Retired American Wrestling Legend Secures 2014 World Championship Runner-Up Position as Anti-Doping Law Disqualified Russian Opponent

The 2021 Captain’s Cup in women’s wrestling was all set to witness a fight between a veteran and a young prodigy. The penultimate match had earned an extra limelight, as it was a repeat match between the two. On a previous occasion, the young prodigy won the last bout. So the match was all gilded to see the revenge taken from the veteran. However, the ending was the opposite, as the young prodigy had won that time as well. But for the veteran, it wasn’t enough to dent her achievement line. Moreover, in the junior stint, she had some vigorous achievements, that too, on the international level. 

The 2014 Junior World Championship was one such instance that brought the veteran into the limelight. After 10 years, that discussion again fruitfully came to the forefront. 

Victoria Francis receives her due wrestling glory 

The wrestling veteran Victoria Francis has several tokens of success from her junior level. The bronze medal from the 2014 Junior World Championship made a respectable mention out of those. However, in a turn of fate, that bronze medal is on the way to becoming a silver one. USA Wrestling’s X-handle disclosed the reason in its post. “.@_VFran_ won a bronze medal at the 2014 Junior Worlds in Zagreb, Croatia. The only athlete to beat her received an anti-doping violation and was disqualified, losing her silver medal. Francis moves up and will receive the silver medal from United World”. 

Eventually, it was the affair of the 72 kg category, where Francis had to digest defeat from her Russian opponent, Anzhela Kataeva. The quarterfinal match had ended on Kataeva’s side with a scoreline of 9-2. From there, Kataeva reached the final and earned the silver medal. On the other hand, because of back-to-back repechage victories, Francis had come to the podium with a bronze medal. So now, Francis will have her silver medal. It will add another feather to her crown, which already holds two Pan Am medals. But for her, this medal is special. 

The long-lost achievement in the corner 

The last few years weren’t at the place for Victoria Francis. After the defeat at the Captain’s Cup, in 2022 she lost several bouts. Eventually, that led to her retirement in 2023. So, the good news from her early days made her captivated by its own merit. After the news broke out, the Illinois native added, “It was exciting to hear about this. Now that I am retired and have spent the last year reflecting on my career, this puts a cherry on the top.” Moreover, a feeling of satisfaction also filled her at the moment. 

Read more: Uncover the Fascinating Fact of Iowa Hawkeyes Wrestling’s Class of 2024

“It is cool, 10 years later, to learn that I did better than I thought I did,”, the wrestling royalty said. As of now, the date of the handover of the medal is still unknown. But as per the dictates, Victoria Francis will receive the silver medal from the USA Wrestling after returning the bronze medal. The wrestling authority is already in the process. 

Watch this story: 5 FASCINATING FACTS ABOUT TOMMY FURY: PAUL VS. WOODLEY