Olympian Andy Hrovat determined to come back strong in 2009
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by Craig Sesker
COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. - There is not a day that goes by when freestyle wrestler Andy Hrovat isn't reminded about what happened at the 2008 Olympic Games.
Hrovat suffered a heartbreaking, last-second loss to Cuba's Reineris Salas in his first and only bout of the Olympics last month in Beijing, China.
"Every day you run into somebody and they find out you're an Olympian. They ask 'How did you do?' and I have to tell them I lost with three seconds left," Hrovat said. "It's something that is with me and something that will push me to hopefully win that title next year. It's something that I will definitely use for motivation."
The 28-year-old Hrovat is back on the mat training and looking for something big at 84 kg/185 lbs. during the 2008-09 season.
Hrovat, who lives and trains in Ann Arbor, Mich., was working out this week at the U.S. Olympic Training Center during a brief visit to Colorado Springs.
"I came out here for my Olympic evaluation, and it went as I expected," Hrovat said. "Kevin (Jackson, U.S. National Coach) said I did everything I was told. He said if someone wasn't living out here he would want them on my schedule with the way I train and go places to compete and wrestle the toughest competition. I go to the Overtime club to train with (Coach) Sean Bormet and I come out here for training camps. I'm going to continue to follow the same schedule for the upcoming season."
Hrovat had the lead late in his opening match at the Olympics before the Cuban scored in the closing seconds of the third period to pull out a 3-0, 1-3, 2-2 victory.
"The Olympics is a big stage, but I felt real comfortable out there and I felt stronger than the guy I was wrestling," Hrovat said. "I wasn't pushing the pace hard enough where the guy would've folded. He was somebody I should be able to tech-fall two periods in a row. There's no excuse for me losing. The way I see it, I was three seconds away from being in the finals. That's realistic, because I could beat everybody else that was on my side (of the bracket). That's the hardest part, knowing I had a mental lapse. That's the difference between having a chance to win a gold medal and not getting a chance to wrestle back."
A 2006 U.S. World Team member, Hrovat hopes to finish the upcoming season at the 2009 World Championships. That event is scheduled for Sept. 21-27, 2009 in Herning, Denmark.
"I need to change some things around mentally so I can get past those big matches internationally and start winning like I can," Hrovat said. "I'm looking forward to getting back into it and competing again."
Hrovat would like to keep wrestling through the 2012 Olympic Games in London.
"I'm just taking it year-by-year right now," he said. "By the time 2012 rolls around I will be 32. You never know how healthy your body will be. The goal is four years, but I don't want to be holding on if I get injured or something. I've been fortunate with the way I wrestle where I don't put myself in those positions to hurt my knees or anything."
The U.S. freestyle team won just one medal, the gold won by Henry Cejudo, at the 2008 Olympics.
"Everybody needs to buy into our system and push each other," Hrovat said. "Some people in the U.S. refuse to wrestle overseas and they're not going to get any better if they don't. The best guys in each weight class need to train with each other and make each other better. Some guys won't do that because they don't want to show the other guy what they have. I was training today with Bryce Hasseman, and we're two of the top guys in our weight class. We pushed each other and made each other better. We also had guys who didn't come to training camps. You can't do that if you expect to win."
Hrovat said the 21-year-old Cejudo had a razor-sharp focus during his preparations for the Olympics.
"Henry was a huge bright spot for us," Hrovat said. "He's a professional and that's why he won. He trained every day as a professional and lived his life as a professional. He did everything the coaches asked him to do and he bought into the plan we had. He's a 21-year-old kid, but he was the leader of this team. He pushed the pace and set an example by how hard he worked."
Hrovat said he expects to be back competing in November.
"I'm real excited about this season," he said. "The thing that excites me - even though I may have had a failure in the Olympics - is I have improved every year and I'm developing more. I'm gaining more and more confidence, and I keep getting better. I'm ready to get back out there and see what I can do.
Hrovat suffered a heartbreaking, last-second loss to Cuba's Reineris Salas in his first and only bout of the Olympics last month in Beijing, China.
"Every day you run into somebody and they find out you're an Olympian. They ask 'How did you do?' and I have to tell them I lost with three seconds left," Hrovat said. "It's something that is with me and something that will push me to hopefully win that title next year. It's something that I will definitely use for motivation."
The 28-year-old Hrovat is back on the mat training and looking for something big at 84 kg/185 lbs. during the 2008-09 season.
Hrovat, who lives and trains in Ann Arbor, Mich., was working out this week at the U.S. Olympic Training Center during a brief visit to Colorado Springs.
"I came out here for my Olympic evaluation, and it went as I expected," Hrovat said. "Kevin (Jackson, U.S. National Coach) said I did everything I was told. He said if someone wasn't living out here he would want them on my schedule with the way I train and go places to compete and wrestle the toughest competition. I go to the Overtime club to train with (Coach) Sean Bormet and I come out here for training camps. I'm going to continue to follow the same schedule for the upcoming season."
Hrovat had the lead late in his opening match at the Olympics before the Cuban scored in the closing seconds of the third period to pull out a 3-0, 1-3, 2-2 victory.
"The Olympics is a big stage, but I felt real comfortable out there and I felt stronger than the guy I was wrestling," Hrovat said. "I wasn't pushing the pace hard enough where the guy would've folded. He was somebody I should be able to tech-fall two periods in a row. There's no excuse for me losing. The way I see it, I was three seconds away from being in the finals. That's realistic, because I could beat everybody else that was on my side (of the bracket). That's the hardest part, knowing I had a mental lapse. That's the difference between having a chance to win a gold medal and not getting a chance to wrestle back."
A 2006 U.S. World Team member, Hrovat hopes to finish the upcoming season at the 2009 World Championships. That event is scheduled for Sept. 21-27, 2009 in Herning, Denmark.
"I need to change some things around mentally so I can get past those big matches internationally and start winning like I can," Hrovat said. "I'm looking forward to getting back into it and competing again."
Hrovat would like to keep wrestling through the 2012 Olympic Games in London.
"I'm just taking it year-by-year right now," he said. "By the time 2012 rolls around I will be 32. You never know how healthy your body will be. The goal is four years, but I don't want to be holding on if I get injured or something. I've been fortunate with the way I wrestle where I don't put myself in those positions to hurt my knees or anything."
The U.S. freestyle team won just one medal, the gold won by Henry Cejudo, at the 2008 Olympics.
"Everybody needs to buy into our system and push each other," Hrovat said. "Some people in the U.S. refuse to wrestle overseas and they're not going to get any better if they don't. The best guys in each weight class need to train with each other and make each other better. Some guys won't do that because they don't want to show the other guy what they have. I was training today with Bryce Hasseman, and we're two of the top guys in our weight class. We pushed each other and made each other better. We also had guys who didn't come to training camps. You can't do that if you expect to win."
Hrovat said the 21-year-old Cejudo had a razor-sharp focus during his preparations for the Olympics.
"Henry was a huge bright spot for us," Hrovat said. "He's a professional and that's why he won. He trained every day as a professional and lived his life as a professional. He did everything the coaches asked him to do and he bought into the plan we had. He's a 21-year-old kid, but he was the leader of this team. He pushed the pace and set an example by how hard he worked."
Hrovat said he expects to be back competing in November.
"I'm real excited about this season," he said. "The thing that excites me - even though I may have had a failure in the Olympics - is I have improved every year and I'm developing more. I'm gaining more and more confidence, and I keep getting better. I'm ready to get back out there and see what I can do.
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