To do or not to do? the battle is within and the reluctance is strong. for so many days i don't feel like am up for the experience. i was worn out and consumed thrashed depleted and over with. the day isn't just mine. i feel where it counts that the time has come to proceed onward to something new to lift up my hands in surrender to an on-foreseeing foe. suddenly i understood that it was the deceiver talking. oh dear i realized that i am considerably more grounded than i thought i was.
It is now set for two former foes to clash, familiar Lions of the arena, captains of their own teams and real heavyweights in the African traditional wrestling, to face each other once again, come January 1st, 2019. To them, there is no ground more familiar than the encircled soft sand of the arena. the shouts by fans and the chants of marabous urging on for the kill.
The two had encountered each other about 8 years ago, precisely on 07 August, 2012 which saw Balla Gaye 2 defeating Modou Lo. That was a loss Modou will never forget because it was the first defeat in his entire career as a wrestler. Conversely, no wrestler will find it funny to experience defeat after 14 good successful wins in a row.
Balla Gaye 2 whose real name is Omar Sakho is 32 years of age and is the son of Mamadou Sakho, a former Greco-Roman wrestling champion who dominated African style of wrestling from 1981 to 1988. Gaye 2 himself has dominated African wrestling and was a former King of the arena from 2012 to 2014. He stands 1.86 m tall and weighs 125 kg. He started wrestling at a tender age and became a champion when his peers were still trying to get their footing. Having inherited the trade from his old man, it will be safe to say that Gaye 2 is a wrestler through and through. A few years ago, he experienced series of looses that threatens the existence and reputation their team which he captains.
Modou Lo is a short form of his birth name Mamadou Lo, born 33 years ago, 1.80 m tall and weighs around 115 kg. He is the current leader of their team Rock Energy. Modou started wrestling in 2005/2006 season after trying his hands on different trades having dropped out of school early in life. As a wrestler, he has 22 career fights out of which he won 19, lost 2 and drew 1. Modou is reputed to be among the top 3 active wrestling champions of his generation.
A lot of water has passed under the bridge since their first bout in 2012 and Modou now thinks he is better prepared mentally, spiritually as well as physically to repair the dent done to his winning tallies some years back. It is said that the experts think the odds to be against Gaye 2 considering how good his opponent Modou has been in recent times. But these are common postulations used before fights for psychological reasons against an opponent by already inclined wrestling experts.
Gaye 2 who has gone two years without a fight since his defeat in the hands of the current champion of the Bull ring Eumeu Sane has physical battles to fight. Wrestling experts have come to terms with his now recent and not so obvious convincing physical and muscular power. It is also obvious that he has been out of shape and will need to shade those extra pounds gained over the months of inactivity. It is left to be seen whether those dragging weights around the belly will be shade on time in other to be in an excellent physical condition for such an all important bout. The good news is that Gaye 2 has decided to enroll with one of the most reputable fitness center, INSEP in the French capital. The fitness center is known to fast track the process of preparing athletes in getting back to shape within a particular time frame.
Of particular interest to this story is that Balla Beye who was the personal trainer of Modou as a debutant is now turned the personal trainer of Gaye 2. This diversion is a ploy on the part of Gaye 2 team to put Modou’s team guessing. Pundits put it that such move will unsettle any opponent who sees a former mentor on the opposite side. There have been calls for the alliance between Gaye 2 and Beye to be disbanded. Nevertheless, there is neither existing law nor any form of barrier against such alliances. This call may not be unconnected with the fact that Beye is known to have strange and negative influence over decision making during and after wrestling matches. This influence has done long and lasting damage to traditional wrestling in Africa as a whole. For this reason, this match is considered as Modou’s fight of his life, because another loss is not an option with or without his former mentor at his side.
As the two prepare of meet each other for the second time, it will be important to point out that both of them are champions in their own rights. The odds which were hitherto predicted for or against an opponent can change in the arena when the two come face to face. Gaye 2 intends to retain his dominance and superiority of 8 years ago, while Modou is fighting the fight of his life. Winning an equal foe that is sided by a previous trainer is a must and as such he is predicted to be armed with all the accouterments of African traditional wrestling, to "come out all guns blazing".
Thank you for stopping by as usual. @izge
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