Like any good referee, Nadine Ihde-Johnston wants to remain inconspicuous. She’s not supposed to be part of the story.
“I try not to have anybody notice me,” she said.
Too late. Because she has a heck of a story to tell.
Johnston, 57, is officiating her third Colorado state wrestling tournament. This year, she’s the only female ref working the mats. She’s hard to miss with her silver ponytail and spry style, quick wit and evident passion for the sport.
“I don’t stand around much,” said Ihde-Johnston, who lives in Colorado Springs. “I do have a good time of it. When the heavyweights come out, I say, ‘OK, guys, here’s the deal: Big guys, little mat, little ref.’
“Some of the boys are like, ‘Wow, that’s hilarious.’ I think they can tell that I really enjoy doing this.”
Six years ago, she made history in the nation’s wrestling heartland, becoming the first woman to ref at Iowa’s state tournament. That came after 19 years on high school mats during regular-season meets and 24 years at the scorer’s table at the IHSAA state wrestling tournament.
“Getting to be an official in the state meet in Iowa is pretty difficult — for a man or a woman,” she said.
In 2024, she was named the first National AAU Wrestling Women’s Official of the Year. She also served on the committee to select the officials for this year’s Colorado state tournament.
She’s earned her wrestling chops.
“She’s one of the most respected wrestling officials in the state, boys or girls, it doesn’t matter,” said Colorado tournament director John Sullivan. “I think it’s because of her presence out on the floor. She’s definitive, but she’s also understanding. She loves the sport, and that comes out. Her energy is awesome. There is nothing not to like about Nadine.”
Raised in Plainfield, Iowa, Ihde-Johnston couldn’t help but fall in love with wrestling.
“I’m going to blame my dad (Ron Ihde, 86),” she said. “He was a big wrestling fan. I have four sisters, and he didn’t think cheerleading was a good option for us. He was pretty conservative and didn’t want us wearing short skirts. So, our only option was to be managers for the school teams.”
After college, she became a teacher and coached boys wrestling as an assistant at the middle-school level. Then she slowly worked her way into officiating.
She would likely still be in Iowa, but she met Dr. Douglas Johnston five years ago. They married, and he persuaded her to move to Colorado. But Ihde-Johnston didn’t want to abandon her wrestling roots. She continues officiating at the IHSAA state wrestling tournament and refereed at the Indiana state meet this year. She’s also officiated at prestigious tournaments in Texas, Washington and Virginia.
“I’ve been going back and forth between Colorado and Iowa for the last four years,” she said. “It adds up to something like 40 days a year, and it gets hectic. But I wanted to stay part of wrestling in Iowa because the girls in Iowa were just getting started.”
Iowa had its first sanctioned girls state tournament in 2023. This year, more than 5,000 girls participated in Iowa high school wrestling. Colorado has about 1,500.
According to the National Federation of State High School Associations, the number of girls wrestling teams across the country has quadrupled over the past decade. In 2024, more than 50,000 high school girls wrestled.
“We need to keep building women’s wrestling here in Colorado,” Ihde-Johnston said. “We have a good base, but we need to help them and support them. It’s growing. I love to see it. I love to be a part of it.”
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