Match of the Day: Sammie Henson wins gold at the 1998 World Championships
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by USA Wrestling
In the 54 kg finals of the 1998 World Championships in Tehran, Iran, Sammie Henson and Azerbaijan’s Namek Abdullaev battled it out for gold.
Abdullaev was a 1996 Olympic silver medalist and a 1994 World silver medalist. Henson, who was competing at his first World Championships, was a two-time NCAA champion for Clemson University.
The pair would meet again in the 2000 Olympic finals with Abdullaev besting Henson for gold. Controversially, Abdullaev repeatedly pulled Henson’s singlet and was never called for it.
Abdullaev would earn two more World medals before his career was over, a silver in 2002 and a bronze in 2006. Henson would also win bronze at the 2006 World Championships in Guangzhou, China.
Watch Henson defeat Abdullaev for gold below:
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