Gary Larsen

Wood Dale

Contributor

Gary Larsen attended West Leyden High School, graduating in 1980. He got his Bachelor’s Degree in journalism

from Roosevelt University in Chicago in 1986 and began writing for various publications, including a 10-year

stint covering high school sports for the Daily Herald in DuPage County that began in 1999.

Gary was given the wrestling and soccer beats at the paper and has been covering wrestling at the high school

level for more than 30 years. He has twice been honored as Newsman of the Year by the IWCOA, receiving that

honor first in 2006 and then again in 2020.

Six years ago, he began covering wrestling exclusively for the IWCOA along with IWCOA Hall of Fame reporters

Mike Garofola and Curt Herron, thanks to the initial support of IWCOA Hall of Famer Mick Torres, without

whom the current extensive coverage of wrestling on the IWCOA website would not have been possible.

After starting the Chicagoland Soccer website in 2009, Gary and Curt Herron were named Soccer Person of the

Year twice by the Illinois High School Soccer Coaches Association. He won that organization’s News Person of

the Year award in 2002.

He is also indebted to long-time head coaches and IWCOA Hall of Famers, Montini Catholic’s Mike Bukovsky,

Glenbard West’s Bernie Botheroyd and Hinsdale South’s Mike Matozzi, who all took the time nearly 30 years

ago to encourage a reporter who had never covered wrestling before to develop a deep affinity and appreciation

for the sport, its coaches and its competitors.