View source for Kenny Monday

{{short description|American wrestler (born 1961)}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=October 2024}}
{{Infobox sportsperson
| name = Kenny Monday
| image = Kenny Monday (53221829688) (cropped).jpg
| caption = Monday in 2023
| nationality = 
| birth_date = {{birth-date and age|November 25, 1961}}
| birth_place = [[Tulsa, Oklahoma]], U.S.
| height = 5 ft 10 in
| weight = 74 kg
| country = United States
| sport = [[Wrestling]]
| event = [[Freestyle wrestling|Freestyle]] and [[Collegiate wrestling|Folkstyle]]
| collegeteam = [[Oklahoma State Cowboys wrestling|Oklahoma State]]
| club = [[Sunkist Kids|Sunkist Kids Wrestling Club]]
| team = USA
| headercolor = lightsteelblue
| show-medals = yes
| medaltemplates = {{MedalSport | Men's [[freestyle wrestling]] }}
{{MedalCountry | the {{USA}} }}
{{MedalCompetition | [[Wrestling at the Summer Olympics|Olympic Games]] }}
[[File:Olympic rings.svg|center|80px]]
{{MedalGold| [[1988 Summer Olympics|1988 Seoul]] | [[Wrestling at the 1988 Summer Olympics – Men's freestyle 74 kg|74&nbsp;kg]]}}
{{MedalSilver| [[1992 Summer Olympics|1992 Barcelona]] | [[Wrestling at the 1992 Summer Olympics – Men's freestyle 74 kg|74&nbsp;kg]]}}
{{MedalCompetition | [[World Wrestling Championships|World Championships]] }}
{{MedalGold | [[1989 World Wrestling Championships|1989 Martigny]] |  74 kg }}
{{MedalSilver | [[1991 World Wrestling Championships|1991 Varna]] |  74 kg }}
{{MedalCompetition | [[Pan American Games]] }}
{{MedalGold| [[1991 Pan American Games|1991 Havana]] | [[Wrestling at the 1991 Pan American Games|74&nbsp;kg]]}}
{{MedalSport |  [[Collegiate wrestling|Collegiate Wrestling]]}}
{{MedalCountry|the [[Oklahoma State Cowboys wrestling|Oklahoma State Cowboys]]}}
{{MedalCompetition|[[NCAA Division I Wrestling Championships|NCAA Division I Championships]]}}
{{MedalGold|[[1984 NCAA Division I Wrestling Championships|1984 East Rutherford]]|150 lb}}
{{MedalSilver|[[1983 NCAA Division I Wrestling Championships|1983 Oklahoma City]]|150 lb}}
{{MedalSilver|[[1982 NCAA Division I Wrestling Championships|1982 Ames]]|150 lb}}
{{MedalCompetition|[[Big Eight Conference|Big 8 Championships]]}}
{{MedalGold|1982 Lincoln|150 lb}}
{{MedalGold|1983 Ames|150 lb}}
{{MedalSilver|1984 Stillwater|150 lb}}
{{MedalBronze|1981 Stillwater|142 lb}}
| Sports = 
}}

'''Kenny Dale Monday''' (born November 25, 1961) is an [[Olympic Games|Olympic]] gold medalist and three-time [[All-American]] [[Sport wrestling|wrestler]] from [[Oklahoma State University]]. He began wrestling at age six at a [[YMCA]] after-school program and grew up idolizing Olympic wrestler [[Wayne Wells (wrestler)|Wayne Wells]]. Monday is a three-time Olympian.

Monday attended [[Booker T. Washington High School (Tulsa, Oklahoma)|Booker T. Washington High School]] in [[Tulsa, Oklahoma]], where he won four state titles and the 1977 Junior National championship. He never lost a match from seventh grade through the end of high school and finished with a record of 140–0–1.

As an All-American at OSU, Monday won the [[National Collegiate Athletic Association|NCAA]] title in 1984 at 150 pounds. His collegiate record of 121–12–2 contributed to the Cowboys winning two Big Eight titles. He won the 1989 World Championship and a series of USA Freestyle championships in 1985, 1988, 1991, and 1996. He won the Olympic Championship in 1988 in a 5–2 overtime win against the [[Soviet Union]]'s [[Adlan Varaev]]. Monday was voted the outstanding wrestler of the Grand Masters of Olympic Wrestling in 1990, after beating [[Rahmat Sofiadi]] of Bulgaria.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Bentley |first=Mac |date=1990-12-30 |title=State's Best 5A Teams In Geary Tournament |url=https://www.oklahoman.com/story/news/1990/12/30/states-best-5a-teams-in-geary-tournament/62541418007/ |access-date=2024-10-31 |website=The Oklahoman |language=en-US}}</ref>

Monday was a silver medalist in the 1992 Olympics and placed sixth in the 1996 [[1996 Summer Olympics|Atlanta Summer Olympics]]. In 2001, Monday was inducted into the [[National Wrestling Hall of Fame]] as a Distinguished Member.<ref>[https://nwhof.org/hall_of_fame/bio/377 Kenny Monday]. ''National Wrestling Hall of Fame''. Retrieved September 18, 2022.</ref>

On March 28, 1997, Monday competed in a [[mixed martial arts]] bout defeating John Lewis by TKO in round two at Extreme Fighting 4, which was held in [[Des Moines, Iowa]].

Monday has also worked as the wrestling coach with the [[Blackzilians]], a [[mixed martial arts]] camp based in [[Boca Raton, Florida]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.bloodyelbow.com/2013/4/5/4186222/olympic-wrestling-legend-kenny-monday-joins-blackzilian-camp-ufc-mma|title=Olympic wrestling legend, Kenny Monday joins the Blackzilian camp as wrestling coach|date=5 April 2013|publisher=Bloody Elbow|access-date=2019-12-16|archive-date=August 31, 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130831233232/http://www.bloodyelbow.com/2013/4/5/4186222/olympic-wrestling-legend-kenny-monday-joins-blackzilian-camp-ufc-mma|url-status=dead}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://sports.yahoo.com/blogs/mma-cagewriter/wrestling-coach-kenny-monday-let-go-by-backzilians-202945253.html|title=Wrestling coach Kenny Monday let go by 'Blackzilians' |date=21 May 2014 |publisher=Yahoo Sports|access-date= 2019-12-16}}</ref> He is married to Sabrina Goodwin Monday (National Sales Director for Mary Kay Cosmetics) and has three children. Both his sons would become NCAA Division I wrestlers. His oldest son Kennedy wrestled for the [[University of North Carolina]],<ref>{{cite web|url=https://goheels.com/sports/wrestling/roster/kennedy-monday/16242|title=Kennedy Monday |publisher=University of North Carolina Athletic Department|access-date= 2019-12-16}}</ref> and his younger son Quincy currently{{when|date=August 2023}} wrestles for [[Princeton University]]. Monday currently{{when|date=August 2023}} resides in [[North Carolina]].{{citation needed|date=August 2023}}

On August 15, 2022, Monday was announced as the head wrestling coach of the resurrected [[Morgan State University]] program that last competed in 1997.<ref>{{cite web | url=https://morganstatebears.com/news/2022/8/15/general-olympic-gold-medalist-selected-to-lead-revived-wrestling-program-at-morgan-state-university.aspx | title=Olympic Gold Medalist Selected to Lead Revived Wrestling Program at Morgan State University | date=15 August 2022 }}</ref>

==Mixed martial arts record==
{{MMArecordbox
| draws=
| ko-wins=1
| ko-losses=
| sub-wins=
| sub-losses=
| dec-wins=
| dec-losses=
}}
{{MMA record start}}
|-
| {{yes2}}Win
| align=center | 1–0
| John Lewis
| TKO (punches)
| Extreme fighting 4
| {{dts|1997|March|28}}
| align=center | 2
| align=center | 4:23
| [[Des Moines, Iowa]], USA
|
{{end}}

==Submission grappling record==
{{s-start}}
|- style="text-align:center; background:#f0f0f0;"
| style="border-style:none none solid solid; "|'''Result'''
| style="border-style:none none solid solid; "|'''Opponent'''
| style="border-style:none none solid solid; "|'''Method'''
| style="border-style:none none solid solid; "|'''Event'''
| style="border-style:none none solid solid; "|'''Date'''
| style="border-style:none none solid solid; "|'''Round'''
| style="border-style:none none solid solid; "|'''Time'''
| style="border-style:none none solid solid; "|'''Notes'''
|-
|{{no2}}Loss||{{flagicon|USA}} [[Matt Hume]] || Submission (toe hold) || The Contenders|| October 11, 1997|| 1|| 0:45||
|-
{{s-end}}

==See also==
* [[List of Oklahoma State University Olympians]]

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==External links==
* {{cite Sports-Reference |url=https://www.sports-reference.com/olympics/athletes/mo/kenny-monday-1.html|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200418033547/https://www.sports-reference.com/olympics/athletes/mo/kenny-monday-1.html|url-status=dead|archive-date=2020-04-18}}
* [http://www.sherdog.com/fighter/Kenny-Monday-420 Sherdog]

{{Olympic Champions freestyle wrestling welterweight}}
{{World Champions freestyle wrestling welterweight}}
{{Footer USA Wrestling 1988 Summer Olympics}}
{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Monday, Kenny}}
[[Category:1961 births]]
[[Category:Living people]]
[[Category:Sportspeople from Tulsa, Oklahoma]]
[[Category:Booker T. Washington High School (Tulsa, Oklahoma) alumni]]
[[Category:Oklahoma State University alumni]]
[[Category:Oklahoma State Cowboys wrestlers]]
[[Category:Wrestlers at the 1988 Summer Olympics]]
[[Category:Wrestlers at the 1992 Summer Olympics]]
[[Category:Wrestlers at the 1996 Summer Olympics]]
[[Category:Medalists at the 1988 Summer Olympics]]
[[Category:Medalists at the 1992 Summer Olympics]]
[[Category:Olympic gold medalists for the United States in wrestling]]
[[Category:Olympic silver medalists for the United States in wrestling]]
[[Category:American male sport wrestlers]]
[[Category:Sportspeople from Stillwater, Oklahoma]]
[[Category:Wrestlers at the 1991 Pan American Games]]
[[Category:Medalists at the 1991 Pan American Games]]
[[Category:Pan American Games gold medalists for the United States in wrestling]]
[[Category:African-American sport wrestlers]]
[[Category:20th-century American sportsmen]]