MTC's Pat Smith wins second Pan Am Gold
Three U.S. Greco-Roman stars won gold medals and the USA won the team title at the Pan American Championships on Sunday night at the Dr. Pepper Arena. Team USA had seven total medals, including a silver and three bronze medals Winning the Pan American Championships for the second year in a row was Patrick Smith (Minneapolis, Minn./Minnesota Storm), who defeated Jair Cuero Munoz of Colombia, 2-2 in the 71 kg/156 lbs. finals. Cuero led 2-0 on a second period gut wrench, but Smith blocked a Cuero throw for a two-point takedown and held on to the win by scoring the last point. Cuero is a previous two-time Pan American bronze medalist. “It was a little closer than I wanted it […]
Read MoreTwo-time World Teamer Jake Clark featured on Guillotine Grapevine Podcast
Episode 6 of the Guillotine Grapevine previews The Clash brackets, which were released on December 28. The Clash, the National High School Wrestling Duals, is set for Rochester, Minn., on January 1-2 should be one of the finest high school wrestling events in the nation. The second part of our show talks with Minnesota’s own Jake Clark, a two-time U.S. World Team member in Greco-Roman. Jake is back training with the Minnesota Storm and even in his advanced age, he’s found the fountain of youth and it’s either from coffee or the warmth of Hawaii. Jake talks about his past with Greco, the Marine Corps, what it was like leaving the University of Minnesota and how he dealt with the […]
Read MoreJoe Rau featured on USA Wrestling Bonus Points Podcast
USA Wrestling’s Bonus Points podcast, presented by Liberty Mutual Insurance, will feature many of top names in wrestling from the U.S. and beyond. Episode 24 of Bonus Points features Josef Rau, 2016 U.S. Senior Nationals champion and 2014 U.S. World Team member in Greco-Roman. Rau competed collegiately for Elmhurst College where he won a NCAA Division III national title in 2013. Join USA Wrestling’s Richard Immel as he takes you through the latest wrestling news from around the country and talks with Rau about his wrestling journey, moving up to 98 kg, the secret to his success and much more. Follow Bonus Points Ep. 24 featured guest Josef Rau on Twitter at @Raustler84 and follow host Richard Immel on Twitter […]
Read MoreBisek and Betts Win Pan Am Championships
Cuba hadn’t lost a match all day. Americans Andrew Bisek and Chas Betts were determined to change that. Bisek delivered by scoring a turn in the final 30 seconds to earn a dramatic 0-1, 1-0, 2-0 win over Cuba’s Alexi Bell Caballero in the Pan American Championships finals at 74 kg/163 lbs. Betts followed suit by knocking off past World silver and bronze medalist Pablo Shorey Hernandez of Cuba 2-0, 2-1 in the finals at 84 kg/185 lbs. Betts scored a first-period turn before Hernandez was penalized for a second-period caution in par terre. Bisek and Betts led the U.S. Greco-Roman team that won seven medals as the three-day event kicked off on Friday at the U.S. Olympic Training Center. […]
Read MoreMN Storm at Granma Cup in Cuba
HAVANA, Cuba – The U.S. won three medals on the first day of the Granma Cup of Greco-Roman on Sunday. Capturing a silver medal at 84 kg/185 lbs was Jordan Holm (Minneapolis, Minn./Minnesota Storm). Holm, who was a 2011 U.S. Open champion, opened with wins over Ramsin Azizsir of Germany, 0-2, 2-0, 1-0 and U.S. teammate Betts, 1-0, 0-1, 3-0. He was defeated in the gold-medal finals by Pablo Shorey of Cuba, 0-1, 0-3. Shorey was a 2010 World silver medalist and 2009 World bronze medalist. Shorey had defeated 2008 Olympic champion Andrea Minguzzi of Italy in the opening round. “We have to continue to improve our skills in all areas if we expect to qualify our weight classes for […]
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