The Cuban sports movement has received several good news by these days: fencers Ramon Fonst, Rafaela Gonzalez, Rolando Tucker and Eduardo Jons, will be inducted into the Hall of Fame of the International Fencing Federation (FIE), while Mijaín Lopez (August 20, 1982), double Olympic champion in the division of 120 kg in the Greco-Roman style, was appointed as the best wrestler of last year together with the Russian Roman Vlasov (74 kg) by the International Amateur Wrestling Federation (FILA).
This article talks precisely about two giants at the edge of the wrestling mats. And I confess that I find it difficult to provide news not only on Mijaín Lopez, but also on Filiberto Azcuy (October 13, 1972), also double Olympic champion and our other protagonist.
It happens they both have much in common, and mainly related to number 10, although they play distinct roles in the Cerro Pelado, the Cuban training center for high performance athletes, they still have that thirst of success.
They both began in this sport when they were 10, Filiberto in Esmeralda, Camagüey, and Mijaín in Pinar del Rio, although the last one had formerly, for a short spell, practiced baseball. In addition, Filiberto is 10 years older than Mijain and they both have the takedown technique as their most effective weapon, precisely the ebony giant (Mijain), used this resource to beat Russian Khasan Baroyev (Beijing 2008) and Turkish-Finnish Heiki Nabi (London 2012), while Azcuy also used that movement to defeat Marko Assel ( Atlanta 1996), who was coincidentally from Finland, and who was also considered favorite to win as it was Nabi, his countryman, in addition Azcuy beat Japanese Katsuhiko Nagata (11-0 technical superiority was decreed) in Sydney 2000.
For these facts of life, the two of them had an intense battle outside of mats, against their bodyweight, while trying to repeat their respective titles. Filiberto descended from 74 to 69 kilos after regulatory division changes. Mijaín took that extra that only champions have for, after a right elbow surgery and a year with only one major competition, being perfectly fit and without a gram of excess fat in the Olympics.
That is not all: in 2010 they visited both South Africa, but not to wrestle, and much less to play soccer in one of the World Cup stadiums, though they deserved an ovation by the fans attending that facility. They both were members of the Cuban delegation to the 17th World Festival of Youth and Students.
Filiberto and Mijain keep these daily energy and chemistry as a perfect 10: Mijaín with his teammates and Filiberto training to the new breed of Cuban “Spartans”.
Do you want to know more? There is another fortuitous coincidence: Azcuy works with heavy weights divisions: 84, 96 and 120 kilograms.
They are an enviable duo with a horizon full of expectations: for Mijaín, the possibility of winning a third Olympic crown in Rio de Janeiro 2016, another toy for his little boy.
And Filiberto will try that Yasmani Lugo, Pablo Shorey, Gilberto Piqué or Mijaín, his disciples, to enrich the Cuban uninterrupted golden booty in Olympics that began in Barcelona 1992, and celebrate it again with a somersault, but this time from the corner. Azcuy is also trying to popularize in Cuba a new modality known as beach wrestling. Nothing that Azcuy has the soul of a Gladiator in the style of ancient Rome.
From the corner…
Precisely from this neutral zone, the seasoned mentor Pedro Val, named as the best coach in the world by FILA in 2010, explained the strategy Cuba is going to use this year, especially Mijaín, in pursuit of preserving his physical form.
“Mijaín is having three training sessions a week. This cycle will end with the Pan American Championships in Panama, from April 5 to 7. We believe he should maintain his weight in that contest, as in the looming Granma International (from February 12 to 16).¨
“We are in the special preparation stage, strengthening the foot work, because after the new modifications, is vital to score in that position, either by taking out the rival from the mat or with a reversal (both techniques worth one point), not to be then forced to go to toss of the ball, and much less to clinch and dominate the period. We are training rigorously with rope exercises, deepening intensity, making effort to maintain posture and mark the distance separating them from the passivity zone. Cuba will participate with three men per division in the Granma International contest, which will be attended by strong teams as France, Poland and some other European nation to be confirmed, and there they could put into practice the trained exercises.”
But gentlemen, something nice followed by something less pleasant, we may not have the privilege of seeing Mijaín “smashing” rivals at the Ciudad Deportiva (City of Sports), but he will be in the corner giving accurate advices along with Val and Azcuy.
