Dennis goes from living in truck to Olympics
By Jim Caple
ESPN Senior Writer
IOWA CITY Iowa -- The road to the Olympics is rarely easy, but it usually doesn't include pulling off that road and sleeping in the front seat of a worn-out old truck night after night.
Daniel Dennis earned All-America honors wrestling at the University of Iowa from 2006-10, but decided to step away from the sport as a competitive wrestler in 2013 due to a number of painful injuries. He drove west where he rock-climbed and sometimes coached while living for five months in a $500 used truck that was in such bad shape, he refers to it as a "old hunk of s---."
Dennis eventually gave that truck away and moved up to a loftier residence: a $2,500 trailer that had no television, no internet and occasionally ran out of propane to heat it. He lived in that two years.
Despite the difficult road he chose, Dennis qualified for the Rio Olympics on Sunday night by beating three-time All-American Tony Ramos at the U.S. wrestling trials at Carver Hawkeye Arena. He is going from living in that truck and trailer to representing his country in the Olympics.
"That's crazy! I have an extra bedroom in my place and he's more than welcome to join us, but he'll have to sleep in the same bed as my son Beacon," said Jordan Burroughs, who also locked in a spot on the U.S. Olympic team Sunday. "But this is what's all about. It's about the dream. That's why we're here. If you become an Olympian and win a gold medal, your life will change forever."
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ESPN Senior Writer
IOWA CITY Iowa -- The road to the Olympics is rarely easy, but it usually doesn't include pulling off that road and sleeping in the front seat of a worn-out old truck night after night.
Daniel Dennis earned All-America honors wrestling at the University of Iowa from 2006-10, but decided to step away from the sport as a competitive wrestler in 2013 due to a number of painful injuries. He drove west where he rock-climbed and sometimes coached while living for five months in a $500 used truck that was in such bad shape, he refers to it as a "old hunk of s---."
Dennis eventually gave that truck away and moved up to a loftier residence: a $2,500 trailer that had no television, no internet and occasionally ran out of propane to heat it. He lived in that two years.
Despite the difficult road he chose, Dennis qualified for the Rio Olympics on Sunday night by beating three-time All-American Tony Ramos at the U.S. wrestling trials at Carver Hawkeye Arena. He is going from living in that truck and trailer to representing his country in the Olympics.
"That's crazy! I have an extra bedroom in my place and he's more than welcome to join us, but he'll have to sleep in the same bed as my son Beacon," said Jordan Burroughs, who also locked in a spot on the U.S. Olympic team Sunday. "But this is what's all about. It's about the dream. That's why we're here. If you become an Olympian and win a gold medal, your life will change forever."
Read Full Story
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