Tamyra Mensah-Stock facts for kids
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Tamyra 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 and a former amateur wrestler. She is currently signed with WWE. There, she wrestles on the NXT brand using the name Tyra Mae Steele.
Before joining WWE, Tamyra was a top women's freestyle wrestling athlete. She won a gold medal at the Tokyo Olympics on August 3, 2021. This made her the first Black woman to win a gold medal in women's freestyle wrestling at the Olympics.
Contents
Early Life and Education
Tamyra 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, her sister and wrestling coach, Mark Balser, convinced her to try wrestling.
She almost quit wrestling after a very sad event involving her father. He was her biggest supporter. She felt wrestling was connected to this difficult time. However, she found the strength to continue with the sport.
In 2010 and 2011, Tamyra 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). She earned a Bachelor’s Degree in Exercise and Sports Science. As a student wrestler, she won the Women's Collegiate Wrestling Association (WCWA) Nationals Championship in 2014 and 2017. She also placed third in 2013 and first in 2015 at the U.S. Universities Championship.
Amazing Amateur Wrestling Career
Tamyra won the 68 kg class at the 2016 U.S. Olympic Trials. However, no American wrestlers in her weight class qualified 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 qualified her to represent the United States at the 2020 Summer Olympics. She was one of three gold medalists for the United States in women's freestyle wrestling at those championships. It was the first time the U.S. won three gold medals in women's wrestling at a single World Championships.
Tamyra 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, Tamyra won the gold medal in the women's freestyle 68 kg event at the 2020 Summer Olympics. She defeated 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 in the women's 68 kg event at the 2021 World Wrestling Championships in Oslo, Norway. She also won gold at the 2022 Tunis Ranking Series event in Tunis, Tunisia.
Joining Professional Wrestling
On May 3, 2023, it was announced that Tamyra 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, but she lost her first match to Wren Sinclair.
Personal Life
In 2016, Tamyra Mensah-Stock married Jacob Stock. Jacob also wrestled at Morton Ranch High School and Wayland Baptist University with Tamyra. Tamyra Mensah-Stock follows a pescatarian diet. This means she eats fish but no other meat.
See also
In Spanish: Tamyra Mensah para niños
