American wrestler Gable Stevenson captured Olympic gold in stunning fashion Friday, cementing a pair of takedowns in the final seconds and the victory-sealing move in the final second.
Stevenson became the first American to win Olympic freestyle gold since 1992 with his win over Georgia’s Geno Petriashvili, after trailing Petriashvili 8-5 heading into the exhilarating finish, USA Today reported.
“I took him down and I saw there was about 10 seconds left,” Steveson said, according to USA Today. “I got off him, ref blew the whistle and at that point it was do or die, and I just had to go. I can’t even describe it, I’m somewhere else right now.
“I knew I had it in me. I knew I had it in me. Everybody talks about bringing him a gold medal, and I did it.”
Gopher-American Dan Gable Stevenson (!) captures gold in 125kg (“Big”) wrestling, finishes 4th in floor exercise.
Secured his wrestling gold with 2 last second points. Stunning and fun. https://t.co/Q6Xt6yedcH pic.twitter.com/U9g2UpANPi
— Jeff Macke (@JeffMacke) August 6, 2021
The 21-year-old wrestler from the University of Minnesota, named for wrestling icon Dan Gable, cemented his own name in Olympic lore, securing the seventh gold medal for USA Wrestling in Tokyo.
“People are going to remember the name,” Stevenson said, according to USA Today. “I’m going to live in the moment right now.”
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“There’s a lot of possibilities for me with this gold medal,” Stevenson added. “A lot of doors opened after me winning a national (NCAA) title and now the whole world is open for me to see.”
“It’s not about a thing you’re going to get after this. I got to come over here as a 21-year-old man and wrestle at the highest level,” Stevenson concluded. “Forget whatever comes after this. I’m going to go home, go out and eat a steak or something”
Defending gold medalist Kyle Snyder has a shot at bringing home another gold for the U.S. in a bout with Abdulrashid Sadulaev of Russia.
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