The legacy of Penn State wrestling is ready to hit the mats at the 2021 Olympics in Tokyo, Japan later this year. David Taylor officially clinched his spot on the United States wrestling team for the Olympics on Saturday, marking his first trip to the Olympics.
To top it off, Taylor had to go through another former Nittany Lion wrestling star to do so. Taylor defeated former Penn State wrestler Bo Nickal for the top spot in the 86 KG finals with a 4-0 in the first of a best-of-three matchup, and 6-0 in the second. Taylor did not yield a point throughout the Olympic trials.
David Taylor a 4-0 win over Bo Nickal in first of three at 86 kg…DT up 1-0…both wrestlers already on U.S. National Team btw…. #PSUwr
— Penn State WRESTLING (@pennstateWREST) April 4, 2021
Olympic Team Trials | Best-of-three series (Round 2, MFS 86kg)
David Taylor df. Bo Nickal, 6-0
The 2021 U.S. Olympian at MFS 86kg is David Taylor! Tokyo Bound! #WrestlingTrials21
— USA Wrestling (@USAWrestling) April 4, 2021
DT does it! David Taylor takes the 86kg Olympic spot without giving a point in the Trials and is on his way to Tokyo.
— FloWrestling (@FloWrestling) April 4, 2021
😳 Bo Nickal takes out Zahid Valencia in an amazing match to punch into the finals of the Olympic Team Trials against David Taylor.
— FloWrestling (@FloWrestling) April 3, 2021
I’ve prepared my entire life for these moments. Thank you for the support ❤️
The best 2/3 finals begin at 730 EST @nbcsports #TAYLORGANG pic.twitter.com/VvnK0Qj7Iv
— David Taylor (@magicman_psu) April 3, 2021
Taylor was an NCAA gold medal winner in 2021 and 2014 and a finalist two other times during his time at Penn State. His international profile has already begun with a gold medal at the Pan American Championships in 2018 and 2019. He will be among the favorites in his weight class at the Olympics later this year.
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