“Almost four years ago, our son Ashton Mutuwa graduated as an All-American wrestler, a title that spoke volumes about his dedication, talent and hard work. But life, as it often does, took him on a different path, and wrestling took a back seat to his full-time career as a cybersecurity analyst at Yum! Brands. While focusing on his career, he stayed connected and plugged in to the sport by coaching and mentoring younger wrestlers. That is until last fall when the dream of competing at the highest levels of wrestling ignited”, said Sanusi Mutuwa.
Sanusi Mutuwa is the father of Paris 2024 Olympic Games-bound Ashton Mutuwa who captured his son’s journey to Paris in a tribute to the young man after he picked a ticket to the 2024 Olympic Games in France.
Ashton Mutuwa was born in the United States (US) and has virtually spent his life in the US where he discovered and nurtured his talent for wrestling. However, his Nigerian heritage proved a stronger tug on his heart when it came to wrestling for either Nigeria or the US. Thus, Mutuwa picked Nigeria to where he then jetted in order to compete against the established national champions in his bid to pick a ticket to the 2023 African Games and Olympic Qualifiers.
The road to the top was not without its challenges. But Mutuwa was determined to achieve his dream of competing at the Olympic Games. For instance, he arrived in Nigeria to a scorching 37 degrees weather, from a -14 degree cold in the US. It was a homecoming which demanded a huge physical and mental adjustment. Mutuwa’s will to represent Nigeria on the global stage trumped the punishing hot weather conditions as he stayed on course to achieve his qualification dreams.
Recalling this initial, testy stage, Mutuwa told Sportsafricana exclusively: “I have always been really proud to be a Nigerian. I didn’t have the opportunity to visit much growing up and I feel like I missed out a lot in many ways; the culture, the people, and especially my family. I will forever be grateful to America for teaching me the sport and the opportunities I have had to wrestle, but I thought it would be really special to represent Nigeria at the Olympics. To do that for my dad and family just feels incredible. My parents met in Nigeria so I know it’s special for my mom too. When I saw an opportunity to represent Nigeria I didn’t hesitate. It allows me to visit the country while doing what I love. It allows me to fully dive into the culture and see various parts of Nigeria, and it allows me to reconnect with family I haven’t seen in years. There is no doubt I am blessed to live this life.”
Going over how he arrived at the decision to represent Nigeria instead of the US, Mutuwa said: “For me it was a pretty easy decision. As I stated before I am very grateful to be a U.S. citizen as well as a Nigerian citizen and it is by no means a jab at the US. However for all the reasons listed above I really wanted to represent Nigeria. I was not forced at all to represent Nigeria but it actually took a lot of work to coordinate and plan my trip to represent Nigeria. It was expensive, stressful, and time consuming, it’s just something I wanted really bad. Seeing my friend from my hometown in the US represent his country of heritage, Serbia, is what initially inspired me.”
Mutuwa’s first experience of the national trials in Nigeria was not hassle-free. His words: “The experience of the national trials was unforgettable. I was very sick the days leading up to my travels and my wrestling was off. I was very nervous my body would let me down. I was very weak, and the weather was very hot. When I left the states it was -14. When I landed in Yenagoa it was 37 degrees. So my body was really struggling. I just had to remind myself how badly I wanted it. The environment was awesome and the event ran smoothly. I will never forget the national trials. Of course I had some people who were upset I was there but the majority of people were super supportive. The Nigeria wrestling team is like a family.”
This first encounter left a good impression on Mutuwa as he went on to say that “wrestling in Nigeria is very tough. There is something about the Naija blood that breeds strong people. The strength combined with the determination of these athletes is a deadly combination.”
Having experienced it first-hand, Mutuwa has developed a lofty dream for Nigerian wrestling: “I would like to see Nigeria become a nation that regularly wins medals at the world championships and Olympic levels. I think as the sport grows we may begin to see that. I am not sure if there are many opportunities for youth wrestling but maybe when there is or if there is we will start to see a dominant trend,” he said.
Still on his initial experience at the national trials, Mutuwa stated: “I had no expectations before coming to Nigeria but I remember the first person I wrestled was the 86kg champion, Harrison. As soon as we started wrestling I knew that there were some talented wrestlers in Nigeria. I was happy to see how good they were.
“I must admit that it was not easy at all competing against some of the established wrestlers in Nigeria like one of them called Progress. He is a very strong athlete and he’s experienced in multiple grappling sports, traditional wrestling, judo, and freestyle, maybe even more. I love tough competition and that’s what I got so it was great that I had a tough match to qualify.”
Although he was making his debut at the 13th African Games in Ghana, Mutuwa made the podium with a silver medal to show for his effort. Of that debut experience, he said: “The African Games was decent. I think Ghana ran into a few issues which is understandable as hosting the games is a very strenuous task. Overall I had a good time but there were some things that could have been handled better.
“At the African Games I knew that wrestling is never easy. I struggled in my first match just because I didn’t warm up properly. And in my next few matches I dominated which felt good, but even then it was not easy. I was not surprised that I made the podium in Ghana at all. If anything, I was hoping to take the gold.”
After the African Games, Mutuwa landed at the African Championships where he lost 12-0 to the superiority of Youssif Hemida of Egypt in the 125kg final to settle for the silver medal in readiness for the Olympic Games qualifiers.
Needing only two wins to secure his place at the Paris Olympic Games, Mutuwa produced a spirited display in the deciding bout to overpower South African Justin Van Zyl in a 16-8 pinfall to secure the Olympic slot.
“Qualifying for the Olympic Games was not easy at all because the first guy I wrestled was incredibly strong. Luckily I was able to use my speed and technique to secure a pin. My second opponent I had beaten 12-1 the week before but I was over-thinking my match and he started out with a 7-2 lead. I knew I could come back and win but by the time I pinned him I was exhausted,” he recalled.
Bagging medals at the World Championships and medalling at the Olympic Games are priorities for Mutuwa. According to him, “aside from medalling at the world championships or the Olympics, qualifying for the Olympics is one of the biggest things you can accomplish in wrestling. It means so much to achieve that. It still feels unbelievable.”
On how he is preparing for the Paris Olympics, Mutuwa said: “Lots of wrestling, lifting, and eating. I need to sharpen up a few skills and get stronger, I’ll put in the work. My goal is to always have fun. I usually find success when I do that. I want to medal at the Olympics and I have a lot of work to do before accomplishing that. For now I’ll put in the work and when I get there I’ll have fun.”