InterMat Staff

United World Wrestling released the entries for women's freestyle at the 2024 Olympic Games. There are as follows: 50kg Ibtissem Doudou (ALG) Mariya Stadnik (AZE) Ziqi Feng (CHN) Alisson Cardozo Rey (COL) Yusneylis Guzman Lopez (CUB) Nada Mohamed (EGY) Anastasia Blayvas (GER) Vinesh Phogat (IND) Yui Susaki (JPN) Gabija Dilytle (LTU) Otgonjargal Dolgorjav (MGL) Son Hyang Kim (PRK) Evin Demirhan (TUR) Oksana Livach (UKR) Sarah Hildebrandt (USA) Aktenge Keunimjaeva (UZB) 53kg Qianyu Pang (CHN) Lucia Yepez Guzman (ECU) Annika Wendle (GER) Maria Prevolaraki (GRE) Mia Aquino (GUM) Antim Panghal (IND) Akari Fujinami (JPN) Mariana Dragutan (MDA) Khulan Batkhuyag (MGL) Christianah Ogunsanya (NGR) Hyo Gyong Choe (PRK) Andreea Ana (ROU) Jonna Malmgren (SWE) Zeynep Yetgil (TUR) Dominique Parrish (USA) Betzabeth Arguello Villegas (VEN) 57kg Chaimaa Aouissi (ALG) Giullia Penalber (BRA) Hannah Taylor (CAN) Kexin Hong (CHN) Luisa Valverde (ECU) Sandra Paruszewski (GER) Rckaela Aquino (GUM) Anshu Malik (IND) Aurora Russo (ITA) Tsugumi Sakurai (JPN) Anastasia Nichita (MDA) Khongorzul Boldsaikhan (MGL) Odunayo Adekuoroye (NGR) Anhelina Lysak (POL) Alina Hrushyna Akobiia (UKR) Helen Maroulis (USA) 62kg Bilyana Dudova (BUL) Ana Godinez (CAN) Ameline Douarre (FRA) Luisa Niemesch (GER) Sakura Motoki (JPN) Aisuluu Tynybekova (KGZ) Orkhon Purevdorj (MGL) Esther Kolawole (NGR) Grace Bullen (NOR) Hyon Gyong Mun (PRK) Kriszta Incze (ROU) Johanna Lindborg (SWE) Siwar Bouseta (TUN) Nesrin Bas (TUR) Iryna Koliadenko (UKR) Kayla Miracle (USA) 68kg Linda Morais (CAN) Feng Zhou (CHN) Koumba Larroque (FRA) Nisha Dahiya (IND) Nonoka Ozaki (JPN) Meerim Zhumanazarova (KGZ) Irina Ringaci (MDA) Delgermaa Enkhsaidkhan (MGL) Blessing Oborududu (NGR) Tayla Ford (NZL) Wiktoria Choluj(POL) Sol Gum Pak (PRK) Buse Tosun (TUR) Tetiana Sova Rizhko (UKR) Amit Elor (USA) Soleymi Caraballo (VEN) 76kg Yuliana Yaneva (BUL) Justina DiStasio (CAN) Juan Wang (CHN) Tatiana Renteria (COL) Milaimys Marin Potrille (CUB) Genesis Reasco Valdez (ECU) Bernadett Nagy (HUN) Reetika Hooda (IND) Yuka Kagami (JPN) Aiperi Medet Kyzy (KGZ) Davaanasan Enkh Amar (MGL) Hannah Rueben (NGR) Catalina Axente (ROU) Zaineb Sghaier (TUN) Yasemin Adar Yigit (TUR) Kennedy Blades (USA)

Today, United World Wrestling released the entries for men's freestyle at the 2024 Olympic Games. There are as follows: 57kg Zelimkhan Abakarov (ALB) Arsen Harutyunyan (ARM) Aliabbas Rzazade (AZE) Wanhao Zou (CHN) Gamal Mohamed (EGY) Diamantino Iuna Fafe (GBS) Aman Sehrawat (IND) Rei Higuchi (JPN) Meirambek Kartbay (KAZ) Bekzat Almaz Uulu (KGZ) Roman Bravo Young (MEX) Vladimir Egorov (MKD) Darian Cruz (PUR) Stevan Micic (SRB) Spencer Lee (USA) Gulomjon Abdullaev (UZB) 65kg Shamil Mamedov (AIN) Islam Dudaev (ALB) Vazgen Tevanyan (ARM) Georgii Okorokov (AUS) Haji Aliyev (AZE) Alejandro Valdes Tobier (CUB) Goderdzi Dzebisashvili (GEO) Iszmail Muszukajev (HUN) Rahman Amouzad (IRI) Kotaro Kiyooka (JPN) Ernazar Akmataliev (KGZ) Austin Gomez (MEX) Tulga Tumur Ochir (MGL) Sebastian Rivera (PUR) Gaku Akazawa (SAM) Zain Retherford (USA) 74kg Chermen Valiev (ALB) Turan Bayramov (AZE) Feng Lu (CHN) Geandry Garzon Caballero (CUB) Amr Hussen (EGY) Iman Mahdavi (EOR) Bacar Ndum (GBS) Georgios Kougioumtsidis (GRE) Yones Emami (IRI) Frank Chamizo (ITA) Daichi Takatani (JPN) Ali Arsalan (SRB) Tajmuraz Salkazanov (SVK) Viktor Rassadin (TJK) Kyle Dake (USA) Razambek Jamalov (UZB) Anthony Montero Chirinos (VEN) 86kg Fateh Benferdjallah (ALG) Jayden Lawrence (AUS) Osman Nurmagomedov (AZE) Magomed Ramazanov (BUL) Alexander Moore (CAN) Vladimeri Gamkrelidze (GEO) Dauren Kurugliev (GRE) Hassan Yazdani (IRI) Hayato Ishiguro (JPN) Azamat Dauletbekov (KAZ) Bat Erdene Byambasuren (MGL) Ethan Ramos (PUR) Myles Amine (SMR) Vasyl Mykhailov (UKR) Aaaron Brooks (USA) Javrail Shapiev (UZB) 97kg Magomedkhan Magomedov (AZE) Akhmed Tazhudinov (BRN) Awusayiman Habila (CHN) Arturo Silot Torres (CUB) Luis Perez Sosa (DOM) Mostafa Elders (EGY) Givi Matcharashvili (GEO) Erik Thiele (GER) Amirali Azarpira (IRI) Alisher Yergali (KAZ) Radu Lefter (MDA) Zbigniew Baranowski (POL) Nicolaas De Lange (RSA) Ibrahim Ciftci (TUR) Murazi Mchedlidze (UKR) Kyle Snyder (USA) 125kg Giorgi Meshvildishvili (AZE) Amarveer Dhesi (CAN) Zhiwei Deng (CHN) Diaaeldin Abdelmottaleb (EGY) Geno Petriashvili (GEO) Daniel Ligeti (HUN) Amir Hossein Zare (IRI) Yusup Batirmurzaev (KAZ) Aiaal Lazarev (KGZ) Lkhagvagerel Munkhtur (MGL) Ashton Mutuwa (NGR) Robert Baran (POL) Jonovan Smith (PUR) Taha Akgul (TUR) Yurii Idzinskyi (UKR) Mason Parris (USA)

The Oklahoma State recruiting moment continues to roll! This morning we wrote about how the Cowboys got a commitment from Landon Robideau (St. Michael-Albertville, MN), the #20 overall recruit in the Class of 2025. Robideau flipped his commitment from his home team - the Minnesota Golden Gophers. Now, Oklahoma State has another big verbal. Today, #27 Ronnie Ramirez (Walnut, CA) verballed to David Taylor’s team, as well. Ramirez was the second-highest available uncommitted recruit from the Class of 2025. Ramirez earned his high ranking after winning a loaded 120 lb weight class earlier this year at the CIF State Tournament. It was a second straight state championship for Ramirez, who won the 113 lb bracket in 2023. Ramirez is now a three-time state finalist heading into his senior year. During the regular season, Ramirez claimed a title at the Doc Buchanan Invitational. It was his second time in the top-eight at the tournament. He was sixth in 2022. Before the 2023-24 season, Ramirez was third at the Super 32. With Ramirez’s commitment, Oklahoma State now has verbals from four of the top-27 recruits from the Class of 2025 and eight Big Boarders overall. 10 rising seniors have already committed to the Cowboys. Ramirez projects at the next level as a 125 or 133 lber. Oklahoma State has a returning Big 12 runner-up and NCAA Round of 12 finisher, Troy Spratley, at 125 lbs and Spratley is headed into his sophomore year so there isn’t a huge need at the weight. There are plenty of options available at 133 lbs. Ramirez’s commitment gives the Cowboys high-profile recruits from California in back-to-back years as Oklahoma State inked #2 overall Cody Merrill in the Class of 2024. For Oklahoma State’s current Class of 2025: Click Here

Fargo aka 16U and Junior Nationals is upon us. The largest wrestling tournament in the world is set to kick off on Saturday with the women’s freestyle portion of the tournament. Last year’s version of Fargo included over 7,000 participants! To get ready for Fargo, we’re looking at the tournament from a collegiate perspective. A recruiting perspective. Over the next few days, we’ll go conference-by-conference to look at recruits from each school who have signed up for the tournament. We’re starting with the ACC, a conference that has grown over the offseason. Conference realignment has brought Stanford to the Atlantic Coast Conference! While it doesn’t make sense on paper, Stanford is a team that’s signed the #2 overall recruiting class in 2024 and has some good ones in the pipeline for 2025, so they are welcomed with open arms. Three other ACC teams had top-12 recruiting classes with North Carolina (#8), Virginia Tech (#10), and NC State (#12). Both North Carolina and Virginia Tech have a handful of recruits from those classes to observe in the FargoDome. Recruits have been grouped by team. They are listed alphabetically alongside the weight listed in USA Wrestling’s registration, the state they are representing and their graduating class. The # next to a wrestler’s name denotes their MatScout Big Board ranking in their respective class. We’ve sorted through six or seven thousand entries to bring you these previews, so there could be a recruit or two that slipped through the cracks. If that’s the case, please let me know. Earl@matscouts.com Additionally, no preview or historical analysis for anything Fargo-related could be done without some assistance from Jason Bryant’s massive Fargo Guide. There’s still time to get yours, it's a great reference for any wrestling junkie! NC State 150 lbs: #67 Will Denny (Illinois) - Class of 2025 150 lbs: #185 Jason Kwaak (New York) - Class of 2025 157 lbs: #55 Brogan Tucker (Ohio) - Class of 2025 144 lbs: #19 Daniel Zepeda (California) - Class of 2025 The Wolfpack have their Class of 2025 on display. One of their recruits, Daniel Zepeda, made the Junior freestyle finals before his junior year of high school. A year later, can he move up to the top step? Of the three remaining recruits, Jason Kwaak is the only other one that has placed in Fargo before. Last year, he was sixth in 16U freestyle. North Carolina 132 lbs: #5 Matthew Botello (Massachusetts) - Class of 2025 215 lbs: #172 Mikey Calcagno (Illinois) - Class of 2024 165 lbs: #136 Israel Ibarra (Arizona) - Class of 2025 285 lbs: #65 Jacob Levy (Georgia) - Class of 2025 138 lbs: #155 Elias Navida (California) - Class of 2024 157 lbs: #97 Beau Priest (California) - Class of 2025 144 lbs: Braden Priest (California) - Class of 2025 157 lbs: #52 Laird Root (California) - Class of 2024 165 lbs: #124 Luke Sipes (Pennsylvania) - Class of 2025 150 lbs: #177 Mitchell Younger (Ohio) - Class of 2025 North Carolina had a massive Class of 2024, one that ranked eighth in the nation. They’re well on their way towards another top-ten class - one with a huge amount of commits, as well. This group contains two Junior freestyle All-Americans from 2024 (Botello and Root). Heavyweight recruit Jacob Levy was a U16 freestyle champion last year - we’ll see how he handles moving up the Junior division. After those three, there are three others that have made it onto the Fargo podium at least once. Elias Navida has shown a propensity for Greco-Roman as he’s made the finals in both age groups and was fourth in 16U freestyle in 2022. Israel Ibarra and Beau Priest both are past 16U freestyle AA’s. Pittsburgh 165 lbs: Tristan Steldt (Wisconsin) - Class of 2025 The Panthers typically get a ton of talent from in-state and across the border in Ohio. Of late, they’ve been recruiting well in New Jersey. Local fans are probably not familiar with Tristan Steldt of Wisconsin, so they’ll have a new face to follow and get acquainted with. Steldt brings a different element to Pitt as he was a 16U Greco national champion in 2022. He’ll compete in both styles this year. Stanford 120 lbs: #168 Adam Mattin (Ohio) - Class of 2025 215 lbs: #29 Angelo Posada (California) - Class of 2025 126 lbs: #127 Edwin Sierra (California) - Class of 2025 That’s right, Stanford is now in the ACC; geography be damned! Fans of the conference have some new faces to scout. Angelo Posado was an eighth-place finisher last year at 170 lbs. He continues to move up significantly in weight and will be at 215 lbs next week. Can he handle the higher weight class? Edwin Sierra placed in both styles in the 16U division back in 2022. Adam Mattin hasn’t placed in Fargo before; however, almost ten years ago, his older brother Drew made the Junior freestyle finals. Virginia Tech 175 lbs: #14 Ryan Burton (New Jersey) - Class of 2025 285 lbs: #83 Parker Ferrell (Virginia) - Class of 2024 138 lbs: #42 Drew Gorman (Georgia) - Class of 2025 144 lbs: #89 Noah Nininger (Virginia) - Class of 2025 126 lbs: #12 Aaron Seidel (Pennsylvania) - Class of 2025 106 lbs: Caden Smith (Virginia) - Class of 2024 157 lbs: #28 Claudio Torres (Florida) - Class of 2025 157 lbs: Ben Weader (Virginia) - Class of 2025 Virginia Tech has a large contingent headed to Fargo. Ryan Burton, Aaron Seidel, Caden Smith, and Claudio Torres were all Junior freestyle All-Americans last year. Seidel was the highest placing of the bunch, as he made the finals. One wrestle I’m eagerly watching is Parker Ferrell, fifth at Junior freestyle in 2022. Farrell has missed significant time in his high school career due to injuries. This should be a good barometer of where he’s at heading into Blacksburg. Interestingly enough, all eight of these wrestlers have made the Fargo podium at least once during their high school careers - in one style or age group or another. Surprisingly, the most decorated is Caden Smith (4 AA’s) who has done his damage at the lowest Junior weights.

The top prospect in the high school Class of 2026, Bo Bassett, has vowed to keep fans abreast of his recruiting with daily Wednesday updates. Well, today is Wednesday and true to his word, Bassett has posted an updated graphic which has eliminated a handful of schools from consideration. Earlier this year, Bassett posted a graphic that contained the logos of approximately 80 schools, most of the DI variety, but some DII’s as well, to signify that he’s totally open in the recruiting process. After a few weeks of removing schools from the list, he’s down to 52. The following schools were removed from this week’s graphic: CSU Bakersfield, George Mason, Hofstra, Northwestern, Rider, UW Parkside, West Liberty The following schools remain on Bassett’s graphic and therefore in contention for his services: Air Force, American, Arizona State, Army West Point, Brown, Bucknell, California Baptist, Cal Poly, Campbell, Clarion, Columbia, Cornell, Edinboro, Harvard, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Iowa State, Lehigh, Little Rock, Maryland, Michigan, Michigan State, Millersville, Minnesota, Missouri, Navy, NC State, Nebraska, North Carolina, North Dakota State, Northern Colorado, Northern Iowa, Ohio State, Oklahoma, Oklahoma State, Oregon State, Penn, Penn State, Pitt-Johnstown, Pittsburgh, Princeton, Purdue, Rutgers, South Dakota State, Stanford, The Citadel, Virginia, Virginia Tech, West Virginia, Wisconsin, Wyoming. The following schools were removed from last week’s graphic: Appalachian State, Central Michigan, Cleveland State, Drexel, Kent State, Ohio, and St. Cloud State The following schools were removed from the graphic from 6/26: Binghamton, Bloomsburg, Duke, Gardner-Webb, Northern Illinois, Sacred Heart, SIU Edwardsville As you would expect, most traditional DI power programs are still in the hunt for the two-time Super 32 and Ironman champion. Bassett is currently training for the U20 Pan-American Championships and the U20 World Championships. He posted the latest update from Lima, Peru, as the U20 Pan-American tournament takes place July 11th-13th and the U20 World Championships are September 2nd-8th in Pontevedra, Spain. In 2021, Bassett captured gold medals in both freestyle and Greco-Roman at the U17 Pan-American Championships. That same year, at the U17 World Championships, Bassett claimed a gold medal in freestyle and was 12th in Greco. He’ll compete this year just in freestyle.

Last night, Landon Robideau (St. Michael-Albertville, Minnesota) the #20 overall recruit in the Class of 2025 posted a graphic on social media indicating that he committed to wrestling at Oklahoma State University. Robideau had previously given a verbal commitment to stay in-state and wrestle for Minnesota. Robideau was the very first wrestler from the Class of 2025 to make a college commitment, as he did so in October of 2022. Robideau will head into his senior year of high school a three-time Minnesota state champion and a five-time state finalist - Minnesota allows middle schoolers to compete at the high school level if they’re able to do so. Nationally, Robideau has taken third and fifth place at the UWW U17 Trials. He’s placed twice at the Super 32 - seventh in 2022 and he was a finalist in 2023. Next week, Robideau will attempt to add to his accomplishments in Fargo. He comes into the tournament as a three-time placer in freestyle - twice at the 16U level and once as a Junior. Robideau was third in Junior freestyle and made the 16U finals twice. Robideau will be in action in Fargo at 150 lbs. Robideau’s flip makes him the second prominent wrestler from the Class of 2025 who has flipped commitments since David Taylor was hired in early-May. Just over a month ago, #16 Kody Routledge (Edmond North, Oklahoma) switched his commitment from Nebraska to Oklahoma State. With Robideau and Routledge in the fold, alongside #2 Ladarion Lockett (Stillwater, OK), Oklahoma State has verbals from three of the top-20 prospects in the Class of 2025. They also have commitments from seven members of the 2025 Big Board. Robideau projects in the 149/157 lb range which doesn’t necessarily appear to be a desperate need for the Cowboys. However, as they are trying to reload and get into NCAA team trophy and team title contention, they will stockpile as much talent as possible and let the wrestlers sort it out. The Cowboys already have a bit of a Minnesota connection in the room. NCAA qualifiers Troy Spratley (125) and Tagen Jamison (141) spent a year at Minnesota before transferring.

St. Michael-Albertville

Summit

Brecksville

Abington Heights

The guys are back to discuss the decision from the Russian federation to not send any wrestlers to the 2024 Olympic Games. The American team also added another Olympian in Kamal Bey as more quotas have been reallocated. Get the whole conversation here:

The athletic department at the University of Maryland has announced changes to the wrestling staff for the 2024-25 season. One of the mainstays of the Alex Clemsen-era in College Park, Devin Mellon, has left the staff to pursue opportunities outside of the wrestling world. Mellon joined the Terrapin staff in 2019 shortly after Clemsen took over as the program’s head coach. He was a three-time national qualifier for Missouri while Clemsen was on the Tiger coaching staff. The two other holdovers from last season’s staff, Nick Brascetta and Elijah Oliver, have both received promotions. Brascetta’s new title will be associate head coach. Oliver joined the staff three years ago as a volunteer assistant and now is a full-time assistant coach. A new addition to the staff, but one that isn’t entirely a new face, is Ethan Laird. Laird spent the 2023-24 season as the associate director of Maryland’s DMV RTC. Prior to that, Laird was a standout for Rider University. In 2022-23, Laird qualified for the NCAA Tournament for a fourth time and made the NCAA semifinals before finishing sixth in the country at 197 lbs. Laird was seeded fourth at nationals after claiming his second MAC championship. He made the nation take notice by upsetting the returning national champion, Max Dean (Penn State), earlier that season. Though he doesn’t have an official coaching title, Pittsburgh All-American Cole Matthews will join the program as the “Special Assistant to the Head Coach.” Matthews finished his collegiate career in March as a five-time national qualifier for the Panthers and an All-American after taking fifth place in 2022. Matthews was also a two-time ACC champion and started the 2022-23 ranked #1 in the country. Maryland is coming off a 5-7 campaign that saw the Terps go 2-6 in Big Ten competition. The Terps hosted the Big Ten Championships for the first time and finished in 10th place with 39 points. In 2024-25, Clemsen’s team could field a lineup that includes six wrestlers with NCAA experience.

J’den Cox of Ypsilanti, Mich. has been named the new National Freestyle Development and Resident Coach for USA Wrestling, the national governing body for wrestling in the United States. In this position, Cox will coordinate U.S. Pan American and World Teams at the U15, U17 and U20 levels. He will also manage USA Wrestling’s Elite U20 Resident Program, which will train at the U.S. Olympic & Paralympic Training Center in Colorado Springs, Colo. He will work directly with National Freestyle Coach Bill Zadick and Manager of Freestyle Programs Joe Russell on many other projects as part of USA Wrestling’s professional national freestyle coaching staff. “I was overjoyed and overcome with emotion. Being able to find this opportunity was overwhelming. It is a great position, and anybody who is somebody should want to be in this position. The legacy that has been building around USA Wrestling, the bar that has been raised in freestyle wrestling, is amazing. I am honored to be in a position to help young men develop as people, first and foremost becoming great men, and then as athletes. I am excited to get to work and have an effect on the future of USA Wrestling,” said Cox. Cox comes to USA Wrestling after completing one of the greatest freestyle wrestling careers of his generation. He won two Senior World titles (2018, 2019), a 2016 Olympic bronze medal, a 2022 World silver medal and two World bronze medals (2017, 2021). He was a member of two Senior World Championship Teams, at the 2017 World Championships in Paris, France and the 2022 World Championships in Belgrade, Serbia. He blasted onto the World scene in 2016, after winning the U.S. Olympic Team Trials in Iowa City, Iowa at 86 kg. Cox qualified the weight class for the Rio Olympic Games a few weeks later, placing first in an Olympic Qualification Tournament in Mongolia. Among his other major international titles were Pan American Championships gold medals in 2019 and 2022 and the 2019 Yasar Dogu International in Turkey. Cox retired from competition during the 2024 U.S. Olympic Team Trials in State College, Pa. “What an exciting time for USA Wrestling and our Men’s Freestyle Development athletes! I’m extremely excited to work with J’den Cox as he starts this position. For me, it’s awesome to see J’den come full circle. I’ve been fortunate enough to travel the world with him to some of the biggest events in our sport from his first in qualifying his Olympic weight in 2016 to his Olympic medal and then on to multiple World Championship medals! J’den will bring a very caring, passionate and growth mindset to the young men that he will work with. His elite level knowledge on the mat and in training will ramp up the learning experience for our development pipeline, but the true impact he will have on these young men’s lives are immeasurable,” said Cody Bickley, USA Wrestling Director of National Teams High Performance. “It’s my honor to welcome the addition of J’den Cox to the USA Wrestling Men’s Freestyle staff as our National Developmental Coach. In his competitive career, as both a NCAA Champion and as a Senior Men’s Freestyle wrestler, he has proven himself to be one of the best in U.S. & USA Wrestling history. J’den will bring a fresh perspective, having been recently an athlete, along with an attitude of continued learning. The developmental pipeline is of great importance to our sustained success in USA Wrestling Men’s Freestyle Wrestling. I am confident he will adapt to this new role applying his attitude and perspectives to make a positive impact on USA Wrestling’s elite age-group athletes, our resident Olympic Training Center program, and the entire USA Wrestling developmental pipeline. It’s my pleasure to welcome J’den, Whitney, and their children to the USA Wrestling family,” said Bill Zadick, USA Wrestling’s National Freestyle Coach. Cox served as a volunteer assistant coach at the University of Missouri under legendary coach Brian Smith in 2017, working with the heavyweight wrestlers. He has served as a technician for wrestling camps for eight years, running his own camps for youth from kindergarten to high school, focusing on both wrestling skills and life skills including personal and emotional growth and business skills. He graduated with a bachelor’s degree in interdisciplinary studies from the University of Missouri in 2017. Cox has served as advisory counsel member of Wrestle Like a Girl, Advocacy Director for the Black Wrestling Association and a commentator for ESPN for two NCAA Wrestling Championships. A native of Columbia, Mo., Cox won four Missouri state high school titles for Hickman High School, each at a different weight class. He won two age-group national titles while in high school. He went on to have one of the greatest careers for the University of Missouri as a three-time NCAA champion (2014, 2016, 2017) and a four-time All-American. Cox is looking forward to sharing his experiences as an World-class athlete with the nation’s elite young wrestlers who have set high goals for their themselves both on and off the mat. “It is important to give them realistic views of what it is like, to start them early to know what it takes to get where they want to be. I will be showing them the path that allows them to do it with passion and love, fun and drive. It is not just a couple hours on the mat. It is how you carry yourself around others, it’s how you present yourself in life. I always use the quote, ‘show them the love.’ When you love something, there is nothing you wouldn’t do to make sure it is done right. That means you have to diet right, you have to live your life right, your relationships have to be right. Everything is encompassed with you being the best, so you can then focus on being the best in the room. My philosophy is working with these youth as people first. It is awesome to take that role to be a mentor, a coach, to guide the young ones to be the best of their ability,” said Cox. Cox will be working with Bill Zadick and Joe Russell, who were part of the coaching team that supported him when he was a resident athlete at the U.S. Olympic & Paralympic Training Center. “It is a great opportunity to learn. I have been involved from the athletic side of things. To be on the coaching side in a leadership role is different. Change is good. I am good at adjusting and adapting. I look forward to the opportunity to get to learn from great minds like Coach Zadick and Coach Russell and to take in the experience they received and apply it to my philosophies and my program,” said Cox. Cox and his wife Whitney, who was a five-time U.S. Senior World Team member in women’s freestyle, have two children, Zoi and Feinx. He will start with USA Wrestling in late July. “Being able to come back home will be fun. I do consider it my home. It is the first place since I left Columbia, Mo. and established a home base and really grew as an athlete and as a person. I am looking forward to going back there and sharing it with my family,” said Cox.

Today, United World Wrestling released the entries for Greco-Roman at the 2024 Olympic Games. There are as follows: 60kg Abdelkarim Fergat (ALG) Murad Mammadov (AZE) Liguo Cao (CHN) Kevin De Armas (CUB) Moamen Mohamed (EGY) Jamal Valizadeh (EOR) Mehdi Mohsen Nejad (IRI) Kenichiro Fumita (JPN) Aidos Sultangali (KAZ) Zholaman Sharshenbekov (KGZ) Victor Ciobanu (MDA) Se Ung Ri (PRK) Razvan Arnaut (ROU) Georgij Tibilov (SRB) Enes Basar (TUR) Islomjon Bakhramov (UZB) Raiber Rodriguez (VEN) 67kg Ishak Ghaiou (ALG) Slavik Galstyan (ARM) Hasrat Jafarov (AZE) Nestor Almanza Truyol (CHI) Luis Orta Sanchez(CUB) Andres Montano Arroyo (ECU) Mohamed Elsayed (EGY) Mamadassa Sylla (FRA) Ramaz Zoidze (GEO) Saeid Esmaeili Leivesi (IRI) Kyotaro Sogabe (JPN) Amantur Ismailov (KGZ) Valentin Petic (MDA) Mate Nemes (SRB) Souleymen Nasr (TUN) Parviz Nasibov (UKR) 77kg Abd Elkrim Ouakali (ALG) Malkhas Amoyan (ARM) Sanan Suleymanov (AZE) Aik Mnatsakanian (BUL) Jair Cuero Munoz (COL) Yosvanys Pena Flores (CUB) Mahmoud Abdelrahman (EGY) Jonni Sarkkinen (FIN) Zoltan Levai (HUN) Amin Kaviyaninejad (IRI) Nao Kusaka (JPN) Demeu Zhadrayev (KAZ) Akzhol Makhmudov (KGZ) Burhan Akbudak (TUR) Kamal Bey (USA) Aram Vardanyan (UZB) 87kg Bachir Sid Azara (ALG) Rafig Huseynov (AZE) Semen Novikov (BUL) Haitao Qian (CHN) Carlos Munoz Jaramillo (COL) Turpal Bisultanov (DEN) Mohamed Metwally (EGY) Lasha Gobadze (GEO) David Losonczi (HUN) Alireza Mohmadipiani (IRI) Nursultan Tursynov (KAZ) Arkadiusz Kulynycz (POL) Aleksandr Komarov (SRB) Ali Cengiz (TUR) Zhan Beleniuk (UKR) Payton Jacobson (USA) 97kg Abubakar Khaslakhanau (AIN) Fadi Rouabah (ALG) Artur Aleksanyan (ARM) Gabriel Rosillo (CUB) Artur Omarov (CZE) Mohamed Gabr (EGY) Arvi Savolainen (FIN) Roberti Kobliashvili (GEO) Lucas Lazogianis (GER) Kevin Mejia Castillo (HON) Mohammadhadi Saravi (IRI) Uzur Dzhuzupbekov (KGZ) Seungjun Kim (KOR) Mindaugas Venckaitis (LTU) Josef Rau (USA) Rustam Assakalov (UZB) 130kg Sabah Shariati (AZE) Kiril Milov (BUL) Yasmani Acosta Fernandez (CHI) Lingzhe Meng (CHN) Mijain Lopez (CUB) Abdellatif Mohamed (EGY) Heiki Nabi (EST) Jello Krahmer (GER) Amin Mirzazade (IRI) Alimkhan Syzdykov (KAZ) Seungchan Lee (KOR) Oussama Assad (MAR) Alin Alexuc Ciurariu (ROU) Amine Guennich (TUN) Muhammet Bakir (TUR) Adam Coon (USA)

CORSIER-SUR-VEVEY, Switzerland (July 9) -- A week after 16 Paris 2024 quotas were reallocated in wrestling, United World Wrestling has further reallocated eight quotas on Monday. This comes after eight Individual Neutral Athletes decided to withdraw their names before the July 8 entry deadline for the Games. Only one kept the quota -- at 65kg in Freestyle. This takes the number of AINs participating in Paris 2024 to two. Last week, UWW had reallocated 16 quotas, a decision taken after the International Olympic Committee released a list of eligible athletes in the first group of sports that have finished their qualifying process for the Olympic Games Paris 2024. The IOC had approved 16 out of the 26 Individual Neutral Athletes who won the Paris Olympic spots in various qualifying tournaments of UWW. However, six wrestlers did not accept the invitation to Paris 2024 despite being deemed eligible by the IOC. The 16 reallocations were carried out by UWW to the next highest-ranked eligible NOC, not yet qualified, at the event at which the quota place was obtained, respecting the maximum quota per gender and per NOC. The same process was followed for the new reallocation of eight quotas. List of second reallocation of Paris 2024 quotas Freestyle 57kg - Kazakhstan (Belgrade) 86kg - Ukraine (Baku) 125kg - Ukraine (Belgrade) Greco-Roman 87kg - Denmark (Baku) 97kg - Germany (Istanbul) Women's Wrestling 53kg - Germany (Baku) 62kg - France (Baku) 68kg - Ukraine (Baku) United World Wrestling will release the entries for Paris 2024 beginning Tuesday, July 9, 2024.

First-year women’s program Grand Valley State made a big splash today as head coach Jake Short started to unveil the team’s first signing class. One of the cornerstones of the program will be Sage Mortimer who has signed with the Lakers and is transferring in from King University. Earlier this year, Mortimer was a runner-up to Audrey Jimenez in the 50 kg final of the challenge tournament at the 2024 Olympic Team Trials. After her loss to Jimenez, Mortimer rebounded to defeat veteran Erin Golston for true third place. It was the second Olympic Trials that Mortimer has participated in. Mortimer earned a spot at the Olympic Trials after winning Senior Nationals in December of 2023. At Senior Nationals, she won a 12-10 shootout over former King teammate Samara Chavez. On an international stage, Mortimer was a 2019 Cadet World Team member and a two-time age-group Pan-American Champion (U15 and U20). Collegiately, Mortimer earned All-American honors twice for King. She was third in the NCWWC in 2022 and a runner-up to longtime rival Emily Shilson in 2023. Prior to starting college, Mortimer had a decorated Fargo career that included four national titles for Team Utah. She also became the first girl to place in the boys division when she took seventh place in 16U Greco-Roman in the summer of 2018.

In the 2023 preseason our Big 12 correspondent, James Hackney, stated that West Virginia was his wild card team. What he meant was the pieces seemed to be in place for potentially a big year for the Mountaineers. That proved to be the case as two West Virginia wrestlers earned All-American honors and the team finished 17th in the nation. You’d have to go back to 2004 to find the last time that West Virginia finished that high. The sixth year with Tim Flynn at the helm also yielded a 10-5 dual record, the same mark the Mountaineers hit in 2022-23. Now the trick is surpassing even higher expectations. That should be the case in 2024-25 as West Virginia has a largely veteran cast featuring as many as eight potential starters with NCAA experience. Both of their All-Americans from 2024 are back. You don’t have to squint very hard to imagine at least one other returning starter getting on the podium. If that isn’t enough, West Virginia also will get the services of an excellent recruiting class - one that was ranked 17th in the nation by InterMat. The 2024 signing class features three of the top-58 wrestlers in the country and is very heavy with Western Pennsylvania talent. Even with a strong crop of returners, we could see one or two of the true freshmen push for a regular spot in the lineup. So, what could the WVU lineup look like in 2024-25? We’ve got a weight-by-weight peek below at a team that probably shouldn’t be labeled a wild card or a dark horse in the future. They’re just going to be really good. 125 lbs - Jett Strickenberger West Virginia needed help at their opening weight after two-time All-American Killian Cardinale used his final year of eligibility in 2022-23. In came, Jett Strickenberger, a transfer from Northwest Kansas Technical College to stabilize the weight class. Strickenberger showed immediately that he was an impact player after a win over returning All-American Brandon Kaylor (Oregon State) during his first competition in a WVU singlet. After going 0-2 at the Midlands, Strickenberger saw action in one match at 133 lbs and returned to action a few weeks later. Heading into the postseason, Strickenberger might have been considered “on the bubble” for NCAA qualification; however, he removed any of those doubts with a third-place finish in a deep Big 12 weight class. After losing in the quarterfinals, Strickenberger reeled off four straight wins, one of which came against the defending conference champion Stevo Poulin (Northern Colorado). Strickenberger’s first NCAA Tournament didn’t end the way he envisioned, as he lost both of his matches and surrendered bonus points in each contest. The final loss came via fall to Eli Griffin (California Baptist) an opponent who was eighth in the Big 12. Like the rest of the Big 12 and many NCAA 125 lber’s, Strickenberger has shown he can be some of the best in the nation on any given day. In 2024-25, he’ll need to show off more consistency on a day-to-day basis. 133 lbs - Davin Rhodes/Tommy Maddox/Mason Kernan The really wide open weight class for the Mountaineers is 133 lbs. As you can see, there are a trio of options for Flynn’s staff. The incumbent is Davin Rhodes who was WVU’s entry at the 2024 Big 12 Championships though he went 0-2. Rhodes was 2-12 overall and only won once against DI competition. The transfer portal was helpful here as Tommy Maddox came aboard from Buffalo during the Bulls coaching transition. Maddox is a sixth-year senior who had been Buffalo’s primary starter at this weight for each of the last two seasons. In 2024, Maddox advanced to the MAC semifinals and eventually settled into a fourth-place finish. Over the last two years, Maddox has racked up a 24-31 record for Buffalo. If the veterans are unable to lock down the starting role, the Mountaineer staff could turn to one of the members of their 17th-ranked recruiting class, Mason Kernan. Kernan was a top-200 prospect after finishing third in Pennsylvania’s AAA state tournament and making the 2023 NHSCA Junior National finals. Should a solid answer unfold amongst this trio, West Virginia could have an imposing dual lineup without any real holes. 141 lbs - Jordan Titus An NCAA qualifier as a redshirt freshman in 2023, Jordan Titus took it to another level and showed the promise that made him a top-50 recruit in the high school Class of 2021. Titus won his first 17 matches of the year, a streak that saw him capture tournament titles at the Southeast Open and the Midlands. Titus’ Midlands crown made him the first WVU wrestler since 2003 to win the prestigious tournament. He also led a West Virginia contingent that finished third at the tournament, the best finish in school history. After the Midlands, Titus suffered a few conference losses and then medically forfeited down to sixth place at the Big 12 Championships - a placement that made him rely on earning an at-large berth to the 2024 NCAA Championships. In Kansas City, Titus went 1-2 but was able to notch a win over Big 12 foe Clay Carlson (South Dakota State). It was his second career win over the two-time All-American. Titus' early season run put him into the top-ten in the national rankings; as high as #9. Even with the medical forfeit and the at-large berth he was seeded #13 for the NCAA Tournament. If healthy, Titus should probably be closer to the NCAA podium in Philadelphia as opposed to his 1-2 showings in each of the last two seasons. 149 lbs - Ty Watters Quietly, Ty Watters put together one of the best true freshman seasons in the nation and in the history of West Virginia wrestling. After being tabbed as the #32 overall recruit in the Class of 2023, Watters immediately made his presence known in the WVU lineup with a 4-1 record at the season-opening Southeast Open. In the dual competitions that followed, Watters displayed the ability to end a match quickly as he posted seven falls in his first eight duals. At the Midlands, Watters defeated a trio of ranked wrestlers to reach the finals, which was a sign of things to come from the young Mountaineer. Post-Midlands, Watters only suffered one dual loss to Iowa State’s Casey Swiderski in sudden victory. During his first collegiate postseason, Watters notched bonus points in every match leading up to the Big 12 finals, which he won over Jordan Williams (Oklahoma State) via injury default. His conference title led to a fifth seed at the 2024 NCAA Championships. That ability to pin was on display in Kansas City as Watters decked returning All-American Jaden Abas (Stanford) to confirm a place amongst the top-eight in the bloodround. A match later, he got a measure of revenge on Swiderski with a 10-2 major decision. After pinning four-time All-American Kyle Parco (Arizona State), Watters settled into fourth place. Watters’ performance made him West Virginia’s first true freshman All-American since Brandon Rader accomplished the feat in 2006 (Also at 149 lbs). We’ll see how Watters handles a full season of being a favorite and wrestling with the proverbial “target on his back.” 157 lbs - Caleb Dowling Veteran Caleb Dowling has the inside track to start for a second straight year at 157 lbs. Dowling saw some action in previous seasons, but not to the extent that he did in 2023-24, where he was the entry at the Big 12 Championships, as well. Dowling finished the year at 22-8, but went 1-2 at the conference meet and missed out on NCAA qualification. Despite having an impressive record, Dowling was probably lacking a signature win or two. He wasn’t able to notch any victories over eventual national qualifiers, which is something he’ll need to do in 2024-25. During the 2022-23 season, Dowling competed primarily unattached and racked up a 24-6 record. In that campaign, he did post a win over Tommy Askey - a 2024 bloodround finisher and now a transfer to Minnesota. Sandwiched between a pair of All-Americans, if Dowling can continue to improve this could be a formidable lineup. 165 lbs - Peyton Hall Veteran Peyton Hall is the star on the back half of the WV lineup in his last go ‘round in Morgantown. Hall got on the NCAA podium for the second time in his impressive career with a seventh-place finish in Kansas City. With him and Watters earning All-American honors, it marked the first time since 2005 that WVU had multiple AA’s in the same season. Because of graduation and potential weight changes, Hall might be on pace for his first Big 12 championship in 2025. That might sound unusual for a two-time All-American; however, Hall has been in one of the most difficult weights in the nation for most of his career. Last year, he was fourth in a Big 12 weight that contained two multi-time national championships. Like Titus and Watters, Hall made the 2023 Midlands finals. Shortly after the Midlands, Hall picked up a win over returning All-American Izzak Olejnik (Oklahoma State), an opponent who he would go back-and-forth with throughout the year. At the NCAA Tournament, Hall fought back from a second-round loss to eighth-seeded Antrell Taylor (Nebraska), an opponent he’d end up defeating for seventh place. To lock up his second All-American honor, Hall had to get by the EIWA champion and third-seeded Julian Ramirez (Cornell). A year earlier, Ramirez had pinned Hall in the opening period of a bout at the Bearcat Open. The rematch went 8-2 in favor of Hall. With 165 lbs clearing out a bit, Hall will be a favorite to place high and challenge for a national title rather than fighting to just get onto the podium. 174 lbs - Brody Conley After a 15-4 redshirt campaign that saw Brody Conley go 15-4 and finish third while competing unattached at the 2022 Midlands, expectations were high in 2023-24. Conley put together a solid 23-9 season; however, finished the year on a sour note - going 0-2 at his first national tournament. Before nationals, Conley finished fifth in the Big 12 and earned that placement after majoring returning All-American Peyton Mocco (Missouri). In his second trip to the Midlands, Conley was fifth and then missed about a month of competition. The fifth-place finish at the Big 12’s netted a #20 seed at NCAA’s. Conley was eliminated after a pair of close losses to ACC competitors. Both of them have since graduated and 174 lbs has seemed to clear out a bit. With another year of development under his belt - and hopefully an injury-free year, Conley could be someone who sneaks up on the ready of the country and challenges for All-American honors. 184 lbs - Dennis Robin/Ian Bush As we near the end of the WVU lineup, there are a few weights with options for Coach Flynn and crew. Dennis Robin is a 2022 NCAA qualifier and the returning starter at this weight. Robin actually had a sub .500 record in 2022 when he made it to nationals; however, his eighth-place finish at the Big 12 Championships gave him an automatic berth. Last year, Robin went 21-11 and was seventh in the conference, but that wasn’t good enough to make the trip to NCAA’s. Early in the 2023-24 campaign, Robin tallied a pair of wins via major decisions over eventual national qualifiers (Cam Pine - Clarion and Caleb Hopkins - Campbell). What ended up dooming him from an NCAA allocation standpoint was probably a 2-2 finish at the Midlands. Otherwise, his losses were generally to top competition. Pushing Robin for a starting spot in 2024-25 is redshirt sophomore Ian Bush. Bush was 17-5 competing unattached last season. He started the year with a title in the Freshman/Sophomore division at the Southeast Open. In Bush’s last event of the season, he also had a win over Hopkins. With more experience and generally coming off solid seasons, I’d expect whoever emerges from this race to make a serious push for NCAA qualification status. 197 lbs - Austin Cooley/Rune Lawrence At 197 lbs there is another race for a starting slot - one that pits a sixth-year senior against a top recruit. Austin Cooley is that senior who qualified for nationals in 2023, but scuffled a bit last year. Cooley made his first trip to nationals after he finished seventh at the 2023 Big 12 Championships, but in 2024 he went 0-2 at the conference meet. Despite the tough year, Cooley posted two of his best wins in some of West Virginia’s most difficult duals (Iowa State and Oklahoma State). Also expected to be in the mix immediately is Rune Lawrence, who was the #25 overall recruit in the Class of 2024. A four-time Pennsylvania state champion, Lawrence was a runner-up at both the Super 32 and the Walsh Ironman during his senior year of high school. Lawrence spent his 2023-24 season competing at 215 lbs, so he’ll have to make some adjustments to regularly weigh-in at 197 lbs. With the recent rule changes regarding true freshmen competing attached in up to five dates, I’d expect Lawrence to get tested early before the WVU staff makes a final decision regarding his redshirt status. 285 lbs - Michael Wolfgram The steadying force at the back end of the Mountaineer lineup is senior Michael Wolfgram. Wolfgram has qualified for NCAA’s on two occasions, but did not do so in 2024. Like Cooley, Wolfgram didn’t have a great showing at the Midlands (2-2) and, to make matters worse, he competed in one of the conference’s deepest weights. The five wrestlers who made the tournament from the Big 12 were all seeded in the top-12. Those five accounted for eight of Wolfgram’s 12 losses. Most of those opponents will be back in the upcoming season, so Wolfgram will either need to figure them out or bank wins against other competition. During his most recent trip to the NCAA Tournament (2023), Wolfgram picked up a win before his elimination. He qualified after an eighth-place finish in that loaded Big 12 bracket. Wolfgram actually improved upon that placement in 2024 when he moved up to sixth place; however, the conference was only allocated five slots at 285 lbs. During his time in Morgantown, Wolfgram has amassed a 68-43 record. It may have snuck under the radar but he has steadily improved his bonus point percentage every year, as well. During the 2023-24 campaign, it topped out at almost 47%, which is strong for the weight class. Expect Wolfgram to make his third trip to the NCAA Tournament in March of 2025. Previous “Never Too Early Lineup Looks:” Air Force Indiana Lock Haven North Carolina Oregon State

Bethlehem Catholic

Eagle

The Binghamton Bearcats announced a big addition to their coaching staff with the hiring of Sam Schuyler. Schuyler comes back to his home state after spending the 2023-24 season as a graduate assistant on the Iowa State staff. Before his year on the ISU staff, Schuyler was a three-time national qualifier - the last two of which came with the Cyclones. As a senior, Schuyler was a Big 12 runner-up and the eight seed at the 2023 NCAA Championships. Schuyler would advance to the bloodround where he was defeated by Trent Hillger (Wisconsin) in sudden victory. Schuyler made the national tournament in 2022 and also did the same for Buffalo before he transferred to Iowa State. In addition to his coaching responsibilities at Iowa State, Schuyler was also an athlete with the Cyclone Regional Training Center. He competed at 2023 Senior Nationals - in an attempt to qualify for the 2024 Olympic Team Trials and finished sixth with two more losses to Hillger. Before coming to Buffalo, Schuyler finished third at the New York DI State Tournament at 195 lbs. A few months later, he’d grab fourth place at NHSCA Senior Nationals.

Fresh off the news that he'll be going to Paris for the 2024 Olympic Games, 77 kg Greco-Roman star Kamal Bey sat down with Ryan Holmes to discuss how and when he found out the good news. Bey talks about the changes he's seen in US Greco and how he knows he's the face of the US Greco program - a label he'll gladly wear because he likes and can handle the pressure that goes along with it. Other topics that the two hit are his relationships with Tracy Hancock and high school teammates, match strategy and the challenges of wrestling Greco overseas, and the learning curve when he hit the Senior level. That and much more! For the full interview:

Yesterday, mainstream news outlets like Reuters and the Associated Press reported that the Russian Wrestling Federation has decided not to send any wrestlers to the 2024 Olympic Games. Just over a week ago, 16 wrestlers across the three styles were awarded Olympic quotas that were initially won by either Russian or Belarussian competitors at the 2023 World Championships or qualifying events since then. Some notable Russian men’s freestyle wrestlers like 2020 Olympic champions Zaur Uguev, Zaurbek Sidakov, and Abdulrashid Sadulaev were among those wrestlers who earned quotas for Russia but were not permitted after United World Wrestling ruled them ineligible due to their support of Russia during their war with Ukraine. We’re not here today to discuss the geopolitical angle of “should they/shouldn’t they” compete. Wrestling fans who follow the international scene and are familiar with these Russian standouts typically want them to compete so that our American representatives can surpass them and win gold medals. Kyle Snyder (Sadualev) and Jordan Burroughs (Sidakov) have had some incredible matches against their respective Russian opponents and, ideally, we’d like to see more matches of that sort. But they aren’t happening. Shortly after wrestling media picked up on the news of Russia’s decision yesterday, The Wrestling Room’s Pat Mineo suggested that “some fans” may look at our potential gold medal winners as needing “an asterisk” because they prevailed without having these Russians in the bracket. The Soviet Union boycotted the 1984 Olympic Games and the United States went on to win gold medals in seven of ten weights. I’m of the opinion that you can’t control who is or isn’t in the bracket, so there shouldn’t be a “yeah, but” disclaimer with some of those 1984 gold medals. I’m here to warn you about falling into that asterisk trap. Don’t do it! If you are someone who thinks 1984 medals deserve an asterisk and this year may be applicable, remember the entire landscape of the wrestling world has changed dramatically since then. In 1984, you only had to beat one wrestler from the Soviet Union. After the breakup of the Soviet Union, there are so many more potential threats among the brackets. Azerbaijan, Georgia, Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Armenia, Kyrgyzstan, and Ukraine are some of the countries that emerged after the Soviet breakup and consistently challenge for world medals. Regardless of weight or style, there’s probably one or two wrestlers from one of those nations that’s a medal contender in every bracket. Now, I’m going to break it down even further to illustrate that the discussion of an asterisk doesn’t even make sense for 90% of the Americans competing in Paris. Greco-Roman First and foremost, the elephant in the room - Greco-Roman. The most recent American to win an Olympic gold medal in Greco was Rulon Garnder in 2000. Gardner earned bronze at the 2004 Games that followed. Over the past 10 Olympic/World Championship events America has only captured four total Greco medals. Russia is a Greco power - however, there are plenty of other countries that have an Olympic medal threat or two. In 2020(1), five different countries won Olympic gold medals (only Cuba had two) and one of those was by a Russian (Musa Evloev - 97 kg). Of the 24 medals won at those Olympic Games, 16 different countries had at least one. For full disclosure, Russia was the only country with three medals. So, with our lack of success at Greco coupled with the vast amount of countries that are typically good at Greco, I don’t care what the circumstances are - if we win a gold medal in Greco, it’s a massive success and a huge deal. If we win gold, I’ll tell you where to stick the asterisk. Women’s Freestyle Since the inception of women’s wrestling in the Olympic Games, it has been Japan - not the United States or Russia - who has been the dominant player. Women’s freestyle first appeared in the 2004 Olympic Games. Since then, Japan has won 15 of 24 Olympic gold medals awarded to women. Russia, on the other hand, has just one (Natalia Vorobieva in 2012). Russia isn’t much of an impact player in the women’s freestyle game. In 2024, they did not come away with any medals from the World Championships and they didn’t even appear in a single bronze medal match. Once the Olympic field appeared to be set, after the World OG Qualifier, Russia had representatives at five of six weight classes. Not having these Russians probably doesn’t eliminate any gold medalists; however, with the small 16-woman brackets at the Olympic Games, there’s the possibility that one or two could be in the medal hunt. Let’s be real. If any of our six women win Olympic gold in 2024, it’ll be because they had to go through a Japanese star - along with perhaps a very tough opponent from China, India, Mongolia, or Kyrgyzstan. There is no asterisk necessary for beating some combination of those foes and not having a Russian in the bracket. Men’s Freestyle We’re going into more details with men’s freestyle and weight-by-weight as asterisks, from an American standpoint, as they don’t make any sense in Greco or Women’s Freestyle. 125 kgs Let’s start with one of the easier arguments. In the 2023 World Championships, Mason Parris needed just under four and a half minutes to run through Russia’s Abdulla Kurbanov for a bronze medal in his first Senior World-level event. Later in 2023, Wyatt Hendrickson pinned Kurbanov in the Round of 16 at the U23 World Championships. Anything can happen; wrestlers can improve (or regress), but I don’t know if Kurbanov is a threat to Parris in 2024. Both are relatively young, and Parris in particular, seems to be getting better by the competition, so Kurbanov is not the main medal threat for Parris. That label falls squarely on Amir Zare (Iran), Geno Petriashvili (Georgia), and Taha Akgul (Turkey). Excluding the Olympic win by Gable Steveson, this trio has accounted for every World/Olympic gold medal since 2014. Kurbanov represents another medal contender, but is not at the level of the “big three” as of yet. 86 kg Since Sadulaev moved up from 86 kg following the 2016 Olympic Games, every World/Olympic gold medal at this weight has been won by either David Taylor or Hassan Yazdani (Iran). With Taylor out of the equation after losing to fellow Penn State superstar, Aaron Brooks at the Olympic Trials, many assume this weight class will be a two-horse race between the Iranian and the American, once again. It may not play out that way, but it looks that way on paper. The Russian who qualified for the Olympics at 86 kg was Artur Naifonov. Naifonov is a three-time World/Olympic bronze medalist. He’s never really threatened to break the stranglehold that Taylor/Yazdani has had on this class; however, he’s a very dangerous and capable contender. That being said, the target for American fans is Yazdani. Should Brooks win a bracket that includes Yazdani, I don’t think anyone bats an eye over the omission of a Russian. 57/65 kg I’m going to list these two weights together, because I think they are very similar in their composition. Both are absolutely loaded with gold medal threats. Russians or not. They are the types of weights where you could wrestle them five different times and possibly get five different champions. Maybe that’s not the case with Spencer Lee in the mix at 57 kg, as we haven’t seen him compete at the Senior World level yet. The Russian stalwart at 57 kg has been Uguev. He won gold at the last Olympics, along with the 2018 and 2019 World Championships. However, Uguev did not medal at the 2023 World Championships. In Serbia, he fell to Stevan Micic (Serbia) in the quarterfinals and Zelimkhan Abakarov (Albania) in the bronze medal match. He did shut out an opponent from Kazakhstan to seemingly lock up an Olympic berth. Uguev is right there with some of the best in the world, but he isn’t a big favorite like he was a few years ago. Wrestling at 57 kg in men’s freestyle can have a short life span like that of an NFL running back. Having a grown man approaching 30 years old, (Uguev is 29) make 57 kg a couple times a year is rough. Heavyweights like Agkul and Petriashvili can wrestle at a high level into their 30’s because they’re not necessarily relying on their speed and athleticism like a 57 kg wrestler would do. Looking at Uguev’s 2020(1) Olympic medal picture - none of the medalists will return in 2024 (Ravi Kumar - India, Thomas Gilman, Nurislam Sanayev - Kazakhstan). Even if Uguev was available, could Father Time be catching up to him quickly? It’s hard to say because he didn’t compete in the lead-up to the 2023 World Championships. In a perfect world, you’d love to see Lee defeat Uguev to represent the changing of the guard. However, this isn’t the 2018 version of Uguev. In reality, winning a weight class and beating some combination of Micic, Abakarov, Arsen Harutyunyan (Armenia), Roman Bravo-Young (Mexico), Aman Sehrawat (India), Japan’s representative and/or Wanhao Zou (China) is impressive in and of itself. In 2024, no asterisk is needed. 65 could feature Zain Retherford against a bracket that includes eight other past world medalists. More than half the bracket has been on a World or Olympic medal stand. Three (not counting Retherford) have won world titles. Like 57, would you like to have Shamil Mamedov in the bracket? Absolutely, he’s a returning world bronze medalist and lost by a point to the eventual champion (Iszmail Musukaev - Hungary) by a point in the quarterfinals. Does it lack substance or starpower without him? No! The last time we saw Mamedov, he lost in the opening round of the Yasr Dogu 14-3 to Abdulmazhid Kudiev of Tajikistan in under four minutes. In his next match, Kudiev was pushed the full six minutes by Arizona State freshman Kaleb Larkin. Make no mistake, Kudiev is no slouch. He was one of the opponents that Retherford defeated (5-2) at the World OG Qualifier in repechage. Aside from Mamedov, Kudiev has some good recent wins (Alejandro Valdes Tobier - Cuba). Comparing wins, win margins, and common opponents can be a fool’s errand, especially at this 65 kg weight class; however, the point of it is to illustrate that Mamedov is very good - he could perhaps win this Olympic bracket. At the same time, he could go 0-1. The same can be said for maybe 10 wrestlers in the field. Mamedov not being in the bracket doesn’t warrant an asterisk discussion. 97 kg Now we’re getting into the two weights where most that advocate for hypothetical asterisks may point to first. Snyder/Sadulaev has been one of the best recent rivalries from an American fan’s standpoint. Snyder’s 2017 world finals win over Sadulaev will be played and replayed for decades as it clinched a team title for the men’s freestyle team and saw Snyder prevail over a dominant Russian foe. The initial ruling by UWW - the one that prevented Sadulaev from competing at the 2024 Olympics was a downer for wrestling fans in general. I’m not sure anyone, particularly American fans, would be opposed to another match or two between the two greats. Sentimentality and personal enjoyment aside, should Snyder come back from Paris with another gold medal, it will have been well-earned and not asterisk-worthy. Neither Snyder nor Sadulaev would be considered the favorite in 2024. That distinction belongs to Sadulaev’s former understudy, Akhmed Tazhudinov, who now wrestles for Bahrain. Tazhudinov seemingly came out of nowhere to tech Snyder in the 2023 World quarterfinals. A match later, he was up on Sadulaev by seven points when the Russian injury defaulted out of the tournament. To win gold, Tazhudinov got up by seven on Magomedkhan Magomedov of Azerbaijan before securing a fall. Earlier this year, Snyder was defeated in the finals of the Zagreb Open by Iran’s Amirali Azarpira (6-3). Azapira qualified the weight for Iran at the Asian Olympic Qualifier and is presumably their rep. Were Snyder to win, he might have to beat two opponents that have defeated him within the calendar year, neither of which is named Sadulaev. At this point in their careers, a win over Tazhudinov might be more difficult than a win over Sadulaev. For now, it doesn’t necessarily have the same luster as beating Sadulaev, but in my opinion, it isn’t worthy of an asterisk. 74 kg This one is the other anticipated matchup we were hoping to see. Kyle Dake versus Sidakov. A rematch of the 2023 world final, won by Sidakov, 10-7. Sidakov has won this weight class at every World/Olympic event he’s entered since 2018. He did not compete in the 2021 World Championships that followed the Olympic Games that year and was not allowed to wrestle in 2022. Since 2018, Dake has only lost twice - once being in last year’s world finals to Sidakov. In addition to Sidakov, Mahamedkhabib Kadzimahamedau of Belarus was also denied the opportunity to compete in Paris by UWW. Kadzimahamedau is also responsible for the other recent loss on Dake’s resume (2020 Olympics). He went on to take the silver medal at the last Olympic Games. It’s unfortunate that Dake won’t have the opportunity to avenge either of his two semi-recent losses on the way to an Olympic gold medal. You can make what you want of whatever Dake’s performance in Paris. I have a hard time knocking someone with a resume like his (5 world medals - 4 gold/1 silver and an Olympic bronze) and claiming a potential gold medal is hollow. The people who throw shade at the 1984 gold medalists, typically point at wrestlers who earned their only world-level medal at the tournament. Dake does not fall into that category. Conclusion: As you can tell, I'm not fond of the asterisk term at all, especially in the case of the Americans wrestling in 2024 and their respective situations and challenges. I also think you could only make an argument about it at one or two weights, in reality. Before we go, I’ll pull back the curtain, a bit. I’ve served as an editor for three different wrestling websites, two of which covered international wrestling. General international wrestling doesn’t move the needle that much for the wrestling public. The Olympics does and content promoting the Olympics does. A preview of NC State/Virginia Tech probably gains more traction than a weight class preview of 65 kg in men’s freestyle at the 2023 World Championships. There are a very, very select few wrestling fans who know all ten Russian entries at the world championships. Even fewer know the second and third Russians on the domestic ladder. Or the real contenders at each weight. Maybe based on history, fans know beating a Russian or Iranian probably means you’re in the hunt for a gold medal. All of this to say, I’m not sure my old high school teammates, the ones that only tune in for the NCAA finals, the Olympics, and maybe a random college dual, necessarily care if Kyle Snyder meets Sadualev. If Kyle Snyder wins Olympic gold…great we’re happy and he probably beat some really good opponents along the way. Interest in international wrestling has grown thanks to organizations like InterMat, FloWrestling, USA Wrestling, and UWW. There is more information and content related to wrestlers like Sadulaev or Sidakov than in past generations, so more people care - but at the same time, not enough to make an asterisk discussion any sort of a real talking point. Maybe to the select few hardcore international fans. Part of me hates writing this article a month out from the Olympic Games as a lot has to be contested on the mat before we even have to consider putting American Olympic gold medals into a historical perspective. The competitor in me thinks if we’re focusing on opponents that aren’t at the Games or how the public perceives a win, then we’re overlooking the Japanese or Iranian foes that will be in Paris. As if my or your opinions on the subject have a real impact on the way that Dake, Amit Elor, or Kamal Bey prepares for Paris, but I am superstitious like that.

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