Franklin Gómez

(Redirected from Franklin Gomez)

Franklin Gómez Matos (born August 5, 1986) is a Dominican-born Puerto Rican freestyle wrestler.

Franklin Gómez
Personal information
Full nameFranklin Gómez Matos
Nationality Puerto Rico
Born (1986-08-05) August 5, 1986 (age 38)
Puerto Plata, Dominican Republic
Height168 cm (5 ft 6 in)
Weight74 kg (163 lb)
Sport
SportWrestling
Event(s)Freestyle and Folkstyle
College teamMichigan State
ClubNittany Lion Wrestling Club
Medal record
Men's freestyle wrestling
Representing  Puerto Rico
World Championships
Silver medal – second place 2011 Istanbul 60 kg
Pan American Games
Gold medal – first place 2011 Guadalajara 60 kg
Silver medal – second place 2019 Lima 74 kg
Bronze medal – third place 2015 Toronto 65 kg
Pan American Championships
Gold medal – first place 2011 Rionegro 60 kg
Silver medal – second place 2017 Lauro de Freitas 65 kg
Silver medal – second place 2020 Ottawa 74 kg
Bronze medal – third place 2019 Buenos Aires 74 kg
Central American and Caribbean Games
Gold medal – first place 2014 Veracruz 65 kg
Bronze medal – third place 2010 Mayagüez 60 kg
Dan Kolov – Nikola Petrov Grand Prix
Gold medal – first place 2014 Sofia 65 kg
Collegiate Wrestling
Representing the Michigan State Spartans
NCAA Division I Championships
Gold medal – first place 2009 St. Louis 133 lb
Bronze medal – third place 2008 St. Louis 133 lb
Bronze medal – third place 2010 Omaha 133 lb
Big Ten Championships
Gold medal – first place 2008 Minneapolis 133 lb
Gold medal – first place 2009 University Park 133 lb
Bronze medal – third place 2010 Ann Arbor 133 lb

Early years and education

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Gómez was born in Puerto Plata Province in the Dominican Republic. His father, Eugenio Gómez, was a fisherman and his mother, Margarita Matos, was a housewife. In 1991, Franklin's father died as a consequence of medical malpractice. As a result, his mother decided to move to Puerto Rico, along with Franklin and her other two sons: Emanuel and Abel.[1][2] During childhood, Gómez played basketball and baseball. He began wrestling when he was 12 years old, training at Club Sparta in San Juan.

He came to the United States and lived in New Jersey his freshman year of high school where he stayed with a host family, Bill and Diane McGrath, in Hammonton, New Jersey and attended St. Augustine Preparatory School in Richland, New Jersey. He would then move to Brandon, Florida, where he attended Brandon High School. Aside of wrestling, Gómez completed a Bachelor's degree in Human Resources, with a major in psychology from Michigan State, as well as a Master's degree in Business Administration from Walden University.[2]

Wrestling career

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While studying at St. Augustine Prep in New Jersey, Gómez won district and regional titles at 103 and 112-pounds. He then wrestled at Brandon High School in Brandon, Florida and won a state title at 119-pounds his senior year. Gómez wrestled collegiately for Michigan State and won an NCAA Division I title at 133-pounds in 2009. After graduation, he was recruited to the Nittany Lion Wrestling Club at Penn State University, where he trains freestyle wrestling.

During the 2011 Pan American Games in Guadalajara, Mexico, Gómez won the first gold medal in the sport of wrestling for Puerto Rico. He would win his next three tournaments in Romania, Italy and Germany. In his last performance, he defeated the current world champion in the 60 kg, the Russian wrestler Besik Kudukhov, claiming the gold medal in the Grand Prix of Germany. After becoming the sub-champion and winning a silver medal in the 2011 World Championships, Gomez also won his country a spot at the 2012 London Olympics.

At the 2012 Olympics in London, Gómez faced Besik Kudukhov of Russia again but this time in the first round. Kudukhov defeated Gomez 3–1 and made the final but was defeated by Toghrul Asgarov of Azerbaijan. With Kudukhov making the final, Gomez was made eligible to wrestle for a medal in the repechage rounds. Gómez fought against Yogeshwar Dutt in the repechage rounds, but lost again 0–3, and Dutt eventually claimed the bronze medal.[3]

At the 2014 World Wrestling Championships in the round of 16 he lost to Soslan Ramonov (by fall) of Russia and in the repechage round 2 he lost again to Ganzorigiin Mandakhnaran of Mongolia (4–7)

At the 2016 Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, Gómez faced Ikhtiyor Navruzov of Uzbekistan. Gómez and Navruzov were tied 5–5 in the second round. As the match was about to end, Gómez made a move that took Navruzov outside of the ring, initially warranting two points for Gómez. However, one of the officers argued that the move favored Navruzov, forcing Gómez' corner to challenge the call. When the officers decided against him, the bout ended 8–5 against Gómez.[4]

The decision was controversial from the beginning, with various experts and sources calling the decision "insane", and saying that Gómez was "robbed" on Twitter. Some notable wrestlers and coaches that tweeted in support of Gómez were Eric Thompson, Jake Varner, Cael Sanderson, Mark Hemauer, and Ben Askren. Former Governor of Puerto Rico Aníbal Acevedo Vilá tweeted using the hashtag "#GomezGotRobbed". Meanwhile, current Governor Alejandro García Padilla vowed to protest what he called a "theft" to the sport.[5]

Shortly after the match, the three officers in charge of the match were suspended by United World Wrestling because of "suspicious officiating". They also claimed that an investigation would be done, but their decision couldn't be overturned.[6] On September 3, 2016, it was announced that the three officers were officially expelled from the UWW, without offering the reasons for the expulsion.[7]

Achievements

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Freestyle record

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Senior Freestyle Matches
Res. Record Opponent Score Date Event Location
2017 Clubs World Cup   for Team USA at 70 kg
Loss 114–46   Mohammad naderi 2–2 December 7–8, 2017 2017 Clubs World Cup

  Tehran, Iran

Win 114–45   Lutbayar Batbayar 5–3
Win 113–45   Miroslav Hristov 13–4
Loss 112–45   Vinod Kumar 5–6
Win 112–44   FF FF
2017 World Championships 8th at 65 kg
Loss 111–44   Alejandro Valdés 2–11 August 6, 2017 2017 World Championships

  Paris, France

Win 111–43   Gor Ogannesyan 3–1
Win 110–43   Sixto Auccapiña 8–0
2017 Pan American Championships   at 65 kg
Win 109–43   Andres Castañeda 8–5 May 5–7, 2017 2017 Pan American Continental Championships   Lauro de Freitas, Brazil
Win 108–43   Wilfredo Rodríguez TF 13–2
2016 Summer Olympics 9th at 65 kg
Loss 107–43   Ikhtiyor Navruzov 5–8 August 21, 2016 2016 Summer Olympics   Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
Win 107–42   Borislav Novachkov 7–4
2016 Grand Prix of Spain   at 65 kg
Loss 106–42   Ganzorigiin Mandakhnaran 1–5 July 9–10, 2016 2016 Grand Prix of Spain

  Madrid, Spain

Win 106–41   Ivan Filippov 2–0
Win 105–41   Ilyas Zhumay TF 10–0
Win 104–41   Kevin Henkel 8–6
2016 Granma y Cerro Pelado International   at 65 kg
Win 103–41   Yowlys Bonne June 10–14, 2016 2016 Granma y Cerro Pelado International

  Havana, Cuba

Win 102–41   Alejandro Valdés
2016 Pan American Olympic Qualification Tournament   at 65 kg
Loss 101–41   Alejandro Valdés 3–8 March 5, 2016 2016 Pan American Olympic Qualification Tournament   Frisco, Texas
Win 101–40   Hernán Guzmán 8–4
Win 100–40   Brent Metcalf 9–7
2016 Yasar Dogu 7th at 65 kg
Loss 99–40   Haji Aliyev 2–3 February 5–7, 2016 2016 Yasar Dogu International

  Istanbul, Turkey

Win 99–39   Omer Uzan TF 12–0
2016 Dan Kolov – Nikola Petrov Tournament   at 65 kg
Win 98–39   Borislav Novachkov 4–0 January 29–31, 2016 2016 Dan Kolov – Nikola Petrov International

  Sofia, Bulgaria

Win 97–39   Mahdi Niazijengheshlaghi'nin TF 10–0
Win 96–39   Filip Novachkov 7–1
2015 World Championships 28th at 65 kg
Loss 95–39   David Safaryan 4–6 September 10, 2015 [2015 World Championships   Las Vegas, Nevada
2015 Pan American Games   at 65 kg
Win 95–38   Marbin Miranda TF 10–0 July 17, 2015 2015 Pan American Games   Toronto, Canada
Loss 94–38   Brent Metcalf 8–10
Win 94–37   Wilfredo Henriquez TF 10–0
2014 Central American and Caribbean Games   at 65 kg
Win 93–37   Alejandro Valdés TF 14–3 October 20–24, 2014 2014 Central American and Caribbean Games   Veracruz, Mexico
Win 92–37   Luis Portillo TF 10–0
Win 91–37   Elvis Fuentes TF 11–0
2014 World Championships 8th at 65 kg
Loss 90–37   Ganzorigiin Mandakhnaran 4–7 September 9, 2014 2014 World Championships

  Tashkent, Uzbekistan

Win 90–36   Christophe Clavier TF 13–0
Loss 89–36   Soslan Ramonov Fall
Win 89–35   Sayatbek Okassov 5–1
2014 Olympia   at 65 kg
Loss 88–35   Akhmed Chakaev 7–10 July 19–20, 2014 2014 Olympia Tournament   Olympia, Greece
Win 88–34   Zurabi Iakobishvili 4–2
Win 87–34   Stelios Mama TF 10–0
2014 Central American and Caribbean Championships   at 65 kg
Win 86–34   Hernán Darío Guzmán Ipuz April 2–7, 2014 2014 Central American and Caribbean Championships   San Juan, Puerto Rico
Win 85–34   Dayron Lazaro TF
Win 84–34   Brandon Díaz
2014 Dan Kolov – Nikola Petrov Tournament   at 65 kg
Win 83–34   Yiriken Ailixiati Fall February 21–23, 2014 2014 Dan Kolov – Nikola Petrov International

  Sofia, Bulgaria

Win 82–34   Selahattin Kılıçsallayan TF 12–0
Win 81–34   George Bucur TF 12–2
Win 80–34   Rafal Statkiewicz Fall
2014 Dave Schultz Memorial International   at 65 kg
Loss 79–34   Frank Molinaro 1–1 January 30 – February 1, 2014 2014 Dave Schultz Memorial International Open

  Colorado Springs, Colorado

Win 79–33   Borislav Novachkov 8–2
Win 78–33   Drew Headlee TF 14–3
Win 77–33   Brett Robbins TF 14–4
2013 World Championships 7th at 60 kg
Loss 76–33   Artur Arakelyan 4–6 September 17, 2013 2013 World Championships

  Budapest, Hungary

Win 76–32   Andrei Prepeliţă 5–1
Loss 75–32   Bekkhan Goygereyev 5–13
Win 75–31   Hwang Ryon-ghak 8–6
Win 74–31   Bazar Bazarguruev Fall
2013 Poland Open   at 60 kg
Win 73–31   Krzysztof Bienkowski 8–0 August 10, 2013 2013 Poland Open   Spala, Poland
2013 Grand Prix of Spain   at 60 kg
Win 72–31   Nikolai Bolotnyuk 5–0 July 13, 2013 2013 Grand Prix of Spain

  Madrid, Spain

Win 71–31
Win 70–31
2013 FILA Golden Grand Prix   at 60 kg
Loss 69–31   Vladimer Khinchegashvili May 31, 2013 2013 FILA Golden Grand Prix   Sassari, Italy
2013 Ivan Yarygin Golden Grand Prix 19th at 60 kg
Loss 69–30   Vladimir Flegontov 2–4, 1–0, 1–2 January 24, 2013 2013 Ivan Yarygin Golden Grand Prix   Krasnoyarsk, Russia
2012 Summer Olympics 15th at 60 kg
Loss 69–29   Yogeshwar Dutt 0–1, 0–1 August 11, 2012 2012 Summer Olympics   London, England
Loss 69–28   Besik Kudukhov 2–2, 0–1, 0–1
2012 Germany Grand Prix   at 60 kg
Win 69–27   Besik Kudukhov June 30, 2012 2012 Grand Prix of Germany

  Dortmund, Germany

2012 Torneo Citta a Sassari   at 60 kg
Win 69–27   Salvatore Mannino June 2, 2012 2012 Torneo Citta a Sassari

  Sassari, Italy

2012 Ion Corneanu Memorial   at 60 kg
Win 68–27   Andrei Dukov May 25, 2012 2012 Ion Corneanu Memorial

  Targoviste, Romania

2011 Pan American Games   at 60 kg
Win 67–27   Guillermo Torres 3–0, 6–0 October 20–24, 2011 2011 Pan American Games   Guadalajara, Mexico
Win 66–27   Yowlys Bonne 2–0, 3–0
Win 65–27   Gabriel García 4–0, 4–0
2011 World Championships   at 60 kg
Loss 64–27   Besik Kudukhov 0–5, 0–1 September 17, 2011 2011 World Championships

  Istanbul, Turkey

Win 63–26   Dauren Zhumagaziyev 1–1, 0–1, 3–0
Win 62–26   Zelimkhan Huseynov 0–1, 1–0, 2–1
Win 61–26   Lee Seung-chul 2–0, 3–0
Win 60–26   Ri Jong-myong 1–0, 3–0
Win 59–26   Malkhaz Zarkua 4–0, 2–0
2011 Spain Grand Prix   at 60 kg
Win 58–26   Tim Schleicher July 7, 2011 2011 Grand Prix of Spain

  Madrid, Spain

2011 Pan American Championships   at 60 kg
Win 57–26   Ryley Walker May 6, 2011 2011 Pan American Continental Championships

  Rionegro, Colombia

Win 56–26   Derek Moore 2–0, 5–0 March 17, 2011 2011 NCAA vs. USAW National Team All-Star Dual

  Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

2011 Dave Schultz Memorial International   at 60 kg
Win 55–26   Nick Simmons 2–1, 1–0 February 2–5, 2011 2011 Dave Schultz Memorial International Open

  Colorado Springs, Colorado

Win 54–26   Reece Humphrey 7–0, 0–1, 3–0
Win 53–26   Coleman Scott 1–0, 1–1
Win 52–26   Nick Fanthorpe 3–0, 1–0
Loss 51–26   Shogo Maeda 6–0, 0–1, 1–4
Win 51–25   Alan Olvera TF 6–0, 6–0
2010 NYAC International Open at 60 kg
Loss 50–25   Reece Humphrey 0–1, 0–1 November 20–21, 2010 2010 Sunkist Kids International Open

  New York, New York

Loss 50–24   Rasul Murtazaliev 3–5, 0–2
Win 50–23   Derek Moore 1–1, 4–0
Win 49–23   James Mancini Fall
2010 Sunkist Kids International Open 5th at 60 kg
Win 48–23   Steve Mytych 1–0, 2–3, 1–0 October 22–24, 2010 2010 Sunkist Kids International Open

  Tempe, Arizona

Loss 47–23   Seshito Shimizu Fall
Win 47–22   Craig Barker 7–0, 4–0
Win 46–22   Marcus Pettis 4–0, 7–0
Loss 45–22   Drew Headlee 0–1, 0–1
2010 World Championships 20th at 60 kg
Loss 45–21   Malkhaz Kurdiani 2–2, 0–2 September 11, 2010 2010 World Championships

  Moscow, Russia

2009 US Northeast Regionals   at 60 kg
Win 45–20   Daryl Thomas Fall May 15–16, 2009 2009 US Northeast Regional Championships

  Waterloo, Iowa

Win 44–20   Nick Trizzino 3–0, 7–0
Loss 43–20   Daniel Dennis 0–1, 2–0, 0–1
Win 43–19   Daryl Thomas 8–1, 1–0
2009 US University Nationals   at 60 kg
Win 42–19   Dylan Long 7–0, 3–0 April 24–26, 2009 2009 US University National Championships

  Akron, Ohio

Win 41–19   Daniel Mitcheff 1–1, 6–0
Win 40–19   Conor Beebe 4–2, 4–2
Win 39–19   Jimmy Conror 2–0, 3–0
Win 38–19   Jayson Ness 5–1, 1–3, 2–1
Win 37–19   Quinton Leith TF 6–0, 7–0
Loss 36–19   Coleman Scott 0–4, 1–2
Win 36–18   Nikkien Fauntleroy TF 7–1, 7–1
Win 35–18   Brian Marcoux TF 6–0, 6–0
2009 US Nationals at 60 kg
Loss 34–18   Drew Headlee 0–1, 4–3, 0–4 April 9–11, 2009 2009 US National Championships

  Las Vegas, Nevada

Win 34–17   Teague Moore 4–0, 0–1, 0–7
Loss 33–17   Tyler Graff 0–3, 1–0, 0–1
2008 US University World Team Trials   at 60 kg
Loss 33–16   Reece Humphrey 0–1, 0–1 May 24, 2008 2008 US University World Team Trials

  Colorado

Win 33–15   Drew Headlee 3–0, 3–7, 2–0
2008 US Northeast Regionals   at 60 kg
Loss 32–15   Angel Cejudo 1–1, 1–1 May 10, 2008 2008 US Northeast Regional Championships

  Iowa

Win 32–14   Jayson Ness 1–1, 0–4, 2–1
Win 31–14   Ben Hanisch 6–0, 3–0
2008 US Nationals 8th at 60 kg
Loss 30–14   Drew Headlee 2–3, 0–6 April 26, 2008 2008 US National Championships

  Nevada

Loss 30–13   Dylan Long 4–0, 0–1, 0–7
Win 30–12   Alex Tsirtsis 1–1, 2–0, 1–0
Loss 29–12   Michael Lightner 0–3, 1–3
Win 29–11   Tyler Graff 6–0, 4–2 2008 US National Championships (qualifiers)
Loss 28–11   Dylan Long 2–3, 0–2
Win 28–10   Melvin Lofton 1–1, 2–0, 4–1
Win 27–10   Drew Headlee 2–1, 1–0
2008 US University Nationals   at 60 kg
Loss 26–10   Daniel Dennis 0–3, 0–3 April 13, 2008 2008 US University National Championships

  Ohio

Win 26–9   Alex Tsirtsis 4–1, 0–1, 3–1
Win 25–9   Chris Jenkins 7–0, 1–0
Win 24–9   Ben Hanisch TF 6–0, 6–0
Win 23–9   Dalton Bullard 1–0, 6–0
Win 22–9   Matthew Fisk 7–0, 1–1
2007 US World Team Trials at 60 kg
Loss 21–9   Josh Keefe 2–0, 2–3, 0–3 July 10, 2007 2007 US World Team Trials

  Nevada

Loss 21–8   Shawn Bunch 0–1, 3–4
Win 21–7   Eric Metzler 4–0, 3–0
2007 US University Nationals 7th at 60 kg
Win 20–7   Mike Grey 7–3, 7–3 April 22, 2007 2007 US University National Championships

  Ohio

Loss 19–7   Javier Maldonado 0–1, 2–3
Win 19–6   Terry Williams 4–1, 1–1, 1–0
Loss 18–6   Josh Keefe 0–5, 1–2
Win 18–5   Brent Clausing 5–0, 4–0
Win 17–5   Francisco Manriquez 2–0, 7–0
Win 16–5   Evan Forde TF 7–0, 7–0
2007 US Nationals at 60 kg
Loss 15–5   Joey Rivera 1–3, 5–3, 2–5 April 7, 2007 2007 US National Championships

  Nevada

Loss 15–4   Mike Zadick TF 0–7, 0–7
Win 15–3   Travis Drake 1–1, 5–1 2007 US National Championships (qualifiers)
Win 14–3   Bryan Osuna 3–0, 6–0
Win 13–3   Josh Keefe 6–0, 1–4, 4–3
Win 12–3   Angel Alegre TF 8–0, 6–0
Loss 11–3   Danny Felix 0–1, 0–1
2007 US Northeast Regionals   at 60 kg
Win 11–2   Danny Felix 1–0, 1–0 March 25, 2007 2007 US Northeast Regional Championships

  New York

Win 10–2   Jason Guffey TF 7–0, 6–0
Win 9–2   Michael Watts TF 8–0, 7–0
Win 8–2   Rob Labrake 4–2, 7–0
2006 US World Team Trials at 55 kg
Loss 7–2   Matt Azevedo 1–8, 0–2 May 28, 2006 2006 US World Team Trials

  Iowa

Win 7–1   Adam Smith Fall
Win 6–1   Michael Martinez 1–0, 3–5, 2–2
Loss 5–1   Henry Cejudo 1–0, 1–2, 1–3
Win 5–0   Luke Smith 4–2, 7–0
2006 US University Nationals   at 55 kg
Win 4–0   Luke Smith 3–0, 3–0 April 30, 2006 2006 US University National Championships

  Illinois

Win 3–0   Brad Pataky 3–0, 5–0
Win 2–0   Tim Kephart 3–0, 6–0
Win 1–0   Chris Heilman TF 6–0, 7–0

References

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  1. ^ Del Valle, Sara (August 10, 2012). "El Angel de Franklin Gómez". Primera Hora.
  2. ^ a b Rosa, Carlos (September 4, 2016). "Franklin Gómez: "El cariño de la gente me ha sorprendido"". El Nuevo Día.
  3. ^ Rosa, Carlos (August 12, 2012). "Sufrido y sin presea Franklin Gómez". El Nuevo Día.
  4. ^ Piñeiro, Noel (August 21, 2016). "Franklin Gómez se despide de Rio 2016". Primera Hora. Retrieved September 4, 2016.
  5. ^ "García Padilla vows protest over "theft" to Franklin Gómez". Caribbean Business. August 23, 2016. Retrieved September 4, 2016.
  6. ^ Evans, Bill (August 22, 2016). "Rio 2016: Officials suspended after 'suspicious' call involving ex-N.J. wrestler". NJ.com. Retrieved September 4, 2016.
  7. ^ Pillot, Víctor (September 3, 2016). "Expulsados los tres oficiales del combate de Franklin en Río". El Nuevo Día.
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