After a phenomenal performance by the Cuban wrestlers in the Greco-Roman category, the women wrestlers of USA booked quota places in all available categories at the Pan-American Olympic Qualifiers in Ottawa. With 68 kg and 76 kg already qualified for the Olympic Games at the 2019 World Championships by World gold medalists Tamyra Mensah-Stock and Adeline Gray, Team USA has now qualified all six women’s freestyle weight classes for the 2020 Olympic Games in Tokyo, Japan. Additionally, the four wrestlers reaching the finals at the Pan-American qualifiers have now secured berths in the finals of the U.S. Olympic Team Trials.
At 50 kg, Sarah Hildebrandt was flawless. Hildebrandt won her opening match, 10-0, over Rita Rojas Chavez of Mexico and followed it up with a semifinal victory over Jessica MacDonald of Canada, 11-0. Hildebrandt took MacDonald down and locked up a leg lace for four-straight turns to clinch the match. MacDonald is a 2012 World champion and two-time World bronze medalist.
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Jacarra Winchester, the 2019 55 kg World champion, looks fully adjusted to the 53 kg weight class. Winchester topped 2018 World bronze medalist Lianna de la Caridad Montero Herrera of Cuba, 6-2, in her opening match. In the quarterfinals, she handled Zeltzin Hernandez Guerra of Mexico, 10-0. To advance the finals, Winchester downed Canada’s Samantha Stewart, 8-4.
2016 Olympic champion Helen Maroulis made her return to International competition in very impressive fashion. In her opening match, she defeated the 2019 World champion at 59 kg Linda Morais of Canada by technical fall, 12-2. Maroulis would win the next two matches in her pool to advance to the semifinals, where she defeated Puerto Rico’s Nes Marie Rodriguez Tirado, 11-0.
Kayla Miracle became the 4th American women to book the quota place in the 62 kg. In the semifinals Miracle defeated Canada’s Michelle Fazzari, 12-3. Fazzari is a 2017 World bronze medalist.
The U.S. women did not compete in the finals matches, opting to injury default and finish with silver medals. As well as qualifying the weight classes with their performances, Sarah Hildebrandt, Jacarra Winchester, Helen Maroulis and Kayla Miracle all earned spots in the Olympic Team Trials finals.
Quota Positions for Tokyo 2020 in Women Wrestling
USA has now become the first team to book quota places in all 6 weight categories for Tokyo 2020. The world wrestling powerhouse in women competitions, Japan has already booked quota places in 5 Olympic category with 50kg quota place just being the exception. China has booked 4 quota places out of 6 weights until now. Both Japan and China still have chance to book the remaining quota places through the Asian Olympic and World Olympic Qualifiers slated for the months of May and June tentatively.
