"He always felt it was important for anyone involved in the sport to conduct himself in an ethical and sportsmanlike way, yet no one wanted to win more than he did." National Freestyle Team and is now executive director of the National Wrestling Hall of Fame in Stillwater, Oklahoma. "Although his stature was small, his attitude, confidence, courage and leadership while representing the sport both nationally and internationally was that of a giant," recalls Lee Roy Smith, a 1983 World Silver Medalist who coached for Arizona State University and the U.S. Terry had it all he was the most complete wrestler, the one who excelled the most in every aspect of the sport." "Some of them had great technique, others were incredibly tenacious and had great endurance some had tremendous strength, still others had catlike speed, agility and balance. "During my 50 years in the sport of wrestling, as an athlete, coach and administrator, I have seen all the great wrestlers," Holzer says. After his heady accomplishment, McCann said he learned a lesson about success - "That it is a journey, and that having arrived at a high point guarantees nothing about the rest of the trip."Ī fellow Olympic wrestler and coach, Werner Holzer, calls McCann "the greatest of them all." Against all odds, he won the test and went on to score a dramatic Olympic victory in Rome. The day of the 1960 Olympic trials, he nearly missed competing because of illness and a debilitating knee injury. McCann's legacy in the sport of wrestling almost didn't happen. He appeared recently in a national television commercial denouncing the proposal. Shortly after the diagnosis, he joined a class action lawsuit against asbestos manufacturers and became a spokesman against a proposal before Congress to impose limits on litigation against those companies. In April 2005, McCann was diagnosed with mesothelioma, a rare cancer linked to asbestos exposure. McCann, of Dana Point, California, won the 1960 Gold Medal after working at an oil refinery in Tulsa, Oklahoma in the late 1950s while training for the Olympics. It is ironic that the job that funded his dreams of winning a Gold Medal in wrestling is said to have caused his asbestos-related cancer. I would not have the opportunity to serve in my present capacity were it not for Terry." I am proud to call him a mentor and a friend. He hired me to serve as executive director of USA Wrestling in 1990. He was noted for his honesty and passion for the National Governing Bodies and the athletes. He was a well-respected leader within the Olympic family and rose to the top of the USOC. "His tenure as president (of USA Wrestling) marked a time of significant progress for the sport. "Terry was a tremendous wrestler as well as a leader within wrestling and the Olympic family," said Jim Scherr, CEO of the U.S. In addition, he served for many years in various capacities on the United States Olympic Committee. He spent four years as president of USA Wrestling and six years on the board of FILA, the international governing body of wrestling.
McCann helped found a new national governing body for the sport, the United States Wrestling Federation (now called USA Wrestling) and is credited with the United States' increasing involvement in the international wrestling scene. McCann, an Olympic Gold Medal winner in freestyle wrestling and a leader in the sport of wrestling, died June 7 in his home in Dana Point, California.
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