BUENOS AIRES, Argentina (May 6) -- There was little doubt that the USA will dominate the final day of the Pan-American Championships in Buenos Aires. And barring one weight class out of the eight in action Saturday, wrestlers from the US won gold medals.
The gold rush began with World Championships silver medalist Thomas GILMAN (USA) defending his 57kg Pan-Am title. In a dominating performance in the final, he defeated Darian CRUZ (PUR) 10-0. In his three bouts, Gilman outscored his opponents 32-0 and showed why he is considered one of the best wrestlers in his category.
John DIAKOMIHALIS (USA) won the 65kg gold medal. (Photo: UWW / Kadir Caliskan)
Apart from Gilman, two other World Championships silver medalists won gold on Saturday.
John DIAKOMIHALIS (USA) was up against two-time world medalist Alejandro VALDES (CUB) in the 65kg final and dug deep to post a 4-1 victory, claiming the title. Both wrestlers traded passivities but Diakomihalis managed to score a takedown for two points late in the final which Valdes challenged but lost.
In the semifinals, Diakomihalis was in deep trouble as Agustin DESTRIBATS (ARG) led 7-7 on criteria. But he shot a double and after a little struggle, managed to lift Destribats on his shoulders before landing him out of the zone to score a point and win a thrilling bout.
At 70kg, Zain RETHERFORD (USA) made no mistakes in his run to the gold medal. In the final against Connor QUINTON (CAN), Retherford won the match via fall.
Kyle DAKE (USA) defended his 74kg Pan-Am title. (Photo: UWW / Kadir Caliskan)
Two world champions from the USA added more gold medals to the country's tally as Kyle DAKE (USA) and Kyle SNYDER (USA) won the 74kg and 97kg weight classes respectively.
Outscoring his opponents 40-0 in four bouts, Dake put on a commanding performance at 74kg and defeated Franklin GOMEZ (PUR) 10-0 to defend his title. Even in 2022, Dake defeated Gomez to win gold.
Snyder was a little less dominant in his three bouts but still got the job done, defending his Pan-Am title at 97kg which he won in 2022. He defeated Arturo Silot TORRES (CUB) 14-3 to win the gold medal.
In a round-robin 61kg bracket, Vitali ARUJAU (USA) won the gold medal as he won all four of his bouts with ease. Jason LUNEAU (CAN) was the only wrestler to score a point against Arujau who still won the Round 2 bout 14-4. In the decisive clash, Arujau defeated Joseph SILVA (PUR) 11-0 to confirm his gold.
Winning the ninth gold medal out of 10 for the USA was 24-year-old Dominique BRADLEY (USA). He faced Jose ROBERTTI (VEN) in the final and pulled off a close 2-1 victory to clinch his third Pan-Am title, six years since he won the second.
Yurieski TORREBLANCA (CUB) was the only non-USA champion in freestyle. (Photo: UWW / Kadir Caliskan)
Torreblanca denies
Yurieski TORREBLANCA (CUB) defeated Mark HALL (USA) in the semifinal, denying the USA a clean sweep of the gold medals. He went on to win the gold after defeating Alexander MOORE (CAN) in the 86kg final. Moore tried finding a way to score on Torreblanca but fell short as the Cuban won the gold 5-1.
RESULTS
57kg
GOLD: Thomas GILMAN (USA) df. Darian CRUZ (PUR), 10-0
BRONZE: Pedro MEJIAS RODRIGUEZ (VEN) df. Darthe CAPELLAN (CAN), 10-7
BRONZE: Santiago CHAVECO (CUB) df. Hernan ALMENDRA (ARG), 8-3
61kg
GOLD: Vitali ARUJAU (USA)
SILVER: Joseph SILVA (PUR)
BRONZE: Jason LUNEAU (CAN)
65kg
GOLD: John DIAKOMIHALIS (USA) df. Alejandro VALDES (CUB), 4-1
BRONZE: Agustin DESTRIBATS (ARG) df. Sixto PEDRAGAS (PER), 11-0
BRONZE: Sebastian RIVERA (PUR) df. Albaro CAMACHO (DOM), 9-2
70kg
GOLD: Zain RETHERFORD (USA) df. Connor QUINTON (CAN), via fall
BRONZE: Mauricio LOVERA (ARG) df. Vinicius DA SILVA JOAQUIM (BRA), 6-4
74kg
GOLD: Kyle DAKE (USA) df. Franklin GOMEZ (PUR), 10-0
BRONZE: Cesar ALVAN (BRA) df. Anthony CHIRINOS (VEN), 4-2
BRONZE: Franklin MAREN (CUB) df. Adam THOMSON (CAN), 4-3
86kg
GOLD: Yurieski TORREBLANCA (CUB) df. Alexander MOORE (CAN), 5-1
BRONZE: Mark HALL (USA) df. Bruno NICOLETTI (BRA), 11-0
BRONZE: Carlos IZQUIERDO (COL) df. Pedro CEBALLOS FUENTES (VEN), 7-6
97kg
GOLD: Kyle SNYDER (USA) df. Arturo SILOT TORRES (CUB), 14-3
BRONZE: Nishan Preet RANDHAWA (CAN) df. Ricardo BAEZ (ARG), 5-1
BRONZE: Luis PEREZ SOSA (DOM) df. Maxwell LACEY (CRC), via fall
125kg
GOLD: Dominique BRADLEY (USA) df. Jose DIAZ ROBERTTI (VEN), 2-1
BRONZE: Catriel MURIEL (ARG) df. Elison GARCIA (DOM), 5-2
BRONZE: Aaron JOHNSON (JAM) df. Reineris SALAS (CUB), via inj. def.
