The Russian Tank Defeats Captain America in Olympics Wrestling Showdown

Russian Olympic Committee’s Abdulrashid Sadulaev 6-3 win against American Kyle Snyder in the final of the freestyle wrestling’s 97 kilogram (215 pounds) category on Saturday came after a characteristically dramatic bout for the two rivals, featuring surprise attacks, deep shots and counter moves. 

The men have a long rivalry. Both were Olympic champions in Rio in 2016, where Sadulaev competed in a lower weight class. Born just six months apart, they have wrestled twice in the past four years, each winning once in dramatic bouts known as “Snyderlaev I” and “Snyderlaev II.” They are both Instagram wrestling royalty.

“Unbelievable,” Sadulaev said after his win. “It was more difficult to defend than conquer, so it was much more difficult this time.”

Ahead of Saturday’s final, Snyder and Sadulaev breezed through their three bouts in the eliminations, with the Russian not conceding a single point and Snyder only conceding two.

Their Saturday match is the latest chapter in the long and epic history of U.S.-Russia Olympic rivalry.

Among the most infamous episodes is the 1972 Olympic final in basketball. The U.S. team had 62 consecutive victories, dating back to 1936. With three seconds to go in the final against the Soviet Union, the U.S. took the lead and the team began to celebrate their victory. However, a controversial decision by the referees gave the Soviets another last-second chance and they scored. The U.S. team refused to accept its silver medals.

Then there’s ice hockey, of course. At the Lake Placid 1980 Games, the U.S. faced the “Red Machine” in a match that pitted a crew of amateur and collegiate American players against a Soviet Union national team that had won nearly every world championship and Olympic gold of the previous two decades. While an Olympic rule prohibiting professionals kept NHL players out of the Games, the Soviet team—stocked with government-supported stars—had won four consecutive Olympic golds. The underdog Americans won 4-3 in what became known as the “Miracle on Ice.” 

In wrestling itself, the two countries have always had a bitter rivalry, especially in the freestyle class, often facing off in major championship finals. In Tokyo, the U.S. won nine medals in wrestling while the Russian Olympic Committee, as the Russian team is known here due to the country’s ban over doping violations, got eight.

Snyder, nicknamed “Captain America,” and Sadulaev, the “Russian Tank,” aren’t just competing on the mat but also on Instagram, where Sadulaev takes the lead with over 1.2 million followers versus Snyder’s 262,000.

Their wrestling rivalry began in 2017 after Sadulaev moved up a weight class. They met for the first time for the gold medal at the world championships in what was called “The Match of the Century.” In a roller coaster bout, Sadulaev led in the second period, but in the final 20 seconds Snyder scored to take a 6-5 lead. That was Sadulaev’s first defeat in four years.

The following year brought  “Snyderlaev II,” in which Sadulaev got the pin just one minute, 12 seconds into the match, denying Snyder the chance to defend his world title.

To train for the Games during the pandemic, Snyder drafted his little brother who had, like him, wrestled at Ohio State. When everything else was shut down, he said, they found themselves training at a police station.

Sadulaev also has his brother to thank for his career. They grew up in a small mountain village in Dagestan region, Russia’s wrestling hotbed on the Caspian Sea, where there wasn’t much else to do but wrestle with his sibling.

Since then, Sadulaev, 25, has won four world titles in wrestling, two in the 86 kg. category and two at 97 kg. He’s been undefeated in international wrestling since that 2017 loss to Snyder. The rivals were on course to meet again in the 2019 final, but Snyder lost in the semifinals.

In Tokyo, they finally had their “Snyderlaev III.”  

Write to Georgi Kantchev at georgi.kantchev@wsj.com