Wrestler Annika Wendle tragically missed out on Olympic bronze.
In the freestyle class up to 53 kg, the 26-year-old from ASV Altenheim lost 0:10 to Choe Hyo Gyong from North Korea on Thursday evening. The Olympic debutant twisted her left knee after 19 seconds and cried bitter tears as she limped off the mat after only 1:36 minutes.
The German Wrestling Association will have to wait a little longer for its first medal in Paris. Wendle gave it her all in the packed Marsfeld Arena at the Eiffel Tower, but she left the hall with a pained expression on her face.
In the semifinals, the Olympic debutant lost 0-10 to top seed Lucía Yépez from Ecuador, third in the 2023 World Championships in Belgrade, but slipped into the bronze medal fight via the repechage round.
For Wendle, this was the end of a crazy story without a happy ending: the former European Championship third-place finisher had initially missed out on a ticket to Paris.
In Tokyo still above expectations
Because Russia’s wrestling federation decided at short notice not to send any athletes to Paris under neutral status, Wendle was given a chance – and was thwarted in a very bitter way.
Before Wendle, Sandra Paruszewski had to accept the feared opening defeat on Thursday, the fourth day of the wrestling competitions, but she can still hope for the bronze medal. The two-time European Championship third-place finisher lost clearly 0:9 to the number two-seeded Vice World Champion Anastasia Nichita in the weight class up to 57 kg.
Because the Moldovan fought her way to the final, the 30-year-old Olympic debutant Paruszewski will be allowed to compete in the repechage round on Friday morning. She will then first face Brazilian Giullia Penalber.
The last German participants will be World Championship fifth-place finisher Luisa Niemesch (62 kg) on Friday and Erik Thiele (freestyle/97 kg) on Saturday.
Three years ago in Tokyo, the DRB exceeded expectations with three medals. Aline Rotter-Focken won the Olympic gold medal in her last competition, while Frank Stäbler and Denis Kudla each won bronze at the end of their active careers.
Source: www.sport.de
