Cuban wrestler Mijain Lopez made Olympic history on Tuesday when he became the first athlete to win five consecutive individual golds in the same event, bettering the records of Games icons such as Carl Lewis and Michael Phelps.
Lopez, who turns 42 in two weeks’ time, defeated fellow Cuban Yasmani Acosta, representing Chile, in the final of the 130kg Greco-Roman event.
With his victory, Lopez broke a tie for four successive individual Olympic golds he shared with Carl Lewis (athletics/long jump), Michael Phelps (swimming/200m medley), Katie Ledecky (swimming/800m freestyle), Al Oerter (athletics/discus), Paul Elvstrom (sailing) and Kaori Icho (wrestling).
When asked to describe each Games success, he said: “Beijing – youth; London – transcendence, Rio – effort; Tokyo – sacrifice; Paris – joy.”
“To achieve all of these results, one has to love their sport, love their job, and demonstrate to the world that with so little you can achieve great things,” he added.
A legend of wrestling, Lopez had retired after the 2021 Tokyo Games before returning to the sport to achieve his landmark triumph.
Despite a three-year absence — and having suffered four herniated discs — Lopez stunned world champion Amin Mirzazadeh of Iran in the quarterfinals in Paris.
Victory in the final on Tuesday was bittersweet as it came against close friend Acosta.
In six Olympic appearances, Lopez now has 22 victories against just one defeat which came in the quarterfinals of the 2004 Athens Games.
“He is not very interested in glory. He does this for the love of his sport, for his pleasure. If God gave him the opportunity to be the greatest in history, why not take advantage of it?” his coach Raul Trujillo told AFP.
Lopez received a standing ovation from the crowd on Tuesday before the legend placed his shoes in the middle of the mat, a tradition for retiring wrestlers.
“We have to make room for the young people who are coming through to ensure continuity,” he had said Monday after qualifying for the final.
“Wrestling has been the love of my life, for all of my life.”
His record could be equalled in four years’ time if Ledecky, 27, decides to keep swimming at the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics.
Acosta, 36, who recently switched allegiance to Chile as federation rules allow just one wrestler per nation to enter each category at the Olympics, described Lopez as a “legend worldwide”.
“He’s a rival, but also a friend. We have known each other for a long time now. We did the trials together for this year’s Olympic Games,” said Acosta.
“He has been giving me advice in every phase, so he’s everything, a rival, a friend, he’s a brother.”
The two men found time for a friendly chat just before the final got underway.
“I asked him, as a joke, if he had any advice to give me before the final. He responded, ‘What do you mean? The final is against me.’ But at the end, he just wished me a good match.”