Most people don’t realize that TJ is a nickname he aquired as a baby and doesn’t stand for anything. TJ’s real name is Christopher MarcAurele. This became confusing as sometimes TJ’s father would enter him into a tournament as Christopher and other times by his nickname, TJ. There were times when TJ didn’t get recognition as Christopher was thought to be someone else.
Looking at TJ’s wrestling records, it seems he was wrestling before he started walking. TJ won his first wrestling tournament at only 5 years old. That was just the beginning as his wrestling awards grew each year. TJ also practiced Judo as a child and won various first place awards. On May 17, 1987, TJ became the first Connecticut wrestler to win a first place medal in the Northeast Regional wrestling tournament. That was also the first year that any Connecticut wrestler had placed in the top four of a weight bracket.
High School
At 14 years old, TJ entered Norwich Free Academy with more wrestling experience than any other freshman. During High School, TJ had 3 undefeated wrestling seasons in 1989, 1990, and 1992. These are the same years that TJ won the New England Championship. He is the only Connecticut wrestler inducted into the New England Wrestling Hall of Fame. TJ finished high school with a 171-1 record, the highest winning percentage of any other Connecticut wrestler. His only loss was in the New England Championship his junior year. TJ was sick and on medication, he lost in the semifinals 0-1, then left the tournament due to illness. If TJ hadn’t been sick, he would have been a 4x NE Champion. Unfortunately, because TJ left the tournament early, he was given another loss in the record book. However, he only lost once in his high school career. TJ was also the first wrestler to ever win the Connecticut state open championship 4 times
TJ became the 1989, 1990, 1991, 1992 Connecticut Open Champion, 1989, 1990, 1991 Class LL Champion, 1992 Class L Champion, 1989 East Hartford Tournament Champion, 1989, 1990, 1991, 1992 ECC Champion, AAU/USA Northeast Regional Champion, Junior Olympic Champion, Grand National Champion in Greco, Freestyle, and Sombo. He became the first Connecticut wrestler to win a gold medal at the Greco Roman World Championship in 1989.
In 1992, TJ won the Northeast Regionals in both Freestyle and Greco Roman. He also won the Southwest Regionals in Las Vegas that same year and won Outstanding Wrestler in Greco Roman.
TJ graduated Ledyard High School early, the class of 1992, to participate in a 3 week Team USA tour throughout Europe. This tour went through Germany and Czechoslovakia. This was during the Czechoslovakia split and TJ didn’t think he would make it out. He won 12 international matches in Greco Roman while he was there. TJ has never lost an international match in Greco Roman. All together, he has a 17-0 record in Greco Roman International matches, including his world title championship.
College
TJ went on to Garden City Community College in Kansas to join their top NJCAA wrestling team. He went out there at 158 pounds after bulking up to gain strength. Burned out from all his training and competition, TJ redshirted his freshman year. He was still making the transition to college competition and was no longer the star wrestler that he was used to at high school. As a college freshman, TJ won the 1993 Sombo Nationals in Oklahoma.
TJ competed at 118 pounds his second year which required extreme weight cutting strategies. It was much lighter than TJ’s normal competition weight, but he was on scholarship and that’s where his coach wanted him. Despite the weight challenge, TJ’s collegiate record at Garden City was 28-1, losing only once in the 1994 national NJCAA championship by 2 points (11-9). In fact, TJ almost didn’t make weight for that tournament as it took severe dehydration for him to get down to competition weight. He was five pounds overweight just days before the tournament and had to sweat it all out. Could he have won if it wasn’t for the last minute weight reducing methods? It’s hard to say, but it definately didn’t put him in the best shape for the national tournament. Despite TJ’s loss, his team won the National NJCAA title. That year was a great turning point for TJ. He realized what all the weight cutting was doing to him and his love for wrestling hasn’t been the same since Garden City.
After earning his associate degree, TJ transferred to North Carolina State in his junior year on a full wrestling scholarship, but his heart was no longer into wrestling. He left college in February 1995 and returned to Connecticut to be with his family. His only wrestling competition since then was the Sombo Nationals in 1996 where he won first place with only one week of preparation.