Inside HOKIE SPORTS | Vol. 12 No. 2 | October 2019

inside.hokiesports.com 43 Before the game or after , Preston’s Restaurant is a delicious place for a new game-day tradition. Start with our fresh breakfast buffet. Order lunch or dinner from our mouth-watering a la carte menu of seasonal cuisine. And don’t forget the Valley’s best brunch, every Sunday at Preston’s. Make Preston’s Restaurant your game-day tradition. @PrestonsRestaurant @PrestonsIVTSCC 540.231.0120 | www.InnatVirginiaTech.com 901 Prices Fork Rd, Blacksburg, VA 24061 (inside The Inn at Virginia Tech) Reservations recommended. A delicious game-day tradition. from the bottom position in folkstyle wrestling, whereas in freestyle, a wrestler does not do anything from the bottom except try not to get turned. Also, in freestyle wrestling, wrestlers can lock his/her hands—something forbidden in folkstyle unless trying to pin or take down an opponent. In addition, the scoring and rules are a little different. Most international tournaments, including the Olympics, feature freestyle wrestling, and Lewis received his first taste of that at the Junior World Championships. He obviously adapted rather well. “It’s just learning how to be more technical and savvy,” Lewis said. “In folkstyle, I know different stuff that I could do to get an advantage on an opponent. Now, I’ve got to learn certain things that I can do in freestyle, so I can get certain advantages on my opponent. Freestyle is more tactical. There are more tactics that go into it, and I need to get better at that type of wrestling.” Lewis spentmuch of August and September getting his body healthy after a long season and getting himself back into shape. He swore off Popeye’s, pizza and wings and only partakes in the healthy version of slushees. That emphasis on getting into condition came in handy when he traveled with Walz to Khasavjurt, Russia in early October for the Continental Cup. He came in fifth, but the event allowed him to gain even more freestyle experience against some of the world’s best wrestlers. PAST VIRGINIA TECH OLYMPIANS Country Name Event Olympics Represented Todd Scully men’s 20K racewalk 1976 Summer Olympics (Montreal, Canada) United States $ Bimbo Coles men’s basketball 1988 Summer Olympics (Seoul, South Korea) United States Kaan Tayla men’s swimming 2004 Summer Olympics (Athens, Greece) Turkey & Ieva Kublina women’s basketball 2008 Summer Olympics (Beijing, China) Latvia Nare Diawara women’s basketball 2008 Summer Olympics (Beijing, China) Mali % Queen Harrison women’s track and field 2008 Summer Olympics (Beijing, China) United States Marcel Lomnick y men’s track and field 2012 Summer Olympics (London, England) Slovakia * Katarina Filova women’s swimming 2012 Summer Olympics (London, England) Slovakia Norbert Szabo men’s swimming 2016 Summer Olympics (Rio de Janeiro, Brazil) Hungary @ Carmen Farmer women’s rugby 2016 Summer Olympics (Rio de Janeiro, Brazil) United States # Kristi Castlin women’s track and field 2016 Summer Olympics (Rio de Janeiro, Brazil) United States Darrell Wesh men’s track and field 2016 Summer Olympics (Rio de Janeiro, Brazil) Haiti * - also competed in the 2016 Summer Olympics @ - qualified and made the team, but did not compete # - played softball at Virginia Tech & - also competed in the 2008 Summer Olympics % - did not play because of an injury $ - also a member of the 1980 U.S. team that boycotted the games Once he returned from that, he began preparing for the 2019 Bill Farrell Memorial held in New York City in late November. He needs to perform well there to qualify for the U.S. Olympic Trials, which take place April 4-5 in State College, Pennsylvania. Lewis knows the road won’t be easy. He took on all competitors last spring when he beat the No. 1, No. 2 and No. 4 seeds at 165 pounds to win the national championship, but qualifying for an Olympic team represents the ultimate challenge. Of course, it should. To beat the best in the world, a nation needs to send its best. Lewis realizes that—and readily embraces the undeniable task ahead. “This is a big opportunity,” he said. “I know it’s going to be a long journey, but I know, at the end, if I put my mind to it, I can accomplish the goals that I have set.”