"He leads by example" - David Taylor's students at OSU shower praise on Olympian as he gears up for his final World Wrestling Championships

Oklahoma State University star David Taylor has received support from his OSU students as he prepares for the 2024 World Wrestling Championships. Taylor is coming out of retirement to participate in the event.

Taylor has established himself as one of the most decorated freestyle wrestlers in the world having won numerous accolades, including three World Championship gold medals and a silver, along with gold and silver at World Cup events. Taylor also secured a famous victory at the Tokyo Olympics finals against his longtime Iranian rival Hassan Yazdani with a scoreline of 4-3 to clinch the first Olympic gold medal of his career.

After an illustrious career, the 33-year-old announced his retirement from wrestling on May 10 after being appointed the new head coach of the Oklahoma State Cowboys wrestling.

The decision came in the aftermath of his defeat against Aaron Brooks at this year's US Olympic Trials in April. However, Taylor decided to overturn his retirement decision to compete at the World Wrestling Championships set to begin on Monday, October 28. Expressing his enthusiasm for the event at a press meeting, he stated:

"It's something that everyone in this room is aspiring to do. So, I think it's a good thing for the guys to continue to see that. I'm excited to go wrestle." (via Oklahoma State University Athletics News)

In a recent turn of events, David Taylor received support from fellow OSU freshman Cody Merrill, who shared that it is exciting to see him prepare for the competition.

"We’re all on the same page, because we’re all training to be the best," Merrill said. "He leads by example and shows us a nice path. It’s nice to have a coach who has been there and is still currently at that high level." (via The Oklahoman)

David Taylor reflects on how being head coach of the facility reignited his passion for competing again

David Taylor at the Wrestling Senior World Championships Belgrade 2023 (Image via Getty)

During an interview with Olympics.com, David Taylor mentioned that he had lost his motivation to wrestle after competing for so many years. However, his new role as head coach rekindled his passion for competing and played a major role in his comeback to the mat.

"In the emotion of the moment after that letdown, I felt like I was done wrestling," he saud. "I just didn't have any ambition to compete anymore. Change stimulates growth. Oklahoma State gave me a change of scenery and a change of energy." (via Olympics.com)

He added:

"I was putting guys through workouts and I felt like I had the fire to compete the way I’m asking these guys to compete, so I should probably do that."

David Taylor has also stated that the 2024 World Champions will be his final competitive appearance, marking his second retirement announcement.