mobanmarketThe National Wrestling Hall of Fame honored eight individuals at The Minnesota Chapter Banquet in Austin, Minn. on Saturday, April 23rd.
The Class of 2016 includes James Raschke, Earl Stottler, Dr. B.J. Anderson, Charlie Coffee, John Delozier, Rick Kelvington, Tim Shiels, and Bob Thorson.
National Wrestling Hall of Fame Minnesota Chapter 2016 Class – Front Row (L-R): John DeLozier, Jim Raschke, and Charlie Coffee. Back Row (L-R): Dr. B.J. Anderson, Bob Thorson, Rick Kelvington, and Tim Shiels. Not Pictured: Earl Stottler.
Photos by Jill Schmidt.
National Wrestling Hall of Fame Minnesota Chapter 2016 Honorees:
OUTSTANDING AMERICAN:
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JAMES RASCHKE
Jim Raschke was a Nebraska high school state champion at heavyweight and Big 8 Champion for the Nebraska Cornhuskers. He was a 1963 World Bronze Medalist in Greco-Roman wrestling and a 1964 Olympic Team member. Better known as “Baron Von Raschke: The Claw Master”, Jim was a professional wrestler and referee for 30 years. He was recently inducted into the Alan Rice Greco-Roman Hall of Fame.
MEDAL OF COURAGE:
EARL STOTTLER
Earl was a long-time Starbuck And Waska Warrior coach and an official for 30 years. He was inducted on October 10, 2015 due to health concerns. Close to 100 people attended in Benson. Earl was Minnesota State Moorhead’s first NAIA National Champion in the sport of wrestling in 1961.
LIFETIME SERVICE:
BRUCE J. ANDERSON
Known as “BJ”, Dr. Anderson has given back to the sport for 36 years as a coach and medical advisor for the MSHSL, MN/USA Wrestling, other organizations. He has served on the Sports Medicine Advisory Committee. Bruce has been the team physician for Apple Valley High School, Augsburg College, and the University of Minnesota wrestling teams during that time Span. BJ has served as the Tournament Physician at the USA Wrestling Cadet and Junior National Tournament in Fargo since 1996. He’s served as part of the medical staff at the 2004 Olympic Trials in Indianapolis, Ind. and the 2015 World Championships in Las Vegas, Nev.
CHARLIE COFFEE
Charlie served as a long-time coach at Lincoln and Jefferson High Schools in Bloomington, Minn. coaching from 1964 to 1998. He officiated at all levels for 47 years. Charlie’s teams won two Region titles, over 300 duals, and included 55 state entrants and a state champion in Gary Pederson. An outstanding wrestler for Alan Rice’s Greco-Roman Teams, Charlie was a qualifier in four different Olympic Trials. His Girls Soccer Teams won four MSHSL State Championships. He is a member of both the Minnesota Wrestling and Soccer Halls of Fame.
JOHN DeLOZIER
John coached for 39 years at Bertha-Hewitt, and ROCORI High Schools. He was an NAIA national runner-up for Winona State in 1958. John put ROCORI on the wrestling map with eight team dual meet appearances at the MSHSL tournament. His teams placed 3rd, 4th, and consolation state champs in 1986, 1984, and 1983 respectively. John coached 26 individual state placers. He is a member of several halls of fame including MWCA, ROCORI Coaches, Winona State Athletic Hall, Winona High, and MN State High School Coaches Association. John was ROCORI Teacher of The Year in 1991.
RICK KELVINGTON
Rick is a former Pennsylvania high school state champion and 1965 NCAA DI place winner, placing fifth at 123 Pounds. He coached at Olivia and BOLD High School for 33 Years. Rick’s teams compiled a lofty 379-120-7 dual meet mark. His team’s can claim seven district team championships, 15 conference titles, 89 individual conference champions, 86 MSHSL state qualifiers, 26 individual state place winners, and seven individual state champions. Rick is a member of several halls of fame including the MWCA, Moorhead State, Pennsylvania Wrestling Coaches Association (2015), and Trinity High School (Penn.) (2015). Rick was also a two-year president of the MWCA.
TIM SHIELS
Tim has had an outstanding 37-year career as a coach and official. He was a state entrant for his father Richard at Faribault High School. Tim was a captain at both Waldorf College in Forest City, IA, and the University of Minnesota-Morris, earning eight letters. Tim was an NCAA DIII All-American at UMM. he coached at St. Olaf College for six years from 1982-1988 where he had six All-Americans and an MIAC runner-up finish. Tim’s officiating career has escalated to the highest levels. He has officiated 14 NCAA DI National Championships. In addition, he’s reffed seven NCAA DII Championships, 19 NCAA DIII Championships, ten Big 10 Championships, NJCAA Championships, and the NWCA National Duals. Tim was a top-5 selected official at the NCAAs in 2012-2014. Tim has been inducted into the Mayo Civic Center Southeast Minnesota Hall of Fame. He currently serves as Chairman of the NCAA Officials Committee.
BOB THORSON
This veteran coach served 41 years with the Fertile-Beltrami wrestling program. Bob was a head coach from 1981-2005 and he was an assistant when they were State runners-up. Bob’s teams won Section 8 four times, Sub-Region six times, and his career record at Fertile-Beltrami was 359-142-8 (Varsity and JV). Bob was selected as Region 8A Coach of the Year in 1982, 1983, and 1984. He coached 32 state entrants, seven state place winners, and 29 various tournament titles. Bob’s teams at State were consolation champions in 1982, fourth in 1983, and sixth in 1985. He is a member of the MWCA Hall of Fame.