FREESTYLE WORLD CUP Green dominates back at 70 kg At the U.S. Olympic Team Trials in Iowa City in April, there
were 18 individual champions. For all of the others in the field, their dream of competing in the Olympic Games in Rio de Janiero was over. And for many of those wrestlers, their season came to an early end. However, on May 11, United World Wrestling announced that
there would be a 2016 World Championships in the non- Olympic weight classes in Budapest in December. This opened a new major opportunity for many wrestlers who still had high goals for themselves this year. James Green was well aware of the new World Championships right away. When asked about it on Twitter that day, Green replied on his @WhoIsJamesG handle, “Do I really need to answer lol I’m in. Good day for @USAWrestling.” Green had won a World bronze medal at the non-Olympic 70
kg in men’s freestyle at the 2015 World Championships in Las Vegas, Nev. He had to choose where to wrestle at the Olympic Trials, down to a loaded 65 kg with a substantial weight loss, or up to 74 kg where his friend and training partner Olympic cham- pion Jordan Burroughs ruled the world. Green went down in weight and fell well short of his goals in Iowa City. Green was named to the Freestyle World Cup Team in Los Angeles at 70 kg. Local hero Aaron Pico was given the starting spot after placing second in the Olympic Trials at 65 kg. However, Pico had to withdraw with an injury, and Green had the chance to show his stuff, back at his old weight class. On June 10, weigh-in day at the World Cup, Green put out
this tweet: “Glad to be back at 70 kg.” Wrestling fans were excited to see the members of the 2016 Olympic Team in action at the Forum, in their last preparation event on American soil before the Olympic Games. Many may not have expected the show which Green gave them at a non- Olympic weight, the same kind of dazzling wrestling he provided at the World Championships. Green opened with a fast-paced 10-0 technical fall over Vinod
Kumar of India, as Team USA defeated India, 7-1. Right off the bat, he talked about his friend Burroughs, who had to pull out of the World Cup due to the imminent birth of his second child.
James Green locks up an ankle lace against David Tlashadze of Georgia at World Cup. John Sachs photo.
The Burroughs were blessed with a new daughter, Ora, who was born on the first day of action at the World Cup. “We are missing Jordan Burroughs. I talked to him last night
and somebody has got to replace him. I went out and scored as many points as I can, get takedowns and get techs. Jordan is not here right now, so as a team, we have to do what we’ve got to do. We are here to wrestle, to win it this year,” said Green. He was immediately asked about being back at 70 kg and the opportunity to compete in another World Championships. “I have been preparing since Olympic Trials. I am looking for-
ward to the next World Championships. At the Olympic Trials, I wrestled 65 kg and it didn’t work out. They said they are having a World Championships. Since then, I have been ready. This is just a stepping stone. I am back to wrestling my natural weight and dominating guys again,” he said. The next dual meet was against a tough Azerbaijan squad,
and Team USA came out on fire, winning all eight of their matches. Green did his part again, scoring a 10-0 technical fall over Gadzhimurad Omarov. “I am dominating. I am feeling good again. A lot of pop, a lot
of motion, just back to my old ways. I am coming out here. I probably have too much energy. I am ready to wrestle all day. I just want to put on a performance for the crowd. The last time I was out, it was a bad show. You are only as good as your last match. I had that on my mind. I just want to be better every time I come out,” he said. Green was not only scoring takedowns, but also going imme-
diately into ankle lace turns, which was firing up the pro- American crowd. “Jordan has been working on his lace and getting it from par
Frank Molinaro of the USA takes down Moustafa Hosseinkhani of Iran in Los Angeles. John Sachs photo.
28 USA Wrestler
terre. We have also been working on getting a takedown and going right into the lace. Usually, I do a good job driving down to the ankles. Some guys don’t defend the lace well so I went right to it. I feed off (the crowd). Everytime I get a takedown, I hear cheers. I try to get four every time, to hear those screams and
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