Josh Harris On Investing In Distressed Europe [VIDEO]

Josh Harris is Senior Managing Director and Director at Apollo Global Management LLC. I recently sat down with Josh to talk about how he went from wrestling to owning a basketball team, why alternative investments haven’t thrived in Europe and investing in oil. Video and a transcript of our conversation follows.

Steve Forbes: Josh Harris, good to have you with us. Before we get into what Apollo’s doing, and how you look at the world, why in the world, given your own background with wrestling, what’s the prejudice against wrestling, on the part of universities and now the Olympics? What gives?

Joshua Harris: It’s a little surprising to see wrestling, which maybe is one of original Olympic sports, not to be included as a permanent sport in the Olympics. I think a lot of it had to do with the politics and the decision making around who gets included. I think there were some personality conflicts and some things behind the scenes, but my guess is, like, my sense is talking to a lot of the people there, all over the place, that there’s a general recognition that wrestling needs to be in the Olympics. There are a number of temporary sports that will, three actually, that will get into the Olympics, and that’ll be decided in the next 12 months. I think wrestling will be one of them – I’m hopeful, at least.

Then after that, all of us who love wrestling are going to work hard to get it included as a permanent sport. But that’ll take a bit more work.

Forbes: Do you see any change on the university front where, thanks to Title IX, they just seem to have skewered wrestling in a lot of institutions.