World silver medalist Mike Zadick focused on big season in 2010
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by Craig Sesker USA Wrestling
Mike Zadick takes down Russia's Mavlet Batirov, a two-time Olympic gold medalist, in the 2006 World Championships in Guangzhou, China. Larry Slater photo.
COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. - Mike Zadick was where he expected to be last September.
In Herning, Denmark for the World Championships.
But instead of being down on the mat, contending for his second World medal in freestyle wrestling, Zadick was stuck up in the stands watching the tournament with his father.
Zadick plans to make sure that doesn't happen again.
Zadick was leading the way during a late afternoon workout on Monday at the U.S. Olympic Training Center, sprinting near the front of the pack as he took part in a National Team freestyle camp.
The 31-year-old Zadick fell short of making a U.S. World or Olympic freestyle team for the first time in four years in 2009. He placed second at the World Team Trials behind Shawn Bunch at 60 kg/132 lbs.
"I'm really excited about this season," Zadick said. "I'm really focused on having a great year. My training's going great, and I'm ready to get back out there and compete."
Zadick, a 2006 World silver medalist, trains in Iowa City and serves as an assistant coach for the top-ranked Iowa Hawkeyes. Iowa is shooting for its third straight NCAA title this season.
Zadick said he hopes to compete in the Dave Schultz Memorial International on Feb. 4-6 at the Olympic Training Center in Colorado Springs.
Zadick won a U.S. Nationals title in 2009 before falling to Bunch in the best-of-3 finals of the World Team Trials.
"Last year, I was wrestling better than I had the previous couple of years," he said. "I had a good performance at the Open in Vegas. I felt pretty good at Trials, but with a guy like Shawn Bunch, you can't put the match in the referee's hands. You can't keep the match that close. I need to get better defensively where I don't give anything up on the edge of the mat. And I can get more offensive where I'm scoring more.
"You need to be firing and you need to be aggressive, but you also need to be smart. You can't come at a guy too hard where he will get you near the edge and push you out of bounds."
Zadick arrived in Colorado Springs last Friday and will spend the next couple of weeks training here.
"It's a good room here with a good freestyle atmosphere," Zadick said. "It's a little bit different than what I'm used to back at Iowa, so it's a good change of scenery. I have different workout partners with different feels, so that will help. There are some foreign athletes coming in here, and that will help to wrestle with some of those guys."
Zadick also is trying to keep his battle with the scale under control.
"My weight control is an issue," he said. "I know it and I'm aware of it. That's a big key for me being at my best."
Zadick competed in the USA-Russia dual in November in Iowa. He fell 2-0, 1-0 to Russia's Vladimir Vilmov.
"I think I was the aggressor in the match, but I need more penetrating shots where I have a better chance to score," he said. "I got in one time deep, but I needed to continue to drive through it. I need to commit to more shots - I know I can score more."
Zadick trains in the wrestling room at the University of Iowa's Carver-Hawkeye Arena. Fellow 2008 Olympians Doug Schwab and Steve Mocco also train there.
"I feel like I train in the best wrestling room in the World," he said. "I have an unbelievable individual coach in Terry Brands, plus I have a room full of great training partners. I have everything I need there. It's a great environment to train in."
Zadick is now one of the oldest wrestlers in his weight class.
"I remember when I was younger and seeing some of the older guys coming to the end of their careers," he said. "You could kind of look at some of those guys and say, "Yeah, he's done.' Now I'm one of those older guys, but honestly, I feel great right now.
"My goal is to still win an Olympic gold medal, and I think that it's still a realistic goal. If I felt any other way, I wouldn't do this. I know I haven't reached my peak. Even in 2006, when I took second in the World, I didn't really wrestle that good. I know I can get to that level again, and even take it beyond that."
Zadick is the last wrestler to defeat Russia's Mavlet Batirov, a two-time Olympic gold medalist and World champion. Zadick beat Batirov in the semifinals of the 2006 Worlds.
Zadick said sitting in the stands at last year's Worlds in Denmark was very difficult.
"Of course, it eats at you when you're not down there wrestling when you think you should be," he said. "It's easy to sit up there and say, 'Yeah, I beat this guy and I should've beaten that guy.' I watched all the matches and my eyes were on everything that was going on down there. It definitely motivated me to want to get back down there and compete."
COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. - Mike Zadick was where he expected to be last September.
In Herning, Denmark for the World Championships.
But instead of being down on the mat, contending for his second World medal in freestyle wrestling, Zadick was stuck up in the stands watching the tournament with his father.
Zadick plans to make sure that doesn't happen again.
Zadick was leading the way during a late afternoon workout on Monday at the U.S. Olympic Training Center, sprinting near the front of the pack as he took part in a National Team freestyle camp.
The 31-year-old Zadick fell short of making a U.S. World or Olympic freestyle team for the first time in four years in 2009. He placed second at the World Team Trials behind Shawn Bunch at 60 kg/132 lbs.
"I'm really excited about this season," Zadick said. "I'm really focused on having a great year. My training's going great, and I'm ready to get back out there and compete."
Zadick, a 2006 World silver medalist, trains in Iowa City and serves as an assistant coach for the top-ranked Iowa Hawkeyes. Iowa is shooting for its third straight NCAA title this season.
Zadick said he hopes to compete in the Dave Schultz Memorial International on Feb. 4-6 at the Olympic Training Center in Colorado Springs.
Zadick won a U.S. Nationals title in 2009 before falling to Bunch in the best-of-3 finals of the World Team Trials.
"Last year, I was wrestling better than I had the previous couple of years," he said. "I had a good performance at the Open in Vegas. I felt pretty good at Trials, but with a guy like Shawn Bunch, you can't put the match in the referee's hands. You can't keep the match that close. I need to get better defensively where I don't give anything up on the edge of the mat. And I can get more offensive where I'm scoring more.
"You need to be firing and you need to be aggressive, but you also need to be smart. You can't come at a guy too hard where he will get you near the edge and push you out of bounds."
Zadick arrived in Colorado Springs last Friday and will spend the next couple of weeks training here.
"It's a good room here with a good freestyle atmosphere," Zadick said. "It's a little bit different than what I'm used to back at Iowa, so it's a good change of scenery. I have different workout partners with different feels, so that will help. There are some foreign athletes coming in here, and that will help to wrestle with some of those guys."
Zadick also is trying to keep his battle with the scale under control.
"My weight control is an issue," he said. "I know it and I'm aware of it. That's a big key for me being at my best."
Zadick competed in the USA-Russia dual in November in Iowa. He fell 2-0, 1-0 to Russia's Vladimir Vilmov.
"I think I was the aggressor in the match, but I need more penetrating shots where I have a better chance to score," he said. "I got in one time deep, but I needed to continue to drive through it. I need to commit to more shots - I know I can score more."
Zadick trains in the wrestling room at the University of Iowa's Carver-Hawkeye Arena. Fellow 2008 Olympians Doug Schwab and Steve Mocco also train there.
"I feel like I train in the best wrestling room in the World," he said. "I have an unbelievable individual coach in Terry Brands, plus I have a room full of great training partners. I have everything I need there. It's a great environment to train in."
Zadick is now one of the oldest wrestlers in his weight class.
"I remember when I was younger and seeing some of the older guys coming to the end of their careers," he said. "You could kind of look at some of those guys and say, "Yeah, he's done.' Now I'm one of those older guys, but honestly, I feel great right now.
"My goal is to still win an Olympic gold medal, and I think that it's still a realistic goal. If I felt any other way, I wouldn't do this. I know I haven't reached my peak. Even in 2006, when I took second in the World, I didn't really wrestle that good. I know I can get to that level again, and even take it beyond that."
Zadick is the last wrestler to defeat Russia's Mavlet Batirov, a two-time Olympic gold medalist and World champion. Zadick beat Batirov in the semifinals of the 2006 Worlds.
Zadick said sitting in the stands at last year's Worlds in Denmark was very difficult.
"Of course, it eats at you when you're not down there wrestling when you think you should be," he said. "It's easy to sit up there and say, 'Yeah, I beat this guy and I should've beaten that guy.' I watched all the matches and my eyes were on everything that was going on down there. It definitely motivated me to want to get back down there and compete."
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