WWE's Gable Steveson Returns to Amateur Wrestling Ahead of 2024 Olympics After Rumors

USA Wrestling announced Tuesday that Olympic gold medalist turned WWE Superstar Gable Steveson is returning to amateur wrestling as part of the U.S. Open later this month.

Steveson, 22, retired from amateur wrestling at the conclusion of the NCAA Division I Wrestling Championships in March 2022 after winning his second consecutive national title at 285 pounds for the University of Minnesota.

He left his wrestling shoes on the mat and left to embark on a pro wrestling career, but Steveson has yet to compete in his first match for WWE.

The biggest reason for the delay was the fact that Steveson had to undergo a heart procedure. In October, Steveson told ESPN's Mike Coppinger that he had an ablation performed on his heart to treat Wolff-Parkinson-White syndrome at the behest of WWE's medical team.

While the plan at that point was for Steveson to train full time at the WWE Performance Center in Orlando, Florida, and work toward his in-ring debut, he apparently feels as though he has some unfinished business in the world of amateur wrestling.

In March, Steveson told Damon Martin of MMAFighting.com that he was closing on his WWE debut and was just waiting for WWE to tell him when he would be used.

During that same interview, Steveson expressed a desire to take a detour back to amateur wrestling and compete at the 2024 Summer Olympics in the meantime, saying:

"I miss being on the mats. I miss showcasing my skills every year and going out there and putting on a good show and going out there and winning the national tournament. I miss it. I still have that competitive fighter and hope to get back out there really soon.

"I know the Olympics is next year and I hope to be a part of that and keep moving forward and keep winning big titles for the USA also."

Steveson won a gold medal for Team USA in freestyle wrestling at the 2020 Summer Olympics in Tokyo, which were held in 2021 becuase of the COVID-19 pandemic.

He signed with WWE shortly thereafter on the heels of also considering joining UFC and the NFL. Steveson has made multiple WWE appearances, but he has yet to compete in a match.

His most notable WWE involvement came last year at WrestleMania 38, when Steveson hit Chad Gable with a belly-to-belly suplex and then celebrated in the ring with RK-Bro and The Street Profits.

Steveson and WWE seemingly still have their sights set on working together and doing big things in the future, but competing in the U.S. Open in Las Vegas from April 26 through 30 is a major step toward Steveson potentially taking part in the 2024 Summer Games in Paris.

---

Listen to Ring Rust Radio for all of the hot wrestling topics. Catch the latest episode in the player below.