By Gary Abbott
USA Wrestling

PARIS, France – Competing against a different opponent than expected, after years of winning medals at the highest level yet not reaching the top of the podium, Sarah Hildebrandt displayed her best in Paris.

After scoring a first-period takedown, adding a second period shot clock point and displaying flawless defense and position, Hildebrandt won the gold medal at 50 kg in women’s freestyle at the Olympic Games Paris 2024 with a 3-0 victory over Yusneylis Guzman Lopez of Cuba.

It was a day of ups and downs for Hildebrandt, but when the bright lights came on, she was able to achieve a lifelong dream by standing at the top of the Olympic podium and listening to the U.S. national anthem.

Hildebrandt was scheduled to face Vinesh of India in the gold-medal finals. Vinesh knocked off the No. 1 seed, Olympic and World champion Yui Susaki of Japan in the opening round and powered through two other opponents to become the first woman from India to reach an Olympic wrestling finals.

However, Vinesh did not make weight. Her results were eliminated and she did not receive a medal.  Yuneylis Guzman Lopez of Cuba, who lost to Vinesh in the semifinals, was moved up by United World Wrestling into the finals match.

Hildebrandt became the second U.S. women’s freestyle wrestler to win an Olympic gold medal in Paris, joining her teammate Amit Elor, who captured the gold medal at 68 kg on Tuesday night. This is the first time that Team USA has won multiple Olympic gold medals in women’s wrestling in the same Olympic Games since the sport was added at the Olympic Games Athens 2004.

Hildebrandt became just the second U.S. woman to earn two Olympic wrestling medals which ties her with Helen Maroulis, a 2016 Olympic champion and 2020 Olympic bronze medalist. Maroulis competes on Thursday and Friday, seeking a third Olympic medal.

She is now the fourth U.S. woman to win an Olympic gold medal in wrestling, joining Maroulis, Elor and Tamyra Mensah Stock (68 kg in 2020).

In addition to her two Olympic medals, Hildebrandt also has won two World silver medals and two World bronze medals.

Hildebrandt, the No. 6 seed, opened with an impressive 10-0 technical fall over four-time African bronze medalist Ibtissem Doudou of Algeria in her opening match. In the quarterfinals, Hildebrandt was in command in a 7-4 victory over 2023 World bronze medalist Ziqi Feng of China. In the semifinals, Hildebrandt defeated Otgonjargal Dolgorjav of Mongolia, 5-0, avenging a loss to Dolgorjav in the semifinals of the 2023 World Championships.

Hildebrandt is a U.S. Olympic Training Center resident athlete based in Colorado Springs, Colo., where she currently resides and is a member of the New York Athletic Club. She attended King University in Tennessee, where she was a two-time WCWA college national champion. Hildebrandt is a native of Granger, Ind., where she attended Penn High School.

In Group 3, 2022 World champion Dom Parrish of the USA was pulled back into repechage at 53 kg in women’s freestyle when two-time World champion Akari Fujinami of Japan won her semifinal match over Qianyu Pang of China. Fujinami pinned Parrish in the first round. Parrish will wrestle Khulan Batkhuyag of Mongolia in repechage on Thursday morning. If Parrish wins that repechage match, she will qualify for a bronze-medal match against Pang.

Two Greco-Roman weight classes in Group 2 completed on Wednesday with medal matches. Claiming individual gold medals in Greco-Roman were Nao Kusaka of Japan at 77 kg and Mohammadhadi Saravi of Iran at 97 kg.

The U.S. Greco-Roman team finished up on Wednesday morning, when Payton Jacobson lost his opening match at 87 kg and was not eligible for repechage. The USA, which qualified four athletes for the Olympic Games Paris 2024, had an 0-5 record in their matches. Joe Rau placed ninth at 97 kg, the top finish among the four U.S. Olympians. The other placements were Kamal Bey (11th at 77 kg) and Adam Coon (12th at 130 kg). Jacobson’s placement will be announced on Thursday, as Greco-Roman finishes up in Paris.

Competition on Thursday will include the fourth women’s freestyle weight class (57 kg), and the first two men’s freestyle weight classes (57 kg and 86 kg). The repechage rounds for Group 3, and the preliminaries for Group 4 in will begin at 11:00 a.m. on Thursday morning, Paris time. The Group 4 medal matches will be held at 6:15 p.m., followed by the medal matches in Group 3 at 7:30 p.m  Paris is six hours ahead of U.S. Eastern time zone.  

All of the action is live on Peacock.

OLYMPIC GAMES PARIS 2024

At Paris, France

Group 2 medal match results

Greco Roman 77 kg

Gold - Nao Kusaka (Japan)

Silver - Demeu Zhadrayev (Kazakhstan)

Bronze - Malkhas Amoyan (Armenia)

Bronze - Akzol Makhmudov (Kyrgyzstan)

5th - Aram Vardanyan (Uzbekistan)

5th - Sanan Suleymanov (Azerbaijan)

7th - Zotlan Levai (Hungary)

8th - Amin Yavar Kaviyaninejad (Iran)

9th - Yosvanys Pena Flores (Cuba)

10th - Burhan Akbudak (Turkey)

Gold - Nao Kusaka (Japan) dec. Demeu Zhadrayev (Kazakhstan), 5-2

Bronze - Malkhas Amoyan (Armenia) dec. Aram Vardanyan (Uzbekistan), 6-5

Bronze - Akzol Makhmudov (Kyrgyzstan) dec. Sanan Suleymanov (Azerbaijan), 6-5

Greco Roman 97 kg

Gold - Mohammadhadi Saravi (Iran)

Silver - Artur Aleksanyan (Armenia), 4-1

Bronze - Gabriel Rosillo Kindelon (Cuba)

Bronze - Uzur Dzhuzupbekov (Kyrgyzstan)

5th - Rustam Assakalov (Uzbekistan)

5th - Mohamed Gabr (Egypt)

7th - Abubakar Khaslakhanau (Individual Neutral Athlete)

8th -  Arvi Savolainen (Finland)

9th - Josef Rau (USA)

10th - Lucas Alexandros Lazogianis (Germany)

 Gold - Mohammadhadi Saravi (Iran) dec. Artur Aleksanyan (Armenia), 4-1

Bronze - Gabriel Rosillo Kindelon (Cuba) inj. dft. Rustam Assakalov (Uzbekistan), 0:42

Bronze - Uzur Dzhuzupbekov (Kyrgyzstan) dec. Mohamed Gabr (Egypt), 2-1

Women's Freestyle 50 kg

Gold - Sarah Hildebrandt (USA)

Silver - Yusneylis Guzman (Cuba)

Bronze - Yui Susaki (Japan)

Bronze - Ziqi Feng (China)

5th - Oksana Livach (Spain), 10-0

5th - Otgonjargal Dolgorjav (Mongolia)

7th - Gabija Dilyte (Lithuania)

8th - Mariya Stadnik (Azerbaijan)

9th - Evin Demirhan (Turkey)

10th -Anastasia Blayvas (Germany)

Gold - Sarah Hildebrandt (USA) vs. Yusneylis Guzman (Cuba)

Bronze - Yui Susaki (Japan) tech fall Oksana Livach (Spain), 10-0

Bronze - Ziqi Feng (China) dec. Otgonjargal Dolgorjav (Mongolia), 6-4

U.S. Group 2 women’s freestyle results

50 kg – Sarah Hildebrandt (Colorado Springs, Colo./New York AC), Gold Medal

WIN Ibtissem Doudou (Algeria), tech. fall 10-0. 1:34

WIN Ziqi Feng (China), 7-4

WIN Otgonjargal Dolgorjav (Mongolia), 5-0

WIN Yusneylis Guzman Lopez (Cuba), 3-0

U.S. Group 2 Greco-Roman results

77 kg – Kamal Bey (Colorado Springs, Colo./U.S. Army WCAP), 11th place

LOSS Akzhol Makhmudov (Kyrgyzstan), 4-1

97 kg– Joe Rau (Chicago, Ill./Titan Mercury WC), 9th place

LOSS Mohammadhadi Saravi (Iran), tech. fall 10-1

LOSS Uzur Dzhuzupbekov (Kyrgyzstan), 9-4

Group 3 finals pairings

Greco-Roman 67 kg - Parviz Nasibov (Ukraine) vs. Saeid Esmaeili (Iran)

Greco-Roman 87 kg - Alireza Mohmadipiani (Iran) vs. Semen Novikov (Bulgaria)

Women’s Freestyle 53 kg - Lucia Yepez Guzman (Ecuador) vs. Akari Fujinami (Japan)

Group 3 semifinal results

Greco-Roman 67 kg

Parviz Nasibov (Ukraine) dec. Hasrat Jafarov (Azerbaijan), 3-3

Saeid Esmaeili (Iran) dec. Slavik Galstyan (Armenia), 10-4

Greco-Roman 87 kg

Alireza Mohmadipiani (Iran) dec. Zhan Beleniuk (Ukraine), 3-3

Semen Novikov (Bulgaria) dec. David Losonczi (Hungary), 3-1

Women’s Freestyle 53 kg

Lucia Yepez Guzman (Ecuador) tech fall Annika Wendle (Germany), 10-0

Akari Fujinami (Japan) tech. Qianyu Pang (China), 10-0

Group 3 U.S. women’s freestyle results

53 kg – Dom Parrish, Corvallis, Ore. (Sunkist Kids/Beaver Dam RTC)

LOSS Akari Fujinami (Japan), pin 2:05

Repechage – Vs. Khulan Batkhuyag (Mongolia)

Group 3 U.S. Greco-Roman results

87 kg – Payton Jacobson, Elkhorn, Wis. (Sunkist Kids)

LOSS Aleksandr Komarov (Serbia), tech fall, 10-0