Perhaps the new generations are not clear about it, but Mijaín López lost once at the Olympic Games. It is a memory as distant as it is transcendent in the career of the Cuban, who 20 years after that defeat at Athens 2004 became the first and only athlete with five summer crowns in the same individual event, linking a spectacular chain of 21 consecutive victories in the concert under the five rings.
To put things into perspective, Aleksandr Karelin, considered by many to be the best and most feared wrestler of all time, “only” won three Olympic titles in a row (1988, 1992, and 1996) and achieved a streak of 18 consecutive victories, until the American Rulon Gardner dethroned him in Sydney 2000.
Mijaín began his streak precisely in Athens, shortly after losing to Khasan Baroev in the quarterfinals. That was a tough fight for the Cuban, who only 20 seconds after starting found himself behind on the scoreboard due to a back pass from the Russian, who widened the gap with two unbalances that were close to not being completed. In the second set, everything turned out worse, as Baroev took the lead, defending his position on the ground, and then disarmed the athlete from Pinar del Río with lethal attacks.
The final score (11-0) of that duel was anything but encouraging. The image of Mijaín, face down on the mat, with his hands on his head and almost crying, could not predict a career like the one the Pinar del Río native later had. However, right after the defeat, there was a man who did visualize the reign of the athlete from Herradura.
“Mijaín López wrestled like a warrior, it’s true. He lost, but he learned what we needed now and I tell you, he’s going to be the best in the world, he’s not going to lose to anyone else,” said trainer Pedro Val to photojournalist Ricardo López Hevia, who revealed that story 13 years after Athens 2004.
Val’s words, the guru of Greco wrestling, recognized as the best trainer in the world a few years before he passed away, were prophetic. With him as his guide, Mijaín became an unbeatable rival in the Olympic Games, where he wrote 21 consecutive chapters without defeats until his memorable retirement in Paris.
Athens 2004: the first link in the chain
Yannick Szczepaniak (France/No-show)
After Khasan Baroev swept Mijaín in the quarterfinals of Athens 2004, the Cuban had the opportunity to win the fifth position in his first Olympic Games, but first, he had to beat Yannick Szczepaniak, an opponent he already knew, since they faced each other in the 2000 Junior World Championships in Nantes, with a narrow victory for the French athlete.
That fight would have been difficult for Mijaín, who was emotionally destroyed by the defeat against Baroev. “I cried a lot,” confessed the Pinar del Río native in a recent interview on national television, recalling that bitter experience in Athens. However, Szczepaniak did not show up, and that gave him the victory and the fifth position to the Cuban, who from then on began the most impressive streak ever written in the history of Greco-Roman wrestling in the Olympic Games.
Beijing 2008: revenge on Baroev
Siarhei Artsiukhin (Belarus/5-1)
With his characteristic power and his inexhaustible offensive arsenal, Mijaín scored 3 points and won the first set of the fight without great difficulties. In the second 3-minute period the actions were even, but in the end, the Cuban achieved a narrow 2-1 victory based more on defense.
Mijaín went to the four-point position with the score tied and with just over 20 seconds left, and from there he defended himself wonderfully, planted on the mat, without Artsiukhin being able to lift him even an inch. With this demonstration he sent a message to his rivals: he was ready for his first Olympic conquest.
Yury Patrikeyev (Armenia/pressure)
One of the few mortals who managed to beat Mijaín in his career wanted to repeat the dose in Beijing and started on the right foot, as Patrikeyev won the first round, but then the Cuban “applied the pounds” and defeated him with devastating pressure.
When 40 seconds had passed in the second set, López took advantage of a firm grip on Patrikeyev’s torso, threw him at lightning speed, and pressed his back to the mat. An incontestable victory!
After the decisive action, Mijaín and his coaches celebrated with words that cannot be repeated. The Giant from Herradura, aware of his rival’s reputation, left a defiant look that confirmed his thirst for victory in the Chinese capital.
Jalmar Sjöberg (Sweden/9-0)
In the semi-finals, Mijaín was already an untamable beast and the Swede Sjöberg suffered it firsthand. With a series of imbalances, the Cuban scored 9 points between the two periods of a fight that assured him his first Olympic medal and put him one step away from climbing to the top.
Khasan Baroev (Russia/6-1)
The toughest opponent in Mijaín’s career, at least in terms of results, appeared on the other side of the mat to settle the Olympic rematch. Four years earlier, Baroev had beaten him at the 2004 Athens Games, and Mijaín wanted to get even. He was no longer the inexperienced boy who competed in the Greek capital. He knew he could get revenge for that defeat.
Said and done. The Giant from Herradura had studied the Russian perfectly and left no room for doubt. He attacked early and achieved an incontestable 5-0 victory in the first period, where he showed all his power with the off-balances, his house trademark. With a 2-0 lead, he almost buried his forehead in the middle of Baroev’s back, pulled hard, and turned him around to increase the lead to the ecstasy of coach Pedro Val.
In the second round, it was time to apply a different script. Mijaín, without taking a step back or giving up his aggressive style, had to resist the constant attacks of the Russian, having to force himself to keep from losing his Athens crown. But none of his attempts upset the athlete from Pinar del Río, who seemed planted on the mat of the gymnasium installed at the Beijing Agricultural University, the venue for the wrestling competitions at that event.
Much has been said about Mijaín’s strength and his impressive ability to apply effective imbalances against very heavy opponents, but really one of the most decisive skills that allowed him to climb to a higher level was his great defense on the ground. Very few opponents managed to move him in that position.
London 2012: the start of an impeccable streak
Abdelrahman El-Trabely (Egypt/4-0)
Mijaín López’s string of Olympic fights without any points scored began against El-Trabely,1 a young wrestler with virtually no international experience before the 2012 summer event. The Cuban’s victory was comfortable, with partial scores of 1-0 and 3-0.
In the second period, the reigning super heavyweight champion demonstrated his strength by lifting the Egyptian and completely turning him over in a highly projected action. This victory marked the starting point for Mijaín’s second Olympic crown.
Guram Pherselidze (Georgia/4-0)
Mijaín was very clear that in London the Turk Rıza Kayaalp would for him with the same hold, so the duel between the big favorites for the title would take place in the semis. With the final practically under his nose, he decided to control the challenge with Pherselidze without pushing himself too hard and managed a comfortable victory with a score of 4-0. The Georgian arrived almost exhausted at the end of the match and did not put the Cuban in an awkward situation.
Rıza Kayaalp (Turkey/3-0)
At the majestic ExCeL London, the gold medal in 120-kilogram Greco-Roman wrestling at the 2012 Olympic Games was decided before the final. It may sound presumptuous, but Mijaín and Kayaalp were by far the two best gladiators in the category; the fact that they faced each other in the semi-finals advanced the discussion for the crown.
The fight between the two giants did not disappoint. Mijaín was imperial in the defensive area and, when he had the opportunity to attack, he did not waste it. In the first period, he took the Turk to the four-point position and pulled as hard as he could to achieve a crucial imbalance. Kayaalp’s frustration was so evident that he hit the mat with his left fist, knowing that overcoming any difference against the Cuban was almost an impossible mission.
Indeed, in the second set, the Turk could not move Mijaín from the ground. He tried in every way and position, but he could not get the Pinar del Río native off the ground, who took revenge for his defeat in the 2011 world final.
Mijaín’s celebration was in full swing; without belittling any rival, he knew that he almost had his second Olympic crown in his pocket.
Heiki Nabi (Estonia/3-0)
Using exactly the same formula that gave him the victory over Kayaalp, the Giant from Herradura defeated the Estonian Nabi, one of the best gladiators of the division in this century.
In the first set, Mijaín managed to get a two-unit imbalance when time was running out and Nabi was writhing on the ground with unusual speed and mobility for a 120-kilogram wrestler. After that action, the second period passed with relative calm for the Cuban, who again defended himself very well when he was on the ground.
Rio de Janeiro 2016: Kayaalp’s Olympic nightmare
Heiki Nabi (Estonia/3-0)
Just as the London Games ended for Mijaín, so did the Rio de Janeiro 2016 Games. Nabi, his challenger in the British final, appeared to be the first obstacle on the road to the third consecutive Olympic crown for the Pinar del Río native. In terms of results, the initial clash ended with the Cuban’s decisive imbalance and an identical score to that of four years ago.
Johan Eurén (Sweden/4-0)
Mijaín could not have had a more “poisoned” start in the Brazilian city: in his first two fights, he faced the runner-up and one of the bronze medalists from the London 2012 Games. Eurén, 31, was an old acquaintance of the Cuban, with whom he had clashed at the 2011 World Championships in Istanbul. Since then, they never faced each other again in a fight until the quarter-finals of the Rio Games.
Mijaín knew that he had to overcome the Swede to continue his path to the third Olympic crown in a row, something that only Aleksandr Karelin had achieved in the super heavyweight division of the classic style.
His victory was not overwhelming, but it was forceful, following a specific plan of little wear and tear to arrive in the best possible condition for a hypothetical duel with the Turk Kayaalp.
Sergey Semenov (Russia/3-0)
A few days away from turning 21, Semenov appeared as one of the alternative threats to the world reign that Mijaín López and the Turk Rıza Kayaalp had achieved for years. A double world champion in the junior category, many in Russia considered him the natural successor to Khasan Baroev. Rio de Janeiro was his first big test under the five rings.
There he showed that the rumors about his potential were not unfounded: he ran over his first three rivals with great authority and intensity. However, in the semifinals, he had to face Mijaín, who had shown up in excellent form, and he could do little in the 6 minutes of combat. In fact, Semenov found himself powerless, without resources and without strength to move the massive man from Pinar del Río, who defined the actions with a back pass and a lightning-fast imbalance.
One of the most evident signs of the Russian’s resignation was seen when there were 5 seconds left in the fight and both were struggling in the center of the mat. At that moment, Mijaín felt that the Russian could not take it anymore and showed him his left hand. Semenov, far from forcing himself to achieve some desperate action that would keep him alive, decided to greet the Cuban and accept his defeat.
Rıza Kayaalp (Turkey/6-0)
Beating Mijaín López was almost impossible, but Kayaalp had managed it twice, during the 2011 and 2015 World Championships. In this last world event, the Turk euphorically celebrated the victory in the discussion for the crown, in front of the disappointed gaze of the Cuban, who kept the memory engraved in his mind.
That passage in Rio 2016 worked just as an additional motivation, as Mijaín entered the Olympic final with a caged gladiator’s thirst for revenge. In just 15 seconds he defined the actions with a spectacular four-point throw that froze Kayaalp’s soul. The Turk was living his worst nightmare; his hopes of being champion in the summer competition were crumbling down.
After that huge action, Mijaín did not abuse it, he dedicated himself to controlling the duel calmly and waiting for the clock to consume the minutes. Kayaalp, desperate, tried to push and push but found himself up against an insurmountable wall. In the end, with time up, the Cuban danced on the mat of the Carioca Arena, witnessing his third Olympic coronation and his definitive rise to the legend level of Greco-Roman wrestling.
Tokyo 2020: Unbeaten record
Alin Alexuc-Ciurariu (Romania/9-0)
The coronavirus pandemic put the world on hold and almost ended Mijaín López’s dream of a fourth consecutive Olympic gold. The one-year delay was a huge challenge for the Cuban, about whom there were doubts about his ability to triumph in the concert under the five rings just a few days before turning 39.
But Mijaín quickly cleared up the unknowns and destroyed the negative thoughts with an unchallengeable victory by superiority over Ciurariu, a seasoned 31-year-old wrestler with dozens of medals in Grand Prixs, European Championships and other world-class events. The Romanian could do nothing against the push of the Cuban, who showed excellent physical condition and an overwhelming mentality.
Amin Mirzazadeh (Iran/8-0)
Second performance and second victory by superiority for Mijaín, who sent a strong message to his adversaries. Neither the pandemic nor competitive inactivity had weakened him, so they would have to do their best to get him out of the way and prevent his fourth consecutive crown.
Mirzazadeh, Asia champion and world junior champion, was one of the bets to face the Cuban in Tokyo, but the challenge was too great for the 23-year-old Iranian gladiator, who could not take advantage of the vigor of his youth against the most veteran and deadly of the wrestlers in the division.
Rıza Kayaalp (Turkey/2-0)
“As long as I am there, he will not win.” Mijaín López did not pretend to be a prophet when he spoke like that about the Turkish Rıza Kayaalp, rather he was making it clear who was the king of 130-kilogram Greco-Roman wrestling in the Olympic concert. Although his defiant words could have been a motivation for the Ottoman in his third battle against the Pinar del Río native in summer events, the truth is that Kayaalp was further than ever from beating the Giant from Herradura.
Without rhythm or drive, without energy or strength, Kayaalp was powerless against Mijaín, who even admitted after the fight that he saw his eternal rival “exhausted” and “incapable” of holding his rate. And so it was. López got two points due to passivity that could have been four due to an effective imbalance that the judges annulled. However, the advantage was enough to leave the Turk on the way for the third consecutive time.
Iakobi Kajaia (Georgia/5-0)
“Passiveness, on the ground and let the show begin.” These were the words of the Olympic channel’s commentators during the Tokyo 2020 final fight between Mijaín and Georgian Kajaia when the latter gave up the first point and went to the canvas to try to defend himself unsuccessfully from the Cuban’s attacks. Once on the ground, the European was at the mercy of the lethal imbalances of the Cuban, who turned him around and quickly took a 3-0 lead.
Following the same script as his previous fights at the Tokyo Games, after scoring with his most recurrent weapons, Mijaín dedicated himself to controlling the duel from above. He pushed Kajaia hard, who did not find the ways to hurt the Cuban. Another point for passivity and a fifth for taking him out of the limits of competition gave him a lapidary 5-0 advantage.
Mijaín’s dominance was so overwhelming that with 12 seconds left, Kajaia stepped back, surrendered and clapped his hands once, as if recognizing the superiority of his opponent, who climbed to the top of Olympus for the fourth time.
For the third consecutive edition, Mijaín had an immaculate performance, not allowing points to any of his rivals, thus extending his chain of fights to 12 without being scored on in the Olympic Games. In that period he scored 54 points.
Paris 2024: from legend to myth
Lee Seung-chan (South Korea/7-0)
Mijaín López spent exactly 1,099 days without appearing in any international arena. For those who like numbers, it was 3 years and 3 days, or 36 months, or 26,376 hours, or more than a million minutes without competing at the highest level. For any other wrestler, that would be like standing on the edge of a cliff, but the Giant from Herradura also dared to defy time.
At 41, Mijaín stepped onto the mats of the Champs de Mars Arena in Paris in pursuit of a goal: to go from legend to myth and win his fifth Olympic crown in the same individual event, something never seen before in the history of the summer games
His first steps in the City of Light were firm. South Korean Lee Seung-chan did not even have time to attack the Cuban, who quickly gained an insurmountable advantage and cleared the doubts of the most skeptical. His strength and his ability to work on the mat and achieve tackles and imbalances remained intact, so the dream of the fifth gold medal could well become a reality.
Amin Mirzazadeh (Iran/3-1)
In Tokyo 2020, Mirzazadeh was a young promise, but he was still green to face a monster like Mijaín, who in the end ended up defeating him by superiority. But the panorama before their duel in Paris was different since the Iranian had already assaulted the world throne in Belgrade 2023 and had established himself as the great star of the super heavyweight category of Greco wrestling.
With all those cards on the table, everyone interpreted that the confrontation between the Cuban and the Persian in the quarterfinals of the Paris Games was the closest thing to a discussion of the title in advance. And they were not wrong….
Mijaín and Mirzazadeh gave a high-caliber fight, in which the native of Pinar del Río once again used his expertise and tactical wealth to force the Iranian to be passive, to unbalance him, and to protect the three-point advantage with his defense. The plan worked out perfectly and his path became even clearer when his rival had the opportunity to put him on the ground and decided to continue fighting standing up.
That card from Mirzazadeh was his downfall because Mijaín is a mass that is almost impossible to move. This was confirmed by the Iranian, who ended up exhausted and frustrated for not being able to make use of his great footwork and his unusual speed for a wrestler in the upper division. In any case, despite the defeat, he had the consolation of breaking the streak of 13 consecutive fights without allowing points that Mijaín had had since London 2012.
Sabah Shariati (Azerbaijan/4-1)
A veteran of the mats like Shariati appeared in Mijaín’s path in the semi-final stages. Once the obstacle of Mirzazadeh had been overcome, it was unthinkable that the Cuban would have a clear path to climb to the top of the podium, since the level of the remaining contestants could shake anyone.
Among them, the Azerbaijani had never faced Mijaín in a major tournament, but his record included the Olympic bronze in Rio 2016, the gold in the 2015 World Cup, and several medals in European and world tournaments. His experience and his positive balance in high-level events made him a thorn in the side.
However, the Giant from Herradura applied a plan similar to the one he used with Mirzazadeh. An upright stance and constant offensive position gave him the opportunity to take Shariati to the ground and work there to create an imbalance that would increase his advantage. The Azerbaijani then had his chance with Mijaín on the ground and was about to throw him, but the Cuban defended himself with a lightning move. Since Khasan Baroev in Athens 2004, no one was so close to scoring against Mijaín with a move like that.
Yasmani Acosta (Chile/6-0)
The final dreamed of by the Cubans took place. In red, Mijaín López; in blue, Yasmani Acosta. Two sons of the island, trained in the hot gyms of Cerro Pelado, were wrestling for the Olympic crown in Paris. On the one hand, Mijaín yearned for his fifth crown under the five rings, and on the other, Acosta intended to become the first Olympic champion in Chilean wrestling history, a country that opened the doors to him when he decided to emigrate in 2015.
But on the mat, López’s mastery was more important, as he gave no respite and got six points for passivity, imbalance, and a back pass. The victory was incontestable and what came next, insurmountable. Mijaín walked to the center of the mat and left his shoes there as a symbol of farewell. After that gesture, after his 21 consecutive victories in the Olympic Games, after his five summer crowns, the Giant from Herradura was definitively consecrated as a myth of the sport.
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- A year after the event in London, on August 16, 2013, Abdelrahman El-Trabely was shot dead by Egyptian security forces during a protest in support of the ousted president Mohamad Morsi. He was 23 years old.
Author
Reinaldo Nerey
