By Mike Finn, W.I.N. Editor

Jake Deitchler was down 5-0 as the par terre phase of the second period began during his second match with Faruk Sahin in the 145.5-pound Championship Series at the Olympic Trials.

            If Sahin, who won the first period of that match, had scored just one more point, he would have forced a third-and-deciding match to determine the United States’ representative at that weight in Greco-Roman competition for the 2008 Olympics in Beijing, China.

            Instead, Deitchler not only defended Sahin’s offensive advantage for 30 seconds, which gave him one point, he actually was able to reverse his opponent by stepping over Sahin’s turn and scored two more back points without exposing his own back to take a 4-3 lead. In the final 30 seconds, Deitchler used his par terre advantage to score three more points for a 7-5 victory to set up a third period, which the 18-year-old native of Minnesota also won 3-0 to become the United States’ youngest Olympian since Michael Farina in 1976.

            As impressive as Deitchler was in being able to score with a reverse lift — something he did well in upsetting two-time bronze medalist Harry Lester in the semifinals of the Trials — it was his ability to score offensive points in a defensive position that surprised nearly everyone in the Thomas & Mack Center.

            “He doesn’t know (who he did that),” said his coach Brandon Paulson, a 1996 Greco-Roman Olympian.

            “They don’t teach me that,” added Deitchler, who is just a few months removed from winning a third Minnesota state (folkstyle) championship at Anoka High School in the Minneapolis suburb. “(Paulson) tells me not to do it, but for some reason I can do it to a lot of people. Obviously, I just came out of high school wrestling, where I do a lot of  sit-outs and things like that … and I feel comfortable doing things like that.”

            “He’s a phenomenal athlete and he’s very competitive,” said Paulson. “When he’s down, he has to score points and he has to win because he hates to lose.

            As positive as that move proved for Deitchler at the Trials, will it help him in Beijing, where he will be the youngest of a relatively young American squad?

            The average age of the 16 Americans competing in Beijing — the U.S. only qualified six weights in both men’s freestyle and Greco Roman to go along with four women’s freestyle weights — is 26 years and four months old. If you take away the three wrestlers who are over 30 — freestyler Doug Schwab, 30, and Greco-Roman wrestlers T.C. Dantzler, 37, Brad Vering, 30, and Dremiel Byers, 33 — the average drops to just over 24 years.

            That age medium is even younger than the 17 members of the 2004 Olympic team, whose average age of 26 years and nine months old. But unlike the 2004 team, which included five wrestlers — four (Dennis Hall, Jim Gruenwald, Garrett Lowney and Rulon Gardner) in Greco-Roman — who had participated in previous Olympics, there are only two 2008 Olympians with any past Games experience: 211.5-pound freestyler Daniel Cormier and Vering, who each competed on the 2004 team.

            But history is also on the United States’ side considering 2004 first-timers Stephen Abas (silver), Jamill Kelly (silver) and Cael Sanderson (gold) all medaled, while onlyGardner (bronze) brought home a medal for the American Greco-Roman program.

            The optimistic view of the United States’ factor suggests that the young American’s hunger will make up for any lack of experience.

            T.C. Dantzler, 37, the oldest American on any of the teams, is competing in his first Olympics, but believes he can offer suggestions to his others teammates like Deitchler and 21-year-old Spenser Mango.

“Enjoy the moment, live in the moment,” said Dantzler, who has competed in five World Championships. “Go out there and show what you can do and be excited about it.”

            The U.S. women’s team is completely new from the four women who competed in the inaugural women’s Olympics in 2004, but their collective ages (24 years, six months) is older than the 2004 group (23 years, six months) as both Clarissa Chun and Marcie Van Dusen (each 26) are older than any of the group who competed in Athens, Greece, four years ago.

            “I just think the younger generation wants it real bad,” said Ali Bernard, 22, who is six years younger than Katie Downing, whom she defeated for the 158.5-pound weight class.

            “It’s every four years and you better pick it up now because four years from now you don’t know what you will be doing,” said Bernard, a two-time Junior World champion.

            “Actually, I feel like a veteran. I used to be the young kid and everyone felt great for the young kid.”

            Can you imagine how fans will feel if these youngsters win in China?