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» » Olympics 2021: How gold medalist Gable Steveson became your favorite wrestler's favorite wrestler - ESPN

Olympics 2021: How gold medalist Gable Steveson became your favorite wrestler's favorite wrestler - ESPN

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  • Tory BarronESPN Editor

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      Tory Barron is a Bristol-based writer and editor for ESPN.com. After retiring from playing lacrosse at UConn, the DC native decided to try her hand at writing about people playing sports.

How many 275-pound men do you know who can do a backflip?

While you're ruminating on that seemingly trivial question, let's take this thought exercise a step further: How many 275-pound men do you know who can backflip, capture the attention of Triple H and Ric Flair with their athletic prowess and win an Olympic gold medal?

I reckon not many come to mind. That's because Gable Steveson is a rare breed. Scratch that, the tantalizing U.S. wrestler is one-of-a-kind, a bona fide original.

"When and if I can win, put on a good show for America, that flip is coming," Steveson teased to NBC Chicago of his signature post-victory backflip ahead of his awe-inducing Tokyo run.

On Friday, the ultimate showman made good on his promise.

There's a fine line between confidence and hubris, and Steveson walks it masterfully. The 21-year-old's keen sense of self and his belief in his otherworldly abilities is what enabled him to cruise through the first three matches of his Olympic debut without giving up a point.

It's a feat that's particularly impressive when you consider one of his opponents was Taha Akgul of Turkey, the defending Olympic champion. Steveson -- The University of Minnesota Gophers' heavyweight, reigning NCAA Division I National Champion and winner of the Dan Hodge Trophy -- made light work of Aiaal Lazarev of Kyrgyzstan in his opening match, taking only 2 minutes, 2 seconds to win 10-0. He followed that up with an 8-0 drubbing of Akgul before winning his semifinal match against Lkhagvagerel Munkhtur of Mongolia 5-0 to advance to the men's freestyle 125kg wrestling final.

"He's the best heavyweight wrestler to probably ever step foot (on the mat),'' Steveson said of Akgul after their quarterfinal showdown. "But his time is up. I came here for business. I came here to win. ... Ain't nothing going to be given to me. I've got to go get it.''

And that's exactly what he did in an incredible comeback win over Geno Petriashvili -- the 2016 bronze-medalist and three-time world champion (2017-19) of Georgia -- in the final.

Steveson was born in 2000, and America hadn't won an Olympic gold medal in men's heavyweight in his lifetime (Bruce Baumgartner, 1992). If you know his story, it's not surprising that the Apple Valley, Minnesota, native would be the one to get it done.

I'm not saying the Team USA standout's mom set this all in motion by choosing to name her son after wrestling legend Dan Gable (Steveson's middle name is Dan), who was a two-time national champion wrestler at Iowa State and an Olympic gold medalist in 1972.

Who am I kidding? That's exactly what I'm saying. This whole thing feels preordained. Maybe that's why the charismatic superstar was so fearless and brash about what he intended to do. He was born for this.

"You can see that when the lights get bright, Gable comes to perform," he told the Associated Press. "And I think that's number one with me. And I think that's what people can expect with me wherever I go."

If the wrestler choosing to address himself in the third person and the above quote gave you strong Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson vibes, you're on the right track. The pinnacle of athletic achievement, winning an Olympic gold medal, was just the first item on a long list of aspirations for Gable.

The wrestler plans to use the accomplishment to launch his WWE career and eventually hopes to be afforded opportunities like The Rock and his mentor, fellow Minnesota great and WWE champion, Brock Lesnar.

"When you're a kid, you don't really know how to make it to the WWE, but when I got to the University of Minnesota, I learned how Brock went about things and how to make connections," Gable told Gopher Sports.

"My relationship with Brock has been awesome. It's outstanding that a guy like that has noticed me and has gone out of his way to be there for me and guide me in the right direction."

It's not a matter of if he will go down the professional wrestling route, but when.

Steveson has already made a lot of noise in the professional wrestling space without ever stepping in the ring. From appearing in the crowd at NXT TakeOvers and WrestleMania to waving at Vince McMahon on Twitter, Gable has kept his name top of mind among the WWE brass and stars alike.

Then there's the famed picture of the Team USA standout with Roman Reigns and his manager Paul Heyman.

"The picture of me, Paul (Heyman), and Roman Reigns is gonna go down as maybe one of the best wrestling photos in history," Steveson said. "Just because the path that I'm taking with it and the path that Roman Reigns has set in stone being a champion, that'll probably never be defeated again. The path that Paul Heyman has done for wrestling. He's probably the greatest spokesperson. (He's going to the) Hall of Fame."

Steveson's expectations for his future are larger-than-life, but why shouldn't they be? He's a walking, back-flipping testimonial for the benefits of doing it big.

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Olympics 2021: How gold medalist Gable Steveson became your favorite wrestler's favorite wrestler - ESPN
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