“I’m Very Disappointed”: USA’s Former Wrestling Champion Expresses Displeasure After Falling Short During Her Comeback

The 2023 Wrestling World Championships has officially reached its most exciting stage yet. The competition is going to get fiercer, as there are world titles on the line. Wrestlers from all over the globe have accumulated under the same roof in Belgrade to win glory for themselves and their nations. One among these hopefuls was a former wrestling champion from the U.S. who was eyeing for a successful comeback.

Riding on high hopes, the American wrestler had resolved to dominate the World Championships and enter the Paris Olympics with her head held high. This could have been a perfect healing of her loss at the Tokyo Olympics four years back. However, her performance yesterday is going to bring further pain to her.

Disappointment lingers at Wrestling World Championships

On Tuesday, American wrestler Jacarra Winchester lost the women’s 55kg final to Japan’s Haruna Okuno by two points. USA Wrestling announced the results on their official Twitter account with a post that read, “Women’s Freestyle 55 kg Gold Medal – Haruna Okuno (Japan) dec. Jacarra Winchester (United States), 4-2″.

Okuno was the 2017 wrestling world champion in the 55kg category, while Jacarra Winchester won the title in 2019. Their showdown had everyone at the edge of their seats when the battle ensued, and by the time the dust settled, Winchester found herself on the losing end. Speaking to NBC Sports, the 30-year-old American wrestling ace expressed her regret, saying, “Not the result that I wanted, so I’m very disappointed, but it doesn’t matter what you do throughout the day. My goal was to be a world champion, and I fell short of that”.

Jacarra Winchester added the silver medal to the US’ total tally on Tuesday, alongside a bronze medal each from Jennifer Page and Kyle Snyder. That brought the medal count for the American team to nine, which currently ranks at the top of the leaderboard. This loss ahead of the Paris Olympics has forced Winchester to weigh her options once again.

Jacarra Winchester to decide on weight class

Jacarra Winchester’s signature event is the 55kg weight class. However, it is not a recognized Olympic weight class, meaning that if she wants to compete in the 2024 Paris Olympics, she will have to choose a different weight class. She could either drop to 53 kg, just as she did in her previous Olympic trials or rise to 57 kg. Winchester has yet to make this important decision, which she is considering very carefully. She said, “Some people are proud to be an Olympian. I’m not. I want to be an Olympic champion”. Hence, this decision about her weight class is not something she wishes to take lightly.

Read More: “Ready to Wrestle”: USA Ecstatic as 30-Year-Old Jacarra Winchester Returns to the Finals, 4 Years After Bagging Gold in World Wrestling Championship

On Tuesday, the American wrestling team suffered three other huge blows as Helen Maroulis, Adeline Gray, and Sarah Hildebrandt all lost in their respective matches. Now, these three former world champions will battle for the bronze on Wednesday. There is one glimmer of hope still as Macey Kilty will contend for the gold medal in the 65kg and has a high chance of winning.

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