Rıza Kayaalp, who won the bronze medal for Turkey in wrestling at the 2020 Tokyo Olympic Games, said that he had a bittersweet joy.
Rıza Kayaalp, who made a statement after the bronze medal struggle, said, “I went down in history by experiencing a bitter joy. said.
Emphasizing that he did everything he could in the games, the national athlete said, “I am sad that I did not win. I am not upset because I did everything I could. There is also history going on like this.” used his statements.
Rıza Kayaalp thanked everyone who supported him and continued his words as follows:
“It was our first duty to put our talent at the service of our country. We are happy if we were able to do this properly. I have already won many European and world championships. I have won the Olympic medal for the third time. What more can I do, a gold medal is missing.”
Reminding that he went down in history as an athlete who won three medals in games such as Naim Süleymanoğlu and Halil Mutlu in weightlifting, as well as Hamit Kaplan in wrestling, Rıza said, “It is good to be among such great champions. Maybe there will be a fourth chance. The important thing right now is to experience the joy of it. It’s not important to set a date and talk about it now, going forward.” he said.
COMPETITION WITH CUBAN LOPEZ
Losing to his biggest rival, Cuban Mijain Lopez Nunez in the semi-finals, the national athlete was asked whether he wanted such a matchup beforehand, “I said, ‘I hope I will come across in the semi-finals.’ I was going to do my best in the final, but there is nothing worse than losing in the final. I said, ‘I will either beat it in the final, or if I lose, I will lose in the semi-finals.’ replied.
Rıza, who has been complaining about losing a lot of weight since she came to Tokyo, said, “I lost 5-6 kilos, and that had an effect. After all, food from outside is not allowed in the Olympic village. It is managed by the food there, it is not pleasant either. It is not suitable for our taste. The weight difference is also There was nothing to do.” made its assessment.
Reminding that the Cuban was very happy after his match with Lopez, Rıza said, “He was happy and attacked me a lot. He had put his foot on me. I wouldn’t have scored if my foot was on the ground. I understood that he had lifted his foot and we objected. It was accepted, we thought that the second passive would be given to him, but it did not happen.” used his statements.
Emphasizing that he has great respect for his Cuban rival, the national athlete said, “He is a great competitor no matter what, he must be respected. After all, he has proven himself. Thanks to him, I became stronger and more successful. Maybe I threatened him the most.” he concluded his speech.
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