On Saturday, Max Nowry (55 kg, NYAC/NTS) woke up, weighed-in, hydrated a bit, consumed some calories, and then, for the first time in four years, suited up for a World Championships match. And when Sunday arrives, there may be a chance that he finds himself fighting for a medal.
The story with Nowry should not be unfamiliar to “Greco people”, nor should it be alien to casual wrestling fans in general. Following the 2022 World Championships, where he placed 5th, Nowry decided to, we’ll say, “deactivate” his career. There was a lot that went into his decision. It didn’t happen in a vacuum and, given the current situation (namely the fact that guy might be on the cusp of wrestling for bronze), it’s also not important. Not now. Not one of the factors which informed Nowry’s desire to go and instill a moratorium on his competitive life are critical to explore because the past is the past, and he is a more peaceful and complete individual keeping it that way.
But, as most in the United States Greco circle likely understand, Nowry didn’t just disappear. He began coaching alongside Joe Betterman for a while and focused on developing young wrestlers, such as Landon Drury (63 kg, NYAC/NTS). That went well and it fully ignited a passion for coaching that Nowry had already begun to nurture. So much so that as he was transitioning out of the Army, Nowry put the pieces in place to sell his house and move back to his home state of Illinois. With that, the rest has been a blur. Fatherhood. Reuniting in the Land of Lincoln with Bryan Medlin. A new house. New athletes to train, mentor. All of it. A blur. In whatever order. A whirlwind, but a happy one. No, if anything, a joyous one.
Thus, there was no real reason for anyone to expect Max Nowry to compete again. Least of all the man himself. He didn’t need it. There did not seem to be some sense of unfulfillment that taunted his inner dialogue, nor was there a laundry list of competitive regrets. Most crucial, there was also no drama. Nowry, in his mid-30’s, had finally acquired “the simple life” and waving goodbye to that for the sake of a comeback was unfathomable to the point where it was not even a topic worth considering.
And yet, here we are. Saturday afternoon on the east coach of the US, but Saturday night in Astana. The wrestler, he should be asleep by now, but who knows?
The remaining facts are well-known. They’ve been suitably covered since Nowry mowed through the World Trials in April. Just under four years removed from competition, he aced the 55 bracket, looking perhaps better than ever before in the process. At 36. Of course, that doesn’t mean the training block for this thing has been a breeze. Nowry has dealt with some physical stuff, the kind of stuff that will stay in the vault just a little longer, until his tournament is complete at the earliest. It is what it is. He has had to reconcile these items before, only in different forms. Hip labrum surgeries, so on and so forth. It’s not like a new phenomenon for him. Nowry holds a PhD in injury management. The good news is that as the training cycle for Astana neared its conclusion, Nowry started to gather momentum and landed in-country feeling better than he had in months.
In Nowry’s own mind, and he is probably not alone, this latest World Championships excursion is not only about him. It is about Medlin, as well. Oh, how Medlin shudders when attention is brought upon him. The problem is that it’s true. We very likely do not get a Nowry comeback tale in ’26 unless Medlin were somehow in the equation. It had to be this way. While Nowry on his own did begin hyper-engaging his synapses over the prospect of a return at various intervals dating back to ’22, the concept did not take hold until he became proximal to Medlin. Medlin was, is, a premier influence on Nowry personally as well as athletically. Yeah, maybe Nowry would have chewed on the idea of competing again if left to his own devices, but there is practically no way he goes through with it if Medlin cautioned otherwise. Instead, the esteemed coach encouraged Nowry to go for it. Medlin would not have done so if he had discerned a different scenario other than the one the duo currently have at their fingertips. Together, they knew then what everyone else now does: if Nowry is healthy, he is a contender for a medal. And maybe more so at 36 years of age than he was previously.
As such, introduction over, as if one were necessary. Below is all Nowry. I reached him shortly after the semifinal round was finished. It was a personal back-and-forth just asking how he’s feeling, but he went all pro-level in his response. I told him that it sounded like he was on-the-record, he told me I could “do whatever I want”, and so here is his verbiage pertaining to this tournament and how he is seeing it prior to tomorrow — which could end with him standing on the podium.
Max Nowry Post-Day 1 — 2026 World Championships
“Maybe more bittersweet if you want to get into the nitty gritty cracks of it. This year marks 20 since I first started with him (Medlin) in 2006 and this is also where my first Worlds was (in ’19). So in my head, just here to thoroughly enjoy the moment and try to do my best to wrestle my hardest and smartest out there. Almost got me in a little trouble first match, but trying to get back to pulling the trigger a little more out there and enjoying the moment in all its entirety.
“Plus, with this being year 20, feels more rewarding and full circle to finally get to do this all with him and Zane (Richards). Regardless of what the future holds, it’s pretty cool and neat for me to be able to have this as one of the last chapters of the Max Nowry saga.”
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