Sports Illustrated recently ran a story on their 'Extra Mustard' subpage talking about the IOC Olympic Committee's decision to pull traditional wrestling from the Summer Olympic Games starting in 2020. Several WWE Superstars gave their thoughts about the controversial decision, and you can read some of their comments below:
Dolph Ziggler on how fast the news broke: “I’ve been getting texts all day from my buddies, guys I haven’t talked to since high school sending me texts and Facebook messages. It’s hitting close to home more than usual. I know it’s not 100 percent yet but there are so many Olympic events, it’s unfortunate they’ve chosen a legitimate sport and one of the original sports ever. It’s mind-blowing that it’s even on the chopping block.”
Jack Swagger on how he got into wrestling: “It’s no secret I wasn’t the most athletic kid on the playground, but I went into it head over heels even though I wasn’t good at it at first. It teaches you so much about life and that’s what makes it the best sport. It teaches you discipline and dedication and how to work hard and how to sacrifice for your goals. Those are things you can apply to any area of your life, whether it’s your education or your career. Honestly, it turned me into a man.”
Cody Rhodes on amateur wrestling's future: “If you’re a kid and breaking into that sport and want to improve, they’re taking away not only the top level, but also going to cut into the bottom level the junior programs and the kiddies… Because, well, if it’s not an Olympic sport, people might not think it’s something they should take seriously.”
You can view the entire article, with more quotes from the WWE Superstars including how Dolph Ziggler dealt with talking to a high school wrestling team as the news broke at the following link.
