Wrestling with a dream

Getting closer and closer to pinning down his dream, wrestler Raymond Jordan is heading full steam into the U.S. Olympic Trials.

Jordan, a former star at New Bern High School and the University of Missouri, has a dream of winning a gold medal at the 2012 London Olympics. He will earn a berth on the U.S. freestyle team if he can win his weight division, 84 kg/185 pounds, at the Olympic Trials. Those are slated for April 21-22 in Iowa City, Iowa.

“It’s getting more exciting as the time grows near,” Jordan said. “It’s the moment you have been looking forward to, with the bigger competitions and the bigger events on the bigger stages. As the time draws near, you see where all your hard work has taken you.”

Jordan said being able to represent the U.S. in London would be his biggest honor to date. The wrestling at the Olympics will be held Aug. 10-12.

“It would be a huge honor,” said Jordan, who noted that he wouldn’t be successful without the support of family and friends. “It would be higher than anything I’ve accomplished. I really want that gold medal.

“I’m pushing myself to be better every day. I want to be one of the best in the sport. That’s what drives me.”

Jordan is coming off a title at the Dave Shultz Memorial International in Colorado Springs, Colo. He earned a 6-0, 5-0 decision over James Yonushonis of the New York AC. Jordan then defeated India’s Narsingh Yadav 1-1, 1-1, before picking up a 1-0, 3-0 nod over Japan’s Takeshi Yamaguchi in the semifinals. Jordan won the title with a 1-0, 5-2 victory over Phil Keddy of Hawkeye WC.

“It felt pretty good (to win it),” Jordan said. “I had some really good competitors in my weight class. It felt good to come out on top, especially going into the (Olympic) trials.”

Jordan was a three-time North Carolina state high school champion between 2002-04, where he was named Most Outstanding Wrestler at the 2003 and 2004 state tournaments. This came on the heels of finishing third as a freshman. He accumulated 200 wins in his prep career and was selected as a high school All-American.

It was during his days in the Bears’ program that Jordan realized he could have a bright future in wrestling.

“It probably started in my junior or senior year,” Jordan said. “When I first started, I didn’t know what to expect because I didn’t come from a family of wrestlers.

“I didn’t know where wrestling could take me. I didn’t know any of the greats. I started to follow the sport closely and I knew that I had a knack for it. Then I started looking to the Olympics and felt I wanted to pursue that.”

Upon leaving New Bern, Jordan went on to have an exceptional career with the Missouri Tigers. He went 123-29 overall, including 34-5 in his final season, and earned All-America honors twice.

Jordan, who lends his time and talents to local wrestling clubs when he returns home, has now been enjoying success at the international stage.

He will head to Havana, Cuba for the Cerro Pelado International this weekend. The tournament will be held Tuesday and Wednesday.

“It will be good competition there,” Jordan said. “It’s a chance to better yourself and see more people. They have a rich history of wrestling there.”

Jordan is heading into the competition feeling good about how he’s performing.

“I think I’m wrestling pretty well,” he said. “There is obviously room for improvement, but I’m wrestling where I need to be right now.

“I’m very confident in my abilities. I have great workout partners (including 74 kg World Champion Jeff Burroughs) and great coaches (including Nebraska coach Mark Manning, who recently won a Coach of the Year honor).”

Jordan realizes there will be some stiff competition at the Trials. He could face the likes of 2004 Olympic champion Cael Sanderson, 2009 World silver medalist Jake Herbert, former NCAA champion Keith Gavin and a host of other strong wrestlers.

“There will definitely be some stiff competition, but that’s what you train for,” Jordan said. “Wrestling is a sport where you train for it. You’re training for the guys you don’t know that you can beat.

“It takes courage to go out and give it your all. There will be a lot of good guys there. I’m looking forward to competing against them. The good thing is you don’t have to beat them all, just the ones on your side of the bracket. That’s the beauty of it.”

Kevin Travis can be reached at 252-635-5669 or at ktravis@freedomenc.com. Follow Travis on Twitter @ktravman.