LLHS grad Jonathan Gurule earns USA Wrestling berth

LOS LUNAS —Admittedly, Jonathan “Jonny” Gurule, a 2021 Los Lunas High School graduate, isn’t ready for the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris, but he still plans to make his presence known on an international stage this year.

As a member of the USA Wrestling U-23 Team, the itinerary for Gurule includes last week’s Pan Am games, where he lost both matches in Rionegro, Columbia, and the age-group World Championships in Turana, Albania, in October.

The road to this point has been a bit unexpected for Gurule. No longer a traditional freestyle wrestler, Gurule specializes in Greco-Roman, which is unfamiliar to many wrestling fans.

“It has confusing rules,” Gurule said in early June during a visit to the LLHS wrestling room.

“Greco is just all upper body. It’s harder to score,” Gurule said. “You score more from throws and stuff like that.”

After completing his high school career, which included a state 4A championship at 113 pounds, Gurule ended up at Northern Michigan University. He wasn’t very enthusiastic when he landed in Marquette.

“It was kind of my last choice,” Gurule admitted.

“This place sucks,” was his reaction when he first arrived. “I’m gonna transfer.”

However, NMU pulled a classic wrestling move — a reversal.

“It was just a great environment,” he said. “I ended up meeting a bunch of cool people. I was getting better in my sport, and I was just having fun.”

Part of the fun was learning Greco-Roman, which is the focus at the NCAA Division II school.

“Our goals are to make Olympic teams, to make USA teams for our age group and then win world championships,” Gurule said.

Already, Gurule is a national champion, capturing the 2024 USA Wrestling 63 KG (139 lbs.) title in Geneva, Ohio, to earn a berth on the U-23 team.

“I just thought of what I’ve been through and all the training that has led me to this — where I’m from, my family, my state and who I’m representing,” Gurule reflected. “That kind of motivated me to go out there and win it.”

In a few weeks, wrestling and other sports, which are often overlooked will have a moment to shine at the Summer Olympics.

“There is some obscurity,” Gurule says about wrestling. “I feel like the organization doesn’t do great promoting the sport,” adding, “I know that women’s wrestling is growing a lot. The sport is doing better. I enjoy it. I love it.”

Even with that love for wrestling, Gurule says he expects to move on when his college days are over, with a finance degree in hand.

“I want to transfer my skills that I’ve learned from wrestling to building a company, a technology company,” he said. “I’ve learned a lot of great things from the sport of wrestling.”

Gurule credits his roots in Valencia County for much of his success to this point.

“A lot of kids have heart. They never give up,” referencing competitors from Los Lunas, Belen and Valencia.

“I think just learning a lot of skills from being scrappy, having heart, just never giving up. That’s something I have, and a lot of people have here in the valley.”