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USA WRESTLING NATIONAL STAFF EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR RICH BENDER Wrestling, the National Governing Body for amateur wrestling in the United States. Bender had served as Acting Executive Director for USA Wrestling prior to being offered the position on a permanent basis. As Executive Director, Bender has guided the development of the women's program as an Olympic sport to world prominence. The Greco-Roman program has had its most successful international performances during his tenure. Under his leadership, USA Wrestling has seen membership growth, the expansion of the events schedule and the creation of national pro- grams in the new international wrestling styles. Bender has worked full-time for USA Wrestling since 1989. He served as the Associate In February 2001, Bender was named Executive Director of USA Executive Director of Programs prior to his appointment as Acting Executive Director. In his past position, Bender oversaw USA Wrestling's events, National Teams and developmental programs activities. He previously served as USA Wrestling's National Events Director, where he developed an expanding schedule of regional, national and international events for the organization. Bender supervised the organization of major events including the 1995 World Freestyle Championships, numerous age-group World Championships, the U.S. Olympic Team Trials, the U.S. Olympic Festival, the World Cup, the Goodwill Games, and numerous World Dual meets. Bender also served as the Competition Manager for wrestling at the 1996 Olympic Games, working for the Atlanta Committee for the Olympic Games (ACOG). Bender organ- ized a staff which presented one of the best Olympic wrestling competitions in history. Over 115,000 fans witnessed the wrestling competition in Atlanta. He was awarded a FILA Gold Star for his efforts on behalf of Olympic wrestling. Under Bender's leadership, more fans have attended major USA Wrestling events than ever before and USA Wrestling membership has grown. Bender has made a commitment to strengthen USA Wrestling's membership and to help the sport grow on the youth level while also continuing to pursue excellence at the Olympic level. Bender was involved in encouraging the International Olympic Committee (IOC) to not fur- ther reduce the number of weight classes in the Olympic Games. Much of his research was used by FILA to show wrestling's strong presence in the Olympic programme. Women's wrestling has flourished during Bender's tenure. Women's wrestling has seen the addition of a U.S. Olympic Training Center Resident Athlete Program and the hiring of a National Women's Coach and National Developmental Coach. Bender has helped build and expand the combined Cadet Nationals and Junior Nationals, the largest wrestling tournament in the world. Each year, in Fargo, N.D., up to 5,000 young athletes compete in this event, a highlight of the national wrestling season. Bender served as a U.S. Olympic Committee intern in the fall of 1988, working for USA Wrestling. He was hired as Events Assistant for USA Wrestling in January 1989, and became Manager of National Events in September 1989. He is has served on the Board of Directors for the United States Olympic Committee, the National Wrestling Hall of Fame and the National Wrestling Coaches Association. He received a degree in Sports Management and a minor in Business Administration from Wisconsin-La Crosse in 1988. Bender was a three-sport athlete at Boscobel High School, earning two varsity letters each in football, baseball and wrestling. He and his wife Michelle have three daughters, Madeline, Chloe and Gabriella. His hobbies include hunting and golf. 2012 USA Wrestling Media Guide - 7