Athletes to Watch: Helen Maroulis Harry How via Getty Images In 2016, Helen Maroulis became the first American woman to win a gold medal in wrestling. She did so by defeating the three-time defending Olympic champion and 13-time reigning world champion, Saori Yoshida of Japan. Maroulis got into the sport because her brother needed a training partner. She followed up her Rio performance with a world title in 2017 (she also is a 2015 world champion), but has had a series of injuries slow her progress – she suffered a concussion in January 2018, then a shoulder injury that required surgery in the fall of that year. Though she will miss the 2019 World Championships as a result, she says she is still feeling confident for 2020. Visit Helen's Team USA profile Athlete Info Sport Wrestling Height 5'3" Weight 116 Date of Birth September 19, 1991 Hometown Rockville, MD Current Residence Hoboken, NJ Trivia During high school, many opposing coaches would have whomever was slated to wrestle Helen forfeit the match, at times to sabotage. This fueled Helen to get better and her coach urged her to go to the U.S. Olympic Training Center. Grow your Olympic knowledge Olympians Share Their Favorite Athlete As a Child Who were the ones that inspired today's Olympic athletes? Santos, Biney will Lead U.S. Short Track Team at 2022 Winter Olympics After three days of racing, five women were named to the U.S. short track speed skating team for the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics. Adaptation and Success Fuel Oz Sanchez Towards the LA28 Olympic Games Oz shares how his LA28 'A' represents an ability to adapt. Origin Stories: Brooke Raboutou Some people describe Brooke Raboutou's family as the Incredibles, which may explain her ability to compete at such a high level. Olympic Athletes Share Their Career Aspirations Outside of Sports Find out what Olympic athletes would be pursuing if they weren't participating in sports. Athletes to Watch: 2020 Tokyo Paralympics Get to know some of the athletes representing Team USA at the Tokyo Paralympic Games. View More sports in this article Wrestling tags in this article 2020 Summer Olympics Athletes to Watch Fan SportsEngine