Mohamed Ibrahim Elsayed wins bronze for Egypt in Olympic wrestling 

Special Mohamed Ibrahim Elsayed wins bronze for Egypt in Olympic wrestling 
Artem Surkov of the Russian Olympic Committee and Mohamed Ibrahim Elsayed, right, of Egypt in the Greco-Roman 67kg bronze medal match, Makuhari Messe Hall A, Chiba, Japan, Aug. 4, 2021. (Reuters)
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Updated 04 August 2021
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Mohamed Ibrahim Elsayed wins bronze for Egypt in Olympic wrestling 

Mohamed Ibrahim Elsayed wins bronze for Egypt in Olympic wrestling 
  • The 23-year-old defeated Artem Surkov in the Men’s Greco-Roman 67-kg category, while compatriot Mohamed Metwally fell short in his 87-kg contest
  • Elsayed’s bronze was the fifth wrestling medal for Egypt in Olympic history

Egyptian wrestler Mohamed Ibrahim Elsayed has won a bronze medal in the men’s Greco-Roman 67-kg event after beating Artrem Surkov of the Russian Olympic Committee at Makuhari Messe Hall on Wednesday afternoon.

Elsewhere, Elsayed’s compatriot Mohamed Metwally failed in his own 87-kg bronze medal quest, falling 8-1 to German Denis Kudla.

Elsayed’s bronze was the fifth wrestling medal for Egypt in Olympic history, with the three-time African champion’s superb defensive performance earning him the win after he scored the final point in a 1-1 tie.

Elsayed went one point down early on in the first period but managed to limit the deficit until the break.

The 23-year-old from Alexandria squared the match with just 1:55 left on the clock before then defending heroically to see out the win.

After confirming his victory, a delighted Elsayed celebrated by carrying his coach on his shoulders.

The Iranian Mohammadreza Geraei won the 67-kg gold after comfortably defeating Ukrainian Parviz Nasibov 9-1.

In his fixture — which followed Elsayed’s glory — Metwally led 1-0 at the end of a tight first period, but his German opponent came back strongly in the second round and twice posted two points in quick succession to lead 5-1 with a minute left. The Egyptian eventually lost 8-1 after being pinned by Kudla with 24 seconds to go.