Tamyra Mensah-Stock facts for kids
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Mensah-Stock at the 2021 World Wrestling Championships
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| Full name | Tamyra Mariama Mensah-Stock | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Born | October 11, 1992 Chicago, Illinois, U.S. |
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| Height | 1.65m | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Weight | 69 kg (152 lb) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Spouse(s) | Jacob Stock | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Country | United States | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Sport | Wrestling | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Event(s) | Freestyle | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| College team | Wayland Baptist University | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Club | Titan Mercury Wrestling Club | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Coached by | Terry Steiner Izzy Izboinikov |
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Medal record
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Tamyra Mariama Mensah-Stock (born October 11, 1992) is an American professional wrestler. She used to be an amateur wrestler. She is now part of WWE, where she wrestles on the Evolve brand. Her ring name there is Tyra Mae Steele.
Before joining WWE, Mensah-Stock was a freestyle wrestler. She won a gold medal at the Tokyo Olympics on August 3, 2021. She made history as the first Black woman to win Olympic gold in women's freestyle wrestling.
Contents
Early Life and Education
Tamyra Mensah-Stock was born in Chicago, Illinois. She grew up in the suburbs of Houston, Texas. Her father was from Ghana, and her mother is from Illinois.
At Morton Ranch High School in Katy, Texas, Tamyra's twin sister, Tarkyia, joined the wrestling team. Tamyra first focused on track and field. When she was 15, in her sophomore year, she joined the wrestling team. Her sister and the wrestling coach, Mark Balser, convinced her to try it.
She almost stopped wrestling after a sad event. Her father passed away in a car accident on his way home from one of her high school wrestling matches. He was her biggest supporter.
In 2010 and 2011, she became the Texas High School Girls Champion. She had finished second in 2009. In 2010, she was also the U.S. Junior National runner-up.
After high school, she went to Wayland Baptist University (WBU). There, she earned a degree in Exercise and Sports Science. As a student wrestler, she won the Women's Collegiate Wrestling Association (WCWA) Nationals in 2014 and 2017. She also placed third at the U.S. Universities Championship in 2013 and first in 2015.
Amazing Amateur Wrestling Career
Tamyra won the 68 kg class at the 2016 U.S. Olympic Trials. However, no U.S. athletes secured a spot in that weight class for the 2016 Rio Olympics. So, she went to Brazil as a practice partner for her teammates.
She won the gold medal in the women's 68 kg event at the 2019 World Wrestling Championships. This win also meant she would represent the United States at the 2020 Summer Olympics. She was one of three gold medalists for the U.S. women's freestyle team that year. It was the first time the U.S. won three gold medals in women's wrestling at a single World Championships.
Mensah-Stock also earned a bronze medal in the women's 68 kg event at the 2018 World Wrestling Championships.
In January 2021, she won gold at the Grand Prix de France Henri Deglane 2021 in Nice, France. She also won gold at the Matteo Pellicone Ranking Series 2021 in Rome, Italy.
On August 3, 2021, she won the gold medal in the women's freestyle 68 kg event at the 2020 Summer Olympics. She beat Nigeria's Blessing Oborududu with a score of 4–1. This made her the first female African-American and the first Black wrestler to win Olympic gold. She was also only the second American woman to win wrestling gold, after Helen Maroulis in 2016. Two months after the Olympics, she won a bronze medal at the 2021 World Wrestling Championships in Oslo, Norway.
She won another gold medal at the 2022 Tunis Ranking Series event in Tunis, Tunisia.
Becoming a Professional Wrestler
On May 3, 2023, it was announced that Mensah-Stock had signed with WWE. She became a professional wrestler. She is the third Olympic wrestling gold medalist to sign with WWE, after Kurt Angle and Gable Steveson. She is also the first female Olympic wrestling gold medalist to join the company.
On July 5, 2024, she made her first wrestling match appearance on NXT Level Up. She wrestled under the name Tyra Mae Steele and lost her debut match against Wren Sinclair.
In February 2025, Steele took part in the first season of LFG (Legends & Future Greats). This was a reality TV show where "rising talents" competed for an NXT contract. She was mentored by The Undertaker and became the first woman to win the show.
On June 3, 2025, Steele made her NXT in-ring debut. She defeated Arianna Grace. On July 9, 2025, on Evolve, Steele announced she had moved to the Evolve brand. The next week, Steele won her first Evolve match in a triple threat match against Kylie Rae and Chantel Moneroe.
Personal Life
In 2016, Tamyra Mensah-Stock married Jacob Stock. He also wrestled at Morton Ranch High School and Wayland Baptist University. Mensah-Stock follows a pescatarian diet, meaning she eats fish but not other meat.
Championships and Awards
- WWE
- Women’s WWE LFG Season 1 winner
See also
In Spanish: Tamyra Mensah para niños
