Former Michigan wrestling student aims for another medal at the 2024 Olympic Games in Paris

Myles Amine left the wrestling mat at the 2020 Olympic Games in Tokyo with mixed feelings.

The University of Michigan graduate converted a late single-leg kick to defeat India’s Deepak Punia 3-2 and claim a bronze medal in the 86-kilogram (189-pound) freestyle weight class – San Marino’s first Olympic medal in wrestling.

But he also believed he had a chance at gold, and due to COVID-19 restrictions, he had no family or friends in Tokyo to support him.

Amine has a chance at another medal at the 2024 Olympic Games in Paris this month.

“I think the biggest difference is there will be fans and a lot of my family and friends are going, so I’m a little more excited for this Olympics,” Amine told MLive. “It feels different because having been there, I’m a little more relaxed about the whole process. I feel like a lot of the fear comes from not knowing what’s going to happen and having experienced a lot of those variables. I think I’m a little more relaxed because I’m experienced, or as experienced as I can be going into the Olympics.”

Amine, who was born in Michigan but plays for San Marino due to his family’s San Marino citizenship, has no shortage of international experience. The Detroit Catholic Central graduate took an Olympic redshirt during the 2019-20 college season to prepare for the Tokyo Games and stayed in Ann Arbor after graduating in 2022 to train with the Cliff Keen Wrestling Club, a nonprofit that manages the Olympic Regional Training Center at UM.

He won bronze at the 2023 World Championships, losing to second-placed Iranian Hassan Yazdani in the quarterfinals before fighting back to win bronze in the repechage.

Last month, Amine competed at a ranking event in Budapest against a handful of wrestlers who will be in the Olympic field. He heads to Paris as the No. 3 ranked wrestler in his division. Four other former Michigan wrestlers will also compete at the 2024 Games: Mason Parris (USA), Stevan Micic (Serbia), Austin Gomez (Mexico) and Adam Coon (USA, Greco-Roman).

RELATED: “Parris in Paris”: Former UM wrestler secures Olympic gold in a fully occupied class

“Myles has a ton of international experience and has competed against the best guys in the world every year,” said Michigan head coach Sean Bormet, who is also one of six CKWC coaches. “We know exactly who his competition is and what he needs to do to be in the running for gold.”

At the collegiate level, Amine became the first five-time NCAA All-American, thanks to an extra year of eligibility student-athletes received due to the pandemic. He is one of the most decorated wrestlers in UM history with a career record of 125-23 and a runner-up finish at the 2022 NCAA Championships. No stage is as big as the Olympics, but he treats it like any other tournament.

With 16 wrestlers on the field, he hopes to be the last one standing.

“It’s just the relaxed training and reminding myself that this isn’t my first rodeo,” he said of his mindset. “I know what to expect. A lot of the competitors that I’ve wrestled and competed against, and even the guys that I’ve never competed against, it’s not like I would say I’m not prepared for anyone. This international experience just gives me a little more confidence knowing what my abilities are and I can step out on the world stage and compete with the best.”