Olympic Wrestler Dies of Mesothelioma

June 12, 2006 - Terrance J. McCann, a 1960 Olympic gold medal winner in the sport of freestyle wrestling, died of asbestos-related cancer on June 7th at his home in Dana Point, California. 

A press release issued by the McCann family notes that “McCann helped found a new national governing body for the sport, the United States Wrestling Federation (now called USA Wrestling) and is credited with the United States' increasing involvement in the international wrestling scene.”

McCann was president of USA Wrestling for four years and also served on the United States Olympic Committee for several years and was a member of the board of FILA, the international governing body of wrestling. 

McCann developed mesothelioma due to his employment at an oil refinery nearly fifty years ago.  The wrestler took the job at the refinery to help finance his career and worked at the Tulsa, OK location in the late 1950s while training for the Olympics.

McCann learned he had the disease in 2005.  Soon after his April diagnosis, he joined a class action lawsuit against asbestos manufacturers and became a spokesman against a proposal before Congress to impose limits on litigation against those companies, known as the Fairness in Asbestos Resolution (FAIR) Act.  His family notes that he recently appeared in a national television commercial denouncing the proposed Senate bill.

McCann is survived by his wife of 52 years, Lucille; seven children; 18 grandchildren; two great-grandchildren; a brother and two sisters.