Carmen's wrestling career stretches over 40 years. He was a state champion on Daniel Hand's first state championship team. Carmen wrestled at Springfield College for two years and became a successful coach at Fermi High School in Enfield, leading Fermi to their first and only Class LL state championship (1980) before becoming a nationally-recognized official.

Over the past 25 years, Carmen has held several positions on the executive board of Connecticut Interscholastic Wrestling Officials Association (CIWOA) including rules interpreter for Connecticut. He has worked at 32 State Open tournaments, 14 New England tournaments and five National Prep School Championship events.

He has also been selected to officiate at several national events including the National High School Coaches Association (NHSCA) national championships in Virginia, the National Duals, Flo Nationals, the Beast of the East in Newark, Delaware, and the Super 32 tournament in North Carolina.

In 2019, he had a full schedule of assignments that included the Journeymen Classic in Troy, N.Y., the Super 32, Beast of the East, State Open, the New England championships (high school and middle school) and the NHSCA nationals.

He has been a member of the executive committee of the Connecticut Chapter of the National Wrestling Hall of Fame since 2009. Carmen lives in Clinton with his wife, Sandy, and they have two daughters, Brittney and Lexy.

Published by the Connecticut Chapter of the National Wrestling Hall of Fame, April 2019
Profile photo taken April 2019