Carol Huynh, Wrestling
2008 and 2012 Olympic Medallist
1996 BC Summer Games
Daughter of Vietnamese refugees, Carol was born in Hazelton, BC. As the middle child of five, she grew up with a competitive edge and a love for sports. Watching her sister wrestle on their high school team encouraged Carol to join, and immediately she was hooked. Shortly after, she participated in her first multisport event at the 1996 BC Summer Games.
At the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games, Carol proved her excellence by becoming the first Canadian woman to win an Olympic gold medal in wrestling. She is also a bronze medalist at the 2012 London Olympic Games, 11-time national champion, two-time Pan American Games champion, 2010 Commonwealth Games champion, and four-time world championship medalist.
Carol retired from wrestling after the 2012 Olympic Games, and is currently coaching the junior program at Calgary Dinos Wrestling Club. Among her many successes, she has a master’s degree in Counselling Psychology at Athabasca University, and is a United World Wrestling Super 8 Ambassador, encouraging the development of women’s wrestling worldwide.
Carol will return to her Olympic roots as the Assistant Chef de Mission for Team Canada at the 2016 Olympic Summer Games.
Check out Carol’s profile on Olympic.ca, and follow her Twitter @HuynhCarol.
Photo Credit: Olympic.ca