By Gary Abbott, USA Wrestling

Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld was in Colorado Springs, Colo. today on very important business, a series of NATO meetings to be held at the Broadmoor Hotel.

However, he took a little time for some other business, to visit the U.S. Olympic Training Center (USOTC) and attend a workout of the USOTC resident wrestling team.

Secretary Rumsfeld arrived the training center with a security detail and first met with U.S. Olympic Committee officials, led by their current operating chief Jim Scherr. At the start of his visit, he viewed a number of sites on the USOTC campus.

A team captain wrestler for Princeton in the mid-1950's who tried out for the 1956 U.S. Olympic team, Rumsfeld has always expressed a strong passion for wrestling. USA Wrestling and the resident athletes were excited and proud that he took the time from his busy and demanding schedule to come to the practice.

The men's freestyle team was in the middle of its afternoon practice, led by National Freestyle Coach Kevin Jackson and Resident Freestyle Coach Sergei Beloglazov, both Olympic champions. Two members of the U.S. World Team were also in town and training today: Joe Williams (163) and Kerry McCoy (264.5). Rumsfeld had been in New York City to see the World Championships of Freestyle Wrestling a few weeks earlier, and saw Williams and McCoy in action.

The room was full with over 20 freestylers on the three mats, plus a pair of the women athletes who came for some early workouts, Sally Roberts and Marcie Van Dusen.

Rumsfeld entered the wrestling room with an entourage of military people, all in uniform. He was greeted at the door by USA Wrestling Executive Director Rich Bender, who pointed out details about the team and the facility. Bender presented Rumsfeld with a gift of USA Wrestling apparel and a copy of an article from the New Yorker magazine that was about his college wrestling career in Princeton.

Scherr, an Olympic wrestler and former USA Wrestling Executive Director, presented Rumsfeld with a nifty USOC jacket, and they talked about about wrestling.

When asked about his trip, Rumsfeld explained, "Well, we have 27 defense ministers from all over the world here this week."

Coach Jackson stopped the practice and brought the team over to meet with Rumsfeld. After introducing his coaches and a number of the athletes, Jackson asked Rumsfeld if he would pose for a picture with the resident team.

Secretary Rumsfeld made a few jokes while posing with the team, clearly enjoying himself.

"These guys have muscles in places I don't have places," said Rumsfeld.

"This is a good looking group; how do you like our ears?" he added, a joking reference to wrestler's cauliflower ears.

During the practice he shook hands with Juan Venturi (pictured above), a graduate of Princeton who is a freestyle wrestler in Colorado Springs training for the next Olympic Games.

Rumsfeld quipped to Venturi, "I thought they kicked you guys off campus?" Venturi proudly responded that they tried, and told Rumsfeld about how the Princeton wrestling community had saved the program. Later, Venturi gave Rumsfeld a Princeton wrestling sweatshirt as a gift.

He was especially interested to hear that some of the athletes were currently serving in the U.S. Armed Forces, and agreed to pose for a picture with the military athletes in the room. Those who lined up for a shot with Rumsfeld included U.S. Army wrestlers Charles Daniels, Dominic Black, Jason Kutz and Eric Albarracin, U.S. Air Force wrestlers Aaron Sieracki and Kevin Hoy, and WCAP trainer Nick Harrison.

All during the visit, a number of the Women's Team USA members arrived for their workout, as the team is preparing for the Women's World Cup in Japan this month. After the photo shoot broke up, Rumsfeld spoke with World silver medalist Patricia Miranda (105.5). When asked what they talked about, Miranda said that her economics professor at Stanford, John Taylor, was a mutual acquaintance. Apparently Mr. Taylor was an advisor to the administration of George H. Bush, and Rumsfeld knew him from serving in that administration. Rumsfeld saw Miranda in competition during the World Championships in New York City.

He also spent some time with two other members of the U.S. Women's World Team who he had seen in competition: World bronze medalist Sally Roberts (130) and World silver medalist Sara McMann (138.75).

Stating "I have a good idea about what happens here," Rumsfeld left the practice room, with his entourage of military personnel in tow. He walked past the weight training facility next to wrestling room and then out into the Colorado Springs afternoon. Shortly, he would again be dealing with the world military issues and other pressing international matters.

As happens with these kind of visits, Secretary Rumsfeld was at the wrestling facility earlier than expected. Some of the athletes from the women's team and Greco-Roman team were a bit disappointed that they had just missed him when they showed up for workouts.

For a few minutes, a former wrestling athlete who is now one of the most powerful men in the world had a chance to touch base with his wrestling roots. Rumsfeld is another example of the saying, "Once a wrestler, always a wrestler."