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Spencer Lee recently expressed his thoughts on Japanese wrestler Takuto Otoguro’s visit to the University of Iowa. Otoguro trained with the Iowa men’s wrestling team during his time there.
Otoguro gained international recognition after clinching a bronze medal at the 2013 Cadet World Championships. In 2025, he secured the Cadet World Champion title. Between the 2020 and 2021 Asian Championships, he bagged four medals.
The Japanese wrestler shared the photo with the team on Instagram alongside a caption that read:
"Thank you everyone!I learned a lot from the Hawkeye hard work and mindset. I had a great time. I hope I can come back again. I wish you all the best🤞 Thank you Iowa Guys🤼"
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Spencer Lee reshared Otoguro's post on his Instagram story and wrote:
"Was an honor training with you my friend"
Spencer Lee shares his experience with Japanese wrestling training methods
Lee recently shared his experience of traveling to Japan, a place that had special meaning for his family. Lee's parents, Larry and Cathy, were both judo athletes. Larry was training in Japan when a coach from France invited him to train there. In France, he met Cathy.
Although initially a pleasure trip, Lee experienced Japanese wrestling training methods. Reflecting on the experience, the 26-year-old said (stories.uiowa.edu):
“They train nothing like we do in America. Americans get one partner, and you wrestle that guy the whole practice. That’s what I’ve done my whole life. They switch partners a lot. They don’t care if the wrestler is bigger or smaller or male or female. They just wrestle. It was cool. I really liked it a lot, to be honest.”
Lee also attended major wrestling events, including a sumo wrestling contest and the Japanese world team trials. The trip also allowed Lee to re-establish a connection with the wrestling community and explore Japanese culture.
At Yamanashi Gakuin University, Lee ran into his longtime friend, Olympic gold medallist Takuto Otoguro. After competing together at the 2014 Cadet World Championships, these two became friends.
