ATHENS, GREECE • Michael Rundell entered Athens with gold on mind; however, after going 3-1 inside of the Ano Liossia Olympic Sports Hall at 48kg, with his only loss coming to the eventual U17 World silver medalist, Rundell will return to the states with a bronze medal and a great deal of confidence due to a resilient final match that saw him come back from a six-point deficit that proved to the world that he has not only arrived on the Greco-Roman scene, but that he will be someone to contend with.
In his opening round bout, Rundell came out and controlled center with his left shoulder lead and his two- on-one position. His opponent, Artem Kolos of Ukraine, would be hit with passivity with 1:13 left in the period, scoring Rundell his first point of the match and, more importantly, giving Rundell an opportunity in the top position—an opportunity he would not squander.
Once set, and as soon as the whistle blew, Rundell, on the right side, went for a left-side lift looking to lock up a gut; but, instead, Rundell, once he had his right hand positioned under, jumped out front and locked up Kolos’ head and arm and drove his heels into the mat and tipped the Ukrainian on consecutive head-pinch attempts for four two-point exposures and a 9-1 victory by technical superiority.
Unfortunately, in his quarterfinal match, Rundell ended up facing and being defeated by the U17 Asian champion Nurdaulet Kumaruly of Kazakhstan by a technical superiority, 8-0. In that one, Rundell attempted an arm throw and was halted in his motion. After a confirmed takedown, Kumaruly pushed out three gut wrenches to end the match. Rundell now had to wait and see if Kumaruly would win his semifinal matchup against Japan’s Kaisei Yamamoto so he could be pulled into the bracket’s repechage. As fate would have it, Rundell would still be wrestling come day two as Kumaruly headed to the finals after an 8-4 semifinal decision.
With an opening round repechage bout that would push Rundell into the bronze medal match, the Oak Park native had to face and defeat Gurban Majnunov of Azerbaijan. And just as he had done in his opening match of the tournament, Rundell was able to impose his will, but not without some contention.
About thirty seconds into the match, Rundell was able to snap Majnunov down and lock up his head and arm; however, as Majnunov came to his feet, he would sinch a body lock on Rundell. With both young men on their feet squeezing their positions, it was Rundell digging his heels into the mat and straining to force his pinch. When the two hit the mat from their feet as Rundell absolutely muscled over his position, Rundell was awarded with the four-point exposure, and neither wrestler felt threatened enough to release his hold.
Now on the mat, and both still fighting their individual fight, Majnunov was awarded with a two-point exposure as he tipped Rundell, and his lock had Rundell now fighting off his back. However, the feisty and stubborn Rundell continued to dig his heels into the mat and continued to force his head-pinch over to help him belly out on the mat. In the process, Rundell would be awarded one more exposure for a 6-2 lead, and the position would soon be stopped as Rundell squeezed Majnunov’s head and Majnunov squeezed Rundell’s body on the mat, but no position was being gained.
After the restart, the next 0:53 would result in a hand and shoulder and knee fight. The period ended with Rundell leading, 6-2.
Now into the final period, action in the hand fight picked up, pace-wise, and, as Rundell fought for his front head on his feet, Majnunov pushed him around the mat until Rundell was hit for passivity and Majnunov was awarded another point. Now, while in the top position, Majnunov worked his position and quickly locked up a gut, but when he attempted it, Rundell stepped over him, briefly holding him on his back, and then coming out on top. The position was scored a two-point exposure for Rundell and a one-point reversal for Majnunov. Immediately, Majnunov’s corner challenged the ruling. Prior to the mat stoppage, Rundell was up 8-6. However, with the position challenged, and the ruling favoring Majnunov, Rundell was still in the lead, but the score was now 6-3.
Off the restart, and with only 0:23 remaining, Rundell, after a long break for the challenge, was going to have to defend Majnunov’s sprint. And as Majnunov forced position and chased Rundell, he would hit a duck under to Rundell’s left side that set up a body lock. Majnunov would lock it up, sinch it tight, and lift Rundell as he was looking for four points and a last second win. But, within the fight, Rundell would have just enough of a defense to hold off the Azerbaijan before any exposure could be awarded on his attempted throw—time expired.
Now in the bronze medal match, Rundell would face the semifinal loser on his half of the bracket in Japan’s Kaisei Yamamoto, and the match did not open in Rundell’s favor. About thirty seconds into the match, Yamamoto not only scored a four-point feet-to-back exposure, but as the two came to their feet, Rundell posted his leg and stepped out of bounds; he was immediately chasing a five-point deficit.
Off the restart, Yamamoto’s pressure continued forward and Rundell would lose another point for passivity and be placed in parterre. Yamamoto would come out front for a lift, on two separate occasions, and on the second lift attempt Rundell rotated his body to avoid any exposure, but exposure points were awarded and, as it stood, Yamamoto had just won the bronze with an 8-0 technical superiority in 1:39.
Rundell’s corner challenged the call immediately. As, as the position as reviewed, Rundell was masterful in not giving up any exposure points and he now lived to continue wrestling. The score would be adjusted, 6-0, and now it was Rundell’s turn to score.
From the restart, which was 0:20 from the break, Yamamoto came forward and forced his position trying to get under Rundell’s right side and end the bout, but Rundell was able to stop Yamamoto’s position, lock him up, and throw him backwards for four. The period ended, 6-4, and Rundell was now back in the match.
After the break, Rundell became more aggressive in his position and wrestled himself into forcing a front headlock on Yamamoto. Yamamoto, trying to fight the position, tried to step through and throw Rundell, but, again, Rundell would use the Japanese wrestler’s position against him and score a two-point exposure. With it, he not only tied the match up, 6-6, but he now also led the bout on criteria.
With under a minute remaining, Yamamoto would attempt an arm throw, but Rundell defended and hit a feet-to-back head-pinch on Yamamoto for another four points. At this, with now 0:49 remaining, Yamamoto was coming fast and furious at Rundell. But as Yamamoto became increasingly desperate, Rundell remained poised, and hand fought and battled each position. The match ended with Yamamoto trying one more throw that Rundell turned into one more two-point move.
Rundell would score a 12-6 victory, raise his arms in the air as he was declared the winner, and he exited the mat with an incredible comeback win for the bronze medal.
Here is a look at Michael Rundell’s U17 World Championship matches and results:
RD16 • MJ Rundell defeated Artem Kolos, Ukraine / TS, 10-0 (1:09)
QTR-F • MJ Rundell was defeated by Nurdaulet Kumaruly, Kazakhstan / TS, 8-0 (0:39)
REPEC • MJ Rundell defeated Gurban Majnunov, Azerbaijan / Dec, 7-3
BRONZE • MJ Rundell defeated Kaisei Yamamoto, Japan / Dec, 12-6.
• TC LIFONTI / LEAD WRITER FOR ILLINOIS MATMEN / tclifonti.com
