Daniel Cormier almost received an Olympic medal. Twice.
Earlier than he turned a two-division UFC champion and Corridor of Famer, Cormier was an completed freestyle wrestler on the senior degree, together with making two Olympic groups throughout his wrestling profession – 2004 and 2008. Whereas Cormier in the end didn’t compete on the 2008 Olympics as a consequence of medical points, in 2004 he narrowly missed out on successful the bronze medal, a narrative he recounted to Aljamain Sterling on Sterling’s YouTube channel.
“After I misplaced within the Olympic semi-finals — I can return to Athens, Greece, proper now,” Cormier stated. “If I shut my eyes I keep in mind dropping to [Khadzhimurat] Gatsalov. I walked out of the world as a result of the semifinals have been robotically wrestling for the bronze medal again then. I stated to my coaches — John Smith, Kevin Jackson — I’m going [in a crying voice] ‘I don’t wish to wrestle for third!’ I critically was crying. They took me again to the home we have been all staying in, and I’m within the room crying for an hour till I go to sleep. Then I’ve bought to stand up to go wrestle this bronze medal match. I’m actually complaining all the best way to the match. However then once you get there you sort of get centered and also you go wrestle.
“I’m successful 2-0, I find yourself dropping 3-2 in additional time. 9 minute match, I misplaced with a minute left. I used to be up 2-0. He took me down and he turned me. An ideal wrestler from Iran named [Alireza] Heidari. I used to be unhappy. I used to be sort of unhappy like, I kinda needed that medal a little bit bit.”
However that wasn’t the tip of the story.
The Olympics are held underneath WADA drug testing guidelines, and the Worldwide Olympic Committee sometimes goes again and assessments drug testing samples to accommodate for advances in expertise. For reference, the 2008 Olympic Video games had 50 athletes stripped for medals as a consequence of doping, and Cormier was holding out hope for his personal possibilities to snag an Olympic medal after the actual fact.
“Then, they began going again and testing individuals,” Cormier stated. “They began going again and retroactively testing these Olympic video games. They went to ’08, mugs was getting medals. They went to ’07, mugs was getting medals. They went to ’06, mugs was getting medals! Everyone examined constructive! I used to be sitting there after they bought to ‘05, I used to be like, ‘Yet another yr!’ [Laughs] I might need bought second. I do know a few these dudes have been on steroids. That’s once I realized I actually needed that medal.”
Sadly for Cormier, he as soon as once more simply fell in need of getting that medal.
“They stopped in ‘05! 2005 was the final yr!” Cormier stated. “I used to be so upset, bro. I used to be so upset. I used to be the UFC champion on the time, and I used to be like, ‘Please return yet another yr!’ I needed that bronze medal unhealthy. I needed it.”
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Darren Until making an attempt to arrange a struggle.
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Daniel Cormier goes to have a film made about him someday and he ought to. A captivating life. Man had a full and spectacular profession earlier than he even took up MMA. Loopy to assume MMA followers bought the worst years of Cormier’s athletic life, and he nonetheless completed all that he did.
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