Belly to Belly with Olympian Jim Gruenwald | Wheaton Wrestling, Greco Grit & Gospel Power
In Episode 365 of Airey Bros Radio, we go belly to belly with Coach Jim Gruenwald — 2x Olympian, U.S. Greco-Roman National Champion, head coach at Wheaton College Wrestling, and author of Not All Roads Lead to Gold.Coach Grunwald brings the heat on:
📚 Check out Coach’s books at: https://notallroadsleadtogold.com
📲 Follow Coach on IG: @jamesgruenwald_jcil
🤼♂️ Team IG: @wheatonwrestling
⏱️ Show Notes:
00:00 – From a student radio booth to 365 episodes
03:00 – Meet Coach Jim Gruenwald: Olympian, author, DIII coach
06:30 – Wrestling journey started with a fight at the bus stop
08:00 – Falling in love with Greco Roman—by accident
10:00 – Teaching math made him a better coach
17:00 – The Christian mentorship model at Wheaton Wrestling
20:00 – Writing “Not All Roads Lead to Gold” + parental wisdom
28:00 – Why the U.S. struggles in Greco—and how to fix it
33:00 – Olympic vs D1 recruiting, facility upgrades, and fundraising
42:00 – What makes Wheaton College unique: community + mission
50:00 – How grind matches, cold showers & “righteous suffering” build men
1:03:00 – Winning vs. becoming: why results don’t define athletes
1:09:00 – Final 4: matcha smoothies, sci-fi nerdiness & Coach G’s playlist
- Building a championship DIII program from scratch
- Greco’s role in U.S. wrestling development
- Using faith as a framework for mentorship and leadership
- Why parenting in youth sports needs a total overhaul
- How he balances coaching, fatherhood, and authoring 3 books
📚 Check out Coach’s books at: https://notallroadsleadtogold.com
📲 Follow Coach on IG: @jamesgruenwald_jcil
🤼♂️ Team IG: @wheatonwrestling
⏱️ Show Notes:
00:00 – From a student radio booth to 365 episodes
03:00 – Meet Coach Jim Gruenwald: Olympian, author, DIII coach
06:30 – Wrestling journey started with a fight at the bus stop
08:00 – Falling in love with Greco Roman—by accident
10:00 – Teaching math made him a better coach
17:00 – The Christian mentorship model at Wheaton Wrestling
20:00 – Writing “Not All Roads Lead to Gold” + parental wisdom
28:00 – Why the U.S. struggles in Greco—and how to fix it
33:00 – Olympic vs D1 recruiting, facility upgrades, and fundraising
42:00 – What makes Wheaton College unique: community + mission
50:00 – How grind matches, cold showers & “righteous suffering” build men
1:03:00 – Winning vs. becoming: why results don’t define athletes
1:09:00 – Final 4: matcha smoothies, sci-fi nerdiness & Coach G’s playlist
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