Nolan Baker to join USOPTC as Greco-Roman resident athlete

2018 U23 World Team member Nolan Baker has announced that he will be leaving Northern Illinois University to become a resident Greco-Roman athlete at the U.S. Olympic and Paralympic Training Center in Colorado Springs, Colo.

“There are never any guarantees in wrestling, but committing to wrestle full time Greco at the U.S. Olympic and Paralympic Training Center is my best shot at breaking through to the next level on the national and world stages,” Baker said. “It would be easy to fall short of my goals and blame it on never fully dedicating myself to them. Now there will be no excuses.” 

Last fall, Baker represented the United States at the U23 World Championship in Bucharest, Romania, where he placed 15th at 67 kg.

This year, Baker was third at the Senior World Team Trials Challenge Tournament and recently took second at the U23 World Team Trials. During his age-group days, Baker was a three-time Fargo All-American.

“I think the culture of the U.S. Greco-Roman program is definitely changing, and we’re looking for the kind of athletes like Nolan Baker to be a part of our program, guys that love Greco-Roman and have a great work ethic and great attitude,” U.S. National Greco-Roman head coach Matt Lindland said.

Baker will join the resident athlete program in mid-August, just in time for the Senior Greco-Roman World Team camp.