NEWS RELEASE

For immediate release Contact: Melanie Corona April 20, 2018 (669) 205-4095

Gilroy Unified School District Announces Daniel Cormier as Gilroy High School Coach

GILROY, CA – Gilroy Unified School District (GUSD) approved the contract of the new head coach, Daniel Cormier, for the Gilroy High School (GHS) Boys Wrestling team at the April 19 Board Meeting.

Daniel Cormier is a well-known wrestling and (MMA) fighter, who is a Gilroy resident and owns a training facility, American Kickboxing Academy, in San Jose. Cormier is currently training for his next fight, UFC 226, on July 7. Prior to his MMA career, Cormier was an All-American wrestler at Oklahoma State University in 2001 and finished second in the country his senior year.

Cormier was the senior US National Champion from 2003-2008, and finished fourth at the 2004 Olympic games in , competing for the . He was also a member of the United States National Team at the 2008 Olympics in Beijing.

Cormier made his professional MMA debut in 2009, and continues to train as a mixed martial- arts fighter. He is also the current coach of one of the teams competing on : Undefeated, which aired its first episode of the season on April 18, on Fox Sports 1. He is a television commentator and host.

The Gilroy High School wrestling team is no stranger to accolades. The team finished second in the Interscholastic Federation State Championships in March 2018, by qualifying 12 athletes out of the Central Coast Section, and produced two state champions and one finalist, along with numerous other state placers. The team travelled to Virginia at the end of March 2018 to compete in the National High School Coaches Association (NHSCA) where four Mustangs won national champions and the team finished with six All-Americans. The three graduating seniors on the team all will wrestle at top-10 Division I colleges this fall and the team returns nine of 12 state qualifiers to next year’s team.

The team met with Cormier and his entire coaching staff Thursday afternoon to define expectations for the program going forward.

"We are very fortunate to find a coach with such an amazing background in the sport of wresting and mixed martial arts. Daniel Cormier is real fired up and excited about the prospects for next year and so are our wrestlers," said Gilroy High School Principal and Assistant Coach, Dr. Marco Sanchez.

In addition to the day-to-day operations of managing the program, Cormier will also be responsible for producing the Mid-California Wrestling Championship (Mid-Cals), a prestigious high school wrestling tournament that hosts the top teams from throughout the country. Last year’s tournament featured 81 teams from throughout California, Oklahoma and New Jersey, and is considered one of California’s premier wrestling tournaments.

Joining Cormier’s staff are Kyle Crutchmer, Shawn Bunch and Deron Winn. Returning to Gilroy High’s program are NHSCA 2015 Assistant Coach of the Year Marco Sanchez, 2018 NHSCA Assistant Coach of the Year Matt Corona and Bill Newton.

Cormier and his wife, Salina, and two children live in Gilroy. The Gilroy High School Wrestling team has won an unprecedented 16 consecutive Central Coast Section team championships and finished the 2017-18 season ranked #20 nationally.

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