Tokyo Olympics Wrestling: Cuba’s Mijain Lopez scripted history bagging his 4th consecutive Olympic gold medal in the 130kg Greco-Roman wrestling. In the gold medal match, he blanked Georgia’s Lakobi Kajaia on Monday.
The 38-year-old did not concede a single point in his last four matches and he continued the trend with a clean sweep, beating Kajaia 5-0. With that result, he joined Japan’s Kaori Icho as the only two wrestlers to claim four Olympic golds.
Tokyo Olympics Wrestling: Kaori Icho won freestyle gold medals in 2004, 2008, 2012 and 2016. Lopez won gold at 120 kg in 2008 and 2012 and 130 kg in 2016 before his victory Monday. For Cuba, it was Cuba’s second gold medal of the night in Greco-Roman. Luis Orta Sanchez defeated Japan’s Kenichiro Fumita 5-1 in the 60 kg final.
On Monday, Mijain Lopez was again at his best. In the first round, he got a point for passivity by Kajaia and then scored two points on a gut wrench. He scored another point on passivity and another on a step out to go 5-0 up.
Tokyo Olympics Wrestling: Match Summary
| Period | Technical Points Scored |
Technical Points Scored |
|
|---|---|---|---|
| 1st Period | 1 2 | ||
| 2nd Period | 1 1 |
Barrel-chested and arms the width of a subway tunnel LOPEZ played for unprecedented 4th Olympic Gold in the same event. None in male wrestling have ever achieved such a feat. And all across the sports, only 5 athletes had earlier won 4 consecutive Olympic Gold medals.
Tokyo Olympics Wrestling:
List of Olympians with 4 Consecutive Olympic Golds in the same event
– Paul Elvstorm (Denmark) – Sailing 1948 to 1960
– Al Oerter (USA) – Athletics 1956-68
– Kaori Icho (Japan) – Wrestling – 2004 to 2016
– Carl Lewis (USA) – Athletics – 1984-96
– Michale Phelps (USA) Swimming – 2004 to 2016
Tokyo Olympics Wrestling: Lopez won his first GOLD Medal in 2008 Olympics in Beijing. His 2nd Gold came in London 2012 & 3rd in Rio Olympics 2016. In the last 4 years, Lopez never ever came to play any of the United World Wrestling World Championships, Ranking event – but always maintained that he will compete in his 4th Olympics and he did that in style, winning yet another gold medal.
Editors pick
