The weekend's most notable performance was that of Cornell's Yianni Diakomihalis who walloped a series of opponents on his way to gold at 65 kilograms. Yianni avenged a close loss to 2016 Olympic champion Vladimer Khinchegashvili with an impressive 13-2 shellacking of the Georgian star. He also drummed wrestlers from France and Poland.
Most notably, Yianni bested fellow American James Green 5-0. The commanding win against one of America's best 65-kilogram wrestlers, and a beating of King Vlad, means Yianni has cemented himself as the top candidate to earn a spot on the United States Olympic team for Tokyo 2021. Going a bit further, I think that Yianni has a slightly better than 50/50 chance to medal at the Olympic Games should he continue to improve over the next several months.
Domestically, Yianni will have to face JO and Jaydin Eierman, who could give him fits in certain positions, but where Yianni would still be heavily favored. However, it's Zain Retherford, the 65-kilogram representative from Nur-Sultan who has every chance to beat Yianni come April. He's stronger, quicker, and has plenty of international experience. Will that mean he can beat Yianni who is obviously a different wrestler that he was 18 months ago, or even six months ago? No clue. We'll just have to see how it plays out on the mats.
It's important to keep in mind that whoever wins the battle at 65 kilograms will be facing long odds at qualifying for the Olympic Games. The World Qualifier in May will almost certainly feature either Haji Aliev, King Vlad, or Selahattin Kilicsallayan or Turkey. If one of those guys ends up on the same side then it's possible that an Olympic berth would be a coin flip, at best. (Forgiving that Yianni would be favored over King Vlad.)
In other Deglane news, Thomas Gilman stifled Vito Arujau and came home with bronze. However, for the moment that really is the side show as the nation waits for what should be an incredible showdown between Gilman and his Hawkeye brethren Spencer Lee. The winner of the 57-kilogram tournament will have an advantage for the Olympic Games since the qualification strife was sorted in March, whereas the rest of the world still needs to go through their final two tournaments.
Should Spencer Lee come out on top, I'm certain there will be a lot of European wrestling fans who will be greatly disappointed -- after his comeback performance in Macon in 2016 the world has grown to respect his ability and his heart.
To your questions …
Cary Kolat drills with one of his Navy wrestlers (Photo/Navy Athletics)Q: Cary Kolat seems to be having early success at Navy. They beat Lehigh for the first time since 2011 and broke into the top 25. Do you think Kolat will ever be able to get Navy into the top 10 and eventually contending for a team trophy? Or is the ceiling lower at a service academy?
-- Mike C.
Foley: Cary Kolat is having an incredible start to his coaching campaign at the Naval Academy. Put aside the things that make him a great coach, the situation at the Naval Academy is absolutely fantastic. The room can see as many as 100 wrestlers in a day, who are all in quarantine, and who are not drinking or breaking rules with anything like regularity. In that way, the less desirable part of coaching in the 2020's has been taken care of by the situation.
The Naval Academy has had a few multiyear runs with top-25 appearances, largely during the Bruce Burnett era. There were All-Americans, conference titles, and wins over big-name programs. They competed tough and would give teams fits. On level they still had holes in the lineup largely due to restrictions on recruiting, but found ways to win.
Here's my theory on why Coach Kolat is much better situated in 2021 than Coach Burnett was in 2010.
The baseline technique and skill of the common high school wrestler is far greater today than it was 10 or 20 years ago. With online instruction and sport specialization there has been an incredible improvement across the board. Now, the top athletes and finishers may still end up in the Big 10 or ACC, but Kolat doesn't need to work near as hard to provide operational techniques to his wrestlers and thus can spend more time on high level techniques. The building blocks are in place and Kolat just needs to provide the intelligence and inspiration.
The other thing that will work in Kolat's favor is that he's extremely well known by the wrestling dad's now searching for a school to send their children. Wrestling parents and the broader socioeconomic class we embody, is attracted to military service. A dash of Kolat, a pop of discipline, and the garnish of a "free" education is highly attractive to any parent in our world.
I have a lot of confidence in saying that Kolat will finish in the top 10 in the next five years. He will have a season with multiple All-Americans in the next three, and he will beat - or place higher - than several top 25 teams in 2021.
Kolat is a great coach in the right spot at the right time.
Q: Any idea what's up with American University? They haven't wrested or released a schedule yet. They were supposed to wrestle Navy twice, but I believe those matches were canceled.
-- Mike C.
Foley: According to the communications department at American: "We have had delays to start training due to health and safety protocols, and there are a few items holding up our schedule release, but the program is not on hold. I will let you know as soon as it is determined."
Q: I've noticed a lot of the international competitors wearing some seriously vintage wrestling shoes in competitions of late. Asics Dave Schultz Ultraflex's, Asics Gables (the original ones), Adidas Combat Speeds (not new), etc. These don't look like they're old versions either, they're in good shape, and almost seem new or new old stock. All of those models are long since discontinued, at least state side, and fetch hundreds of dollars on eBay in good condition or common sizes. Any idea where these teams are getting their shoes? Is vintage just in right now and they're scouring eBay? Do their teams have piles of deadstock? Are Asics and Adidas still offering older models in the non-U.S. markets?
-- Jon G.
Foley: The shoe game overseas is pretty incredible, but I can't provide much insight on the shoes or who is supplying them. Are we certain they are vintage? From my eye a lot of the shoes are the basic Adidas that we've seen over the last several years -- unfussy, tight to the foot, and bold colors. To my eye, most look to be the Combat Speeds, but the light blue version isn't available in the USA.
Comment section have any insight? Maybe you could email me, too. I'll also be sure to get a bug in the ear of these international guys and see if I can find the supplier!
Q: Gable Steveson and Anthony Cassioppi meet Friday night. Last season Gable beat him 9-4 at the Big Tens and 7-5 in a dual meet. How do you see Friday's match going?
-- Mike C.
Foley: Love me a good heavyweight matchup, but the space between Gable Steveson and most every other heavyweight in the United States has widened past the point of being competitive. Gable by a touchdown.
Q: How do you think the Conor McGregor vs. Dustin Poirier fight Saturday night will go?
-- Mike C.
Foley: With a beautiful new Powers John's Lane Release Irish Whiskey I was gifted by a friend for Christmas!
As for in-the-cage, I'd suspect the UFC is keen to see Conor stay competitive until another high-level fight can be booked and the organization profit. That means they know, or believe, that Dustin is little better than a tomato can opponent. That's not to say Dustin can't give Conor fits, or go the distance, it just means there was a reason they didn't find a wrestler for Conor to fight, or someone who could submit the Irishman from their own back.
What I do think we will see is blood, and lots of it. There are going to be a lot of eye-level jabs landed by both men and given the UFC's lust for blood-spattered, standing brawls is what they are expecting too.
Recommended Comments
There are no comments to display.
Create an account or sign in to comment
You need to be a member in order to leave a comment
Create an account
Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!
Register a new accountSign in
Already have an account? Sign in here.
Sign In Now