Russell Claims Silver at Pan Ams

Russell delivered one of the more explosive runs of the tournament at 97 kg. He earned falls against each of his first three opponents to reach the gold-medal match, starting with Mexico’s Dorian Trejo Olguin. Russell needed just 47 seconds to stop Puerto Rico’s Alan Garcia Morales in his second outing, then registered another fall against Ecuador’s Jean Zambrano Longas in the opening 30 seconds of the semifinals. In a rematch with Trejo Olguin in the finals, Russell came up just short in a 6-5 decision.

Mexico captured the team title with 193 points, followed closely by the U.S. with 190. Host nation Brazil placed third with 169 points, followed by Ecuador (103) and Peru (71).