Before the Rio Olympics began there was an intense debate about whether the sport of wrestling should be dropped from Olympics altogether. I believe that debate has been put to rest once and for all with the extremely intense and nerve wrangling bouts that were on display at the Olympics. Today we will look at five nail biters from the Rio Olympics which will prove that wrestling without an iota of doubt is as interesting as any other sport.
Sakshi Malik V/S Aisuluu Tynybekova: Everyone in India knows about this match. Sakshi was trailing the Asian Champion from Kyrgyzstan 5-0 until the 4th minute when she executed two consecutive take downs to bring the score to 5-4. With 10 seconds left on the Clock Sakshi leveled the score by pushing Tynybekova out of the competition circle. That move tied the scores but even a tie couldn't help Sakshi's fortunes because in the event of a tie the contestant with the least number of penalties would be adjudged the winner who in this case was Tynybekova (Sakshi was penalized a point for
passivity in the first round). Summoning all her strength, spirit and amazing
ring savvy Sakshi took down her opponent (who seemed to be running away from her) in the final few seconds
and scripted a thrilling moment which is going to last forever in the annals of
Indian sporting history.
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| Sakshi Malik V/S Aisuluu Tynybekova Olympics 2016 |
Marwa Amri V/S Yuliya Ratkevich: While Sakshi's victory received much attention, one which slipped just under the radar was this extremely engaging bronze medal bout from the 58 kg class which took place only a few minutes before Sakshi's bout. Like Sakshi, Amri lost her first point to passivity and then conceded two more points in the second round when she was taken down by Raktevich. Amri wouldn't be able to trouble the scorers until almost the penultimate minute in the second round when Raktevich herself was penalized a point for passivity. In the final minute Amri doubled her attack and managed to get a point when she pushed Raktevich off the competition circle. With Raktevich looking increasingly tired, Amri dug deep and used all her strength to power out of a headlock and pin her dazed opponent to the mat with 10 seconds left on the clock. The move brought Amri 4 points helping her win the match 6 points to Raktevich's 3. Amri would go onto take her medal along with Sakshi. So it was meant to be that both the bronze medal winners in the 58 kg class made their way to the podium through the Repechage rounds.
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| Marwa Amri raises her hand at Olympics 2016 |
Kaori Icho V/S Valeria Koblova: If the bronze medal matches in the 58 kg class were great, could the gold medal match be any different. Icho and Koblova put on a mat classic. Koblova led by one point until the final 30 seconds and even succeeded in catching Icho's leg but Icho was alert enough to execute a waist lock of her own. The deadlock lasted until the last few seconds when Icho's power finally took the Russian down giving Icho her 4th straight Olympic gold medal (the only wrestler to ever do this). Icho's final point came five seconds before the final bell, once again underscoring how close these contests were.
Eri Tosaka V/S Mariya Stadnik: We go down a weight class to the 48 kg division where
Eri Tosaka of Japan and Mariya Stadnik of Azerbaijan fought tooth and nail.
Stadnik the world no.1 in her weight class opened the scoring by pushing Tosaka
out of the wrestling circle. After Stadnik and Tosaka exchanged points for penalties
the scoreline came down to 2-1 in favor of Stadnik. With 10 seconds for the
bell Tosaka grabbed Stadnik's leg in desperation, Stadnik initially looked
unfazed by the move but Tosaka's strength proved too much and with 3 seconds
left on the clock Stadnik was finally taken down to give Japan another gold
medal in wrestling.
Ikhtiyor Navruzov V/S Ganzorigiin Mandakhnaran: With women doing so well, can the men be far behind.This was the bronze medal battle between Uzbekistan's Navruzov (who lost to Sushil Kumar 4 years ago in London) and Mongolia's Mandakhnaran (who beat Yogeshwar Dutt earlier in the day). After a back and forth battle, Mandakhnaran led Navruzov by one point. As the match headed into the last 10 seconds, Mandakhnaran chose not to indulge his opponent and stayed away. The tactic proved costly as the referee awarded Navruzov a point for Mandakhnaran's passivity. Since the wrestler with the least penalties is awarded the decision, the single point that Navruzov gained won him the bronze medal. Mandakhnaran's dream was crushed but the drama didn't stop there with his coaches stripping down in protest of the decision. On the last day of the Olympics this was the emotional drama which made worldwide headlines.
Wrestling is probably the oldest sport on the face of the earth. It's one of the few sports which made it's way from the ancient era to the modern one. There's art in those moves, there's emotion in the struggle of the wrestlers and there's beauty when two gladiators get going. The sport not only belongs in Olympics but also deserves to be seen by a world wide audience. We never had the opportunity to see the gladiators clash in the Colosseum but today we have the privilege of watching these warriors go at one other. Who knows what wonderful things an engaging contest might inspire us to do? Who knows what stories we might gather to pass on to future generations? I for one know that I certainly have some wonderful stories to pass on and share from the world of wrestling.
Until Next Time,
Your Wrestling Fan,
J.J. Chaitanya
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