Team USA freestyle wrestler Dominique Parrish, a Scotts Valley native, saw her 2024 Summer Olympics come to an end in Paris on Thursday.
She was pinned by Mongolia’s Khulan Batkhuyag in 4:35 in their 53 kg repechage match, finishing 0-2 in her first Olympics.
Parrish was pinned by gold medalist Akari Fujinami of Japan in their match on Wednesday.
“Obviously, disappointed,” Parrish told reporters after she was eliminated. “I wanted more of these games. But, you live and you learn. So I’m looking forward to going back and working on the things I need to work on.”
Parrish, an alumna of Scotts Valley High and Simon Fraser University, fought back tears as she detailed areas she hopes to strengthen. “Well, obviously, don’t get caught,” she said. “I think it’s just clearing the tapes, getting to my position and working on my offense.”
Parrish, the 2022 world champion, jumped out to a 3-0 lead in their repechage match, but Batkhuyag clawed back to lead 6-4 at the break. In the second period, Batkhuyag added a takedown and then made a sweet trip to take Parrish on his back for a pin.
Asked to put his Olympic experience into perspective, Parrish said: “Obviously we’re disappointed right now and probably will be in the future, but at the same time we’re only 16 here. I knew it was going to be a tough tournament. It went just not my way. I didn’t wrestle my best, and that’s okay sometimes.”
Fujinami defeated Ecuador’s Lucia Yamileth Yepez Guzman by technical superiority to take the gold medal.
In bronze matches, North Korea’s Choe Hyo Gyong beat Germany’s Annika Wendle with technical superiority, and China’s Pang Qianyu pinned Mongolia’s Khulan Batkhuyag.
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