Featherweight, Greco-Roman (≤55 kg), Men

In a field of strong competitors, Hamid Soryan of Iran and Rövşən Bayramov of Azerbaijan stood out as the two wrestlers most likely to reach the final match of the men’s featherweight Greco-Roman wrestling event. Soryan was a five-time World Champion (2005-2007, 2009-2010) and a strong prospect to win Iran’s first Olympic gold medal in Greco-Roman wrestling. He had taken the past season off, however, allowing Bayramov to claim the title of reigning World Champion. Both were veterans of the 2008 Games, but had never met at the Olympics, as Soryan was defeated by eventual gold medalist Nazyr Mankiyev in the quarterfinals. Bayramov had survived to the final match, although he too was outclassed by Mankiyev and forced to settle for silver. With Mankiyev having bowed out of defending his crown, the opportunity was ripe for either wrestler to capture the crown.

Up through the final, Bayramov never suffered a single point in his matches, making him appear to be the strongest contender for gold. Soryan struggled somewhat against his first opponent, Arsen Eraliyev of Kyrgyzstan, but managed to avoid taking any more points in the quarter or semi-finals. The first period of the final went scoreless for 90 seconds, necessitating a par terre finish where Soryan was able to score for two points. In the second period, Soryan converted one of Bayramov’s attacks into a point advantage, which was all he needed to claim his nation’s first Olympic Greco-Roman crown.

In the first bronze medal match, Hungarian Péter Módos defeated Denmark’s Håkan Nyblom in three periods. Each round went to par terre and, although the Dane successfully defended in the first period, he was penalized for a leg grab and lost the round 0-3. Módos was unable to defend when on the bottom, giving the second round to Nyblom and extending the match to a third period. Scoreless at the end of 90 seconds, and with their points and cautions tied, a ball was drawn to determine which competitor would choose the positions in the final par terre. Módos won and chose to be on top, successfully scoring on Nyblom and earning the podium spot. The second bout, between Mingiyan Semyonov of Russia and Choi Gyu-Jin of South Korea, was more straightforward but far more aggressive. After a heated exchange in the first period, which Semyonov won 3-1, the Russian clenched the bronze medal by successfully defending in the second period’s par terre.