Only seven countries will be represented in every weight class for the men’s freestyle wrestling event at the upcoming Rio de Janeiro Olympics, and the United States is one of them. Team USA heads into the Games with some strong contenders and some interesting characters, and they should make the festivities well worth watching. In preparation for the August action, here’s a brief primer on Team USA:
57 KG: Daniel Dennis, # 15 World Ranking
In 2013 Daniel Dennis — tired, frustrated, and physically battered — left wrestling and hit the road. For months he lived out of his pickup truck, wandering and rock-climbing throughout the western United States. He eventually headed to California, taking jobs roofing and at a gas station, and helping out coaching a high school team. It looked like his competitive career was over. But eventually, former teammates from his days on the powerhouse Iowa program (Dennis was a two-time All-American for the Hawkeyes, taking second in the NCAA’s in 2010) convinced him to come back and see what he had left. After slowly working his way up, performing decently at the 2015 U.S. Open and World Team Trials, he took the 2016 Olympic Team Trials by storm, upsetting fellow former Hawkeye Tony Ramos in dominant fashion in the finals to punch his ticket to Rio. If Dennis can combine his unique personal history with a deep run in the Games, he may well be one of the biggest stories to come out of Rio 2016.
65 KG: Frank Molinaro, # 13 World Ranking
Molinaro’s ascension to the Olympic roster took many observers by surprise. A former NCAA champ out of Penn State, he entered the Olympic Team Trials ranked ninth, behind a slew of big names, including Team USA stalwarts Brent Metcalf (who had been ranked #1 going into the tournament) and James Green (a bronze medalist at the last World Championships), and four-time NCAA champ Logan Stieber. Nonetheless, Molinaro fought through the tournament to face Aaron Pico in the finals. The match was closely watched, as Pico is something of a minor celebrity in wrestling circles (at only 19, he has been a longtime competitor and rising star on the world stage, even signing a contract with the Bellator Mixed Martial Arts promotion in anticipation of his eventual turn to that sport). But it was Molinaro who triumphed, and who will now carry the flag in Rio. He’ll ride some momentum into the Games after going 4–0 at the World Cup team competition, in which he beat then fourth-ranked Sayed Mohammadi of Iran.
74 KG: Jordan Burroughs, # 1 World Ranking
The closest thing that wrestling has to a mainstream media star, Burroughs is the most recognizable and popular athlete in the sport. His “All I See Is Gold” mantra drew coverage and followers during his 2012 Olympic run, and he’s prominently featured in USOC and sponsor advertising for the upcoming Games. For the sport of wrestling, this is a great thing, because, in addition to his media profile, Burroughs has a strong claim as the best pound-for-pound wrestler on the planet. The 2012 London Gold Medalist once put together a remarkable streak of 69 consecutive freestyle victories, has won three additional World Championships, and took the NCAA crown twice as a Nebraska Cornhusker. His combination of star power and skill could well elevate wrestling’s position in the Games’ broadcast coverage — a boon for a sport that was temporarily chosen for elimination from the Olympics based on criteria that included low television ratings. Regardless of his ability to be a savior of the sport, however, Burroughs is always exciting to watch, and should be a favorite to repeat his feat of taking the top of the podium in this year’s Games.
86 KG: J’Den Cox, # 9 World Ranking
If anyone in the USA contingent could be considered a sleeper, it’s probably J’Den Cox. The University of Missouri junior has comparatively little international competition experience, and may be a new name to overseas wrestling fans when he arrives in Brazil. This does not, however, mean that Cox is lacking in skill or unlikely to make a splash at the Games. A two-time NCAA champ, he earned his spot by triumphing over an Olympic Team Trials field that included 2012 Olympian and former world silver medalist Jake Herbert, two-time NCAA champ David Taylor, and the only man to ever win four NCAA titles in four different weight classes, Kyle Dake. In a promising sign for Cox’s chances later this summer, he then took first in an international Olympic qualifying event in Mongolia, and put in a strong performance at the World Cup team competition, defeating then third-ranked Aleksander Gostiev of Azerbaijan. If he can keep up his momentum, a surging Cox may well surprise the world wrestling community in Rio.
97 KG: Kyle Snyder, # 4 World Ranking
In 2015, then nineteen-year-old Kyle Snyder became the youngest American ever to win a World Wrestling Championship. Then he outdid himself. The Ohio State athlete decided late in the college season to abandon his Redshirt status just in time to make a postseason run at the NCCA title. If successful, that run would end in a showdown with the most dominant wrestler in all of Division I, North Carolina State’s two-time returning champion Nick Gwiazdowski (a man who hadn’t been defeated in college competition in the last two seasons). The decision paid off, with Snyder and Gwiazdowski taking the most anticipated and most exciting heavyweight bout in wrestling history into overtime in the final match of the NCAA tournament at Madison Square Garden. Snyder took the match, 7–5, claiming his first collegiate championship. And then he kept rolling, defeating 2012 Olympic Gold Medalist Jake Varner later that spring to claim his slot for Rio. Snyder is well poised to earn a position on the podium in his first Olympics, and it could well be the top spot
125 KG: Tervel Dlagnev, # 14 World Ranking
After moving with his family from Bulgaria at the age of four, Tervel Dlagnev got a late start in wrestling. He first began competing halfway through high school and, having met with some decent success, headed off to college at Division II Nebraska-Kearney. By his junior year, he was a force to be reckoned with in both NCAA and international circuits. Dlagnev took home two Division II national titles and began racking up freestyle honors on the world stage, including two World Championships bronzes and a fifth place finish at the London Olympics. Despite consistent international success, though, injuries have plagued him recently, keeping him out of the 2015 World Championships and nearly preventing his participation in this year’s Olympic Team Trials. If Dlagnev can stay healthy, he’ll bring a wealth of experience to the Games, and would stand an excellent chance to make the podium.
The Russian Question
No discussion of this year’s Olympics would be complete without a mention of the recent revelations of Russian government-aided falsification of athlete drug testing results. This was an especially critical issue for the sport of wrestling, in which Russia is one of the most dominant powers on the international stage. Every American Olympian not named Jordan Burroughs is outranked by multiple Russians within their weight class. Russians hold the first or second ranking in five of the six Olympic divisions (although countries may only enter one participant per class).
Despite the fact that twenty-eight wrestling drug tests results that were covered up by Russian authorities, however, none of their participants in the sport were banned, setting the stage for some perhaps-contentious results.
But, ban or no ban, Team USA has a real opportunity for a strong showing at every weight class in the 2016 Olympics. Fans would be well advised to tune in as these six Americans hit the mats in Rio from August 19–21.
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Photo: Getty Images
