BUENOS AIRES, Argentina – The Cadet Pan American Championships concluded on Sunday evening with the U.S. men once again posting a perfect 10-for-10 medal count, and crowning five champions, in freestyle action.
It was another dominant effort from the U.S. men who were led by Golden Boot recipient Michael O’Malley (Hasbrouck Heights, N.J.) and double champions Peyton Robb (Medford, Minn.) and Carson Manville (Shakopee, Minn.).
After coming up with a silver medal in Greco-Roman two days ago, O’Malley was determined to grab gold on the freestyle side. The New Jersey native took the mat three times, and three time he walked away with a 10-0 technical fall. He defeated Canada’s Carson Lee to cement his perfect run through the 76 kg/167 lbs. field and gain the men’s freestyle Outstanding Wrestler honor.
“It’s a big thing. A lot of my coaches are like ‘you won’t realize it right away how big it actually is,’ but I mean…right now it feels pretty big,” O’Malley said. “This is my first time out of the country. I like that. I finally get to wrestle some different styles and it’s cool.” Continue reading at www.teamusa.org