Amazing National Wrestling Hall of Fame Class of 2024 to be inducted this weekend in Stillwater, Okla.
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by Gary Abbott, USA Wrestling
The National Wrestling Hall of Fame Class of 2024 will be honored and officially inducted this weekend during the 47th Honors Weekend on May 31 and June 1, 2024 in Stillwater, Oklahoma.
The National Wrestling Hall of Fame Class of 2024 includes Distinguished Members Tadaaki Hatta, Toccara Montgomery, Coleman Scott and Logan Stieber, Meritorious Official honoree J.R. Johnson, Order of Merit recipient Darryl Miller, Medal of Courage recipient Jonathan Koch, and Outstanding American honoree retired United States Army Infantry Colonel Steve Banach. Also being honored are Dave Schultz High School Excellence Award winner Aoeden Sinclair and Tricia Saunders High School Excellence Award winner Nebi Tsarni.
Montgomery, Scott and Stieber were chosen as Distinguished Members for the Modern Era while Hatta was selected by the Veterans Committee. The newest honorees will bring the number of Distinguished Members to 212, since the Hall of Fame began in 1976.
Montgomery becomes the first Black female and the sixth female overall to be inducted as a Distinguished Member, joining Clarissa Chun (2022), Kristie Davis (2018), Sara McMann (2022), Patricia Miranda (2023) and Tricia Saunders (2006). It marks the third consecutive year that a female Distinguished Member has been inducted.
Hatta becomes the second Japanese wrestler to be inducted as a Distinguished Member, joining Oklahoma State teammate Yojiro Uetake Obata (1980).
Scott (2004) and Stieber (2010) become the first two national winners of the Hall of Fame’s Dave Schultz High School Excellence Award to be inducted as Distinguished Members. Presented annually since 1996, the DSHSEA is awarded to a male high school senior and based equally on outstanding wrestling success, scholastic achievement and citizenship or community service.
Hatta and Scott bring the number of Distinguished Members from Oklahoma State to 38, the most of any college. The University of Iowa is second with 17 while Iowa State University and the University of Oklahoma are tied for third with 14 each.
Stieber becomes the first Distinguished Member from Ohio State University while Montgomery is the first from the University of the Cumberlands.
Montgomery and Stieber were both born in Ohio while Hatta was an art teacher, wrestling coach and trainer at high schools in Ohio for 40 years.
Distinguished Members can be a wrestler who has achieved extraordinary success in national and/or international competition; a coach who has demonstrated great leadership in the profession and who has compiled an outstanding record; or a contributor whose long-term activities have substantially enhanced the development and advancement of the sport. Wrestlers must have been retired from active competition for a period of five years to be eligible for consideration as a Distinguished Member.
Distinguished Member Coleman Scott biography
Distinguished Member Logan Stieber biography
Distinguished Member Toccara Montgomery biography
Distinguished Member Tadaaki Hatta biography
The Medal of Courage recipient is a wrestler or former wrestler who has overcome what appear to be insurmountable challenges, providing inspiration to others.
Medal of Courage winner Jonathan Koch biography
The Order of Merit is presented to an individual that has made a significant contribution to the sport of wrestling, but who is not an athlete or a coach. The Order of Merit recipient is determined in a vote of Distinguished Members.
Order of Merit winner Darryl Miller biography
The Meritorious Official award recognizes outstanding service as a referee, judge, or pairing official.
Meritorious Official J.R. Johnson biography
The Outstanding American award is presented to those individuals who have used the disciplines of wrestling to launch notable careers in other walks of life, such as science and technology, business and industry, government and the military, and the arts and humanities.
Outstanding American Steve Banach biography
The Dave Schultz High School Excellence Award recognizes and celebrates the nation’s most outstanding high school senior male wrestler for his excellence in wrestling, scholastic achievement, citizenship, and community service.
Dave Schultz High School Excellence Award winner Aeoden Sinclair biography
The Tricia Saunders High School Excellence Award recognizes and celebrates the nation’s most outstanding high school senior female wrestler for her excellence in wrestling, scholastic achievement, citizenship, and community service.
Tricia Saunders High School Excellence Award winner Nebi Tsarni biography
Honors Weekend begins on Friday night with the unveiling of plaques at the National Wrestling Hall of Fame, where inductees and their guests are able to see their Hall of Fame displays for the very first time.
Fans can watch the National Wrestling Hall of Fame Honors Weekend Tribute Breakfast & Induction Ceremony live on Rokfin on Saturday.
The Honoree Tribute Breakfast features spokespersons for each inductee telling personal stories about the individual being inducted and is an annual highlight of Honors Weekend for all involved. The broadcast of the Tribute Breakfast begins at 10:00 a.m. Central time on Saturday.
The Tribute Breakfast broadcast
The Induction Ceremony is the ultimate conclusion of the weekend, where each honoree is officially inducted into the National Wrestling Hall of Fame. A video of each inductee is played, the honoree is able to say a few words, and they receive their Hall of Fame award from their chosen presenter. The broadcast of the Induction Ceremony begins at 7:00 a.m. Central time on Saturday
