Mijaín López defeats Riza Kayaalp and pursues his fourth Olympic gold

August 1, 2021

When Mijaín López left the mat toward the mixed zone, he did so with a phrase on his lips: "while I'm here, he won't win". It is a conception that today the greatest Cuban wrestler of all time fulfilled against Turkish Riza Kayaalp.

Defeating him for the third time in the Olympic Games was barely the penultimate step toward a story that tomorrow can grow. The fight was a final brought forward and "the giant of Herradura" knew it from the beginning.

"We had already planned that they would seek for me to commit the first passivity, so we prepared for that. I sought the imbalance and achieved it, but the judges decided to reverse it. Nevertheless, from the first round I felt the Turkish wrestler exhausted and knew he wouldn't be able to withstand my pace," he explained.

As so many other times, Mijaín was drive and strength, intelligence and fight control. As in the two fights against Romanian Alin Alexux Ciurariu (9-0) and Iranian Amin Mirzazadeh (8-0), Kayaalp couldn't score him at least one point either. He didn't achieve it even when in the second period the Cuban went to the inferior position and his rival had the golden opportunity. But he barely managed to lift him off the ground.

"All fights are difficult and require a lot of dedication and preparation. That is what I have demonstrated to him," says Mijaín while Luis Orta, the great surprise of Cuban wrestling in Tokyo, hugs him and congratulates him. The smallest barely reaches the champion's shoulders, but today he matched him in effort and victories. Both will go this Monday to seek two titles for Cuba.

"For tomorrow what matters is to prepare psychologically. All athletes fighting for the title have quality, so for the final it's about maintaining the fight strategy and demonstrating that I am the champion," Mijaín confirms.

To a certain extent, the success of the Pinar del Río native also contributed to Orta's triumph. He himself recognizes it and tells how Mijaín advised him during the competition. "Step by step —he told him— everything will turn out fine". And so it was, against rivals who surpassed him in title and experience, Luis prevailed like the greats.

"I feel very happy to be in this final. From when I woke up I spoke with a photo of my little girl, only two months old, that I have in my room and I told her that today was going to be a great day. The difference my rivals have over me is that they have gone to all the world championships and I haven't, that's why they have those great results. I didn't think about that, but rather about how good my preparation was".

Orta is the smallest of the Cuban Greco-Roman wrestlers; Mijaín the largest, but both filled thousands of hearts throughout the country today. One for his surprise and his drive. The other because once again he demonstrated being a standout not only in his sport.

They are two athletes with a different history: the first has just entered through the big door to an Olympic Games; the second seeks to become the most decorated wrestler in Olympic history. Both took a step today toward their objectives. The finals are scheduled for the dawn of Tuesday. First Orta will attempt the dream. Then Mijaín will take to the mat at Mahuhari Masse Hall in Tokyo to see how history watches him closely and glory smiles upon him.