Jordan Burroughs fell in the quarterfinals to Russia's Anjuar Geduev (Photo/Tony Rotundo, WrestlersAreWarriors.com)RIO DE JANEIRO -- Less than 24 hours after the excitement of Helen Maroulis becoming the first gold medalist for Team USA women's freestyle squad, it was a day of stunning disappointment for U.S. men's freestyle team, as neither 2012 Olympic champion Jordan Burroughs nor Daniel Dennis earned medals at the 2016 Rio Olympics Friday.
For Dennis, it was one-and-done as the University of Iowa mat alum lost his opening-round match at 57 kilograms/125.5 pounds. For Burroughs -- arguably one of the all-time greats in U.S. wrestling -- the dream of a second Olympic gold medal was dashed in his second match at 74 kilograms/163 pounds ... then hopes of a bronze medal were derailed in the next round.
A day of upsets for Burroughs
Burroughs got off to a solid start on the first day of men's freestyle competition in Rio with an 8-3 win over Augusto Midana of Guinea Bissau. The two-time NCAA champ for the University of Nebraska used a takedown and lace to go up 4-0 early.
In his second match of the day, the top-ranked Burroughs suffered his first-ever Olympic loss at the hands of Russia's Aniuar Geduev, ranked second in the world at 74 kilos.
In a rematch of last year's Worlds semifinals, Geduev scored first off the shot clock to go up 1-0 and took that lead into the second period. The Russian added two step-out points to go up 3-0. Burroughs would score a late takedown, but it wasn't enough to overcome the deficit.
Out of contention for a second Olympic gold medal, Burroughs then had a chance for bronze when Geduev made it to the finals. The New Jersey native faced Bekzod Abdurakhmonov of Uzbekistan. However, the former Clarion All-American wrestler and professional MMA fighter controlled the match from start to finish, scoring five takedowns on Burroughs to win, 11-1.
"I felt ready," Burroughs said. "That's the hardest part of all of this. I live my lifestyle the right way. I don't smoke. I don't drink. I don't go out and party. I'm a family man. I take care of business. I train hard. I'm an ambassador for the sport of wrestling. A lot of people were counting on me today."
"It's a tough day. I had a lot of expectations coming here. I wanted to win. I knew I was capable of winning. Sometimes things don't go according to plan," Burroughs said. I am a man of faith. Something good will come out of this. It is difficult. I lost a lot of things today. But my integrity and my character remain. I am hoping I can go back, re-evaluate my career, my abilities and what I did wrong today. I have a lot to work on."
"I love the sport of wrestling because it is a testament of your growth, what you are capable of, what you can do as a man. And as nervous and afraid as I was coming into this tournament, I was equally as confident and prepared. I have always made my goals public. The hard thing about being an Olympian is that your failures are public, too," Burroughs continued.
This was the first time Burroughs had not earned a medal in a World Championships or Olympic Games since he first stepped onto the mat for senior-level competition in 2011. That said, the 28-year-old Burroughs remains one of most accomplished U.S. wrestlers in history, with an Olympic gold medal, three World titles, and a World bronze.
Disappointment for Dennis
Sadly for Dan Dennis, his time on the mat at the Olympics lasted less than two minutes. Team USA's representative at 57 kilos -- ranked No. 19 in the world -- suffered a technical fall at the hands of Bulgaria's Vladimir Dubov. Dubov scored a double-leg takedown on Dennis early in the first period, then quickly added four gut wrenches to end the match, 11-0.
Any hope of Dennis being pulled back into medal contention was eliminated when Dubov was downed by 2015 World champion Vladimer Kinchegashvili of Georgia in the semifinals, 8-4.
"It is extremely frustrating, especially after you feel like you are ready," Dennis said after his match with Dubov. "He is a good wrestler. He had a good match in the semis until the end. He could have very well been in the finals. I felt like I was in control in that match on the feet. It kind of hit the fan and he blew it open. Good for him."
Vladimer Khinchegahsvili of Georgia celebrates after winning gold in Rio (Photo/Martin Gabor)Medal results at 57 kilos
Winning the gold at 57 kilos was World champion Vladimer Khinchegahsvili of Georgia, who edged Japan's Rei Higuchi, 4-3.
Bringing home bronze were Haji Aliyev of Azerbaijan, and Iran's Hassan Rahimi ... each by fall at approximately five minutes into their respective matches. Aliyev pinned two-time World medalist Vladimir Dubov at 4:50 ... while Rahimi scored a pin over Cuba's Yowlys Bonne Rodriguez at 5:04 of their match.
Team USA's Dan Dennis did not place in this weight class.
Medal results at 74 kilos
In the gold-medal match at 74 kilos, Iran's Hassan Yazdanicharati gave his nation its first Olympic gold medal since the 2000 Sydney Olympics with a come-from-behind victory over Russia's Aniuar Geduev. The 21-year-old Iranian -- ranked fourth in the world -- had been behind 6-0 after giving up three takedowns in the first period. In the second period, Yazdanicharati unleased a relentless pace and hit Geduev with three takedowns of his own to grab the gold with three seconds left in the match.
Earning bronze medals at 74 kilos were No. 8-ranked Yabrail Hasanov of Azerbaijan and Turkey's Soener Demirtas, ranked seventh in the world. Hasanov beat Bekzod Abdurakhmonov of Uzbekistan, 9-7 ... while Demirtas shut out Galimzhan Usserbaev of Kazakhstan, 6-0.
Jordan Burroughs placed ninth in this bracket.
The second day of men's freestyle wrestling will take place Saturday, with Team USA represented by No. 9-ranked J'den Cox competing at 86 kilograms/189 pounds, and two-time World bronze medalist Tervel Dlagnev taking to the mats at 125 kilograms/275 pounds.
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