Everything You Need To Know About 57kg At The Olympics

Re-Live Thomas Gilman's 2017 World Championships

Re-Live Thomas Gilman's 2017 World Championships

A recap of Thomas Gilman's performance at the 2017 World Championships.

Jun 25, 2021 by Jon Kozak
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Thomas Gilman will represent Team USA at 57kg this summer at the Olympic Games. In 2017, Gilman made his first appearance at the World Championships and took home a silver medal. Re-live Gilman’s run to the world finals below.

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Thomas Gilman will represent Team USA at 57kg this summer at the Olympic Games. In 2017, Gilman made his first appearance at the World Championships and took home a silver medal. Re-live Gilman’s run to the world finals below.

Check out of a full preview of this year's 57kg Olympic Field

Qualifying match - Andrey Yatsenko (UKR)

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Gilman’s opening match at 2017 Worlds was against the eventual bronze medalist, Andrey Yatsenko. Gilman looked to be out matched early when the Ukrainian’s jumped out to an early 2-0 lead. However in signature Thomas Gilman fashion, he slowly took control of the match and came away with a controlling 5-2 victory.

Round of 16 - Reza Atri (IRI)

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Gilman’s second round opponent, Reza Atri, was entering the world championships coming off a bronze at the Asian Championships a few months prior. There, Atri had only lost to eventual world champion, Yuki Takahashi-5-2. In this low scoring bout, Gilman used his hard hand-fighting and mat control to get out to a 1-0 lead through a shot-clock point. Then in the second period, Gilman scored early with a counter attack to go up 2-0. The match ended with drama as Atri got in on a single leg and nearly finished before Gilman countered at the last second to hold on for the win. Reza Atri will be a competitor in the 57kg bracket in Tokyo, Gilman might need to use the same pressure and defense to defeat the Iranian to challenge for an Olympic medal.

Quarter-Final - Nodiron Safarov (UZB)

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In his most dominant win of the tournament, Gilman controlled Safarov from the start of the quarter-final bout to come away with a 12-1 tech fall. Gilman scored in a variety of ways in this match to reach this semi-finals.

Semi-Final - Hakjin Jong (PRK)

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In a back and forth match, Gilman punched his ticket to the world finals with a 5-4 win over Hakjin Jong (PRK). Gilman went out to a 2-0 lead at the break but Jong stormed back and took a 3-2 lead early in the second. Gilman’s ability to get to legs resulted in a step-out and takedown late in the second period as he proved too much for Jong.

Final - Yuki Takahashi (JPN)

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Gilman’s run would come to a halt at the hands of Yuki Takahashi. In the finals match, Takahashi was a step a head with his counter-attacks and ability to out-scramble Gilman. Takahashi scored on 2 of Gilman’s single leg attempts in the first period. Then, late in the second, Gilman was in deep on a single leg, but Takahashi turned the position into his own points and was able to finish with a takedown. Takahashi will be one of Gilman’s main competitors in Tokyo and Gilman will have to solve the problems he presents should he wish to challenge for Olympic gold.


See how Thomas Gilman stacks up against the rest of the 57kg Olympians in our 57kg Olympian Rankings