Porter falls in Olympic bid
Shen graduate gets eliminated from qualifier for Tokyo
Greco-roman wrestler Jesse Porter of Shenendehowa fell short in his bid for the Summer Olympics when he was eliminated from the World Olympic Qualifier in Sofia, Bulgaria, on Saturday.
Porter lost 7-0 to Turkey’s Faith Cenzig in the second round at 77 kilograms (170 pounds). He needed to reach the finals to clinch a berth at the Tokyo Games.
“We had a plan going in, and I analyzed it after,” Porter said by phone. “I think, personally, that I was a little too focused on the plan and it left me one-dimensional in the match. That allowed him to come in with some other attacks that I was vulnerable to. That’s why he ended up getting the passive calls and getting all the points throughout the match because he was taking advantage of that one vulnerable spot I left open because I was too hyper-focused on the plan. When he shows you a different look, you have to adapt within the match.”
It was Porter’s third loss to Cenzig, who beat him in the first round of the under-23 world championships in 2017 and 2018.
“If Jesse would have taken less chances, it would have been a lowerscoring match,” said Jesse Porter Sr., his father and coach. “You have to do those things. It doesn’t mean he’s not going to get him next time.”
Porter, 23, was later eliminated from the competition when Cenzig lost in the semifinals, which meant Porter would not be pulled into repechage, another term for the losers’ bracket. Had Porter gone through repechage and earned a bronze, he could have still gotten to the Olympics if either of the two finalists in Bulgaria had to withdraw from the Tokyo Games for medical or other reasons.
Jesse Sr. still considered his son’s year to be a success. As the No. 10 seed, Jesse Porter won the Olympic Team Trials in Fort Worth, Texas, on April 2. He also dominated Puerto Rico’s Marciano George Ali 9-0 by technical superiority in a first-round bout on Saturday before losing to Cenzig.
“I think he’s on a meteoric rise,” Jesse Sr. said. “I think although the score doesn’t reflect it, he’s gotten much closer to (Cenzig) and will probably get him next time.”
Jesse Porter, a Northern Michigan University alumnus, will compete next in the Pan-american Championships in Guatemala City from May 27 to 30.