Kaori Icho
Four straight Olympic golds, won with brains over brawn
- Born
- June 13, 1984, Hachinohe, Aomori, Japan
- Nationality
Japan- Height
- 166 cm (5′5″)
- Style
- Tactical technician
- Weight
- 63 kg, 58 kg
- Active
- 2002–2019
- Status
- Retired · age 42
The medals
4 Olympic golds, 10 world titles
The story
aori Icho became the first woman to win Olympic gold in the same individual event at four straight Games, taking the 63 kg title in 2004, 2008 and 2012 and the newly created 58 kg title in Rio in 2016. The Hachinohe native also won ten world titles and went about 13 years without losing before Mongolia's Pürevdorjiin Orkhon beat her in early 2016. Rather than overpower people, she treated wrestling as a technical chess match and sharpened her game by training with men. Her fourth gold came the hard way: against Russia's Valeria Koblova she broke a leg hold and scored the winning takedown in the final seconds. Japan gave her the People's Honour Award that October.
- Olympic champion (2004, 2008, 2012, 2016)
- World champion ×10 (2002–2015)
- Asian Games champion (2006)
- People's Honour Award (2016)
Defining matches
- 2004WINAthens Olympics (63 kg gold, first of four straight)
- 2016LOSSvs Pürevdorjiin Orkhon (Ivan Yarygin Grand Prix; first loss in about 13 years)
- 2016WINvs Valeria Koblova (Rio Olympic final, 3-2, winning takedown in the final seconds)
Wrestle to the final second: Icho won her fourth Olympic gold by breaking a leg hold and scoring a takedown with seconds left. Drill leg-hold escapes that flow straight into your own attack.
