Submitted Photo Terry Steiner, left, and Troy Steiner celebrate with Adeline Maria Gray after she won the final match of women's wrestling 76 kg in the 2019 Senior Wrestling World Championships on Sept. 19, 2019, in Nur-Sultan, Kazakhstan. By finishing in the top six, Gray secured a spot for Team USA in the 2020 Olympics in Tokyo. Photo courtesy of USA Wrestling.

BISMARCK – Twin brothers who became national championship wrestlers and legendary coaches are to become the 51st and 52nd recipients of the North Dakota Roosevelt Rough River Award, the highest commendation bestowed upon the state’s citizens.

Gov. Kelly Armstrong on Thursday, March 5, announced Bismarck natives Terry Steiner and Troy Steiner will be presented the awards this fall in Bismarck. Details will be released at a later date.

“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.

“Terry and Troy have embodied the North Dakota values of resilience, hard work and grit, inspiring countless young men and women to pursue the sport of wrestling,” Armstrong added. “Their commitment to mentoring athletes and promoting wrestling has strengthened the sport’s pipeline from grassroots programs to international competition, all while remaining deeply connected to North Dakota.”

“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.”

“Growing up in North Dakota shaped who we are in every area of our lives,” Troy Steiner said. “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.”

As wrestlers for Bismarck Century High School, Troy Steiner won three individual state titles at 112, 119 and 125 pounds from 1986-1988, and Terry Steiner won back-to-back titles in 1987-1988 at 126 and 130 pounds.

The brothers found continued success on the college wrestling circuit at the 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 Steiner went on to represent 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 Steiner also became a member of the U.S. National Team, competing at the highest levels of freestyle wrestling that included becoming a 1996 Pan American champion, who placed at the U.S. Open a number of times.

However, perhaps their greatest mark on the sport has been made through coaching.

Terry Steiner has led the U.S. Women’s National Wrestling Team as head coach since 2002. Under his guidance, USA Wrestling’s women’s program has been built into an elite power in international wrestling and helped create opportunity that has led women’s wrestling to become the fastest-growing female sport in the nation.

He has led the U.S. women’s 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 – including the first U.S. Olympic champion in women’s wrestling (Helen Maroulis) and the youngest U.S. Olympic wrestling champion regardless of discipline (Amit Elor).

In the 21 Senior World Teams led by Terry Steiner, the U.S. has won 72 medals, with 22 golds, 17 silvers and 33 bronzes. He has coached five of the six women inducted into the National Wrestling Hall of Fame. Before joining USA Wrestling, he worked as a Division I assistant coach at Wisconsin and Oregon State.

Troy Steiner 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. Currently, he is the head coach of the Gopher Wrestling Club in Minneapolis, where he coaches aspirational World and Olympic wrestlers.

Both brothers have continued to return to Bismarck and other cities in North Dakota for wrestling camps and coaching seminars, giving back to the program, community and state that launched their stellar careers as world-class wrestlers.

North Dakota Secretary of State Michael Howe and State Historical Society Director Bill Peterson both concurred with Armstrong’s selection of Terry and Troy Steiner for the Rough Rider Award.