The U.S. wrestling team tasted the bitter taste of defeat yesterday during the Greco-Roman events. After the success of the freestyle wrestlers, the fans had expected similar results in the Greco-Roman. However, September 21 was a tough day for Team U.S.A. as three of the nation’s strongest contenders suffered a crushing defeat. Now, only one athlete remains who has the chance of redeeming the team’s performance in the repechage round.

Kamal Bey was one of the four American wrestlers to compete on the first day of the Greco-Roman competition. Brady Koontz, Cohlton Schultz, and Spencer Woods were downed by their rivals in Serbia, while Bey’s chances of getting back into the championships are still hanging by a thread.

USA Greco-Roman team suffers harrowing loss

Kamal Bey began his match against Sanan Suleymanov of Azerbaijan with an aggressive posture. To the shock of all, the Azer charged at the American at full force and racked up 6 game-changing points. When the dust settled, Bey had lost the match and was left devastated by the unexpected defeat. However, Bey still has a shot at redemption with the repechage, where he hopes to succeed in his bid for the bronze. His three fellow teammates, on the other hand, were eliminated from Greco-Roman Group One and have no scope of continuing their contention. U.S.A. Wrestling announced the sad results on an X post that said, “Greco-Roman group one results from Thursday at the World Championships”. 

The post had pictures of the four U.S. Greco-Roman athletes with the results displayed next to their names. The first picture was of Bey, who fell short of his 77 kg world title bid against Sanan Suleymanov. The next photo showed Brady Koontz, who made his senior world debut with a remarkable win against Korean athlete Jeon Hyeokjin. However, the joy of the moment was short-lived as his fight against the Romanian ace Denis Mihai went awry. He racked up negative points for passivity and a leg foul, ultimately losing the match 0-9. The next picture highlighted a loss that was even more unexpected.

Cohlton Schultz’s surprising loss

Cohlton Schultz had inspired confidence with his incredible performance in the opening round of the World Championships. He trounced the Czech Greco-Roman sensation Marcel Albini, who could not find his footing against the 130kg Sunkist. However, one fatal mistake in the next round changed the course of Schultz’s journey. In the round of 16, he faced L.T.U.’s Romas Fridrikas, which saw Schultz favoring the left-side underhook. He had hoped that the move would drive his opponent to an off-balance, but it did not yield the desired result. Thereafter, he tried a front headlock as a desperate measure, giving the Lithuanian wrestling pro full access to his body.

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The last photo showed Spencer Woods, who fought valiantly against Belarusian Stanislaw Shafarenko. He had his rivals on the ropes and delivered a right-side undertook successfully. There was no shortage of zeal in Woods, but Shafarenko wasn’t giving in too easily. His loss marked another huge blow for the U.S. Greco-Roman team on Thursday. Kamal Bey has kept the team’s hope alive with his chance at a repechage where he would battle the Armenian Malkhas Amoyan. If he loses, Bey would then proceed to another wrestle-off. This match will determine his 77 kg qualification for the 24 Paris Olympics.

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