Rulon Gardner (born August 16, 1971 in Afton, Wyoming) is an amateur wrestler in the Greco-Roman discipline from the United States, most notable for his gold medal in the 2000 Olympics after defeating Russian Alexander Karelin, who was previously undefeated in 13 years of international competition. Gardner's win "shocked the wrestling world." His strength is often attributed to the physical labor he performed on the dairy farm where he grew up. A Mormon, he attended junior college at Ricks College (now BYU-Idaho) in Rexburg, Idaho and graduated from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln with a bachelor's degree in physical education though he has never taught in the classroom. He attended both Ricks and Nebraska on wrestling scholarships. His love is working with disadvantaged children and is currently making his profession as a motivational speaker.

On 25 February 2007, Gardner and two other men survived a crash when a light aircraft he was travelling in crashed into Lake Powell, Utah. The men swam more than one hour in 44 °F (7 °C) water to reach shore, and then spent the night without shelter. None of the three received life-threatening injuries.

He now owns a business called "Gardner's Country Village" in his hometown of Afton. It sells snacks and other items to travelers.