Former UFC Star Plays Huge Role in Historic Gold Medal Win for USA Wrestling Team

When Sara McMann retired from MMA, the 21-fight veteran left an admirable legacy as one of the world’s best bantamweights. However, her greatest contribution to combat sports came outside of the Octagon.

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When Amit Elor accepted her gold medal after making history earlier this week at the Paris Olympics, it was partly due to the guidance of Team USA Wrestling coach Sara McMann.

The 20-year-old breezed through her competition with a 31-2 score over her four matches and became USA Wrestling’s youngest member to earn gold.

Additionally, she is only the third woman in USA Wrestling history to bring home the top prize and extended her winning streak on the international scene, which started in 2019, to 41. McMann, who won the silver at the Athens games of 2004, described her prized student as “untouchable.” “She just demolishes every game plan. It’s no secret what she does…She’s able to go out there and do that to everybody, and virtually never get scored on,” McMann said to USA Today .

Elor normally competes at 72 kilograms but was forced to drop down to 68 kilograms. However, she did not look worse for wear on the mat. Despite not having wrestled in the weight class since 2019, she even dominated the 2023 68-kilogram World Champion, Turkey’s Buse Tosun, who walked away with the bronze.

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The already accomplished athlete has met her historic feat with a refreshing dose of modesty. “I think I have a little of imposter syndrome,” she said. “I still feel like that little kid who just started wrestling, but…I just became an Olympic champion.”

Does USA Wrestling Have a Longterm Leader in Amit Elor?

Elor’s humility may be partially explained by her lack of experience on the world stage compared to her opposition. For example, Tosun medaled in the 2018 World Championships, a year before Elor won bronze at the Cadet World Championships.

With such dominance over her more experienced and older peers, there’s hope that the Californian will be staple of USA Wrestling for the foreseeable future.

This comes as the world acknowledges Mijain Lopez , the Cuban Greco-Roman stylist, that won gold in his fifth straight Olympic games. The 41-year-old left his shoes on the mat, symbolizing his retirement, moments after his record-breaking feat. By all accounts, Elor could have a similar tenure with as USA Wrestling freestyle competitor.

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