With the 2024 Paris Olympics running in style, the sporting community has been witnessing some of the most entertaining competitions that the world has to offer. Be it boxing, wrestling, shooting, or swimming, the event has kept the entire world glued to their seats. But the Olympic Games also extracted tears and respect from the fighting community, following the men’s wrestling event.

It was all because of the legendary wrestler, Mijain Lopez Nunez. After claiming his fifth medal in the Olympic Games, the wrestler decided to take retirement. Following this, Islam Makhachev and Henry Cejudo gave a salute to Lopez Nunez. But ‘Triple C’ couldn’t back down from threatening the UFC fighters.

Islam Makhachev and Henry Cejudo pay a tribute to Mijain Lopez Nunez 

Needless to say, Lopez Nunez made the Cuban citizens proud with his performance at the Greco-Roman wrestling final. He won his 5th consecutive gold medal at the Olympics as he defeated Chile’s Yasmani Acosta. After reigning in the wrestling realm for about 2 decades, the Cuban announced his retirement from the sport. 

Being a wrestling-focused mixed martial artist, the UFC lightweight champion Makhachev knew how strong the Cuban wrestler was. Makhachev took to Instagram and shared a post about Lopez Nunez in his story and wrote, “G.O.A.T” in the caption.

Meanwhile, Cejudo sent forth a warning to his fellow fighters in the Ultimate Fighting Championship. He took to X and wrote, “The most Uncrowned hero ever! He’d toy with people in the UFC!” Just like Lopez Nunez, Cejudo is also an Olympic gold medalist. Without a doubt, with the experience that the Cuban has, he can indeed prove ‘Triple C’ right, don’t you think?

As we bid farewell to Lopez Nunez, let’s take a look at his performance in the Olympic Games. Stay tuned because we also have tasty trivia at the end!

The man who won 5 consecutive golds at the Olympics

Mijain Lopez Nunez opened his medal bank in 2002. However, he couldn’t enter the top 3 in Athens 2004 and received the 5th position. But that didn’t stop him from striving to be the best. He went on to win several Pan American Championships, World Cups, and World Championships.

With the Olympic Games in focus, he has remained undefeated ever since he stepped foot at the Beijing 2008 Olympics. Winning a gold medal each at the 2012 London Olympics, the 2016 Rio de Janeiro Olympics, the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, and finally, he ended his career with a gold at the 2024 Paris Olympics. Talking through a translator following his latest win, the Cuban legend said, “It was a result that I was craving, but also for the whole world and my country. So happy to reach the Olympic elite. The reward of a lifetime of working hard with the help of everyone and my family. It is my biggest win.” Without a doubt, Lopez Nunez has retired with a bang and gold.

And now, let’s take a look at the trivia. It’s general knowledge that Michael Phelps is the Olympian with the maximum number of gold medals, with the collection counting 23 gold medals. However, Lopez Nunez has surpassed the legendary Phelps despite having more than 4 times fewer medals than him. The celebrated swimmer won gold in just 4 consecutive Olympic Games, while the wrestler went on to win 5 consecutive golds.

But in case he decides to give MMA a try, do you think he will be able to defeat the strongest of wrestlers in the UFC? Let us know what you think in the comments down below.