YoungestToOldest

The Youngest and Oldest Olympic Gold Medalists in Women’s Wrestling

Tuesday, May 12, 2020 - 20:28 By Ikuo Higuchi

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(This is the second of a three-part series that appeared on the Japan Wrestling Federation website. It was translated for UWW by Ken Marantz.)

A Tale of Two Wangs, and a Japanese Legend
Since women's wrestling was added to the Olympic program at the 2004 Athens Games, there have been 18 gold medals awarded. There has been only one teenaged champion, and she emerged at that inaugural Olympics for women. WANG Xu (CHN) was 18 years 10 months 27 days when she captured the 72kg gold. 

At those same Olympics, Kaori ICHO (JPN) won the first of her unprecedented four golds with a victory at 63kg at 20 years 2 months 10 days, which is still second on the all-time list. Another Wang--WANG Jiao (CHN)--kept the 72kg title in Chinese hands when she took the gold four years later at the Beijing Olympics. Through four Olympics, the two Wangs and Icho are the only champions under the age of 21.

The Wangs shared something else in common--neither one won a World Championship title either before or after their Olympic triumph. Xu finished second in 2002 and third in the year before the Athens Games, while Jiao came up empty-handed in three trips to the World Championships prior to winning in Beijing. That triumph before a home crowd transformed her into a national star. As much as her exploits on the mat, she endeared herself to fans at the post-match press conference, where she surprisingly felt the need to first introduce herself. 

The first 30-something champion came at the 2012 London Olympics, where Hitomi OBARA (JPN) capped a career that included eight world championships by taking the Olympic gold at 48kg at 31 years 7 months 4 days. That record, however, lasted only until the next Olympics, where Icho captured her fourth and final gold with a victory at 58kg at 32 years 2 months 4 days. That naturally makes Icho the Japan record-holder for both youngest and oldest.

It may be a longshot, but Icho's record as oldest could fall to world silver medalist Hiroe MINAGAWA (JPN), who will be close to 34 at next year's Tokyo Olympics. In fact, she could have broken the mark even if the Tokyo Games had gone on as scheduled this summer. 

Another wrestler, however, has emerged as a possible record-beater. Coming off her triumph at 50kg at last year's World Championships, Mariya STADNIK (AZE) will certainly be among the favorites for the gold in Tokyo, where she will be 33. As mentioned previously in the men's freestyle, there is an extra burden for the lighter wrestlers now that there are weigh-ins in the morning of the competition on multiple days. How Stadnik, a two-time Olympic silver medalist, can handle that could determine her fortunes in her fourth career Olympics. 

WOMEN'S OLYMPIC CHAMPIONS, FROM YOUNGEST TO OLDEST

 Name                                                        Age                               Olympics                 Wt.    Date of birth 
1. Xu WANG (CHN)                    18 years 10 months 27 days        2004 Athens           72kg     1985/09/27

2. Kaori ICHO (JPN)                   20 years 2 months 10 days          2004 Athens           63kg    1984/06/13

3. Jiao WANG (CHN)                  20 years 7 months 13 days          2008 Beijing            72kg     1988/01/04

4. Natalya VOROBIEVA (RUS)  21 years 2 months 13 days          2012 London            72kg     1991/05/27

5. Risako KAWAI (JPN)              21 years 8 months 28  days         2016 Rio de Janeiro  63kg  1994/11/21

6. Sara DOSHO (JPN)                 21 years 10 months 0 days          2016 Rio de Janeiro  69kg  1994/10/17

7. Saori YOSHIDA (JPN)            21 years 10 months 18  days        2004 Athens             55kg  1982/10/05

8. Irina MELNIK-MERLENI (UKR)  22 years 6 months 15 days       2004 Athens             48kg   1982/02/08

9. Eri TOSAKA (JPN)                   22 years 11 months 18 days        2016 Rio de Janeiro  48kg  1993/08/30

10. Kaori ICHO (JPN)                  24 years 2 months 4 days           2008 Beijing               63kg    1984/06/13

11. Helen MAROULIS (USA)       24 years 10 months 30 days       2016 Rio de Janeiro  53kg  1991/09/19

12. Erica WIEBE (CAN)               25 years 2 months 5 days           2016 Rio de Janeiro   75kg  1989/06/13

13. Saori YOSHIDA (JPN)            25 years 10 months 11  days      2008 Beijing              55kg  1982/10/05

14. Carol HUYNH (CAN)             27 years 9 months 0 days           2008 Beijing              48 kg  1980/11/16

15. Kaori ICHO (JPN)                  28 years 1 month 26 days           2012 London              63kg    1984/06/13

16. Saori YOSHIDA (JPN)            29 years 10 months 4  days       2012 London              55kg  1982/10/05

17. Hitomi OBARA (JPN)             31 years 7 months 4 days           2012 London              48kg   1981/01/04

18. Kaori ICHO (JPN)                  32 years 2 months 4 days          2016 Rio de Janeiro   58kg    1984/06/13

Five-Time Olympic Champ Lopez Joins China as Greco Coach

Monday, March 30, 2026 - 13:12 By United World Wrestling Press

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Mijain LOPEZ, coach Ruis DIAZ, and all members of the Chinese Greco-Roman wrestling team

By Yang Boyi and Wang Chujie for Xinhua News

BEIJING, China (March 30) -- 18 years ago, Mijain LOPEZ (CUB) claimed his first Olympic gold medal in Beijing, launching an unprecedented reign of five consecutive Olympic titles, a feat unmatched in Olympic wrestling history.

Now the 42-year-old Cuban legend has returned to the Chinese capital, not as a competitor, but as a specially recruited foreign coach for China's national Greco-Roman team.

He arrived alongside Raul DIAZ, the lifelong mentor who guided him through the most dominant stretch of his historic career. Both now serve as United World Wrestling (UWW) Development Ambassadors, making this far more than a routine visit.

It is a homecoming to the city where Lopez's legend was forged, and a full-circle moment for two men whose fates have intertwined with Beijing and each other for nearly two decades.

Ruis DIAZRaul DIAZ (CUB) with the Chinese Greco-Roman national team. (Photo: Xinhua News)

Although Diaz and Lopez first bonded in 1999, their fates did not officially intertwine until after Lopez claimed his maiden Olympic gold at the 2008 Beijing Olympics, with Diaz then serving as a coach for the Portuguese national team.

In 2010, Diaz returned as Lopez's full-time head coach, guiding him through the next 14 years and four more consecutive Olympic gold medals from London 2012 to Paris 2024, cementing his status as the greatest Greco-Roman wrestler of all time.

The 2024 Paris Olympics marked the final chapter of Lopez's storied career. After clinching his historic fifth title, he knelt to kiss the mat and left his shoes on the canvas - the universal ritual of retirement in wrestling.

"That moment was full of mixed emotions. I was overjoyed with the result, but also overwhelmed with sadness, because I had decided to close the book on my career," Lopez told Xinhua through an interpreter.

"I kissed the wrestling mat to express my gratitude for all the achievements in my wrestling career. This mat and my coach made me the champion I am today. I am thankful for all those days and nights we spent training together."

When asked whether Lopez would have won four more Olympic golds and completed the five-peat without his coaching, Diaz is quick to deflect the credit to his pupil's innate talent and unshakable character.

"Lopez is an exceptional athlete, one of a kind. What makes him great is not just his physical strength, but his mental fortitude," said Diaz. "He competes not for money or fame, but for his love for the Cuban people, wrestling and his family."

"He is family to me," Lopez said of his mentor. "A coach is more than an instructor; he is a guide who walks with you through every critical moment. I hope every athlete can experience this kind of profound connection."

Diaz recalled the words Lopez's father said to him on his deathbed: "Please, be a father to Lopez from now on." Over years of close companionship, the pair have become inseparable.

"I can no longer imagine my life without him," Diaz said.

Mijain LOPEZ (CUB)Reporter interviewing Mijain LOPEZ (center) and Shen SHIYAN (right), Spanish interpreter for the Chinese Greco-Roman team. (Photo: Xinhua News)

Lifetime to Understand China

For both men, China has never been a distant country. For Lopez, Beijing will always be the starting point of his legend. "I have an immense affection for China. It was here that I won my first Olympic gold, the medal that broke the ice and opened a whole new chapter of my career," he said.

Diaz's connection to China stretches back to childhood, with Chinese classmates and family friends. He still remembers the Chinese couple in Havana's Chinatown who always kept a meal warm for him.

"Those simple acts of kindness made me feel a deep closeness to Chinese people from the very beginning," Diaz recalled.

When Lopez stepped onto the mat in Beijing in 2008, Diaz watched with special pride - not just for his former pupil, but for a country he had long felt a bond with.

"The more you learn about China, the more you realize it may take a whole lifetime to truly understand this country," Diaz observed. "Chinese people are kind, honest and down-to-earth. Some countries refuse to see the real China out of prejudice, but there is no better way to know this country than to come here, to see it with your own eyes."

Passing the Torch

Diaz and Lopez have come to Beijing with a clear mission: to pass on decades of experience and training philosophy to help nurture China's next generation of wrestlers.

Zheng PAN (CHN), head coach of China's Greco-Roman team, noted that Diaz prioritizes efficiency in training. "We have more sessions now, but each is shorter. Raul always emphasizes that athletes must give their absolute all in every minute."

Diaz is full of praise for China's young wrestlers, citing their strength, speed, discipline, intelligence and work ethic. "The most important thing is to train with purpose and focus. Chinese wrestlers have every ability to compete with the top athletes in the world."

Lopez echoed his coach's optimism. "These young wrestlers have a bright future. We are here to give them that extra push, to help them stand firm on the world stage."

18 years ago, Lopez arrived in Beijing as a rising talent and left as an Olympic champion. Now they have returned together as legends, ready to pass on the torch and write a new chapter in the decades-long friendship between Cuban and Chinese wrestling.

In November 2025, Diaz received the International Olympic Committee (IOC) Coaches Lifetime Achievement Award. Standing beside him to share the honor was his star pupil. "That moment felt like a dream," Diaz said. "I want to give all my love for wrestling, my knowledge, and everything I have to this sport."