Kyle Dake won his second bronze medal at the Olympic Games Saturday in Paris at 74 kilograms.
Courtesy USA Wrestling
PARIS, France, Aug. 10, 2024 – If this is the final Olympic match in the career of American wrestler Kyle Dake, it was an outstanding finish.
Dake, 33, scored nine points in the final 30 seconds of his bronze medal match on Saturday to win his second consecutive Olympic bronze medal with a 10-4 win over world champion Hetik Cabolov of Serbia, 10-4 at 74 kilograms (163.1 pounds).
Dake has now won medals in seven consecutive world championship and Olympic events dating back to 2018, including four world championships.
American Kennedy Blades, 20, won three matches on Saturday to advance to the final of the women’s 76 kg (167.5 pounds) freestyle event while Kyle Snyder (97 kg/213.8 lbs.) will wrestle for a bronze medal.
Zain Retherford (65 kg/143.3 lbs.) dropped his opening round freestyle bout to 2022 world champion Rahman Amouzadkhali of Iran but became eligible for the repechage after Amouzadkhali advanced to the final. But Retherford withdrew after sustaining a head injury in Saturday;s loss.
In his bronze medal bout, Dake led 1-0 at the break on a step out. It was in the second period that things went a bit crazy, and there was some controversy concerning scoring.
Cabolov was placed on a shot clock and did not score, making it 2-0 for Dake. However official conferred and changed it to a step out and a 1-1 tie. The USA challenged but action continued and Cabolov got a takedown for a 3-1 lead.
The USA challenged and it was denied, extending Cabolov’s lead to 4-1. Dake came back with a takedown with 31 seconds left to trail 4-3. He got behind Cabolov and launched him with a five-point back arch, sealing the 10-4 win.
It was Dake’s second career Olympic bronze medal, to go with his bronze from Olympic Games Tokyo 2020. Dakie is also a four-time world champion. Cabolov was a world champion for Russia, before switching affiliation to Serbia.
“Everyone wants to win and when it didn’t happen that was tough. But how do I what to represent myself? How do I want to represent the country? What kind of example do I want to set for my kids, for kids throughout the whole world? So go out, it’s a new day. Be your best on that day,” Dake said.
Dake was defeated in the semifinals by 2023 world bronze medalist Daichi Takatani of Japan, 20-12. Takatani took a five-point lead before Dake closed it to 9-8 in the second period. However, Takatani got two turns at a key juncture in the second period and was able to hold off Dake’s attempt for a comeback.
Dake was dominant in his first two victories, a 10-0 technical fall over Anthony Montero Chirinos of Venezuela, and a pin of tough Yones Emamichoghaei of Iran in 5:37.
Dake was a four-time NCAA champion from Cornell, and is a native of Lansing, N.Y.
Kennedy, 20, qualified for the gold medal bout in her first Olympic Games appearance.
In the semifinal, Blades won a wide-open 8-6 match over No. 1 seed Aiperi Medet Kyzy of Kyrgyzstan
Blades opened the scoring with a double leg takedown, right after getting put on a shot clock, Medet Kyzy responded with a takedown to tie it 2-2. Blades forced a step out to lead 3-2 at the break.
Blades added a takedown for a 5-2 lead. When Kyrgyzstan challenged, it was denied making it 6-2. Blades quickly struck on a takedown to stretch it to 8-2. Medet Kyzy was able to get a takedown and turn to tighten it to 8-6 but could not score in the closing seconds.
Blades, 2021 U20 World champion, beat Olympic silver medalist and six-time world champion Adeline Gray to make the USA Olympic Team in April at Penn State.
Blades opened the tournament with a powerful 11-0 technical fall over 2020 European bronze medalist and No. 4 seed Catalina Axente of Romania. In the quarterfinals, Blades edged 2019 U23 world champion and No. 5 seed Milaimys Marin Portillo of Cuba, 4-3.
Blades, who attended Arizona State and trained with the Sunkist Kids, has signed with the University of Iowa.
Snyder, who was an Olympic champion in 2016 and a silver medalist in 2020, will have a chance to compete for a third Olympic medal on Sunday. Snyder, seeded No. 3, was defeated in the 97 kg freestyle semifinal by 2023 world champion Akhmed Tazhudinov of Bahrain, 6-4.
Snyder led 1-0 after Tazhudinov did not score on a shot clock. Tazhudinov responded with a takedown and led 2-1 at the break. In the second period, Tazhudinov added a takedown and a turn to lead 6-1 with 44 seconds left. Snyder forced a step out and added a takedown with five seconds left to close it to 6-4, but could not score again.
On Saturday morning, Snyder opened with a 9-5 win over 2023 Asian silver medalist Awusayiman Habila of China. In the quarterfinals, he pinned 2021 Pan American Games champion Arturo Silot Torres of Cuba in 3:36.
Snyder is a three-time world champion and has won a world or Olympic medal for nine straight years, setting a U.S. record. He will be going for his 10th medal in a row on Sunday. He will wrestle against the winner of the repechage match between Amarali Azarpira of Iran and Alisher Yergali of Kazakhstan.
Retherford withdrew from the competition in Paris as a medical precaution after sustaining a head injury during Saturday’s tournament. Retherford competed in the preliminaries at 65 kg on Saturday, losing to 2022 world champion Rahman Amouzadkhali of Iran, 8-0.
Retherford suffered a concussion while training in preparation for the Olympic Games and had recovered prior to the competition. During his bout against Amouzadkhali, his injury symptoms returned. With support of his coaches and in consultation with medical staff, the decision was made for Retherford to withdraw from the tournament.
Repechage matches begin Sunday at 11 a.m. (5 a.m. EST) with medal matches beginning at noon or 6 a.m. EST.
The United States has now won six medals at 2024 Olympic Games, with three in women’s freestyle and three in men’s freestyle. I
In addition to Dake’s bronze, Spencer Lee won a silver medal at 57 kg and Aaron Brooks won a bronze medal at 86 kg. Winning gold medals in women’s freestyle earlier in the week were Amit Elor at 68 kg and Sarah Hildebrandt at 53 kg and Helen Maroulis added a bronze medal at 57 kg.
