Verbeek has hold on silver

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This article was published 10/08/2012 (4999 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

LONDON — Canadian wrestler Tonya Verbeek won the silver medal at the London Olympics on Thursday after losing to Japan’s Saori Yoshida in the 55-kilogram freestyle final.

Yoshida scored three points on a takedown in the first round and added two more points in the second for her third straight Olympic title.

Verbeek, from Thorold, Ont., has reached the Olympic podium at the last three Games but has yet to win gold.

“Always a tough match against her,” Verbeek said. “But you know what? I felt really good going in and I felt like I gave my everything. I feel strong out there, I really do. It’s just some things — it’s not quite enough in certain positions.”

The Canadian won Olympic bronze in Beijing four years ago and took the silver at the 2004 Games in Athens.

Verbeek has yet to beat Yoshida in nine career meetings. The 29-year-old Japanese star has won the world title at 55 kilos in nine of the last 10 years.

Canadian coach Marty Calder said they were prepared for the challenge and had no plans to surrender.

“We’re competitors. We come here and we give it our best and we give ourselves hope,” Calder said.

It was Canada’s second women’s freestyle wrestling medal of the Games. Carol Huynh of Calgary won bronze in the 48-kilo division Wednesday.

Verbeek qualified for the final with an impressive victory over Jackeline Renteria Castillo of Colombia. She was confident entering the gold-medal bout after pushing Yoshida the distance at last year’s world championships.

The pair spent the first minute of the opening round feeling each other out. Yoshida made her move with 20 seconds left, picking up the Canadian and bulldozing her with a takedown for three points.

The near-capacity crowd at the ExCeL London North Arena 2 roared its approval. The 10,000-seat venue was packed with Japanese fans, easily outnumbering the few Canadian fans in attendance.

Yoshida went for another takedown attempt in the second round and scored a single point, a decision Verbeek’s coach challenged. The ruling stood and Yoshida went on to win the round and the match.

“I felt that they gave the point a little too fast, but that’s sport,” she said.

Verbeek, who turns 35 next month, will compete at the world championships later this year. She said this will be her last Olympic Games.

The other Canadian in action on Thursday, Calgary’s Leah Callahan, lost her opening bout in the 72-kilo division and was later eliminated.

Verbeek said she started slow in her first match of the day before finding her rhythm en route to three straight victories.

“I broke free from the nerves,” she said. “The second match I stepped on, and I felt a lot more at ease and more natural. I’ve been doing this for 18 years, so I should be able to know what I’m doing by now, right?

— The Canadian Press