Dake Crushes Competition for Olympic Semis Berth

Top-seeded Kyle Dake proved why he was viewed as a sizable favorite over the rest of the 74 kg men’s freestyle field during his first two matches at the 2024 Olympic Games. Taking on fellow Pan-American wrestler Anthony Montero Chirinos (Venezuela), Dake quickly got on the board with a sweep single to a gut wrench for a 4-0 lead. As the opening period started to wind down, Dake continued to attack with a log single, which he converted for a takedown and then into a gut wrench. He took the hold in both directions and got exposure each time for a 160-second 10-0 tech. 

In his second match, the level of competition increased significantly with two-time world medalist Yones Emami (Iran); however, you’d never notice by watching the on-mat action. Dake jumped out to a 5-1 lead at the break and never looked back. In the second, the former Cornell superstar wowed the crowd with a single into a gut wrench for a 9-1 lead. Dake ended the bout in spectacular fashion with exposure from a Winn-Dixie counter into a figure-four of the head. Though Dake amassed enough points for a tech, he went ahead and secured a fall at the 5:37 mark. 

Dake’s semifinal opponent will Daichi Takatani of Japan. Takatani has been just as impressive with a 10-0 tech of 2014 world champion Khetag Tsabalov (Serbia) in his quarterfinal win. These two are no strangers as Dake defeated Takatani 6-4 in the quarterfinals of the 2023 World Championships. 

The other American who registered a win on Friday morning was Kayla Miracle at 62 kg in women’s freestyle. Miracle got down early to two-time U23 world champion Nesrin Bas (Turkey), but roared back for a 12-2 tech. Miracle put an exclamation mark on the victory by attacking with short time left on the clock and using a slick cartwheel finish to put the final pair of points on the board. 

In the quarterfinals, Miracle took on top-seeded Aisuluu Tynybekova (Kyrgyzstan). The two have met multiple times in the past, with a 7-0 victory by Tynybekova in the 2021 world finals being the most significant match. 

Miracle led this bout at the halfway point 3-0 after a shot clock violation and a counterattack finished from rear-standing. 

In the second period, Tynybekova rebounded with a step out and then an arm drag which led to her being in control of a quad-pod situation. Tynybekova returned Miracle to the mat and was awarded four points for the hold. Miracle’s corner challenged the hold, but lost, giving Tynybekova a 6-3 lead - plus the potential criteria advantage of having a four-point move. 

With under a minute remaining, Miracle pushed hard and managed to get a step-out to cut Tynybekova’s advantage to 6-4. Late in the period, Miracle exposed Tynybekova using a roll-through from a whizzer. The bout ended at 6-6, but Tynybekova had the criteria advantage. 

Miracle will have to hope Tynybekova returns to the Olympic finals, so she gets pulled back into the repechage. Should that happen, Miracle could have a strong shot at a medal as she looked very impressive in her two matches. She lost on criteria to an opponent who had beaten her by a 7-0 margin earlier this year. 

Along with Miracle’s loss, another match US fans would like to have back is Mason Parris’ 125 kg men’s freestyle contest against Lkhagvagerel Munkhtur (Mongolia). Though he gave up the first point of the match on a shot clock violation, Parris changed his tactics from shots down the middle to outside attacks to notch a takedown and a 2-1 lead late in the first period. 

Parris added to the lead in the second when he appeared to have a takedown, but was only awarded one point for a step out. The flurry that followed ended up being the deciding factor in the bout. Munkhtur ended up behind Parris, in rear-standing, after a counter attack. He the American back to the mat at the edge and was awarded four points. Parris’ corner challenged the call, but was denied. That put the score at 6-3 in favor of Munkhtur. Shortly after, the pair got into the rear-standing position and Munkhtur ran Parris out of bounds, which led to a caution and two, extending the lead to 8-3. 

The five-point deficit forced Parris to get desperate with his offense resulting in the pair exchanging takedowns late in the period. That was all Parris could muster in a 10-5 loss. 

In the quarterfinals, Munkhtur was blown out by Azerbaijan’s Giorgi Meshvildishvili 12-2, which eliminated Parris from the medal hunt.