He's back: Harry Lester making return at Schultz Memorial International

Two-time World medalist Harry Lester (right) and Olympian Jake Deitchler battle in the 2008 Olympic Trials. Photo by Tech-fall.com.

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. - Harry Lester stepped off the scale, turned around, raised his arms in the air and flashed a smile to teammate Spenser Mango and Coach Jim Gruenwald.

He's back.

Nearly eight months after finishing a disappointing third at the 2008 U.S. Olympic Team Trials in Greco-Roman wrestling, the two-time World bronze medalist is set to make his return to the mat.

Lester weighed in at 74 kg/163 lbs. early Thursday afternoon for the Dave Schultz Memorial International Open. He is scheduled to begin competition on Friday morning at the U.S. Olympic Training Center in Colorado Springs. The three-day event runs through Sunday.

"I'm ready to go - I want to be going on all cylinders when I get back out there," Lester said. "If I wasn't committed, I wouldn't be here right now. I'm going to give it 100 percent and see how it goes."

Lester was considered one of the favorites to win a gold medal at the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing, China.

But Lester suffered a stunning setback to 18-year-old Jake Deitchler in the semifinals of the U.S. Olympic Trials at 66 kg/145 lbs. Deitchler went on to win the Trials, becoming the youngest U.S. Olympian in wrestling in 32 years.

Lester and Deitchler could meet on Friday. Deitchler also weighed in at 74 kilos on Friday. He has bumped up a weight class and already has competed in that division three times this season. Deitchler moved to the U.S. Olympic Training Center just after returning home from the Olympics.

Lester rebounded from the loss to Deitchler to place third at the Olympic Trials. Following his last match, Lester peeled off his wrestling shoes and left them on the center of the mat. He was retiring at age 24.

"I really thought I was done," Lester said. "I figured I was done wrestling. My body was beat up and I just thought it was time to step away for good."

Lester said he followed the Olympics closely while back home in the U.S. A number of his close friends, including Mango, were competing on the American team.

"It sucked not being an Olympian, but the day after the Olympic Trials I had already started thinking about moving on and I tried to learn from that experience," Lester said. "When the Olympics came around, I was pulling for all of our guys to do well. I wanted our team to do well."

Lester, who is now competing for the New York Athletic Club, said he began to think about returning to the mat in November.

"I had some time to think about a lot of things, and my body had a chance to heal up and I had some time to rest for a change," Lester said. "I stepped away from wrestling for a little bit and I realized I missed it."

Lester has continued to train at the U.S. Olympic Education Center at Northern Michigan University.

"My teammates at Northern Michigan were encouraging me to come back - those guys have been so supportive," Lester said. "I was around the wrestling room and around the guys, and eventually decided I wanted to give this another shot. I'm just going to take it year by year, and see how it goes."

Lester was in Colorado Springs early last month for a U.S. Greco-Roman camp at the Olympic Training Center. Among the wrestlers he trained with was past Olympic and World silver medalist Matt Lindland along with past World silver medalist and two-time Olympian Brad Vering.

"I was way out of shape when I got out here for that camp - most guys would've quit after the camp I had," he said. "I knew I wasn't in the best shape, but the camp really helped me. I came back home and got three more good weeks of wrestling in. I'm still out of shape, but I'm starting to work my way back."

Lester had struggled dropping down to the 66 kilo division the past couple of years. But Lester has proven he can handle the bigger athletes while moving up nearly 20 pounds to 74 kilos.

In last year's Schultz event, Lester turned in a dominating performance in crushing past Pan American Games champion Odelis Herrero of Cuba. Lester threw Herrero all over the mat with an array of spectacular moves before eventually pinning him in the quarterfinals.

"Harry's still, in my opinion, one of the most talented Greco wrestlers in the World," Gruenwald said. "It's great to see him back. The way I look at it, Harry was just retiring from 66 kilos. Harry can do just as well at 74 as he ever did at 66. I have no doubt about that."

Lester, who turned 25 in September, said he is taking better care of himself now.

"I feel really good at 74," Lester said, flashing a smile. "I've pretty much been eating as much as I wanted to, and I got down to 74 pretty easily. When I wrestled at 66, I didn't follow any kind of nutritional plan at all. I'm eating a lot healthier now. I'm trying to do it the right way and it has been working."

Lester last competed on June 14.

"That's going to be the hard part - it's been a while since I've wrestled a match," he said. "I'm sure I will be a little rusty. I see the moves that are there and I'm maybe a step behind right now because I haven't competed in a while. I'm still going to go out there and put on a show like I always try to do. I will wrestle my hardest."

Deitchler also was having trouble making 66 kilos and is now trying to put on weight to make 74 kilos. He said he weighed in two kilos under what was allowed on Thursday.

Deitchler, who just turned 19, placed third in a tournament in Sweden this past fall before taking seventh in a recent event in Turkey.

"Moving up a weight class has been different," Deitchler said. "It's going to take time. It's going to take patience as I grow into this weight class and adjust to it. I'm just working hard to get bigger and stronger, and working hard to keep improving."

This weekend's Schultz event will be Deitchler's first international tournament in the U.S.

"It's really exciting," said Deitchler, who was a high school senior at this time last year. "I used to follow this tournament as a high school kid and now it's my time to go in there and compete against some great wrestlers. It's great to have this opportunity. It feels like a U.S. national tournament with so many top guys from this country here. It will be a good test for me."

Including a possible test against Lester.

"Harry's a great competitor and I respect him a lot," Deitchler said. "If we meet again, I will be ready and it will be a fun match."

Lester downplayed the hype that is building for another bout against Deitchler.

"If it comes up, it comes up," Lester said. "It's just another match to me. I would like to wrestle him again because I lost to him. It's the same with anybody else I've lost to - I almost want another shot at them."

Gruenwald was asked about a possible Lester-Deitchler rematch.

"Take nothing away from Jake Deitchler, because what he did last year was amazing and it was a great story for USA Wrestling and everybody else," Gruenwald said. "This may sound vindictive, but bottom line, Harry is the better of the two wrestlers. Harry didn't prove it that day and Jake got the job done. But I'm looking forward to a rematch and really looking forward to seeing what Harry can do."

Lester has made the last three U.S. World Teams in Greco-Roman. He placed third in the World in 2006 and 2007. He helped lead the American squad to the only World team championship in U.S. Greco-Roman history in 2007.

Lester is a two-time winner of the Schultz tournament, capturing titles in 2005 and 2006. He reached the finals at 74 kilos last year, but forfeited to teammate T.C. Dantzler in the finals.

Lester is scheduled to compete overseas next month in Hungary and Slovenia.

Gruenwald, an assistant coach at the USOEC who was a two-time Olympian, said he has seen a noticeable difference in Lester.

"I think Harry's training harder and he's training smarter," Gruenwald said. "He's a great leader in our room and he's a great training partner for a lot of our guys. He's talked with Ivan (Ivanov, head coach at the USOEC) and me about what he needs to do to get back to the level he was wrestling at when he won two World bronze medals. He's on the right track again.