Burroughs Wins Gold at Wrestling Worlds

Former Husker rebounds from Olympic disappointment with record-tying sixth championship

Joe Hudson | Oct 4, 2021

Nebraska Athletic Communications via Twitter

Former Husker Jordan Burroughs claimed a fifth world wrestling title Monday at the 2021 World Wrestling Championships in Olso, Norway. The victory in the men’s freestyle 79kg final came just months after the 2012 Olympic gold medalist missed out on a berth to the Tokyo Olympic Games.

In Monday's final, Burroughs defeated Iranian Mohammad Nokhodi, 5-1. Burroughs took an early 3-0 lead with a double-leg takedown followed closely by another double.

The gold medal ties Burroughs with John Smith’s U.S. freestyle record of six World and Olympic gold medals combined. Burroughs previously won world titles in 2011, 2013, 2015 and 2017, in addition to his Olympic triumph in London.

After Burroughs failed to qualify for this year’s Tokyo Olympics, there was speculation he would retire. Instead, he moved up from the 74kg weight class to the 79kg division.

At 70kg, fellow former Husker James Green lost a hard-fought match in the quarterfinals to Azerbaijan's Turan Bayramov 6-5 and was eliminated from competition.

Burroughs’ medal was the second gold of the day for the United States. Former Omaha Skutt and Iowa wrestler Thomas Gilman defeated Iran’s Alireza Sarlak in the 57kg championship match.

Burroughs in Oslo

Qualification: Burroughs tech. Sam Barmish (CAN), 10-0
Round of 16: Burroughs def. Bolat Sakayev (KAZ) by forfeit
Quarterfinals: Burroughs def. Radik Valiev (ROC), 9-4
Semifinals: Burroughs def. Ryuki Yoshida (JPN), 10-1
Gold Medal Match: Burroughs def. Mohammad Nokhodilarimi (IRI), 5-1

Green in Oslo

Qualification: James Green tech. Seungchul Lee (KOR), 10-0
Round of 16: James Green tech. Shamil Ustaev (GER), 10-0
Quarterfinals: Turan Bayramov (AZE) def. James Green, 6-5

Published Oct 4, 2021

JOE HUDSON

Joe Hudson has operated a Husker-related website since 1995 and joined forces with David Max to form HuskerPedia (later renamed HuskerMax) in 1999. It began as a hobby during his 35 years as a newspaper editor and reporter, a career that included stints at the Lincoln Star, Omaha World-Herald, Philadelphia Inquirer and Denver Post. In Denver, Joe was chief of the copy desk during his final 16 years at the Post. He is proud to have been involved in Pulitzer Prize-winning projects in both Philadelphia and Denver. Joe has been a Nebraska football fan since the mid-1960s during his childhood in Omaha. He earned his bachelor of arts degree in journalism and economics at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln in 1976. He resides a few freeway exits north of Colorado Springs and enjoys bicycling and walking his dogs in his spare time. You can reach him at joeroyhud@outlook.com.