InterMat Staff

2x Olympic gold medalist Risako Kawai (Photo courtesy of UWW) Monday marked the first medals that were handed out in wrestling at the 2020 Olympics. As each weight class has concluded we will have a wrap-up for each, which includes results and some notable facts related to the weight. Past Articles 57 kg Men's Freestyle 60 kg Men's Greco-Roman 67 kg Men's Greco-Roman 77 kg Men's Greco-Roman 87 kg Men's Greco-Roman 97 kg Men's Greco-Roman 130 kg Men's Greco-Roman 57 kg Women's Freestyle 62 kg Women's Freestyle 68 kg Women's Freestyle 76 kg Women's Freestyle Qualification Results Hassan Yazdani (Iran) over Javrail Shapiev (Uzbekistan) 11-2 Stefan Reichmuth (Switzerland) over Fateh Benferdjallah (Algeria) 6-2 Osman Gocen (Turkey) over Sohsuke Takatani (Japan) 2-2 Artur Naifonov (ROC) over Boris Makoev (Slovakia) 6-0 Myles Amine (San Marino) over Carlos Izquierdo Mendez (Colombia) 12-2 David Taylor (USA) over Ali Shabanau (Belarus) 11-0 Zushen Lin (China) over Pool Ambrocio Greifo (Peru) 11-0 Deepak Punia (India) over Ekerekeme Agiomore (Nigeria) 12-1 Quarterfinal Results Hassan Yazdani (Iran) over Stefan Reichmuth (Switzerland) 12-1 Artur Naifonov (ROC) over Osman Gocen (Turkey) 12-1 David Taylor (USA) over Myles Amine (San Marino) 12-2 Deepak Punia (India) over Zushen Lin (China) 6-3 Semifinal Results Hassan Yazdani (Iran) over Artur Naifonov (ROC) 7-1 David Taylor (USA) over Deepak Punia (India) 10-0 Repechage Results Myles Amine (San Marino) over Ali Shabanau (Belarus) 2-0 Javrail Shapiev (Uzbekistan) over Stefan Reichmuth (Switzerland) 5-2 Bronze Medal Matches Myles Amine (San Marino) over Deepak Punia (India) 4-2 Artur Naifonov (ROC) over Javrail Shapiev (Uzbekistan) 2-0 Gold Medal Match David Taylor (USA) over Hassan Yazdani (Iran) 4-3 Notes: David Taylor became a two-time World/Olympic Champion. Taylor is the third American to medal at the 84/86 kg weight class at the Olympics since 2004. (J'den Cox - 3rd/2016; Cael Sanderson - 1st/2004). Taylor outscored the competition in Tokyo 37-5 during his gold medal run. He is now 3-0 career against Hassan Yazdani. Yazdani has not lost to another opponent since 2016. Yazdani is now a six-time World/Olympic medalist. He is now a two-time Olympic medalist (2nd/2020 and 1st/2016). Yazdani has earned a medal at every World/Olympic event since 2015. Artur Naifonov is a two-time World/Olympic medalist. Myles Amine earned his first World/Olympic medal. Amine's bronze medal was the first ever for San Marino at the Olympics. Earlier this Games, two other athletes earned the first Olympic medals ever for San Marino, in any sport. Amine had to defeat a pair of returning world medalists Ali Shabanau and Deepak Punia to earn his bronze. A pair of past world silver medalists lost in the first round (Boris Makoev and Sohsuke Takatani) and didn't get pulled into repechage.

2021 Olympic champion Gable Steveson (Photo courtesy of Larry Slater; LBSphoto.smugmug.com) For the last week, it has seemed the the USA Wrestling team has continued to outdo itself. One day, Tamyra Mensah-Stock dominated the field to become only the second American woman to win an Olympic gold medal. Another saw David Taylor pull out a clutch double leg to win gold himself and down rival Hassan Yazdani. Today we were treated to a comeback that will live forever in the annals of US Wrestling history. Gable Steveson was trying to put the finishing touches on a fantastic run through the 125 kg Olympic field. Standing between him and a gold medal was three-time defending world champion Geno Petriashvili (Georgia). Geno and Taha Akgul (Turkey) have combined to win every World/Olympic title at the weight since 2014. Steveson had already dispatch Akgul in the quarterfinals and was looking to make his stamp on the weight. As he has done all tournament, Steveson got on the scoreboard first with a point after Petriashvili violated the shot clock. He added to the lead with a takedown off of a single leg. Before the break, Steveson had a massive toss at the edge of the mat that only netted a step-out point. Though he appeared to be shocked, Petriashvili never wavered and got his first points of the bout, exposing Steveson's back after another offensive attempt. Stevenson finished the flurry on top for a 5-2 advantage. Petriashvili finally was able to convert a shot and pulled to within 5-4 after a takedown, but he quickly took the lead, 8-5, after a pair of gut wrenches. In a :13 second span that will be replayed thousands of times this week, Steveson was able to stuff a half-hearted Petriashvili shot attempt and spin for two points. He reverted to his folkstyle roots and seemingly “cut” the Georgian for an escape rather than work for exposure. The official obliged and stood the two up for a restart with 6.5 seconds left in the bout. After the whistle blew, Steveson got Petriashvili to bite on an outside step, then snapped and circled, and circled, and circled, and finally got behind for a takedown with .02 left on the clock. The Georgian bench challenged by the call was confirmed and the celebration was on! Steveson became the first US heavyweight since Bruce Baumgartner in 1992 to win an Olympic gold medal. After his hand was raised, Steveson did his customary round off to a backflip. That and the comeback are sure to place the 21-year-old all over mainstream sports and news channels. If that wasn't enough, Kyle Dake also finished his comeback and ended the tournament with a bronze medal. After a shocking loss by tech fall in the quarterfinals, Dake rebounded to battle two-time world champion Frank Chamizo (Italy), in his final contest of the Games. It was immediately apparent that Dake was his normal self and never let Chamizo in the match. He showed his normal combination of stingy defense, timely offensive, and a high degree of mat savvy. When it was all said and done, Dake walked away a winner, 5-0. With Dake's win, the US Men's freestyle team saw all five of its participants clinch medals. The last time the Americans were able to produce such a high medal count was in 1996. The fourth member to lock up a medal, Kyle Snyder, did so earlier in the session by cruising back Suleyman Karadeniz (Turkey), 5-0 in the semifinals at 97 kg. Snyder kept his Turkish opponent off balance all match and on the defensive. Though, Snyder was not able to convert his attempts, he was able to get multiple step-out points and was never seriously threatened. Snyder's berth in the finals sets up chapter three in his rivalry with “The Russian Tank” Abdulrashid Sadulaev. In 2017, Snyder had a comeback victory over Sadulaev in the world finals, which helped the Americans capture their first team crown since 1995. A year later, the two met in the world finals and Sadulaev won after a quick fall. Both wrestlers are chasing their second Olympic gold medal and have not been tested in Tokyo. It appeared as if the Americans would have another finalist as Sarah Hildebrandt jumped out to a 7-0 lead on Yanan Sun during their 50 kg semifinal. Sun chipped away at the lead and got the margin down to 7-6 in the closing seconds of the match. Then she hit a lateral drop which sent Hildebrandt to her back for four points and a 10-7 loss. Hildebrandt still has an opportunity to medal as she'll face the winner of Yusneylys Guzman (Cuba) and Oskana Livach (Ukraine) in a bronze medal contest. Another member of the women's freestyle team, Jacarra Winchester, competed for a bronze medal today, but came up just short. Winchester was tossed in a headlock and pinned early in the first period by Vanesa Kaladzinskaya (Belarus) and had to settle for fifth-place. American Results Men's Freestyle 74 kg Bronze Medal Bout Kyle Dake (USA) over Frank Chamizo (Italy) 5-0 Men's Freestyle 97 kg Semifinal Kyle Snyder (USA) over Suleyman Karadeniz (Turkey) 5-0 Men's Freestyle 125 kg Gold Medal Bout Gable Steveson (USA) over Geno Petriashvili (Georgia) 108 Women's Freestyle 50 kg Semifinal Yanen Sun (China) over Sarah Hildebrandt (USA) 10-7 Women's Freestyle 53 kg Bronze Medal Match Vanesa Kaladzinskaya (Belarus) over Jacarra Winchester

2x Olympic gold medalist Risako Kawai (Photo courtesy of UWW) Monday marked the first medals that were handed out in wrestling at the 2020 Olympics. As each weight class has concluded we will have a wrap-up for each, which includes results and some notable facts related to the weight. Past Articles 57 kg Men's Freestyle 60 kg Men's Greco-Roman 67 kg Men's Greco-Roman 77 kg Men's Greco-Roman 87 kg Men's Greco-Roman 97 kg Men's Greco-Roman 130 kg Men's Greco-Roman 62 kg Women's Freestyle 68 kg Women's Freestyle 76 kg Women's Freestyle Qualification Results Risako Kawai (Japan) over Fatoumata Camara (Guinea) 8-2 Khongorzul Boldsaikhan (Mongolia) over Mathilde Riviere (France) Injury Default Tetyana Kit (Ukraine) over Siwar Bouseta (Tunisia) Fall Helen Maroulis (USA) over Ningning Rong (China) 8-4 Iryna Kurachkina (Belarus) over Anshu Malik (India) 8-2 Valeria Koblova (ROC) over Jane Valencia (Mexico) 5-2 Evelina Nikolova (Bulgaria) over Jowita Wrzesien (Poland) 3-0 Anastasia Nichita (Moldova) over Odunayo Adekuoroye (Nigeria) Fall Quarterfinal Results Risako Kawai (Japan) over Khongorzul Boldsaikhan (Mongolia) 7-0 Helen Maroulis (USA) over Tetyana Kit (Ukraine) 8-0 Iryna Kurachkina (Belarus) over Valeria Koblova (ROC) 6-3 Evelina Nikolova (Bulgaria) over Anastasia Nichita (Moldova) 6-3 Semifinal Results Risako Kawai (Japan) over Helen Maroulis (USA) 2-1 Iryna Kurachkina (Belarus) over Evelina Nikolova (Bulgaria) 11-0 Repechage Results Valeria Koblova (ROC) over Anshu Malik (India) 5-1 Khongorzul Boldsaikhan (Mongolia) over Fatoumata Camara (Guinea) 10-0 Bronze Medal Matches Evelina Nikolova (Bulgaria) over Valeria Koblova (ROC) Fall Helen Maroulis (USA) over Khongorzul Boldsaikhan (Mongolia) 11-0 Gold Medal Match Risako Kawai (Japan) over Iryna Kurachkina (Belarus) 5-0 Notes: Risako Kawai won her second Olympic gold medal. Kawai is now a five-time World/Olympic gold medalist. Kawai now has six World/Olympic medals. Her first Olympic gold medal came up at 63 kg and she moved down to allow her sister to get into the lineup. The 55/57/58 kg weight classes have been won by a Japanese wrestler in every Olympic Games that offered women's wrestling. Iryna Kurachkina is now a three-time World/Olympic medalist. Coincidentally, Kawai defeated a wrestler from Belarus to earn her first Olympic gold medal (Maryia Mamashuk - 63 kg). Helen Maroulis became the first American woman to win multiple Olympic medals in wrestling. Maroulis is now a six-time World/Olympic medalist. The qualification bout between Maroulis and Ningning Rong (China) featured two wrestlers that both won world titles and combined to own eight World/Olympic medals. The semifinal match between Maroulis and Kawai was likely the most star-studded matchup in the entire women's tournament. Both were returning gold medalists and own five world titles, combined. Evelina Nikolova earned her first World/Olympic medal. Nikolova, combined with Olympic bronze medalist Taybe Yusein, earned Olympic bronze medals for Bulgaria. This was the first time the country has ever had multiple Olympic medalists in the same year. Both semifinal losers ended up earning bronze medals. This weight class saw the second (Odunayo Adekuoroye) and fourth (Rong) seeds fall in the opening round.

2020 Olympic champion Zavur Uguev of the Russian Olympic Committee (Photo courtesy of UWW) Monday marked the first medals that were handed out in wrestling at the 2020 Olympics. As each weight class has concluded we will have a wrap-up for each, which includes results and some notable facts related to the weight. Past Articles 60 kg Men's Greco-Roman 67 kg Men's Greco-Roman 77 kg Men's Greco-Roman 87 kg Men's Greco-Roman 97 kg Men's Greco-Roman 130 kg Men's Greco-Roman 62 kg Women's Freestyle 68 kg Women's Freestyle 76 kg Women's Freestyle Qualification Round Yuki Takahashi (Japan) over Stevan Micic (Serbia) 7-0 Nurislam Sanayev (Kazakhstan) over Diamantino Iuna Fafe (Guinea-Bissau) 7-0 Georgi Vangelov (Bulgaria) over Abdelhak Kherbache (Algeria) Fall 3:37 Ravi Kumar (India) over Oscar Tigreros Urbano (Colombia) 13-2 Reza Atri (Iran) over Suleyman Atli (Turkey) 3-2 Bekhbayer Erdenebat (Mongolia) over Arsen Harutyunyan (Armenia) 6-1 Gulomjon Abdullaev (Uzbekistan) over Minghu Liu (China) 10-2 Zavur Uguev (ROC) over Thomas Gilman (USA) 5-4 Quarterfinal Results Nurislam Sanayev (Kazakhstan) over Yuki Takahashi (Japan) 4-4 Ravi Kumar (India) over Georgi Vangelov (Bulgaria) 14-4 Reza Atri (Iran) over Bekhbayer Erdenebat (Mongolia) 5-1 Zavur Uguev (ROC) over Gulomjon Abdullaev (Uzbekistan) 6-6 Semifinal Results Ravi Kumar (India) over Nurislam Sanayev (Kazakhstan) Fall 5:21 Zavur Uguev (ROC) over Reza Atri (Iran) 8-3 Repechage Results Thomas Gilman (USA) over Gulomjon Abdullaev (Uzbekistan) 11-1 Georgi Vangelov (Bulgaria) over Oscar Tigreros Urbano (Colombia) Fall 5:21 Bronze Medal Matches Thomas Gilman (USA) over Reza Atri (Iran) 9-1 Nurislam Sanayev (Kazakhstan) over Georgi Vangelov (Bulgaria) 5-1 Gold Medal Match Zavur Uguev (ROC) over Ravi Kumar (India) 7-4 Notes: Zavur Uguev became a three-time World/Olympic gold medalist with his title. Uguev needed last-second rallies to come back both the qualification round (Gilman) and the quarterfinals (Abdullaev). Kumar is now a two-time World/Olympic medalist. At both World/Olympic-level events where Kumar has medaled, he has suffered a loss to Uguev. Nurislam Sanayev is now a three-time World/Olympic medalist. Both India and Kazakhstan missed out on having any medalists in 2016, but had one in 2012. Thomas Gilman is now a two-time World/Olympic medalist. Gilman was the first American since Henry Cejudo in 2008 to earn a medal at the lowest weight class. Cejudo won gold at 55 kg. This weight class had the number one seed, Stevan Micic, go out in the first round by the score of 7-0. That was an "upset" by seeds only, as his opponent Yuki Takahashi (Japan) was a world champion in 2017. The third seed also was beaten in the opening round, as Suleyman Atli (Turkey) went down at the hands of Reza Atri. Takahashi failed to make the medal podium for Japan, which had a long streak of medal at the opening weight class snapped. You have to go back to 2000 to find the last time Japan was medal-less at the lowest weight. Fifth is the unlucky place for Georgi Vangelov (Bulgaria). He finished fifth here, the same place he has fallen in each of the last three European Championship events. Vangelov was the only wrestler at this weight to notch two falls. Perhaps it's the difficulty to maintain 57 kg, but this weight class did not have a single medalist repeat from 2016. In fact, no past medalists were even in the field.

2021 Olympic champion David Taylor (Photo courtesy of Larry Slater; LBSphoto.smugmug.com) What a day from the wrestlers representing the United States of America! The earlier session was a rollercoaster ride of emotions, with Gable Steveson and Thomas Gilman putting together dominating performances, while Kyle Dake and Jacarra Winchester were the victims of shocking upsets. This most recent session was all positive for the Americans. The evening started with the semifinals, a round that featured 125 kg star Gable Steveson. Gable earned his place in the semis after handling 2016 Olympic gold medalist Taha Akgul (Turkey). Steveson's bout against Lkhagvagerel Monkhtoriin (Mongolia) differed from his previous two bouts that were offensive showcases. This was a more controlled bout against an opponent that was set on preventing Steveson from scoring more than generating offense of his own. However the case, Steveson prevailed 5-0 and was never threatened by the Mongolian. Steveson will advance to the Olympic finals and has a date with the top-seed, Geno Petriashvili (Georgia), winner of every world championship since the Rio Olympics in 2016. It will surely be a match for the ages, as Petriashvili has gone back-and-forth with Akgul for the last six years. Next up was Thomas Gilman in a bronze medal match at 57 kg. Gilman faced Iran's Reza Atri, an opponent he had previously defeated at the World Championships in 2017. He continued his impressive run and was clicking on all cylinders offensively and defensively. After taking a 5-0 lead at the break, Gilman continued to pressure Atri and wound up with a 9-1 win. The overall tournament was Gilman's most complete as a Senior-level athlete. He was just a few seconds away from defeating the eventual Olympic champion and didn't wrestle a close bout otherwise. The Gilman/Atri match set the stage for another battle between the USA and Iran in the 86 kg gold medal match. One of the most highly anticipated bouts of the entire Olympics took place as 2018 World Champion David Taylor met 2016 Olympic gold medalist and two-time world champion, Hassan Yazdani. The two had met twice previously and in each contest, Yazdani held a solid lead in the first, but was worn down by the American. This time, Yazdani was never able to generate any real offense against Taylor. He used his signature underhook for much of the match and took ground, but didn't register a takedown. A shot clock violation from Taylor accounted for the only scoring in the opening period, as Yazdani held a slim 1-0 lead. Taylor started the second with a quick takedown from a high-crotch and looked like he may have found his opening. Largely that wasn't the case and Yazdani shut down Taylor's offense and gathered two more points from a caution and one and a step out. Trailing 3-2 with under :20 remaining in the match and sporting a singlet that was torn to shreds by Yazdani, Taylor had to make his final push. Although never known for his double leg, the Magic Man pulled one out of his bag of tricks and stunned the Iranian with the maneuver. The takedown gave Taylor a 4-3 lead and most of the waning seconds were spent in the par terre position. Once again, Taylor had done it! He is now 3-0 versus Yazdani, who is undefeated against the rest of the world since 2016. The gold medal is the cherry on top of an already remarkable career for Taylor. A four-time Ohio state champion, number one recruit in the nation, two-time national champion for Penn State, and a leader of four national title-winning teams, before winning a world title, Taylor has now officially “done it all.” This isn't to call for Taylor's retirement, because he clearly is on top of the world and has plenty of good years ahead. American fans were still giddy with excitement regarding Taylor's dramatic win when Helen Maroulis took the mat in a bronze medal contest against the young Mongolian Khongorzul Boldsaikhany. Maroulis found a weakness with Boldsaikhany's defense from a two-on-one and repeatedly dragged the arm for takedowns. In the final seconds of the bout, Maroulis secured an 11-0 tech, which gave her the bronze at 57 kg. In 2016, Maroulis made history by becoming the first American woman to win an Olympic gold medal. This time she added a new entry to the record books, by becoming the first American woman to earn multiple Olympic medals. While Maroulis' history-making upset in 2016 is already legendary in USA Wrestling lore, this bronze medal-winning performance may be more impressive. In the years following her gold medal, Maroulis battled severe concussions that nearly forced her to retire, as well as PTSD and surgeries on her knee and shoulder. Not only did the Americans win on the mat, but they also were aided by wrestlers they needed to rely on to enter repechage. Kyle Dake and Jacarra Winchester both saw the opponents that defeated them earn berths in the gold medal match, allowing them to wrestle back for bronze. In both instances, the wrestlers they needed to win, upset more well-known opponents. American Results 57 kg Men's Freestyle Bronze Medal Match: Thomas Gilman (USA) over Reza Atri (Iran) 9-1 86 kg Men's Freestyle Gold Medal Match: David Taylor (USA) over Hassan Yazdani (Iran) 4-3 57 kg Women's Freestyle Bronze Medal Match: Helen Maroulis (USA) over Khongorzul Boldsaikhany (Mongolia) 11-0 125 kg Men's Freestyle Semifinals: Gable Steveson (USA) over Lkhagvagerel Monkhtoriin (Mongolia) 5-0

2016 Olympic gold medalist Kyle Snyder (Photo courtesy of Tony Rotundo; WrestlersAreWarriors.com) Brackets for the sixth day of the 2020 Olympic Games have been released. The remaining men's freestyle weights begin with 65 kg and 97 kg, as well as, 50 kg in women's freestyle which will be conducted on day six of the wrestling competition. Below are all three brackets and information about the first-round opponent for each American entrant. 65 kg Men's Freestyle American Entry - None Top 1st Round Matches: Gadzhimurad Rashidov (Russia) - 2019 World Champion/3x World Medalist vs. Vazgen Tevanyan (Armenia) - 2020 Individual World Cup Champion Takuto Otoguro (Japan) - 2018 World Champion vs. Tulga Tumur-Ochir (Mongolia) - 2019 World fifth-place Daulet Niyazbekov (Kazakhstan) - 2019 World Silver Medalist vs. Alejandro Valdes Tobier (Cuba) - 2x World Medalist 97 kg Men's Freestyle American Entry - Kyle Snyder 1st Round Opponent: Jordan Steen (Canada) - 2x Pan-American Bronze Medalist Top 1st Round Matches: Abdulrashid Sadulaev (ROC) - 2016 Olympic Gold Medalist/4x World Champion vs. Sharif Sharifov (Azerbaijan) - 2012 Olympic Gold Medalist/2016 Olympic Bronze Medalist/2011 World Champion/3x World Medalist Mohammad Mohammadian (Iran) - 2014 World Bronze Medalist vs. Elizbar Odikadze (Georgia) - 2018 World Bronze Medalist Aleksandr Hushtyn (Belarus) - 2020 Individual World Cup Silver Medal vs. Reineris Salas Perez (Cuba) - 3x World Medalist Suleyman Karadeniz (Turkey) - 2020 European Champion vs. Magomed Ibragimov (Uzbekistan) - 2016 Olympic Bronze Medalist Abraham Conyedo Ruano (Italy) - 2018 World Bronze Medalist vs. Albert Saritov (Romania) - 2016 Olympic Bronze Medalist/2011 World Bronze Medalist 50 kg Women's Freestyle American Entry - Sarah Hildebrandt 1st Round Opponent: Evin Demirhan (Turkey) - 2017 World Bronze Medalist Top 1st Round Matches: Mariya Stadnik (Azerbaijan) - 3x Olympic Medalist/2x World Champion/6x World Medalist vs. Stalvira Orhush (ROC) - 3x European Champion Miglena Selishka (Bulgaria) - 2020 European Champion vs. Alina Vuc (Romania) - 2x World Silver Medalist

Gable Steveson defeats 2016 Olympic gold medalist Taha Akgul (Photo courtesy of Larry Slater; LBSphoto.smugmug.com) Being involved with a team at a wrestling event forces you to deal with multiple emotions, in the same day/session/hour. During today's session at the Olympic Games, American wrestling fans felt the “highest of the highs” and the “lowest of the lows” within minutes of each other. Three American wrestlers earned berths in the quarterfinals. Two wrestled at the same time, while another started right afterward. Two of those bouts produced stunning results. The first American to take the mat in the quarterfinals was 2019 world champion Jacarra Winchester. Winchester earned her gold medal at the non-Olympic weight 55 kg and cut down to 53 kg for the Olympic run. Early in her bout against two-time world bronze medalist Qianyu Pang (China), Winchester surrendered a seemingly harmless takedown. Pang found an opening, however, and turned the American twice with a trapped-arm gut wrench. Before the blink of an eye, Winchester was down 6-0. Pang was never able to add onto the lead, but at the same time, Winchester was never able to seriously threaten her Chinese counterpart. Jacarra chipped away with a pair of step-out points, but ultimately fell, 6-2. Winchester's bronze medal hopes now ride on the back of Pang, who'll face two-time world champion Vanesa Kaladzinskaya (Belarus) in the semifinals. A win by Pang will pull Winchester into repechage. While Winchester's loss was not expected, based on the rest of the night, it didn't even qualify as a “shocking result.” During Winchester's match, 125 kg sensation Gable Steveson stepped on the big stage opposite 2016 Olympic gold medalist Taha Akgul (Turkey). Steveson already had impressed in his opening match, a 10-0 tech fall of veteran Aiaal Lazarev (Kyrgyzstan), that took slightly more than two minutes and consisted of five snapdowns. The co-Hodge Trophy Winner from Minnesota struck first on a counter, which accounted for the only points of the opening period. In the second, Akgul felt he needed to be the aggressor and took two shots. Both times, Steveson stuffed the attempts and spun for a takedown. Steveson showed his offense was capable, too, by scoring with a double leg. With under :15 seconds remaining in the match and Steveson out to an 8-0 lead, the youngster stood in the center of the mat and motioned to the Olympic gold medalist to come towards him. A broken Akgul half-heartedly did so, but provided no threat. This was a moment where you wished a crowd was present for the proverbial “changing of the guard,” as they would have been on their feet watching the young buck take out the old stud. Before American fans could catch their breath and ask themselves what they just witnessed, two-time world champion Kyle Dake was in a 4-0 hole against Magomedkhabib Kadimagomedov (Belarus). That forced the normally defensive-minded Dake to open up his offense. The more that Dake opened up, the more windows of opportunity for Kadimagomedov emerged. In just over three and a half minutes, the Belarussian racked up 11 unanswered points and defeated Dake via technical superiority. In the coming days and weeks, we'll hope to hear more about why this result occurred. While Kadimagomedov was a bronze medalist at the 2020 Individual World Cup and considered a medal threat in Tokyo, no one could imagine such a one-sided bout. Could there have been an injury to blame, some sort of illness, or just the Olympic experience? Whatever is to blame, the fact remains that Dake's bronze medal hopes lie in the hands of Kadimagomedov, who will face two-time world champion Frank Chamizo (Italy) in the semis. Speaking of possible bronze medals, 57 kg entrant Thomas Gilman took a gigantic step towards earning a medal during the repechage phase. Gilman wasted no time with Uzbekistan's Gulomjon Abdullaev. In just over two minutes, Gilman put 11 points on the board and clinched a berth in the bronze medal match, opposite Reza Atri (Iran). American Results 57 kg Men's freestyle repechage Thomas Gilman (USA) over Gulomjon Abdullaev (Uzbekistan) 11-0 74 kg Men's freestyle Kyle Dake (USA) over Mostafa Hosseinkhani (Iran) 4-0 Magomedkhabib Kadimagomedov (Belarus) over Kyle Dake 11-0 125 kg Men's freestyle Gable Steveson (USA) over Aiaal Lazarev (Kyrgyzstan) 10-0 Gable Steveson (USA) over Taha Akgul (Turkey) 11-0 53 kg Women's freestyle Jacarra Winchster (USA) over Olga Khoroshavtseva (ROC) 7-4 Qianyu Pang (China) over Jacarra Winchester (USA) 6-2 Bronze Medal Match 57 kg Men's Freestyle Thomas Gilman (USA) vs. Reza Atri (Iran) Semifinals 74 kg Men's freestyle Frank Chamizo (Italy) vs. Magomedkhabib Kadimagomedov (Belarus) Zaurbek Sidakov (ROC) vs. Daniyar Kaisanov (Kazakhstan) 125 kg Men's freestyle Geno Petriashvili (Georgia) vs. Amir Zare (Iran) Gable Steveson (USA) vs. Monkhtoriin Lkhagvagerel (Mongolia) 53 kg Women's Freestyle Vanesa Kaladzinskaya (Belarus) vs. Qianyu Pang (China) Bat-Ochiryn Bolortuyaa (Mongolia) vs. Mayu Mukaida (Japan)

2020 Olympic champion Yukako Kawai of Japan (Photo courtesy of UWW) Monday marked the first medals that were handed out in wrestling at the 2020 Olympics. As each weight class has concluded we will have a wrap-up for each, which includes results and some notable facts related to the weight. Past Articles 60 kg Men's Greco-Roman 67 kg Men's Greco-Roman 77 kg Men's Greco-Roman 87 kg Men's Greco-Roman 97 kg Men's Greco-Roman 130 kg Men's Greco-Roman 68 kg Women's Freestyle 76 kg Women's Freestyle Qualification Round Aisuluu Tynybekova (Kyrgyzstan) over Anastasija Grigorjeva (Latvia) 8-0 Kriszta Incze (Romania) over Marianna Sastin (Hungary) 3-1 Iryna Koliadenko (Ukraine) over Aminat Adeniyi (Nigeria) Fall 2:56 Jia Long (China) over Kayla Miracle (USA) 3-2 Yukako Kawai (Japan) over Liubov Ovcharova (ROC) 10-0 Henna Johnsson (Sweden) over Marwa Amri (Tunisia) 5-1 Bolortuya Khurelkhuu (Mongolia) over Sonam Malik (India) 2-2 Taybe Yusein (Bulgaria) over Lais Nunes (Brazil) 4-1 Quarterfinals Results Aisuluu Tynybekova (Kyrgyzstan) over Kriszta Incze (Romania) Fall 4:08 Iryna Koliadenko (Ukraine) over Jia Long (China) Fall 2:03 Yukako Kawai (Japan) over Henna Johnsson (Sweden) 10-2 Taybe Yusein (Bulgaria) over Bolortuya Khurelkhuu (Mongolia) 10-0 Semifinals Results Aisuluu Tynybekova (Kyrgyzstan) over Iryna Koliadenko (Ukraine) 10-0 Yukako Kawai (Japan) over Taybe Yusein (Bulgaria) 3-2 Repechage Results Anastasija Grigorjeva (Latvia) over Kriszta Incze (Romania) 14-7 Liubov Ovcharova (ROC) over Henna Johnsson (Sweden) 8-7 Bronze Medal Results Taybe Yusein (Bulgaria) over Liubov Ovcharova (ROC) 10-0 Iryna Koliadenko (Ukraine) over Anastasija Grigorjeva (Latvia) 3-1 Gold Medal Match Yukako Kawai (Japan) over Aisuluu Tynybekova (Kyrgyzstan) 4-3 Notes: Yukako Kawai captured the first gold medal of the Games for the Japanese women. Also the first medal, overall. It could be the first of many as the squad is stacked at the lower weights. This was Kawai's first World/Olympic gold medal. It is her third World/Olympic medal overall. Silver medalist Aisuluu Tynybekova became the first woman from Kyrgyzstan to earn an Olympic medal in wrestling. Tynybekova is now a three-time World/Olympic medalist. Bronze medalist Taybe Yusein is now a seven-time World/Olympic medalist. Yusein is the first Bulgarian woman to medal at the Games since Stanka Zlateva (2nd at 72kg) did so in 2012. Bronze medalist Iryna Koliadenko is now a two-time World/Olympic medalist. Koliadenko was able to rack up two falls, a feat that is pretty rare for Olympic-level competition. The only returning Olympic medalist Marwa Amri fell in the qualification round to Henna Johnsson. All four semifinalists ended up earning medals. Half of the eight qualification bouts featured bouts between past World/Olympic medalists (Tynybekova/Grigorjeva; Kawai/Ovcharova; Johnsson/Amri; Yusein/Nunes).

2020 Olympic champion Mohammadreza Geraei(Photo courtesy of UWW) Monday marked the first medals that were handed out in wrestling at the 2020 Olympics. As each weight class has concluded we will have a wrap-up for each, which includes results and some notable facts related to the weight. Past Articles 60 kg Men's Greco-Roman 77 kg Men's Greco-Roman 87 kg Men's Greco-Roman 97 kg Men's Greco-Roman 130 kg Men's Greco-Roman 68 kg Women's Freestyle 76 kg Women's Freestyle Qualification Round Hansu Ryu (South Korea) over Abdelmalek Merabet (Algeria) 8-0 Round of 16 Ramaz Zoidze (Georgia) over Ismael Borrero Molina (Cuba) 3-2 Aker Al Obaidi (EOR) over Souleyman Nasr (Tunisia) 8-0 Mohammedreza Geraei (Iran) over Julian Horta Acevedo (Colombia) 8-0 Frank Staebler (Germany) over Mate Nemes (Serbia) 4-1 Artem Surkov (ROC) over Alex Sancho (USA) 10-4 Parviz Nasibov (Ukraine) over Fredrik Bjerrehuus (Denmark) 5-1 Karen Aslanyan (Armenia) over Balint Korpasi (Hungary) 1-1 Mohamed Elsayed (Egypt) over Hansu Ryu (South Korea) 7-6 Quarterfinal Results Ramaz Zoidze (Georgia) over Aker Al Obaidi (EOR) 10-0 Mohammedreza Geraei (Iran) over Frank Staebler (Germany) 5-5 Parviz Nasibov (Ukraine) over Artem Surkov (ROC) 1-1 Mohamed Elsayed (Egypt) over Karen Aslanyan (Armenia) 7-7 Semifinal Results Mohammedreza Geraei (Iran) over Ramaz Zoidze (Georgia) 6-1 Parviz Nasibov (Ukraine) over Mohamed Elsayed (Egypt) 7-6 Repechage Results Frank Staebler (Germany) over Julian Horta Acevedo (Colombia) 8-0 Artem Surkov (ROC) over Fredrik Bjerrehuus (Denmark) 7-0 Bronze Medal Matches Mohamed Elsayed (Egypt) over Artem Surkov (ROC) 1-1 Frank Staebler (Germany) over Ramaz Zoidze (Georgia) 5-4 Gold Medal Match Mohammedreza Geraei (Iran) over Parviz Nasibov (Ukraine) 9-1 Notes: This weight class saw the most chaos occur compared to any other on the Greco front. Mohammedreza Geraei claimed his first World/Olympic title, as well as his first medal at such an event. Parviz Nasibov earned his first career World/Olympic medal. Mohamed Elsayed earned his first career World Olympic medal. The entrant at this weight with perhaps the longest resume was Frank Staebler. Despite having three world championships and five world medals to his credit, Staebler has not placed at any of his three previous trips to the Olympics. Staebler lost a controversial match to Geraei in the quarterfinals, but rebounded to take bronze. Staebler earned his sixth World/Olympic medal. After winning his bronze medal bout, Staebler left his shoes at the center of the mat. Aside from Staebler, there was a lot of youth on the podium at 67 kg. Geraei just turned 25 about a week ago, Nasibov is 22, and Elsayed is 23. Staebler was one of two medalists from Germany (Denis Kudla at 87 kg) in 2020. The last time Germany had two Greco-Roman medalists at the Olympic Games was in 1996 (Thomas Zander - Silver at 82kg; Maik Bullman - Bronze at 90 kg). Nasibov was one of two medalists from Ukraine (Zhan Beleniuk at 87 kg) in 2020. The last time Ukraine had two Greco-Roman medalists at the Olympic Games was in 1996 (Andriy Kalashnykov - Bronze at 52 kg; Vyacheslav Oliynyk - Gold at 90 kg). While there were five returning World/Olympic champions at this weight, four of them failed to medal. Three of the returning World/Olympic champions were defeated in the Round of 16 (Hansu Ryu, Ismael Borrero Molina, Balint Korpasi). The group of past champions combined to go 6-6. Egyptian star Mohamed Elsayed earned two wins over past world champions Hansu Ryu and Artem Surkov. At first glance, one may wonder the last time Egypt had a Olympic medalist, but the drought isn't as long as you'd think. Karam Gaber was a silver medalist in 2012 at 84 kg in Greco-Roman. For the first time, Artem Surkov entered a world-level event but did not made the podium. The 2018 world champion is a four-time world medalist. Both of Surkov's losses came in 1-1 matches. This weight class featured the only member of the IOC Refugee team out of any of the wrestling events. Aker Al-Obaidi of Iraq competed and picked up an Olympic win.

The gold medal match at the 2012 Olympics between Jordan Burroughs and Sadegh Goudarzi (Photo courtesy of John Sachs; Tech-Fall.com) The stage is set for the 86 kg Olympic finals in men's freestyle. One of the most anticipated bouts of the Olympics will indeed take place as both David Taylor and Hassan Yazdani have advanced to the gold medal match. Yazdani is seeking to earn his second gold medal, as he accomplished the feat in 2016 while competing at 74 kg. The Iranian also has world titles in 2017 and 2019 on his resume. The reason there's a gap between Yazdani's world championships is because of David Taylor in 2018. Four years after his decorated career at Penn State finished, Taylor finally made a world team. But even before making the world team, Taylor and Yazdani had history. At the 2017 World Cup, the two clashed and it was the Iranian who jumped out to a controlling lead. Taylor's relentless pressure forced Yazdani to wilt and he walked away with an upset victory. As luck would have it, the 2018 World Championships saw the two paired with each other in the opening round. Like their first bout, Yazdani struck first, but Taylor was unphased and battled back for the win. After that victory, Taylor rolled to a world championship, while Yazdani settled for bronze. The two have not met since 2018 because Taylor suffered a knee injury in the spring of 2019, which kept him from competing at world's that year. The loss to Taylor in 2018 is the most recent setback for the Iranian superstar. Coming into this tournament, there may have been some doubts about whether or not Taylor was back to his 2018 form. Three tech falls later and a 33-2 scoring advantage over his opponents leads one to believe, Taylor is pretty darn close to his world championship run. Two of David's three wins have come against past world medalists, as well. Though not quite as dominating on the scoreboard, Yazdani has held up his end of the bargain and made the finals without a significant challenge. Before getting to this clash of the titans, we thought it would be appropriate to look at the previous meetings between American and Iranian wrestlers in the gold medal match in the freestyle tournament at the Olympics. Going back to the 1940's it's only happened three times and each is notable in its own way. 2012: 74 kg - Jordan Burroughs vs. Sadegh Goudarzi (Iran) You've got to go back in time to remember this match in its proper perspective. Jordan Burroughs was only a year and a half removed from a Hodge Trophy-winning senior season at Nebraska. He went out and won a world title immediately and defeated Sadegh Goudarzi in the finals, 3-2, 4-1. The two met earlier in 2012 at the World Cup and it was Burroughs who prevailed again. Even as the fresh young face of USA Wrestling, Burroughs wasn't the “GOAT” as we know him now. Winning at the Olympics wasn't a foregone conclusion. Well, to us, at least. He famously tweeted the night before he took the mat in London that “My next tweet will be a picture of me holding that gold medal!!!”. To make the Olympic finals, Burroughs had to get by a tough Matt Gentry (Canada) and a three-period brawl against then-two-time world champion Denis Tsargush (Russia). Waiting for him in the finals was Goudarzi. Though the score of the “matches” in the finals against Goudarzi were both 1-0, Burroughs was never in any danger against his Iranian counterpart. In both matches, Burroughs used his signature double leg to rack up takedowns late in the contest. The Olympic finals win over Goudarzi not only cemented Burroughs status as USA Wrestling's top star, but it also marked a turning point for the men's freestyle team. Five years later, the US team would top Russia and Burroughs would claim his fifth World/Olympic title. Burroughs' quiet confidence, mixed with professionalism, and Olympic resume would make him the closest thing that wrestling had to a crossover star among mainstream sports fans. 1996: 100 kg - Kurt Angle vs. Abbas Jadidi (Iran) This is the match that helped spark a career in professional wrestling for Kurt Angle, because we all know that he won the Olympics with a “broken freaking neck.” As can be the case in some matches, the buildup and the hype surrounding it was actually more than the actual bout itself. Angle was a two-time national champion for Clarion (1990, 1992) and was coming off a world title in 1995. Abbas Jadidi was a world champion in 1993, but has that honor stripped from him after a failed drug test. He also had to endure a two-year suspension. Jadidi took bronze at the 1995 World Championships. The 1996 Games were hosted by Atlanta, so Angle had the home crowd behind him against a foe that was fresh off a suspension and who represented a country rich with wrestling tradition. It had all the makings of a classic. The match itself only turned out to see each wrestler earn a single point. Jadidi's point came from hand-to-hand exposure, while Angle's was from a takedown. As was dictated by the rules, at the time, the two engaged in a three-minute overtime period. Angle came closest to scoring as he had the Iranian's legs gathered, but his head buried in Jadidi's lap. Another wrinkle in the system was that since neither wrestler scored in the overtime, the decision was turned over to the judges. Despite, Jadidi's efforts to “help” the official raise his hand, Angle was deemed the victory and had his hand raised. Overcome with emotion, Angle hugged the referee before dropping to his knees in tears. Along with the usual emotions associated with such an incredible accomplishment, the Olympics occurred about six months after his coach Dave Schultz was murdered by John DuPont. Initially, Angle had trained at Foxcatcher, but he left after Dave's passing and wrestled under the newly-formed Dave Schultz Wrestling Club. 1992: 62 kg - John Smith vs. Askari Mohammadian (Iran) In 1992, John Smith had already established himself as one of USA Wrestling's all-time greats, but winning gold at the 1988 Olympics, along with four times at the World Championships. Even so, he'd put himself in the most elite company by chasing his second gold medal, a feat that only one other American before him had accomplished (George Mehnert. Bruce Baumgartner would win his second in 1992 also). At the time, wrestling at the Olympics consisted of “pool” action. Smith actually dropped a match to Lazaro Reinoso (Cuba), but had more points than the Cuban, who also suffered a loss, so Smith advanced to the gold medal match. There he faced a returning Olympic silver medalist, Askari Mohammadian. The Iranian was coming up to Smith's weight class after falling to USSR legend Sergei Beloglazov, 5-1 in the 1998 gold medal match. Despite Mohammadian coming in undefeated through his pool and generally running through the competition, he was no match for Smith. Early in the bout, Smith set the tone with a takedown followed by hand-to-hand exposure. Shortly thereafter, Smith added another pair of points for exposure to lead 4-0. The final score would be 6-0, as Smith dominated his way to a second Olympic gold medal.

2020 Olympic champion Zhan Beleniuk (Photo courtesy of UWW) Monday marked the first medals that were handed out in wrestling at the 2020 Olympics. As each weight class has concluded we will have a wrap-up for each, which includes results and some notable facts related to the weight. Past Articles 60 kg Men's Greco-Roman 77 kg Men's Greco-Roman 97 kg Men's Greco-Roman 130 kg Men's Greco-Roman 68 kg Women's Freestyle 76 kg Women's Freestyle Qualification Results Viktor Lorincz (Hungary) over Atabek Azisbekov (Kyrgyzstan) 6-1 Denis Kudla (Germany) over Nursultan Tursynov (Kazakhstan) 4-1 Mohamed Metwally (Egypt) over Kiryl Maskevich (Belarus) 9-1 Daniel Gregorich Hechavarria (Cuba) over Islam Abbasov (Azerbaijan) 3-1 Rustam Assakalov (Uzbekistan) over Lasha Gobadze (Georgia) 6-5 Ivan Huklek (Croatia) over John Stefanowicz (USA) 5-3 Bachir Sid Azara (Algeria) over Fei Peng (China) 11-1 Zhan Beleniuk (Ukraine) over Zurabi Datunashvili (Serbia) 3-1 Quarterfinal Results Viktor Lorincz (Hungary) over Denis Kudla (Germany) 1-1 Mohamed Metwally (Egypt) over Daniel Gregorich Hechavarria (Cuba) Fall 1:16 Ivan Huklek (Croatia) over Rustam Assakalov (Uzbekistan) 4-1 Zhan Beleniuk (Ukraine) over Bachir Sid Azara (Algeria) 1-1 Semifinal Results Viktor Lorincz (Hungary) over Mohamed Metwally (Egypt) 9-2 Zhan Beleniuk (Ukraine) over Ivan Huklek (Croatia) 7-1 Repechage Results Denis Kudla (Germany) over Atabek Azisbekov (Kyrgyzstan) 10-2 Zurabi Datunashvili (Serbia) over Bachir Sid Azara (Algeria) 5-1 Bronze Medal Matches Zurabi Datunashvili (Serbia) over Ivan Huklek (Croatia) 6-1 Denis Kudla (Germany) over Mohamed Metwally (Egypt) Fall 5:36 Gold Medal Match Zhan Beleniuk (Ukraine) over Viktor Lorincz (Hungary) 5-1 Notes: Zhan Beleniuk became a two-time Olympic medalist. He took silver in 2016. Beleniuk is now a three-time World/Olympic champion. Beleniuk is also a six-time World/Olympic medalist He is also Ukraine's first Greco-Roman Olympic champion since Vyacheslav Oliynyk (90kg) in 1996. Beleniuk is also the first Ukrainian Greco-Roman wrestler to earn multiple Olympic medals (2nd in 2016). While not dominant on the scoreboard, Beleniuk was consistent. He only surrendered a single point in all four of his contests. He outscored the opposition 16-4 in four matches. Both finalists ended up getting pushed in the semifinals and prevailed via criteria after 1-1 wins. Viktor Lorincz is now a four-time World/Olympic medalist. His first world medal came in 2013. Zurabi Datunashvili earned his first World/Olympic medal. Datunashvili finally got over the hump. He was a two-time fifth place finisher at World Championship events and this was his third Olympic Games. Denis Kudla earned his fourth World/Olympic medal. It was his second Olympic bronze. Kudla grabbed his first Olympic medal in Rio while only 21 years old. He still was the youngest medalist in this weight class at 26. The other three medalists were all at least 30. Neither of the eventual bronze medal winners appeared in the semifinals. 87 kg ended up being the only Greco-Roman weight where all of the medalist hailed from European countries. This weight class only featured five returning World/Olympic medalists. Three ended up medaling. The other two (Rustam Assakalov - Uzbekistan and Lasha Gobadze - Georgia) met in the first round. Assakalov took the bout, 6-5.

David Taylor made the Olympic finals after three techs (Photo courtesy of Larry Slater; LBSphoto.smugmug.com) A pair of American's were in action in the second session of the day from the Makuhari Messe Event Hall on day four of the Olympic Games. Both suffered different fates, as David Taylor rolled to the gold medal match, while Helen Maroulis suffered a heartbreaking defeat. Wrestling in his first Olympic Games, Taylor squared off with Indian sensation Deepak Punia. In 2019, Punia was a Junior world champion and a silver medalist at the Senior World Championships. The second-seeded Punia proved to be an awkward matchup initially for Taylor. As the shot clock expired, in Taylor's favor, the American got in on a leg attack and earned a takedown. From the takedown, Taylor transitioned into a trapped-arm gut and got two turns. In the blink of an eye, Taylor was up 7-0. A short time later, after garnering another takedown and a step-out, Taylor ended the bout 10-0 on technical superiority. All before the first period ended. Taylor's win guaranteed another chapter in the history between himself and Iranian star Hassan Yazdani. A 2016 Olympic gold medalist and two-time world champion, Yazdani has met Taylor on two occasions and lost both times. In each of those matchups, Yazdani jumped out to early leads, but crumbled under Taylor's constant pressure. Maroulis was in a super match of her own against fellow 2016 Olympic gold medalist, Risako Kawai of Japan. Kawai was able to slow down Maroulis for the bulk of the match and neither was able to generate an offensive point. The official deemed Maroulis was passive in the opening stanza and put her on the shot clock. After :30 seconds, Kawai got the only point of the first period. After little action early on in the second, the official made the unusual decision to put Maroulis on the shot clock, again. She would trail 2-0 after a second shot clock violation. With under a minute remaining in the second period, Kawai finally went on the clock, herself. Like the remainder of the bout, Maroulis was unable to penetrate the defense of her Japanese counterpart and she fell, 2-1. Since Maroulis was in the semifinals, she'll automatically drop into the bronze medal contest. There she'll face the winner between Fatoumata Camara (Guinea) and Khongorzul Boldsaikhan (Mongolia). Kawai defeated Camara 8-2 and Boldsaikhan 7-0. Also of note for American fans, Taylor's win pulls Michigan four-time All-American Myles Amine (San Marino) into repechage. He'll face four-time world medalist Ali Shabanau (Belarus). At 57 kg, two-time world champion Zavur Uguev (ROC) advanced to the gold medal bout after an 8-3 win over Reza Atrina (Iran). That win pulls Thomas Gilman into repechage. He'll need to go through Gulomjon Abdullaev (Uzbekistan) and then Atrina for the bronze medal. American Results 86 kg Men's Freestyle David Taylor (USA) over Deepak Punia (India) 10-0 57 kg Women's Freestyle Risako Kawai (Japan) over Helen Maroulis (USA) 2-1 Finals Matchups 57 kg Men's Freestyle Zavur Uguev (ROC) vs. Ravi Kumar (India) 86 kg Men's Freestyle David Taylor (USA) vs. Hassan Yazdani (Iran) 57 kg Women's Freestyle Risako Kawai (Japan) vs. Iryna Kurachkina (Belarus)

125 kg men's freestyle representative Gable Steveson (Photo courtesy of Tony Rotundo; WrestlersAreWarriors.com) Brackets for the fifth day of the 2020 Olympic Games have been released. Men's freestyle continues with 74 kg and 125 kg, as well as, 53 kg in women's freestyle which will be conducted on day four of the wrestling competition. Below are all three brackets and information about the first-round opponent for each American entrant. 74 kg Men's Freestyle American Entry - Kyle Dake 1st Round Opponent: Moustafa Hosseinkhani (Iran) - 2016 World Bronze Medalist Top 1st Round Matches: Franklin Gomez (Puerto Rico) - 2011 World Silver Medalist vs. Bekzod Abdurakhmonov (Uzbekistan) - 2x World Bronze Medalist Frank Chamizo (Italy) - 2016 Olympic Bronze Medalist/2x World Champion vs. Avtandil Kentchadze (Georgia) - 2018 World Silver Medalist 125 kg Men's Freestyle American Entry - Gable Steveson 1st Round Opponent: Aiaal Lazarev (Kyrgyzstan) - 2020 Individual World Cup Bronze Medalist Top 1st Round Matches: Sergey Kozyrev (ROC) - 2021 European Champion vs. Zhiwei Deng (China) - 2x World Medalist Aleksander Khotsianivski (Ukraine) - 2019 World Bronze Medalist vs. Amir Zare (Iran) - 2019 U23 World Champion 53 kg Women's Freestyle American Entry - Jacarra Winchester 1st Round Opponent: Olga Khoroshavtseva (Russia) - 2019 World Bronze Medalist Top 1st Round Matches: Vinesh Phogat (India) - 2019 World Bronze Medalist vs. Sofia Mattsson (Sweden) - 2016 Olympic Bronze Medalist/2009 World Champion/6x World Medalist Tatyana Akhmetova (Kazakhstan) - 3x World fifth-place finisher vs. Roksana Zasina (Poland) - 2017 World Bronze Medalist

Helen Maroulis in the 2020 Olympic quarterfinals (Photo courtesy of Larry Slater; LBSphoto.smugmug.com) The first session that featured all freestyle action at the 2020 Olympics proved to be a good one for the Americans. Thomas Gilman (57 kg) and David Taylor (86 kg) were the first men's freestyle team members to take the mat in the tournament, while Helen Maroulis (57 kg) started her quest for back-to-back gold medals. Both Taylor and Maroulis advanced to the semifinals, while Gilman came up dangerously close to upsetting the two-time defending world champion. Though he has a laundry list of accolades during his decorated career, Taylor was still making his first Olympic appearance. The 2018 world champion was injured during the spring of 2019 and has not competed internationally much since his world title. Right off the bat, Taylor was paired with a legit contender in four-time world medalist Ali Shabanau of Belarus. Though Taylor started slower than we're accustomed to seeing, he poured it on and never let Shabanau have an opening. Eventually, Taylor would win by technical superiority, 11-0. The win set up a quarterfinal bout against Michigan's four-time All-American Myles Amine, who competed for San Marino. Right off the opening whistle, Taylor got in on the Wolverine's legs, but Amine was able to wrestle to a stalemate. Amine wasn't content to try and keep it close against the 2018 world champion; he went back at Taylor and earned a takedown to lead 2-0. That early deficit seemed to spark Taylor as he roared back and scored 12 unanswered points to win 12-2. In the next session, the two-time Hodge Trophy winner will face 2019 World silver medalist Deepak Punia (India). Maroulis made her return to the Olympic Games and seemingly had a rough draw, as she would face the fourth-seed, 2018 world champion Ningning Rong (China). Though Maroulis controlled most of the action in the early going, she was put on the shot clock in the first period. A point for a shot clock violation, paired with a takedown from Rong, saw her take a 3-0 lead over the American. Even so, Maroulis' coach Mark Perry could be heard instructing her that she was wearing down her Chinese foe. The most action in the first period took place in the closing seconds as Maroulis got a pair of points from exposure, while Rong ended up on top. Trailing 4-2 in the second period, Maroulis never took her foot off the gas. She would notch three takedowns in the final stanza to down Rong, 8-4. The quarterfinals gave Maroulis the opportunity for a rematch with Tetyana Kit of Ukraine. Just about two months ago, at the Poland Open, Maroulis fell to Kit, 8-2. That version of Helen was much different from the one we saw in Tokyo. In Poland, she was just seeking a tune-up after dealing with a knee injury from the Olympic Trials in April. Kit proved to be stout defensively, but was never able to mount any offense against the American. Maroulis methodically mowed through Kit to the tune of an 8-0. Maroulis' quarterfinal win sets the stage for perhaps one of the biggest matches of the entire Games. She'll face fellow 2016 Olympic gold medalist Risako Kawai (Japan). Kawai won her Olympic title at 63 kg, but has moved down to allow her sister to compete. In addition to her gold from the Olympics, Kawai has won each of the last three contested world titles. The two have combined to win five world titles and have eight world medals. With Maroulis looking close to her form of 2016-17, it should be a classic matchup. Like Maroulis, Gilman had a difficult draw, as well. He had to deal with two-time world champion Zavur Uguev (Russia) in his first bout. Gilman seemed to tire his Russian counterpart early in the first period and was able to take a 1-1 lead into the second period. After Uguev notched a takedown, Gilman continued to attack and earned a step-out point to trail, 3-2. He looked poised to gain another, yet was able to convert a takedown at the edge to lead 4-3, late in the match. With under :30 remaining, Uguev got into Gilman's leg and had his leg shelved for an inordinate amount of time. Finally, the Russian used a slick back trip to gather the second leg for the winning takedown. Gilman was a mere seconds away from pulling the stunner. The Gilman match forced Uguev to expend plenty of energy and it showed in the quarterfinals as he was often extremely slow to return to the center and trailed Gulomjon Abdullaev (Uzbekistan) late in the bout. Again, Uguev snatched victory from the jaws of defeat and earned a winning takedown with an inside trip. That win propelled him to the semifinals, where he'll face Reza Atri (Iran). More importantly for US wrestling fans, it keeps Thomas Gilman's repechage hopes alive. Also of note to Americans was Stevan Micic (Serbia), the top-seed at 57 kg. The NCAA finalist for Michigan could not mount any sort of offensive during a 7-0 first-round loss to 2017 world champion Yuki Takahashi (Japan). Takahashi fell in his next match to Nurislam Sanayev (Kazakhstan), which eliminated Micic. American Results 57 kg Men's Freestyle Zavur Uguev (Russia) over Thomas Gilman (USA) 5-4 86 kg Men's Freestyle David Taylor (USA) over Ali Shabanau (Belarus) 11-0 David Taylor (USA) over Myles Amine (San Marino) 12-2 57 kg Women's Freestyle Helen Maroulis (USA) over Ningning Rong (China) 8-4 Helen Maroulis (USA) over Tetyana Kit (Ukraine) 8-0 Semifinal Matchups 57 kg Men's Freestyle Nurislam Sanayev (Kazakhstan) vs. Ravi Kumar (India) Reza Atri (Iran) vs. Zavur Uguev (ROC) 86 kg Men's Freestyle Hassan Yazdani (Iran) vs. Artur Naifonov (ROC) David Taylor (USA) vs. Deepak Punia (India) 57 kg Women's Freestyle Risako Kawai (Japan) vs. Helen Maroulis (USA) Iryna Kurachkina (Belarus) vs. Evelina Nikolova (Bulgaria)

2020 Olympic champion Tamyra Mensah-Stock (Photo courtesy of UWW) Monday marked the first medals that were handed out in wrestling at the 2020 Olympics. As each weight class has concluded we will have a wrap-up for each, which includes results and some notable facts related to the weight. Past Articles 60 kg Men's Greco-Roman 77 kg Men's Greco-Roman 97 kg Men's Greco-Roman 130 kg Men's Greco-Roman 76 kg Women's Freestyle Qualification Results Tamyra Mensah-Stock (USA) over Sara Dosho (Japan) 10-0 Feng Zhou (China) over Yudari Sanchez Rodriguez (Cuba) 13-2 Alla Cherkasova (Ukraine) over Agnieszka Wieszczek (Poland) 11-0 Anna Schell (Germany) over Enas Ahmed (Egypt) 7-0 Battsetseg Soronzonbold (Mongolia) over Koumba Larroque (France) Fall 5:41 Khanum Velieva (ROC) over Danielle Lappage (Canada) 7-0 Meerim Zhumanazarova (Kyrgyzstan) over Mimi Hristova (Bulgaria) 7-5 Blessing Oborududu (Nigeria) over Elis Manolova (Azerbaijan) 13-2 Quarterfinal Results Tamyra Mensah-Stock (USA) over Feng Zhou (China) 10-0 Alla Cherkasova (Ukraine) over Anna Schell (Germany) Fall 3:43 Battsetseg Soronzonbold (Mongolia) over Khanum Velieva (ROC) 8-5 Blessing Oborududu (Nigeria) over Meerim Zhumanazarova (Kyrgyzstan) 3-2 Semifinal Results Tamyra Mensah-Stock (USA) over Alla Cherkasova (Ukraine) 10-4 Blessing Oborududu (Nigeria) over Battsetseg Soronzonbold (Mongolia) 7-2 Repechage Results Meerim Zhumanazarova (Kyrgyzstan) over Elis Manolova (Azerbaijan) 4-1 Sara Dosho (Japan) over Feng Zhou (China) 7-2 Bronze Medal Matches Alla Cherkasova (Ukraine) over Sara Dosho (Japan) Fall 2:33 Meerim Zhumanazarova (Kyrgyzstan) over Battsetseg Soronzonbold (Mongolia) 10-0 Gold Medal Matches Tamyra Mensah-Stock (USA) over Blessing Oborududu (Nigeria) 4-1 Notes: Tamyra Mensah-Stock became just the second American woman to win gold in Olympic wrestling. Mensah-Stock won her second World/Olympic gold medal. Mensah-Stock now has three World/Olympic medals. She also became the first black woman to win an Olympic gold medal in wrestling. Mensah-Stock's path to gold included a win over an Olympic gold medalist (Sara Dosho), a world silver medalist (Feng Zhou), and 2018 world champion (Alla Cherkasova) just to make the finals. With Mensah-Stock medaling (and Adeline Gray), it gave the American women multiple medalists for only the second time (2004; Sara McMann and Patricia Miranda). Of course, with three more left to compete. Despite the daunting competition, Mensah-Stock outscored her foes 34-5. Blessing Oborududu became the first Nigerian to win an Olympic medal. Oborududu's path to the finals was no cake walk either. She defeated a world bronze medalist (Elis Manolova), a Junior world silver medalist (Meerim Zhumanazarova), and a two-time world champion (Battsetseg Soronzonbold). Cherkasova became a three-time World/Olympic medalist. Cherkasova is the first women's Olympic medalist for Ukraine since Iryna Merleni (3rd at 48kg) did so in 2008. Zhumanazarova became a World/Olympic medalist for the first time at the Senior level. Zhumanazarova was also the first woman from Kyrgyzstan to win an Olympic medal. Sara Dosho finished fifth for a second consecutive World/Olympic tournament. She medaled at every World/Olympic event from 2012-17. Since Dosho did not medal, Japan started off without medaling in either of the first two weight contested. Even though 10 past World/Olympic medalists entered this weight, there was only one "close" match during the opening round. A 7-5 win by Zhumanazarova over Mimi Hristova.

2020 Olympic champion Musa Evloev (Photo courtesy of UWW) Monday marked the first medals that were handed out in wrestling at the 2020 Olympics. As each weight class has concluded we will have a wrap-up for each, which includes results and some notable facts related to the weight. Past Articles 60 kg Men's Greco-Roman 77 kg Men's Greco-Roman 130 kg Men's Greco-Roman 76 kg Women's Freestyle Qualification Results Musa Evloev (ROC) over Giorgi Melia (Georgia) 3-1 Alex Szoke (Hungary) over Artur Omarov (Czech Republic) 3-1 G'Angelo Hancock (USA) over Mihail Kajaia (Serbia) 5-1 Tadeusz Michalik (Poland) over Haikel Achouri (Tunisia) 10-0 Mohammadhadi Saravi (Iran) over Adem Boudjemline (Algeria) 9-0 Kiril Milov (Bulgaria) over Cenk Ildem (Turkey) 3-1 Arvi Savolainen (Finland) over Gabriel Rosillo Kindelan (Cuba) 3-1 Artur Aleksanyan (Armenia) over Uzur Dzhuzupbekov (Kyrgyzstan) 4-1 Quarterfinal Results Musa Evloev (ROC) over Alex Szoke (Hungary) 6-2 Tadeusz Michalik (Poland) over G'Angelo Hancock (USA) 4-3 Mohammadhadi Saravi (Iran) over Kiril Milov (Bulgaria) 6-0 Artur Aleksanyan (Armenia) over Arvi Savolainen (Finland) 5-1 Semifinal Results Musa Evloev (ROC) over Tadeusz Michalik (Poland) 7-1 Artur Aleksanyan (Armenia) over Mohammadhadi Saravi (Iran) 4-1 Repechage Results Alex Szoke (Hungary) over Giorgi Melia (Georgia) 5-1 Arvi Savolainen (Finland) over Uzur Dzhuzupbekov (Kyrgyzstan) 4-1 Bronze Medal Matches Tadeusz Michalik (Poland) over Alex Szoke (Hungary) 10-0 Mohammadhadi Saravi (Iran) over Arvi Savolainen (Finland) 9-2 Gold Medal Match Musa Evloev (ROC) over Artur Aleksanyan (Armenia) 5-1 Notes: Musa Evloev won his third World/Olympic gold medal; also his third in a row. Evloev now has four World/Olympic medals and has been in the last four finals. Evloev and finals opponent, Artur Aleksanyan, have met three times in World/Olympic finals. In 2019, won by Evloev, and 2017, won by Aleksanyan. Evloev made it through the tournament outscoring his competition by a 21-5 margin. While that's impressive, he only gave up a single point during his gold medal run in 2019. Aleksanyan is now a three-time Olympic medalist. He has all three colors of medals. Gold in 2016, bronze from 2012, and silver this time. Aleksanyan is now an eight-time World/Olympic medalist. Despite Aleksanyan's long resume and a history dating back through three Olympic Games, he's currently only 29 years old. After Evloev and Aleksanyan, this weight class had three other returning World/Olympic medalists. None captured medals this time and combined to go 1-3 (Cenk Ildem, Kiril Milov, Mihail Kajaia). The only win came when Milov defeated Ildem in the opening round. Tadeusz Michalik won his first World/Olympic medal. Michalik was Poland's first World/Olympic medalist in Greco since Gevorg Sahayan (3rd at 67 kg) in 2018. Michalik was Poland's first Olympic medalist in Greco since Damian Janikowski (3rd at 84 kg) in 2012. Mohammadhadi Saravi won his first World/Olympic medal (though he did take bronze at the 2020 Individual World Cup). Saravi's bronze medal marked the third straight Games where Iran had a medalist at the 96/97kg weight class. (Ghasem Rezaei; 1st - 2012, 3rd - 2016). This weight class saw all four seeded wrestlers earn medals, with Evloev and Aleksanyan wrestling to their exact seed. Additionally, all four medalists competed in the semifinals.

2020 Olympic champion Tamas Lorincz (Photo courtesy of UWW) Monday marked the first medals that were handed out in wrestling at the 2020 Olympics. As each weight class has concluded we will have a wrap-up for each, which includes results and some notable facts related to the weight. Past Articles 60 kg Men's Greco-Roman 130 kg Men's Greco-Roman 76 kg Women's Freestyle Qualification Results Tamas Lorincz (Hungary) over Zied Ait Ouagram (Morocco) Default Shohei Yabiku (Japan) over Demeu Zhadrayev (Kazakhstan) 5-3 Bozo Starcevic (Croatia) over Aik Mnatsakanian (Bulgaria) 3-1 Mohammadali Geraei (Iran) over Yosvanys Pena Flores (Cuba) 7-3 Karapet Chalyan (Armenia) over Jalgasbay Berdimuratova (Uzbekistan) 5-0 Aleksandr Chekhirkin (ROC) over Alfonso Levya Yepez (Mexico) 7-0 Akzhol Makhmudov (Kyrgyzstan) over Lamjed Maafi (Tunisia) 11-0 Rafig Huseynov (Azerbaijan) over Alex Bjurberg Kessidis (Sweden) 1-1 Quarterfinal Results Tamas Lorincz (Hungary) over Shohei Yabiku (Japan) 3-1 Mohammadali Geraei (Iran) over Bozo Starcevic (Croatia) 5-5 Karapet Chalyan (Armenia) over Aleksandr Chekhirkin (ROC) 2-1 Akzhol Makhmudov (Kyrgyzstan) over Rafig Huseynov (Azerbaijan) 9-1 Semifinal Results Tamas Lorincz (Hungary) over Mohammadali Geraei (Iran) 6-5 Akzhol Makhmudov (Kyrgyzstan) over Karapet Chalyan (Armenia) 6-2 Repechage Results Shohei Yabiku (Japan) over Zied Ait Ouagram (Morocco) Default Rafig Huseynov (Azerbaijan) over Lamjed Maafi (Tunisia) 11-1 Bronze Medal Matches Shohei Yabiku (Japan) over Mohammadali Geraei (Iran) 13-3 Rafig Huseynov (Azerbaijan) over Karapet Chalyan (Armenia) 4-1 Gold Medal Match Tamas Lorincz (Hungary) over Akzhol Makhmudov (Kyrgyzstan) 2-1 Notes: Nine years after taking silver in London, Tamas Lorincz was back on the podium and this time he left with a gold medal. Lorincz is now a six-time World/Olympic medalist. Lorincz is the first Hungarian wrestler to win Olympic gold since Istvan Majoros did so at 55 kg Greco-Roman in 2004. Lorincz's opponent in the Olympic finals, Akzhol Makhmudov, was 9 when Lorincz made his first Olympic team in 2008. American fans may remember Makhmudov as the opponent that Kamal Bey beat in the Junior World finals in 2017. A year later, Makhmudov defeated Bey for bronze at Junior Worlds. Makhmudov became the first wrestler from Kyrgyzstan to earn a medal at the Olympics since Bazar Bazarguruev was a bronze medalist (60 kg freestyle) in 2008. This was Makhmudov's first World/Olympic medal at the Senior level. Rafig Huseynov won his second World/Olympic medal. Shohei Yabiku won his first World/Olympic medal. Both semifinal losers ended up falling in the bronze medal matches. Karapet Chalyan defeated a pair of past world medalists Aleksandr Chekhirkin and Jalgasbay Berdimuratova, but missed out on earning a medal himself. All three world medalists (excluding Lorincz) from 2019 competed in Tokyo, but missed the podium.

2021 Women's freestyle 68 kg Olympic champion Tamyra Mensah-Stock (Photo/Larry Slater; LBSphoto.smugmug.com) The best place to start is here, inside Makuhari Messe Hall, where Tamyra Mensah-Stock is holding up the American flag, circling Mat B. The tears are flowing, but it's impossible to miss her smile. She jumps with excitement, then wraps herself in the flag. This is the best place to start, because this is the moment Tamyra Mensah-Stock has dreamt of, waited for, worked for. On Tuesday, she became an Olympic champion, storming to first in the women's freestyle competition at 68 kilograms (150 pounds). "I'm feeling very happy," Mensah-Stock said in a TV interview afterward. "I keep trying not to cry but it keeps happening." This is the best place to start because this moment is historic. Mensah-Stock is just the second American woman to win Olympic wrestling gold, joining Helen Maroulis, who won in 2016. She is the fourth to ever reach an Olympic final, joining Maroulis, Sara McMann (2004) and Adeline Gray, who won silver this week at 76-kg (167). This is the best place to start because Mensah-Stock took the hardest path to gold, having to wrestle: Japan's Sara Dosho, the 2016 Olympic champ and 2017 world champ; China's Zhou Feng, 2015 world silver-medalist who beat Mensah-Stock in 2020; Ukraine's Alla Cherkasova, 2018 world champion; and Nigeria star Blessing Oborududu, who powered through her side of the bracket by outscoring her foes 23-6. Mensah-Stock beat them all, by a combined 34-5. She registered back-to-back 10-0 technical falls over Dosho and Feng, then rallied from a 4-2 hole to defeat Cherkasova, 10-4, in the semifinals, then scored two more takedowns to knock off Oborududu, 4-1, in the finals. She scored 12 total takedowns in four matches and allowed just one. This is the best place to start telling Tamyra Mensah-Stock's unbelievable wrestling story. But where do you go from there? ... You could go to Katy, Texas, where the family moved after she and her twin sister, Tarkyia, were born in Chicago. Go to Morton Ranch High School, on the northwest side of Houston. That's where she first discovered wrestling. Mensah-Stock was a track athlete, a sprinter and a jumper. Wrestling was Tarkyia's sport, but she pleaded for Mensah-Stock to try it after she was bullied by some of her track teammates. She hated it, then she grew to love it. She was also pretty damn good at it. In her first dual meet, Mensah-Stock wrestled up a weight and pinned a returning state qualifier. She reached the state finals that year, then won state titles as a junior and a senior. She took second at the Junior women's freestyle national championships, then went to Wayland Baptist and won two collegiate national titles. It did not take long for her to start dreaming big. "When I first started wrestling, I felt I could be an Olympic champ," Mensah-Stock said, "so I just kept going." … You could go to Louisiana, just over the Texas state line, where her father, Prince, died in a tragic car accident during her first wrestling season. Prince Mensah lived in Louisiana after the family moved to Texas. After driving in to watch Tamyra and Tarkyia wrestle one weekend, he fell asleep at the wheel on the way home. Tamyra became angry, blaming wrestling for her father's death. But Prince loved that his daughters wrestled. He grew up in Ghana, and often shared stories with Tamyra about the fights he and his brothers got into. When he was 30, he came to America and met their mother, Shonda. She grew up in Chicago, and Tamyra jokes that she has a little fight in her, too. Tamyra got married in 2016 to Jacob Stock, a fine wrestler in his own right at Morton Ranch. She made the decision to hyphenate her last name, to Mensah-Stock, to honor her father and keep part of him with her. "He would've been the loudest one here," Tamyra Mensah-Stock said Tuesday. "He would be so proud. He would be so happy." … You could go to Iowa City, in 2016, when Mensah-Stock first qualified for the U.S. Olympic Team. By then, she was on the brink of international wrestling stardom. She had barreled through the Olympic Trials: 9-0 over Veronica Carlson, 11-1 over Julia Salata, then a finals sweep over Brittney Roberts, by identical 8-1 scores. She was primed to become a potential breakout star in Rio. There was just one problem … her Olympic weight, then 69 kilograms, was not qualified for the Olympics. She tried her damndest to punch her ticket to Rio. She went to Mongolia and Turkey for last-chance qualifying events, but took third in both competitions when she needed at least second. She traveled with the team to the Games that year, but only as a training partner. Mensah-Stock took in the sights and sounds. She watched Maroulis make history as America's first Olympic gold-medalist in women's wrestling. The experience fueled everything we've seen over the last five years: she's made every U.S. world and Olympic team from 2017-20, won a world bronze in 2018, a world title in 2019. Then, last April, in her home state and with her family in the stands, she again blew through the field to earn a spot on the U.S. Olympic team - and this time, she knew she'd get to compete at the Olympics. "I've been wanting this," Mensah-Stock said that weekend through teary eyes. "It gets frustrating knowing that you're capable of doing something and it's been pushed back again and again and again, but it's finally here. I can finally call myself an Olympian. "But it feels like - I'm not done yet," she continued. "There are bigger moments to come." … That brings us back to Japan's Makuhari Messe Hall, where Tamyra Mensah-Stock's biggest wrestling moment unfolded better than she could have imagined. Knowing she would get the full Olympic experience this time around, she decided to make the most of it. She brought an Xbox, a Nintendo Switch, and a karaoke machine (with two microphones, of course). USA Wrestling camped out in Nakatsugawa for a pre-Olympics training camp, and she wanted to help her teammates pass the time. "I'm here … to enjoy … the journey," she said this week, "and I am." She sang many songs throughout the week, both by herself and with teammates (she and Alejandro Sancho, the U.S. Greco-Roman rep at 67 kilos, sang Evanescence's "Bring Me To Life" together). When she wasn't singing or playing her Switch, she binged "The Walking Dead" to relax her mind and prepare for the competition. Put another way: Tamyra Mensah-Stock was unapologetically herself at the Olympics this week, and the wrestling community better get ready to share her. Stories have already been written about her in the Houston Chronicle, Reuters, USA Today, even The Guardian: Is US wrestler Tamyra Mensah-Stock the most upbeat athlete at Tokyo 2020? (Answer: yes.) Olympic gold medals change lives, and Mensah-Stock's naturally bubbly personality is going to rocket her to the top of international sporting stardom. We will see the 28-year-old on billboards and in commercials and on the cover of magazines in the year's ahead. More and more people will get to experience her warm hugs. Those who woke up early to watch her gold-medal match against Oborududu got the full Tamyra Mensah-Stock experience afterward. She cried during her post-match interview, then sang, then smiled as she told stories. She told the reporter, "Don't say this out loud" - yes, during a nationally-televised moment - "but my dad (from Ghana) was like enemies with Nigeria, so it's kind of poetic that I had to wrestle Nigeria in the finals. That was kind of cool." She talked about what her accomplishment means to the ongoing girls' and women's wrestling movements around the world: "It means that they see someone like themselves on that podium, someone like Helen on that podium - showing them, just because you're a female doesn't mean you can't accomplish the biggest of goals." "Being an Olympic champ is one of the hardest things I have ever done in my entire life," she continued, "and I'd say it was totally worth it." And, of course, she offered up her next karaoke song - "Champion," by Carrie Underwood, featuring Ludacris. "Maya Nelson showed me that song at the 2019 world championships, and I can't get it out of my head," Mensah-Stock said, then without missing a beat, she started singing. "Because. I. Am. A. Champion. I was born for this. I was made to win." She smiled. "I love it!"

Two-time world medalist Nurislam Sanayev is back int he rankings at 57 kg (Photo/Tony Rotundo, WrestlersAreWarriors.com) 57 KG #8 (61) Nurislam Sanayev (KAZ), a two-time world medalist during the 2016-2020 quad at 57 KG who took silver and bronze in 2018 & 2019, returned to the 57 KG rankings at #11 ahead of the Olympics, where he'll compete at 57 KG. The other big move of the month was #9 Gulomyon Abdullaev (UZB), moving up four spots in the rankings to #5 in the rankings. Abdullaev has more than carved out his place in the top 5, winning tournament titles at the International Ukrainian Tournament, the Ziolkowski and the Asian Olympic qualifier. He avenged his only loss of the year to #6 Ravi Kumar (IND) in the finals of the Ziolkowski and also beaten #9 Aryan Tyutrin (BLR), #7 (61) Taras Markovych (UKR), Sanayev, #15 (61) Adlan Askarov (KAZ), #20 Nodiryon Safarov (UZB) and 2018 Asian championships runner-up Makhmudjon Shavkatov (UZB). 61 KG Nurislam Sanayev was moved out to the 57 KG rankings ahead of the 57 KG Olympics, where he will be coming in as a 2018 world silver and 2019 world runner-up at the weight. 2020 57 KG Individual World Cup bronze medalist Rahman Amouzadkhalili (IRI) makes his debut in the 61 KG rankings after winning the Yasar Dogu back from June with wins over Muenir Recep Aktas and 2019 U-23 world champion Ulukbek Zholdoshbekov (KGZ). 2020 Asian champion Zholdoshbekov is back in the rankings at #17 after a bronze medal finish at the Yasar Dogu. 65 KG There were no changes to the rankings ahead of The Olympic Games. 70 KG U-23 European champion #12 Dzhabrail Gadzhiev (AZE) moved up to 74 KG, where he won the Junior European championships and pinned Oleg Dukanov Memorial runner-up #17 Magomed Abdulkadyrov (RUS) to debut in the rankings at #18. Senior European runner-up #14 Turan Bayramov (AZE) has made the move up to 74 KG to replace the injured Khadzhimurad Gadzhiev (AZE) as Azerbaijan's 74 KG entry at the Olympics. Levan Kelekhsashvili (GEO) takes the #18 spot in the rankings after a runner-up finish at the Yasar Dogu to 2018 world bronze medalist, #15 Zurab Iakobishvili (GEO), with wins over Selehattin Killicsallyan (TUR) and #17 Servet Coskun (TUR). Killicsallyan makes his debut in the rankings at #19 after beating Coskun for bronze at the Yasar Dogu. 74 KG 70 KG U-23 European champion #12 (70) Dzhabrail Gadzhiev (AZE) moved up to 74 KG, where he won the Junior European championships and pinned #17 Magomed Abdulkadyrov (RUS). Gadzhiev debuts in the rankings at #18. 79 KG 2019 U-23 74 KG world runner-up Mohammad Nokholdilarimi (IRI) makes his debut in the rankings at #17 after winning the Yasar Dogu with victories over 2020 Individual World Cup runner-up Muhammet Nuri Kotanoglu (TUR) and Hamidreza Zarinpeykar (IRI). Zarinpeykar takes the #18 slot in the rankings after a runner-up finish at the Yasar Dogu with victories over 2019 U-23 world champion Tariel Gaphdrinashvili (GEO) and 2014 74 KG Junior world bronze medalist Tarzan Maisuradze (GEO).

(Photo courtesy of Tony Rotundo; WrestlersAreWarriors.com/Graphic courtesy of Anna-Lee Boerner) Journeymen Wrestling is excited to announce the reformation of one of the most popular events of the college wrestling season. Until the 2018 season, National Duals was annually among the crown jewels of Division I Wrestling and among the most attended and watched event of the year. After that season however, the event dissolved. But we're bringing it back! Journeymen's Frank Popolizio, who has run national level wrestling events for over a decade, took on the task of making National Duals a reality again out of both nostalgia and the desire to fill a void in collegiate team competition. "Ever since my brother Pat, wrestled in the National Duals while at Oklahoma state in the late 1990s , I have been fascinated by duals and particularly a dual championship. Twice a year I would get on an airplane to go watch collegiate wrestling: NCAAs and the National Duals. It created an awesome ambiance. I know I'm not alone . I know wrestling fans appreciate duals and I thought the timing was right to bring a high stakes - unyielding dual competition back to wrestling." When & Where National Duals will feature 12 teams and will be held in Fort Walton Beach, Florida on December 20th and 21st, 2021 at NW Florida State College. Hotel and ticket information for fans will be available soon. All mats and rounds will be streamed on this channel. The Field Five of the top seven teams from NCAA's are in the field including defending team champions, the Iowa Hawkeyes. Additionally, Cornell, who did not compete last year, and three other Top 25 finishers are in the mix. Defending EIWA Champions Lehigh, along with Oregon State and Hofstra, round out the 12-team field. Invitations were extended to the two top returning teams in each conference. #22 Central Michigan, the top returning team in the MAC, was the only team in the conference to accept the invitation. Hofstra, who was 4th in the EIWA last year replaced a second team from the MAC. All representatives from SoCon conference declined. Participating Teams #1 Iowa Hawkeyes (Big Ten) #4 Arizona State Sun Devils (Pac 12) #5 Michigan Wolverines (Big Ten) #6 North Carolina State Wolfpack (ACC) #7 Missouri Tigers (Big 12) #15 Virginia Tech Hokies (ACC) #19 Northern Iowa Panthers (Big 12) #22 Central Michigan Chippewas (MAC) Cornell Big Red (EIWA) Lehigh Mountain Hawks (EIWA) Oregon State Beavers (Pac 12) Hofstra Pride (EIWA) The Format The twelve teams will be placed in four pools of three by seed but also avoiding conference opponents. On Day 2, winners of the pools will advance to a four-team bracket for semi's and finals to determine a National Dual Champion. The remaining schools will wrestle extra duals vs. teams of correlating pool placement. About Journeymen Wrestling Journeymen Wrestling runs camps, clinics and events of all age groups under the leadership of Frank Popolizio. Annual and past events include the Northeast Duals (DI College), Collegiate Classic (DI Individual), Journeymen Fall Classic (HS), Journeymen Duals (HS), World Freestyle Challenge (HS), MiniMen (Youth) and Tussle for the Troops: NC State vs. Oklahoma State in Naples, Italy. For more information on any of Journeymen's events contact info@journeymenwrestling.com

Timmy McCall (right) at the 2021 NCAA Championships (Photo courtesy of Tony Rotundo; WrestlersAreWarriors.com) RALEIGH, N.C. - NC State wrestling head coach Pat Popolizio has named Timmy McCall as an assistant coach for the Wolfpack. McCall has been in Raleigh involved with the NC State wrestling program since 2015, and now will be elevated to a full-time assistant coach. "Timmy's loyalty and commitment to our program over the last seven years has been unmatched," said Popolizio. "As a head coach, it is always my goal to reward that kind of commitment I see in our room. "Anybody that has sat down and talked to Timmy knows what a special skill set he brings to our program, and he has always fit right in with our staff over the years. He has built some great relationships with so many of our current and past wrestlers, and that has helped elevate our program. I can't wait to see how Timmy develops in this new role on our staff." McCall first made the move to Raleigh in 2015 as a Regional Training Center (RTC) athlete with the Woflpack Wrestling Club. In 2019, McCall was named a volunteer assistant with the Wolfpack's collegiate program. While competing for the Wolfpack Wrestling Club, McCall took first place at the 2017 Henri Deglane Challenge and was a 2016 Bill Farrell International runner-up. He also placed second at the 2019 Grand Prix of France/Henri Deglane Challenge and seventh at the 2019 U.S. Open to qualify for the World Team Trials held in Raleigh. During his time in Raleigh, McCall not only trained full-time but has worked extensively with Athletes in Action on NC State's campus. McCall competed collegiately at Wisconsin, and was ranked as high as ninth nationally as a senior. He wrestled for the Badgers from 2012-15 at both 184 and 197 pounds and qualified for the NCAA Championships at 197 pounds as both a junior and senior. He graduated from South View High School in Hope Mills, N.C., where he was a state champion and two-time NHSCA All-American. He also graduated with a 3.9 GPA and was a member of Academically Gifted (AG) program. McCall married his wife Beth in the summer of 2020.

57 kg men's freestyle representative Thomas Gilman (Photo courtesy of Tony Rotundo; WrestlersAreWarriors.com) Brackets for the fourth day of the 2020 Olympic Games have been released. Men's freestyle gets underway with 57 kg and 86 kg, as well as, 57 kg in women's freestyle which will be conducted on day four of the wrestling competition. Below are all three brackets and information about the first-round opponent for each American entrant. 57 kg Men's Freestyle American Entry - Thomas Gilman 1st Round Opponent: Zavur Uguev (ROC) - 2x World Champion Top 1st Round Matches: Yuki Takahashi (Japan) - 2017 World Champion/2x World Medalist vs. Stevan Micic (Serbia) - 2019 World fifth-place Suleyman Atli (Turkey) - 2x World Medalist vs. Reza Atrinagharchi (Iran) - 2019 World fifth-place 86 kg Men's Freestyle American Entry - David Taylor 1st Round Opponent: Ali Shabanau (Belarus) - 4x World Bronze Medalist Top 1st Round Matches: Artur Naifonov (ROC) - 2019 World Bronze Medalist vs. Boris Makoev (Slovakia) - 2017 World Silver Medalist 57 kg Women's Freestyle American Entry - Helen Maroulis 1st Round Opponent: Ningning Rong (China) - 2018 World Champion/2x World Medalist Top 1st Round Matches: Irina Kurachkina (Belarus) - 2x World Bronze Medalist vs. Anshu Malik (India) - 2021 Asian Champion Anastasia Nichita (Moldova) - 2019 World fifth-place vs. Odunayo Adekuoroye (Nigeria) - 2019 World Bronze Medalist

John Stefanowicz in the qualification round at the 2020 Olympics (Photo courtesy of Larry Slater; LBSphoto.smugmug.com) The third day of wrestling competition at the 2020 Olympics in Tokyo was not friendly to the American competitors. Team USA went 0-3 on the day, as the Greco-Roman team wrapped up their competition and the women's freestyle team continued on. 67 kg Greco-Roman entry Alex Sancho had a difficult draw in 2018 world champion Artem Surkov (ROC), the third seed at the weight class. Sancho was penalized for passivity first and therefore had to go down in par terre. Surkov took advantage of the situation and turned the American twice for a 5-0 lead. During the closing seconds of the first period, Sancho struck with a four-point arm-throw, which closed the deficit to one point at the break. Inexplicably in the second period, Sancho was deemed to be passive again and again was sent down in par terre. Once again, Surkov capitalized and was able to expose Sancho twice for a 10-4 lead. That would be the final score. Surkov then was upset by Parviz Nasibov (Ukraine), 1-1, which ended Sancho's tournament. Sancho's Greco-Roman teammate John Stefanowicz was in action a short time later against 2017 U23 World silver medalist Ivan Huklek of Croatia. Once again, the American was called for passivity in the opening period. Huklek got a pair of turns with a gut wrench and lead 5-0 at the break. Stefanowicz got his opportunity in the second period from par terre and was able to get a single exposure. That brought Huklek's lead to 5-3. Stefanowicz couldn't put any more points on the board despite his best efforts and fell by that score. Stefanowicz is still in the hunt for a bronze medal. Huklek defeated Rustam Assakalov (Uzbekistan), 4-1, to advance to the semifinals. If Huklek unseats two-time world champion Zhan Beleniuk (Ukraine), Stefanowicz will get to compete in repechage. The only member of the women's freestyle team, Kayla Miracle, started her tournament at 62 kg. Miracle was matched up with Jia Long (China), an opponent who defeated her in 2020 by the score of 6-1 at the Matteo Pellicone. After each wrestler fended off an attack by the other, Miracle was put on the shot clock immediately after her offensive attempt was thwarted. Miracle took no risks on the shot clock and was down early, 1-0. Right before the buzzer at the end of the first period, Miracle ended up on top of Long after a flurry for two points. It appeared to be close to a four-point move, but the sequence was never challenged. Late in the second period, Long was able to expose Miracle to jump ahead 3-2. Miracle kept on the offensive and was left stuffed on a leg for much of the final 30 seconds of the bout and ended up losing by that score. Long was pinned in the quarterfinals, which dashed any repechage hope for Miracle. American Results Men's Greco Roman 67 kg Artem Surkov (ROC) over Alex Sancho (USA) 10-4 87 kg Ivan Huklek (Croatia) over John Stefanowicz (USA) 5-3 Women's Freestyle 62 kg Jia Long (China) over Kayla Miracle (USA) 3-2 Semifinal Matchups 67 kg Greco-Roman Ramaz Zoidze (Georgia) vs. Mohammadreza Geraei (Iran) Parviz Nasibov (Ukraine) vs. Mohamed El-Sayed (Egypt) 87 kg Greco-Roman Viktor Lorincz (Hungary) vs. Mohamed Metwally (Egypt) Ivan Huklek (Croatia) vs. Zhan Beleniuk (Ukraine) 62 kg Women's Freestyle Aisuluu Tynybekova (Kyrgyzstan) vs. Iryna Koliadenko (Ukraine) Yukako Kawai (Japan) vs. Taybe Yusein (Bulgaria)

Four-time Olympic champion Mijain Loopez (Photo courtesy of UWW) Today marked the first medals that were handed out in wrestling at the 2020 Olympics. As each weight class has concluded we will have a wrap-up for each, which includes results and some notable facts related to the weight. Past Articles 60 kg Men's Greco-Roman 76 kg Women's Freestyle Qualification Results Riza Kayaalp (Turkey) over Mantas Knystautas (Lithuania) 5-1 Eduard Popp (Germany) over Eduard Soghomonyan (Brazil) 2-0 Mijain Lopez (Cuba) over Alin Alexuc Ciurariu (Romania) 9-0 Amin Mirzazadeh (Iran) over Minseok Kim (South Korea) 6-0 Muminjon Abdullaev (Uzbekistan) over Artur Vititin (Estonia) 8-0 Yasmani Acosta Fernandez (Chile) over Amine Guennichi (Tunisia) 5-1 Iakobi Kajaia (Georgia) over Elias Kuosmanen (Finland) Fall Sergey Semenov (ROC) over Abdellatif Mohamed (Egypt) 3-1 Quarterfinal Results Riza Kayaalp (Turkey) over Eduard Popp (Germany) 6-2 Mijain Lopez (Cuba) over Amin Mirzazadeh (Iran) 8-0 Yasmani Acosta Fernandez (Chile) over Muminjon Abdullaev (Uzbekistan) 2-0 Iakobi Kajaia (Georgia) over Sergy Semenov (ROC) 3-1 Semifinal Results Mijain Lopez (Cuba) over Riza Kayaalp (Turkey) 2-0 Iakobi Kajaia (Georgia) over Yasmani Acosta Fernandez (Chile) 1-1 Repechage Results Sergey Semenov (ROC) over Elias Kuosmanen (Finland) 11-0 Amin Mirzazadeh (Iran) over Alin Alexuc Ciurariu (Romania) 5-1 Bronze Medal Matches Sergey Semenov (ROC) over Yasmani Acosta Fernandez (Chile) 1-1 Riza Kayaalp (Turkey) over Amin Mirzazadeh (Iran) 7-2 Gold Medal Match Mijain Lopez (Cuba) over Iakobi Kajaia (Georgia) 5-0 Notes: Cody Goodwin put together an excellent article with plenty of Mijain Lopez-related stats Lopez earned his ninth career World/Olympic gold medal Lopez also earned his 12th career World/Olympic medal Lopez and Kayaalp have met in each of the last three Olympic Games. In 2012 and 2020, Lopez prevailed in the semifinals. In 2016, they wrestled in the finals. The last time Lopez surrendered a single point at the Olympic Games was in 2008. This was the first time that Lopez's opponent in the gold medal match was not a returning world champion. In 2008, Khasan Baroev was already an Olympic champion and two-time world champ. 2012 saw him down Heiki Nabi who was a 2006 world champion. Kayaalp was a two-time world champion at the time of their 2016 meeting. A Cuban has medaled at the World/Olympic Championships every year since 2014. Lopez did so in 2014-16 and 2020, while Oscar Pino Hines grabbed bronze from 2017-19. Olympic silver medalist Kajaia became a two-time World/Olympic medalist. Kajaia is also the first Georgian heavyweight to ever earn a World/Olympic medal in Greco-Roman. Bronze medalist Sergey Semenov became a three-time World/Olympic medalist. Fifth-place finisher Yasmani Acosta Fernandez lost both of his bouts by the score 1-1 each time. For the third time since the 2016 Olympics, Eduard Popp ran into Kayaalp in a World/Olympic Championship. Each time he has taken a loss.

2020 Olympic champion Aline Rotter-Focken (Photo courtesy of Kadir Caliksen; UWW) Today marked the first medals that were handed out in wrestling at the 2020 Olympics. As each weight class has concluded we will have a wrap-up for each, which includes results and some notable facts related to the weight. Past Articles 60 kg Men's Greco-Roman 76 kg Women's Freestyle Final Results Qualification Results Adeline Gray (USA) over Zaineb Sghaier (Tunisia) Fall 2:11 Yasemin Adar (Turkey) over Aline Silva (Brazil) 6-0 Natalia Vorobieva (ROC) over Samar Hamza (Egypt) 16-12 Aiperi Medet Kyzy (Kyrgyzstan) over Elmira Syzdkova (Kazakhstan) 8-1 Hiroe Minagawa (Japan) over Burmaa Ochirbat (Mongolia) 8-0 Epp Mae (Estonia) over Erica Wiebe (Canada) 5-4 Qian Zhou (China) over Alla Belinska (Ukraine) 4-3 Aline Rotter-Focken (Germany) over Vasilisa Marzaliuk (Belarus) 2-1 Quarterfinal Results Adeline Gray (USA) over Yasemin Adar (Turkey) 6-4 Aiperi Medet Kyzy (Kyrgyzstan) over Natalia Vorobieva (ROC) 12-0 Hiroe Minagawa (Japan) over Epp Mae (Estonia) 3-0 Aline Rotter-Focken (Germany) over Qian Zhou (China) 8-3 Semifinal Results Adeline Gray (USA) over Aiperi Medet Kyzy (Kyrgyzstan) 3-2 Aline Rotter-Focken (Germany) over Hiroe Minagawa (Japan) 3-1 Repechage Results Yasemin Adar (Turkey) over Zaineb Sghaier (Tunisia) Fall 1:21 Qian Zhou (China) over Vasilisa Marzaliuk (Belarus) 2-1 Bronze Medal Matches Yasemin Adar (Turkey) over Aiperi Medet Kyzy (Kyrgyzstan) Fall 1:24 Qian Zhou (China) over Hiroe Minagawa (Japan) Fall 2:30 Gold Medal Match Aline Rotter-Focken (Germany) over Adeline Gray (USA) 7-3 Notes: Aline Rotter-Focken became the first German woman wrestler to win a gold medal at the Olympics Before the Olympics, Rotter-Focken stated that this would be the final tournament of her career. Rotter-Focken is the first German to win gold in any style since Maik Bullman who won (90 kg Greco-Roman) in 1992. Rotter-Focken is now a five-time World/Olympic medalist. Adeline Gray became just the third American woman to make an Olympic final (Helen Maroulis: gold/2016; Sara McMann silver/2004). Gray now is an eight-time world/Olympic medalist. Adar is a three-time world/Olympic medalist. Zhou is a three-time world/Olympic medalist. This weight class had two previous Olympic champions (Erica Wiebe and Natalia Vorobieva). The pair combined to win only one match and neither medaled. All four medalists at this weight are at least 29 years old (Adar/29, Gray/Rotter-Focken/30, Zhou/32). For the third consecutive Olympics, Japan did not capture a medal at the highest weight class. According to our friend at Mat-Talk Online, Jason Bryant, these are the only occasions where Japan has failed to earn a medal in women's wrestling since its inception in 2004.