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Chris Saba

Class of 2011
Bethlehem Eagles
Chris Saba started out wrestling for Bethlehem Central and wrestled varsity for the Eagles for 5 years under Coach Rick Poplaski. During this time he compiled a school record 153 victories. At the time he graduated it was the 4th most victories in the history of the section. He won two Section 2 Championships while finishing fourth in the New York State Tournament for the Eagles in 1988. Continuing his wrestling at Syracuse University he was a NYS Collegiate Champion in 1993. He was second in the 1993 and 1994 University Nationals, third at the 1990 Espoir Nationals and third at the 1989 Junior Nationals. He was the 1994 U.S. Olympic Festival champion and an Empire State Champion.

Saba became one of the best in the nation at Greco Roman Wrestling and competed internationally and achieved a No 1 ranked status in the US. He competed on the 1997 and 1998 U.S. World Team, and was the U.S. Open champion in 1997 and 1998. Chris was a runner up in both the 1996 and 2000 U.S. Olympic Trials and served as an Olympic Alternate. Saba won silver and bronze medals at the Pan American Championships. He was an international medal winner at the Granma Cup in Cuba, the Dave Schultz Memorial International, the Concord Cup and the Sunkist Kids International in the United States. He was one of the first Greco-Roman athletes to train full-time at the U.S. Olympic Training Center when he joined the resident program back in 1993.

For many years Chris served as a Greco-Roman coach for the national power New York Athletic Club and coached top athletes at the U.S. Open and the World Team Trials. Saba regularly helps coach top Greco-Roman athletes who train at the U.S. Olympic Training Center in Colorado Springs, Colo. He attends workouts often, training with the athletes and providing coaching support to the Greco-Roman program.

Saba was a coach for the 2016 U.S. team which competed at the Pan American Olympic Qualifier. He coached the 2015 Pan American Championships team which won the Greco-Roman team title. Saba has coached a number of USA Senior teams on international tours, including two trips to Cuba, plus events in Bulgaria and other locations. Saba served with the coaching staff at the 2015 U.S. World Championships.

Chris Saba was selected in 2016 to be one of the Greco-Roman coaches for the U.S. Olympic Wrestling Team in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.

Chris works in Colorado Springs as a medical device representative for Depuy Synthes Company. He sells and services joint replacement products in the Colorado Springs area. He is married to Hillary Wolf who was a 2x Judo Olympian and the first American Junior World Champ. He also runs a youth wrestling club called Rocky Mountain Wrestling in Colorado Springs. Chris enjoys spending time with his family and also is an avid fly fisherman.