27 Year Old Russian Shatters American Dream of Gold at Wrestling World Championship Upsetting Kyle Dake

The month of September is proving to be a disappointment for American fans across the sporting world. After the medal-less defeats of Sha’Carri Richardson at the Diamond League finals, American wrestling also bellowed some bad news. The 2023 World Wrestling Championships held in Belgrade, Serbia, this week saw the defeat of four-time world champion Kyle Dake, and the rise of a neutral competitor. 

The Worlds invited scores of American supporters to cheer for their indomitable champion and Olympic medalist, reigning the 163-lbs (74kg) category, but left the Stark Arena dejected. Moreover, the end of the technical exile of a great wrestler shattered Dake’s winning streak of four consecutive titles. 

Neutral wrestling giant neutralizes Kyle Dake 

Kyle Dake reigned the world of wrestling with his unmatched technique and tenacity. The 32-year-old initially claimed back-to-back world wrestling titles in 2018 and 2019, under the 79kg category. But, since 79kg isn’t recognized by the Olympics for competition, the US freestyle grappler cut his weight down to 74kg. This gave him a hard time at the Tokyo Olympics as he exited the contest with a bronze medal. However, Dake didn’t face any difficulty on the world stage, as he won two consecutive golds in 2021 and 2022. Kyle Dake enjoyed an undisputed run the entire time, till his Tokyo Olympics nemesis decided to return and snap his streak. 

Russian freestyle wrestler Sidakov remained away from the world championships following Tokyo due to geopolitical issues but yearned to reclaim his 74kg category throne. Now competing under a neutral flag, Sidakov neutralized Dake in the world finals with a score of 10-7 and reigned supreme over him once again. Sidakov picked things up from where he left them and added a third world title under his belt after 2018-19. American fans were disheartened by the loss of their undisputed champion as Dake failed to overpower his dragon from Tokyo.

As per sources, Zaurbek Sidakov is competing under a neutral flag after athletes from Russia and Belarus were banned from the worlds last year, due to the war in Ukraine. Remarkably, the seasoned 27-year-old grappling expert even snatched the Olympic gold medal from Dake’s hands in Tokyo. The pain of the loss was further aggravated by the loss of another great US wrestler, Kyle Snyder.

Another Kyle misses gold medal at worlds

While Kyle Dake missed the goal medal and lost to Zaurbek Sidakov, things didn’t go well with another American wrestler. Olympic gold medalist Kyle Snyder failed to enter the final stage of the 2023 World Wrestling Championship. Snyder is known for pinning his dominance over everyone in the 97kg category. In fact, he brought home the Rio Olympics gold medal and the Tokyo Olympics silver medal to the US. Unfortunately, Snyder failed to create the impact he usually carries this time. 

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Interestingly, his longtime Russian rival Abdulrashid Sadulayev also failed to enter the finals round. Snyder will now enter the repechage round to redeem himself with the bronze medal. The US fans, however, remain concerned about Kyle Dake’s run as a champion. Will Zaurbek Sidakov forever eclipse Dake? Or will Dake reemerge and overpower the Russian wrestler? Tell us what you think in the comments. 

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