Tavakolian helping wrestling grow internationally
By Craig Sesker
Special to InterMat
NEW YORK -- Hooman "Mo" Tavakolian never achieved his goals as a competitive wrestler.
He fell short of being a collegiate All-American.
But he's doing more than his part to make sure others have the same opportunity to achieve their dreams. By giving back to wrestling in a huge way, and on a number of fronts.
The 39-year-old Tavakolian, born in Iran and raised primarily in the United States, has emerged as an influential figure in the sport of international wrestling.
"Wrestling is such an awesome sport," he said. "No other sport can bring the world together like wrestling can. It teaches you so many life lessons -- the value of hard work and battling through adversity in pursuing a goal. It taught me to never give up, no matter what the circumstances are. I never had anything handed to me. Wrestling taught me you had to work hard if you wanted to earn anything worthwhile."
Tavakolian manages to balance his involvement in wrestling with his successful career in business. He is a Deputy Chief Compliance Officer at a hedge fund in New York City.
Tavakolian is heavily involved with the New York Athletic Club as a vice president who handles international relations. He also is the director of the annual New York AC wrestling tournament in November.
Tavakolian moved to the United States from Iran when he was 8 years old. The family settled in Great Neck, New York on Long Island.
"Being an Iranian, wrestling is part of the culture -- it is the national sport in Iran," he said. "My family members wrestled. It's a fun thing we did growing up and it's always been in my blood. We were dirt poor when we came to America. My dad encouraged us to try wrestling. That was a way for us to fit in and adapt to being in America. Wrestling helped us adjust to a new culture. And it taught us that if you work hard you can be successful in whatever you do in life."
Tavakolian wrestled under current Ohio State coach Tom Ryan at the NCAA Division I level at Hofstra University.
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Special to InterMat
NEW YORK -- Hooman "Mo" Tavakolian never achieved his goals as a competitive wrestler.
He fell short of being a collegiate All-American.
But he's doing more than his part to make sure others have the same opportunity to achieve their dreams. By giving back to wrestling in a huge way, and on a number of fronts.
The 39-year-old Tavakolian, born in Iran and raised primarily in the United States, has emerged as an influential figure in the sport of international wrestling.
"Wrestling is such an awesome sport," he said. "No other sport can bring the world together like wrestling can. It teaches you so many life lessons -- the value of hard work and battling through adversity in pursuing a goal. It taught me to never give up, no matter what the circumstances are. I never had anything handed to me. Wrestling taught me you had to work hard if you wanted to earn anything worthwhile."
Tavakolian manages to balance his involvement in wrestling with his successful career in business. He is a Deputy Chief Compliance Officer at a hedge fund in New York City.
Tavakolian is heavily involved with the New York Athletic Club as a vice president who handles international relations. He also is the director of the annual New York AC wrestling tournament in November.
Tavakolian moved to the United States from Iran when he was 8 years old. The family settled in Great Neck, New York on Long Island.
"Being an Iranian, wrestling is part of the culture -- it is the national sport in Iran," he said. "My family members wrestled. It's a fun thing we did growing up and it's always been in my blood. We were dirt poor when we came to America. My dad encouraged us to try wrestling. That was a way for us to fit in and adapt to being in America. Wrestling helped us adjust to a new culture. And it taught us that if you work hard you can be successful in whatever you do in life."
Tavakolian wrestled under current Ohio State coach Tom Ryan at the NCAA Division I level at Hofstra University.
Read Full Story
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