Greg Edgelow
Cree
Induction Category:
Year Inducted
Athlete
2024
Greg Edgelow is a retired Olympic freestyle wrestler born in Edmonton, Alberta and living in Vancouver, BC, Canada. Edgelow is a nationally certified Aboriginal Wrestling Coach with Cree Ancestral Heritage from Manitoba Canada and European mix. In 2018, Edgelow was inducted into the British Columbia Sports Hall of Fame, Indigenous Gallery.
Edgelow won at every level of wrestling. He was a juvenile, junior and six-time Canadian senior wrestling champion (7 Freestyle and 1 Greco) and 5 times top-10 placing at the world championships (fourth, sixth, seventh, eighth, and ninth). He represented Canada at the 1992 Summer Olympics in Barcelona, Spain placing 11th and won a bronze medal at the 1990 Goodwill Games in Seattle, two bronze medals at the 1991 Pan American Games in Havana, Cuba, a silver medal at the 1992 Pan American Championships, Toronto and a gold medal at the 1994 Commonwealth Games in Victoria.
Edgelow is the only Canadian to win a medal in wrestling (bronze) at the Goodwill Games. He is also the only Canadian wrestler to win four separate consecutive senior freestyle weight classes (82 kg, 90 kg, 96 kg, 100 kg). His last senior national title was in 1998, where he represented Canada (100 Kg) at the World Championships in Tehran, Iran. He is a two-time NAIA All-American for Simon Fraser University, while placing #1 in Minot, ND at 177 lbs. in 1986.
Edgelow was awarded the 1999 Canadian Sport Leadership Award for his outstanding athletic achievements and leadership in volunteerism, beating out fellow finalist, Hockey great Wayne Gretzky.
Edgelow was the motivational speaker at the Parade of Nations for the 1997 North American Indigenous Games (NAIG) Victoria and member of Aboriginal Team BC Mission Staff at NAIG 2006 Denver and Assistant Chef de Mission, Team BC at NAIG 2008 Cowichan. He worked with the BC Boys U-16 Soccer team at the 2017 NAIG Toronto where they earned gold. Edgelow created an endowed wrestling scholarship fund at his Alma Mata, Simon Fraser University in 1996 that has financially assisted over 35 university wrestlers since its creation.
Edgelow works in Indigenous relations at the corporate level providing economic development, jobs and training for Indigenous people and businesses.