Clarissa Chun is the head coach of the University of Iowa women’s wrestling team, the first in the program’s history. In 2021, Iowa became the first NCAA Division 1 Power Five conference institution to offer women’s wrestling.  

Chun joins the Iowa women’s wrestling program from USA Wrestling, where she was an assistant coach on the women’s national team from 2017-21. Chun helped lead the United States to 17 World medals, including seven gold, four silver and six bronzes, as well as an Olympic gold, Olympic silver and two Olympic bronzes. 

Chun is a two-time Olympian, competing at 48 kg in the 2008 Beijing Games and 2012 London Games. Chun wrestled at five Senior World Championships, including a gold-medal performance at the 2008 Worlds in Tokyo.  

During her career, Chun won five U.S. Open titles; a 2011 Pan American Games silver medal; four gold medals at the Pan American Championships; and was a runner-up at four U.S. World Team Trials and three U.S. Opens. Chun competed for Missouri Valley College, where she was a star on one of the pioneer women’s college wrestling team programs.  

Chun has coaching experience at both the international and college levels. She was a member of the men’s wrestling staff at West Virginia University, serving as the program’s operations assistant while also training at the Regional Training Center. 

Chun was inducted in the National Wrestling Hall of Fame as a Distinguished Member in June 2022. She is one of only four females bestowed Distinguished Member honors. In 2018, Chun was inducted into the Missouri Valley College Hall of Fame, Hawaii Sports Hall of Fame, and Roosevelt High School Hall of Fame.