BISMARCK, N.D. – Governor Kelly Armstrong has announced the North Dakota Theodore Roosevelt Rough Rider Award will be presented to national champion wrestlers and coaches Terry and Troy Steiner.
The Steiner twins were born and raised in Bismarck and joined the MATPAC Wrestling in 1978. As wrestlers for Bismarck Century High School, Troy won three individual state titles at 112, 119 and 125 pounds from 1986 to 1988, and Terry won back-to-back titles in 1987 and 1988 at 126 and 130 pounds.
At University of Iowa, Troy won All-American honors all four years, Terry became a three-time All-American, and each won an individual NCAA championship – Troy at 142 pounds in 1992 and Terry at 150 pounds in 1993. Troy was a three-time Big Ten Conference champion.
Troy represented the United States as a nine-time member of the U.S. National Team, winning titles at the 1992 World Cup and the 1996 Pan-American Games. He placed third at the U.S. Olympic Trials in 1992 and 1996. Terry also became a member of the U.S. National Team, competing at the highest levels of freestyle wrestling that included being a 1996 Pan American champion, who placed at the U.S. Open a number of times.
Terry has led the U.S. Women’s National Wrestling Team as head coach since 2002, being in charge of the freestyle team for six Olympic Games – every Olympics that has included women’s wrestling dating back to Athens in 2004. He has coached 12 Olympic medalists – four gold medalists, three silver medalists and five bronze medalists.
Troy has held coaching roles at multiple major Division I wrestling programs, including Minnesota, Wisconsin, Iowa, Oregon State and Fresno State, building nationally competitive teams while mentoring countless student-athletes in character, discipline and leadership. Troy is the head coach of the Gopher Wrestling Club in Minneapolis, where he coaches aspirational World and Olympic wrestlers.
“The names Troy and Terry Steiner are legendary in the wrestling world, carrying a well-earned reputation of excellence not only in North Dakota but on both the national and international stage,” Armstrong said. “As athletes they dominated their opponents, winning championships in high school, college, national and international competition. As coaches and ambassadors, their positive influence and impact on the sport of wrestling is immeasurable, bringing distinction and recognition to their home state.”
“Troy and I are humbled, honored, and proud to receive this award, and we want to thank Gov. Armstrong for selecting us,” Terry Steiner said. “The people in the community of Bismarck and the state of North Dakota have lifted us up from the very beginning, and we are forever grateful. Our North Dakota roots and the nurturing community that we grew up in allowed us to grow, flourish and succeed in our athletic, professional and personal lives. When you put ordinary people in an extra ordinary environment, they become extraordinary.”
“Receiving the North Dakota Theodore Roosevelt Rough Rider Award is truly humbling, and we are incredibly grateful to Gov. Armstrong,” Troy Steiner said. “Growing up in North Dakota shaped who we are in every area of our lives. The values of hard work, humility, faith and community were not just taught – they were lived. The people of North Dakota set a standard of humility, toughness and integrity that challenged us to be our best, and that foundation continues to guide us today. Terry and I are honored beyond words to receive this recognition and proud to represent the state that built us.”
