Class of 2020

John Clark wrestled on Fulton's second team and became the Red Raider's first Section 3 champion in 1964 at 145 pounds. He would later say of Fulton, "I think it was the perfect sport for the place and the perfect place for the sport".

John attended St. Lawrence University where he was instrumental in restarting the wrestling program. He was SLU's first conference champion as a sophomore and then again as a senior. After serving in the military, he returned to his alma mater and was named wrestling coach in 1972.

John's 23-year career coaching wrestling at St. Lawrence stands high among DIII coaches. His team's dual meet record is 182-54-7. Much of his schedule was against DI opponents. He coached his wrestlers to a New York State team championship in 1977 and to an NCAA National Team Championship in 1988. His teams produced 9 NCAA DIII National Champions and 64 NYS All-State place winners. Thirteen of his teams had top 10 finishes in NCAA Championships, 4 of them in the top 4. He was named NYS Collegiate Coach of the Year in 1978 and he was recognized as NCAA DIII Coach of the Year in 1988.

John never strayed too far from his Section 3 roots. He built his powerhouse program by establishing a "Route 81" pipeline from Central New York North to Canton. Seventy-two Section 3 wrestlers attended St. Lawrence, 40 were Section 3 champions, 15 became NCAA All-Americas and 5 became NCAA National Champions: Ron Pelligra (CBA), Mike Conners (B'ville), Pat Conners (B'ville), Lelan Rogers (Fulton), and Mark Shortsleeve (Fulton).

John was founder and publisher of Empire Wrestling News, the amateur wrestling newspaper for New York High Schools and colleges. He has served as President of NCAA DIII National Wrestling Coaches Association from 1978 to 1980 and as President of the NYS Wrestling Coaches Association from 1980 to 1982. In 1971, he founded the very successful summer wrestling school at SLU and directed the program until 1990. In 1979, John represented the United States in the World FILA Wrestling Conference in Yugoslavia when he received the FILA medal for his contributions to international wrestling. He was selected to coach at the National Wrestling Coaches Association's All-Star Wrestling Classic in 1989.

John has been inducted into 9 Athletic Hall of Fames as an athlete or coach. John and his wife, Donna, have been married for 51 years. They have raised 7 children and, at last count, have 17 grandchildren. They were co-pastor of a non-denominational Christian Church for 12 years. The 3 Clark sons have excelled as wrestlers at high school and at Ohio State University where Mitch, the oldest, was NCAA DI Champion at 177 pounds in 1998. Middle brother, John, was a two-time All-America; youngest, Charlie was a National Prep School Champion.

Since retirement, John has crossed Canada solo by bike (3,000 miles) from Vancouver, BC to New York. He has traveled by kayak (900 miles) the length of the St. Lawrence River to Labrador and then walked across Newfoundland (500 miles). His soon-to-be published book, Journey to Daybreak will be published soon. This book talks about his transcontinental adventure. Remembering his coaching career and Section 3, John says, "I am proud of the Section 3 athletes who competed for St. Lawrence University and the great tradition they created".