2026 NWHOF Distinguished Member: Lee Roy Smith

Lee Roy Smith has dedicated his life to wrestling as a champion athlete, coach and leader whose impact has shaped the sport at every level.

Smith began wrestling in the fourth grade and became the first two-time Oklahoma state champion from Del City High School, compiling a 71-3 record and earning Outstanding Wrestler honors as a senior. He was also the first Oklahoma wrestler to win two National Junior Freestyle Championships.

At Oklahoma State University, Smith was an NCAA champion, three-time All-American and four-time Big Eight Conference champion. He became the first wrestler in OSU history to reach 100 career victories and was named Oklahoma State’s Athlete of the Year in 1980.

Internationally, Smith won three National Open Freestyle titles and the 1984 Olympic Trials. He earned silver medals at the 1983 World Championships and the 1983 and 1984 World Cup competitions.

Following his competitive career, Smith became one of the nation’s top coaches. As USA Wrestling’s National Freestyle Coach from 1989 to 1992, he coached six World champions and three Olympic gold medalists while leading the United States to an outstanding performance at the 1992 Olympic Games.

Smith later served as head coach at Arizona State University from 1992 to 2001, coaching three NCAA champions, 28 All-Americans and 27 Pac-10 champions while leading the Sun Devils to five conference titles. He was named Pac-10 Coach of the Year four times.

In 2004, Smith became executive director of the National Wrestling Hall of Fame and helped guide the organization through significant growth, including the acquisition of the Dan Gable Museum and major renovations in Stillwater and Waterloo.

Smith was inducted into the Oklahoma Sports Hall of Fame in 2022 and received the Gallagher Award from Oklahoma State wrestling in 2007.

For his achievements as an athlete, coach and leader, the National Wrestling Hall of Fame proudly welcomes Lee Roy Smith as a Distinguished Member.