app.com/story/sports/olympics/rio-2016/2016/08/21/wrestling-frank-molinaro-advances-olympics/89072384/
  10. "About Frank Molinaro". Retrieved 22 August 2016.

See also
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