R. Reed from the 1924 Oregon State Wrestling team.

Most Oregon State fans are all too aware of some of the great football and basketball players who have passed through this school. Some of the fans may be aware that Oregon State has one Heisman trophy courtesy of Terry Baker, but it’s far less likely that they know that Oregon State has featured several gold-medal-winning Olympians. Amongst that company of athletes, one name stands out for his impressive career that was unparalleled in its dominance.

Robin Reed wouldn’t have struck very many people as someone destined to be a wrestling great, weighing less than 130 pounds when he first took to the mat in high school at Portland’s Franklin High, but Reed quickly learned about the basics of the sport and in his time at Oregon State he took home the National AAU Championship in three different years[1]. His greatest feat was in 1924 when he won gold at the Paris Olympics, beating his fellow O.A.C. teammate Chet Newton in the finals and winning every single match by pinning his opponent.

R. Reed (top) competing on the mat.

Reed often participated in higher weight classes; during the 1924 wrestling season he entered the 175-pound class despite only weighing 140 pounds himself and won every single match. Perhaps the most extraordinary part about Reed’s career is that throughout it, he never lost a single match. In the 1927 Oregon State yearbook Reed’s style was described as “[placing] far more stress on a nimble brain and quick muscles than upon brute strength.” Despite his low weight Reed was able to wrestle with the best and according to the stories, on his way to Europe for the Olympics he wrestled every single other member of the U.S. wrestling team, winning every match and pinning all but the heavyweight.

R. Reed as coach in 1925.

After his college career came to an end Reed took up coaching at his alma mater, leading them to a Northwest conference title in 1925. After several years Reed quit coaching and became a professional wrestler for a decade, deciding to pursue real estate as a new line of work. In 1978 Reed was inducted into the National Wrestling Hall of Fame and in that same year he passed away, leaving behind a remarkable career and an unblemished record on the mat.