Wyoming Area head wrestling coach Steve Mytych is pursuing a dream of one day becoming an Olympic champion. For the 26 year old, it started back in high school at Wyoming Valley West then at Northampton and now as part of the Lehigh Valley Athletic Club. The former Drexel Dragon, Mytych still holds school records with 38 single season wins and 137 career wins. He hopes all this experience pays off at the Grozny International Wrestling tournament in Russia in two weeks.
"It's been a dream since I was a little kid I remember when Kurt Angle won his Olympic title and he came to King's College and did a clinic and I think I was a 48-pounder then for Valley West Elementary so ever since that day I wanted to have a gold medal around my neck one day and that's what I'm striving for."
Steve's dad moves from assistant coach to head coach at Wyoming Area while the training continues for his son. Everyone in Exeter is excited including pops.
He still has been trying to reach the top whether on the Olympic, collegiate, or high school. He is always coming up that one match short so he still has that desire to get to the top.
Since jumping onto the US Olympic ladder in 2011, Steve has cut that deficit in half, going from being ranked 11th to 4th on Team USA. He feels like going to this international tournament in Russia in two weeks benefits him greatly in trying to make Team USA to head to Rio in 2016.
"It's been a tremendous help working out with Lehigh University's lightweights and also our head coach Jeff Buxton who was the Blair Academy head coach. They've won numerous national titles. If I stay with the same process and the same system, if I cut it in half by 2016, I'll be the man going to Rio."
Good luck coach in Russia!