Cuban legend postpones retirement to go after his fourth gold medal
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Cuban Mijail Lopez maintains his desire to become an Olympic champion for the fourth time, and postponed his retirement from wrestling to be present at the Olympic Games.
Lopez, 37, had planned to compete between July 24th and August 9th in Tokyo 2020, with the intention of going down in history as the first exponent of his sport to have won four gold medals in this type of competition.
However, the International Olympic Committee (IOC) and the organizers delayed the event due to the pandemic of the SARS-CoV-2.
In statements to the press, Lopez made it clear that his goal remains intact: ‘I am going to continue,’ he said, confirming he will try to get to the top of the award podium, after achieving it in Beijing 2008, London 2012 and Rio de Janeiro 2016.
The wrestler has been the face of Cuban sport for over a decade and will surely carry the flag of his country at the opening of the Olympic Games in Tokyo, which were postponed to 2021.
Lopez also supported the decision taken by the IOC. ‘It is the best thing that has been done,’ he told the media. ‘The health of the athletes is the most important thing’, he said.
If the places for the Games are maintained, Cuba has 12 classified wrestlers, including Lopez himself and Ismael Borrero, another figure of note in his discipline.
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