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January 17, 2007
U.S. Wrestlers in Iran
The U.S. National Wrestling Team just arrived in Iran to compete in the Persian Gulf cup. If the reception by the Iranian people is anything like the last time the team was in Iran in 1998, it should be quite an event.
Although they were in a country where Marg bar Amrika!( “Death to America”) is prominently displayed on many government buildings, the first American athletes to step foot in the country since the hostage crisis of the late 1970’s were welcomed with open arms by the Iranian people. The crowd’s support of the Americans was one of the most moving moments in sports I’d ever seen.
Here is a recap from the LA Times in 1998:
I have never before attended a defining sporting event, such as a World Cup final or a World Series won by a ninth-inning home run. For me, the final of the Takhti Cup wrestling tournament in Tehran on Feb. 20 was such an event.
There were 13,000 spectators packed into the 12,000-seat Azadi arena. The crowd clearly came out to see the Americans. Whenever a U.S. wrestler competed, the place became electric. The crowd was torn between wanting Iranians to win and wanting to show approval of the American guests. So the fans cheered for both. They roared when Zeke Jones won a silver medal and waved the Iranian flag. There was a moment of disappointment when Kevin Jackson defeated an Iranian opponent, but that was followed by a huge ovation when the two wrestlers shared a long embrace. And the fans loved it when Jackson took a victory lap around the arena, high-fiving spectators as he ran.
Posted by Peter Mork at January 17, 2007 9:13 AM
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