Listen to “5PM29: Junior world medalists Alston Nutter and Peyton Omania” on Spreaker.
A pair of 2019 Junior World bronze medalists highlight Episode 29 of the program, as Alston Nutter (67 kg, Sunkist/OTS) and Peyton Omania (67 kg, MSU/CYC) hop on to discuss some of the highlights and lessons learned from Estonia this past August.
Everyone (who pays attention to USA Greco-Roman, that is) remembers Nutter’s thrilling comeback against Kamil Czarnecki (POL). Down 6-0 and after somehow surviving a trap-arm gutwrench, Nutter countered a Czarnecki attempt to get behind, hit a throw, and then catch Czarnecki on his back for the fall. It stands as one of the most dramatic victories an American athlete — of any age division — has garnered this quad.
But Omania would not be outshined. The California product had won his first four matches at the Junior Worlds by a combined score of 43-12 with three tech falls before falling short in the semis. Then in the bronze round he bombed a headlock against Xin Huang (CHN) in the first period and an even more clutch headlock in the second to eventually prevail 6-5. Omania was a scoring machine all tournament long, ending his run with 49 points in six matches.
Both athletes reminisce about their medal-winning performances from the Junior Worlds and provide valuable insights regarding their respective competitive approaches. In addition, the future of American Greco is also bandied about, as is Omania’s appearance this weekend at the U23 World Championships in Budapest, Hungary.
A Few Highlights
Omania on how he saw the 2019 Junior Worlds
“It was my third World Championships, so I kept telling myself, It doesn’t feel any different. The lead-up didn’t feel any different than just another tournament. I don’t think I thought too much about a first match or anything. I’m just trying to wrestle and score as many points as I can.”
Nutter on his perspective leading up the bronze match
“Personally, I learned a lot from that match (semifinal) with game-planning, (how) as the match goes on and not being rock-headed or sticking to a game plan the whole time that isn’t working. Afterwards, I knew I was going to be in the bronze match, so it was, I can’t let this match bother me. This is huge, I have a chance to win a medal. I need to keep my head on straight and focus on the task at hand.”
Omania on how his medal win affects his mindset before the U23 Worlds
“I don’t think having a medal changes anything because there’s no satisfaction yet. But the preparation has been really good because I never really slowed down very much after Juniors. I sort of jumped back into the swing of things. I went back to doing the same thing I was doing when I came home. A lot of the work was done on the front end, so coming for this backside I am just ready to fire it up again.”
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