Light-Heavyweight, Freestyle (≤68 kg), Women

In the women’s freestyle wrestling light-heavyweight class, the medals were awarded to the top four seeded wrestlers, but the sub-heavyweight was a nightmare for the eight seeded athletes. Only one of them reached the semi-final (#6 seeded Blessing Oborududu from Nigeria) and just one claimed a medal. That was #1 seeded Buse Tosun-Çavuşoğlu, a veteran from Rio 2016 and the 2023 World champion, who succeeded in the repêchage winning two tight bouts on points. In the first round, she was dominated 10-2 on points by the unseeded US athlete Amit Elor who, despite not being seeded, was still one of the favorites. The 20-year-old Californian had been unbeaten in her division (72 kg) since 2019 and took gold in the last two World championships. With fewer divisions contested at the Olympics compared to the Worlds, however, she decided to step down to the 68 kg division.

Japan’s Nonoka Ozaki, another unseeded two-times World champion, went the opposite way. She won the World titles in the 62 and 65 kg divisions, respectively, and had her first season in the 68 kg class in 2024. Meerim Zhumanazarova, however, was a genuine 68 kg wrestler, but had her greatest achievements three years earlier at the 2021 World championships, and took a bronze medal at the Tokyo Olympics.

Elor proved her superiority winning the next three matches, including the final, without receiving a single point against her. In the final, she faced Zhumanazarova from Kyrgyzstan. Zhumanazarova eliminated #2 seeded Mongolian Enkhsaikhany Delgermaa in the first round, Ozaki in round two, and Oborududu in the semi-final. The woman from Bishkek, however, had to go the full distance in all three encounters. In the final, only Elor scored for three points in the first period, holding on to this lead for the complete second period. Elor, the granddaughter of Jewish Holocaust victims, became the youngest American gold medalist in wrestling, both male and female. Both bronze medal matches were decided on points, with Ozaki beating Oburududu, and Tosun-Çavuşoğlu ousting North Korean youngster Pak Sol-Gum, who was no match for Elor in the semi.