Jay Thomas Evans
Jay Thomas Evans (born January 21, 1931 in Tulsa , † March 8, 2008 in Norman (Oklahoma) ) was an American wrestler . He won a silver free style lightweight medal at the Helsinki Olympics in 1952 .
Career
Tommy Evans attended high school in his hometown of Tulsa. It was there that he began wrestling. He started in both styles, the Greco-Roman and the free style, although the Greco-Roman style, with one exception, played a subordinate role. In addition to wrestling in high school, he also competed for the wrestling club of the YMCA Tulsa . At a height of 1.67 meters, he started out as a featherweight and from 1952 in a lightweight. After his high school years he studied at the University of Oklahoma and was at this university after his time as an active wrestler for over twenty years coach and finally head coach of the local wrestling club ("Sooners").
As a wrestler, he first drew attention to himself for the first time in 1951, when he finished 2nd at the NCAA featherweight championships. In 1952 and 1954 he was then NCAA lightweight champion. He also became AAU Champion in 1954, 1956 and 1957. The NCAA Championships are the US student championships; the AAU Championships are the championships of the United States' General Amateur Sports Association. Since almost all wrestlers were students at the time, the title of NCAA champion was of less importance than that of AAU champion.
In 1952, Tommy Evans also qualified for participation in the Helsinki Olympics. He started there in the free style in the lightweight. He came to victories over Mohamed Badr, Egypt , Jack Ward, Belgium , Osvaldo Blasi, Argentina , John Cools, Belgium and Risto Talosela , Finland . Then he met the multiple world champion and Olympic champion from 1948 in the featherweight division Olle Anderberg from Sweden , against whom he narrowly and controversially lost 2-1 referee votes. In the final fight against Jahanbakht Tofigh from Iran , he secured the Olympic silver medal with a victory .
In 1956, Tommy Evans qualified for participation in the Olympic Games in Melbourne . He started there in the free style again in the lightweight. He came to victories over J. Taylor, Great Britain , Shigeru Kasahara , Japan and Mario Tovar from Mexico . In his fourth fight he was somewhat surprisingly defeated by the Hungarian Gyula Toth on points, with which he had scored five missing points and was eliminated. He only came in 5th place. He then started in the Greco-Roman style in the lightweight, but as a wrestler inexperienced in this style, he had no chance against Kyösti Lehtonen from Finland, the later Olympic champion , and against Dimitar Stoyanow from Bulgaria . He was eliminated after these two defeats and came in 7th place with four other wrestlers.
In addition to his starts at these two Olympic Games, Tommy Evans did not make any other starts at international championships.
International success
| year | space | competition | Weight class | style | Results |
| 1952 | silver | OS in Helsinki | Light | F. | after victories over Mohamed Badr, Egypt , Jack Ward, Ireland , Osvaldo Blasi, Argentina , John Cools, Belgium and Risto Talosela , Finland , a defeat against Olle Anderberg , Sweden and a win over Jahanbakht Tofigh , Iran |
| 1956 | 5. | OS in Melbourne | Light | F. | after victories over J. Taylor, Great Britain , Shigeru Kasahara , Japan and Mario Tovar, Mexico and a defeat against Gyula Toth , Hungary |
| 1956 | 7th | OS in Melbourne | Light | GR | after defeats to Kyösti Lehtonen , Finland and Dimitar Stoyanow , Bulgaria |
National successes
| year | space | competition | Weight class | style | Results |
| 1951 | 2. | NCAA championships | feather | F. | behind George Layman, in front of Don Maurey |
| 1952 | 1. | NCAA championships | Light | F. | before Jim Harmon and Miles Lee |
| 1952 | 1. | Olympic trials | Light | F. | |
| 1954 | 1. | NCAA championships | Light | F. | ahead of Donald Thompson and Lloyd Corwin |
| 1954 | 1. | AAU championships | Light | F. | |
| 1956 | 1. | AAU championships | Light | F. | |
| 1957 | 1. | AAU championships | Light | F. |
Explanations
- OS = Olympic Games
- GR = Greco-Roman style, F = freestyle
- Feather weight, back then up to 62 kg, lightweight, up to 67 kg body weight
- NCAA = American Student Sports Association, AAU = Amateur Athletic Association
swell
- Athletics magazine
- Documentation of FILA's International Wrestling Championships, 1976
- Website "www.themat.com"
Web links
| personal data | |
|---|---|
| SURNAME | Evans, Jay Thomas |
| ALTERNATIVE NAMES | Evans, Tommy |
| BRIEF DESCRIPTION | American wrestler |
| DATE OF BIRTH | January 21, 1931 |
| PLACE OF BIRTH | Tulsa , Oklahoma |
| DATE OF DEATH | March 8, 2008 |
| Place of death | Norman (Oklahoma) |