2024-08-05 01:23:53
Now he stands in the Olympic village, as they say, with fighting thoughts.
“I have nothing to lose. I came to fight, and it will be as it will be,” said the professional Greco-Roman wrestler, who fights in the category up to 130 kilograms.
M. Knystautas received very unexpected news while the Olympic Games were already underway. It was lucky that a small community of wrestlers insisted on helping Mindaugas Venckaichis, who was already preparing for the Olympics in advance.
On July 29, M. Knystautas jumped on the dance floor as usual after training. Coach Mindaugas Ežerskis approached him and told him to stop jumping because he needed to prepare more seriously for the Olympic Games. The athlete does not hide – such words were quite surprising.
This summer he had 2 weeks of passive rest, then worked out more seriously to keep in shape.
“Only the work was different – long runs, barbells. I used to help Mindaugas, because we don’t have many fighting partners, so I came and we wrestled. I kept the form. We did a training session recently, it feels good,” he said.
M. Knystautas emphasized that he did not have to lose weight, as often happens to wrestlers. Now he weighs 127 kilograms.
“I don’t need to lose weight because I always weigh less,” he smiled.
Without serious and special preparation, dancing in the Olympic arena is a huge challenge, but M. Knystautas draws inspiration from legendary stories, when athletes who have already qualified for the Games climb onto the highest podium.
“There was a time when a Polish wrestler came from the beach and won the Olympics in 1996. It’s even motivating because there’s no solution. I spent my time quietly, I trained, but it was not such an intense regime. I enjoyed the summer and received an invitation to the Olympics. There was no idea to give up,” said M. Knystautas.
To regret that there was no time to prepare – not for his character. M. Knystautas and the team do not feel much pressure now, and that is what they will want to turn into their main weapon against their opponents.
“If I had known, it would have been psychologically more difficult. And that preparation would be more difficult than what I was doing now. I’m maybe 70 percent off my best form,” he said.
M. Knystaut’s way to the Olympic Games was opened by Tunisian wrestler Amine Guenichi, who played with doping controllers. He was sentenced to a 4-year suspension for violating anti-doping rules.
In November, A. Guenichi refused to open the door to the anti-doping inspectors who knocked on the door of the athlete’s room at the elite training center. A few hours later, A. Guenichi provided them with a urine sample. He later underwent two blood tests. All showed negative results, but the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) announced that the Tunisian had deliberately broken the rules.
Turkish wrestling legend Riza Kayaalpas was also supposed to participate in these games. The 34-year-old athlete owns silver at the Rio de Janeiro Games, bronze at the London and Tokyo Games.
M. Knystautas would have named him as one of the favorites, but R. Kayaalps was caught using doping. By the way, the Lithuanian fought with the latter in the round of 16 of the Tokyo Games, where he lost. Lithuanian was 10th overall. Turk won bronze.
“He is a Tunisian and entered the Games through the African selection. Since there were few participants there, the wrestling federation decided not to look at who finished third there, but took it from the world selection tournament, where I was the first over the line,” said M. Knystautas about how he managed to end up in Paris.
He knows almost all the opponents well, but M. Knystautas openly names the absolute legend of wrestling from Cuba Mijain Lopez as his favorite. The 41-year-old wrestler has been collecting only gold medals since the 2008 Beijing Olympics.
“Here he will aim for a historic fifth medal, which no one has done. He is exceptional, M. Knystautas said about the rivals. – I have worked with almost all of them. Maybe I don’t know Bulgarian, but now you can find everything on Youtube, or ask the coach, who has all the material.”
Mantas Knystautas will wrestle in the Greco-Roman wrestling tournament in the weight category up to 130 kilograms. Wrestler Gabija Dilytė (50 kg) and M.Venckaitis (97) will also compete in the Paris Games.
2024-08-05 01:23:53