Rylen Wax hasn't wrestled a single high school match yet, and he already owns a world title.

The 16-year-old incoming Dublin Coffman freshman won gold in Greco-Roman wrestling at the U17 World Championships in Baku, Azerbaijan, on July 27, then added a silver medal in freestyle on Aug. 2. Had he won that freestyle final, he would have become just the fourth wrestler in history to claim both styles at the same U17 Worlds.

Wax competed at 45 kilograms (about 99 pounds). In the Greco-Roman final against Azerbaijan's Ali Javaldi, he trailed by five points in the second period before rallying to win by 13-5 technical fall. He told Sports Illustrated on Aug. 5 that the comeback was no accident.

"I've done a lot of studying on that Azerbaijan kid," Wax said. "When we got put back on our feet I grabbed him. I knew I had the match won. Even though he had that big lead. I felt his body just get a little weaker than it was."

In the freestyle final, Puerto Rico's Nelson Villafane beat Wax 7-1. Wax had swept Villafane at the Pan American Championships in the spring, winning both freestyle and Greco-Roman gold there. The Ironman Tournament in December could produce a rematch.

Wax turned 16 during the competition in Baku.

What it means for Coffman

Head coach Chance Van Gundy, entering his 15th season leading the Shamrocks, organized a team welcome-home celebration for Wax upon his return to Ohio. Van Gundy told the Columbus Dispatch on Aug. 6 that Wax has "one of the best work ethics I've ever seen at his age" and called his style "super high-tempo and hard-nosed."

Coffman's program is already on the rise. The Shamrocks finished as Division I state duals runner-up in February, losing to perennial power Lakewood St. Edward 39-29 in the final at Marysville. It was the program's best-ever finish in that event.

Wax enters the 2026-27 season ranked No. 8 nationally at 106 pounds in preseason rankings from Sports Illustrated's high school coverage. He's not the only Shamrock on the list: junior Blaze Van Gundy, the coach's son, is ranked No. 5 at 132 pounds, and junior Loc Webber sits at No. 15 at 120 pounds.

Team USA brought home six total medals from the U17 Worlds in Baku, with Wax, Maryland's Salah Tsarni and Montana's Bruno Pallone among the medalists.

Coffman's wrestling season opens this winter, with Wax set to compete at 106 pounds and a potential December rematch with Villafane at the Ironman Tournament on the early-season calendar.