At 41, the man who carried the flag of the Cuban delegation four times, became the first athlete to retain his Olympic title four times.
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Cuba can count on its hero. Wrestler Mijain Lopez won his fifth Olympic title in as many appearances at the Games by dominating the Chilean, Yasmani Acosta, (6-0) in the final of the under 130 kg in Greco-Roman wrestlingTuesday, August 6, at the Arena Champs-de-Mars. He had renounced the role of flag bearer of his delegation during the opening ceremony in Paris, which he had held in Beijing, London, Rio and Tokyo, but Mijain Lopez maintained his rank as Cuba’s gold provider, while he had not appeared in competition since the Olympic Games in 2021.
By winning his country’s first gold medal at the Paris 2024 Olympics, he becomes the first athlete to win the same event five times in a row. Americans Carl Lewis (long jump), Michael Phelps (200m medley), Katie Ledecky (800m freestyle) and Alfred Oerter (discus throw), Dane Paul Elvstrom (sailing) and Japanese Kaori Icho (wrestling) had stopped at four consecutive gold medals.