Grace Bullen has been outside the Norwegian national team since July 2022 due to a conflict with the wrestling association. On Wednesday afternoon, she announced her comeback. – It has been a journey. A journey with a goal we have all met, I think. We have worked very hard on my part and the association’s. That’s why it feels good to stand here and know that we can do even better for Norwegian wrestling, and especially women’s wrestling, said Bullen. She confirmed at the same time that she will aim for the Olympics in Los Angeles in 2028. – It will be four very exciting years for me, she said, and announced that she wants to do even better there than in Paris when she won bronze. Don’t want to go to Norway now: – Not a good idea There will still not be a move to Norway anytime soon. She will continue to live in Georgia for one more year. There she trains daily with the men. – Coming here right away is not a good idea for me. That is also why I am staying in Georgia for one more year. I need to maintain the intensity I am used to, so slowly but surely move back to Norway. – I need the sparring that exists there, which I don’t have in Norway yet. I spend that year here being in Georgia a lot, but also take what I can take back to Norway when I move back home in September, Bullen told news. The plan is to move to Fredrikstad. Gaining recognition The new collaboration takes place after she and the wrestling association have put a bitter dispute behind them. Grace Bullen gets Zurab Iakobishvili as coach. The Georgian coach took Bullen under his wing after she broke with the wrestling association. – It will be incredibly fun to see Norwegian wrestling abroad, said Bullen. Iakobishvili says he will do what he can to develop Norwegian wrestling in the coming years. He will stay until 2028, says sports manager Erling Strand. – As we have gotten to know “Sura” better, we see that he is the right coach for Norway as well, so I am quite sure that it is important to have Sura in here for Grace to be back, says the sports director. – How happy are you that you are now back in the national team? – Very happy that she is back, not least that she is so clear that she wants to be involved and contribute to the rest of the development of women’s wrestling in Norway. It’s gratifying, so I think many people will be very happy about that, he says. – The crap in Norwegian top wrestling Grace Bullen has been outside the national team since July 2022. Before she chose to wrestle with the Norwegian wrestling association, she was without a coach for a period and was the only athlete on the senior national team. – I don’t think that the association sucks in Norwegian women’s wrestling, but they screw up in Norwegian top wrestling, Bullen said when she took a strong stand with the Norwegian Wrestling Federation. When a new coach was hired, Bullen was not happy with the choice. She believed that the association landed on a coach who was better suited for younger athletes, not for her, who was betting on the Olympics in Paris. – The association has not given me an offer that can produce results. They have made offers, but none of them were good enough for me, said Bullen after the national team exit. A short time later, she moved to Georgia and ended up under the wing of the Georgian coach Zurab Iakobishvili. The collaboration with Iakobishvili continued right up to the Olympics. She also became part of the Georgian national team and trained with them for the last three years before the Olympics. BRONZE JUBILEE: Grace Bullen went down on her knees after the Olympic bronze was secured. Photo: Arlette Bashizi / Reuters When Bullen secured the medal, she told news that she hoped the bronze could give a boost to Norwegian women’s wrestling. Two days later, when she landed on Norwegian soil, with the Olympic bronze in her luggage, she told the media that she was still uncertain about the coming years in terms of a national team comeback. The union then replied that they had faith in landing an agreement. – Everything depends on how the arrangement with the wrestling association turns out for both me and the rest of the national team girls, said Bullen at Gardermoen to a combined press corps. Published 09.10.2024, at 14.01 Updated 09.10.2024, at 14.44
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Grace Bullen continues her wrestling venture – news Sport – Sports news, results and broadcast schedule
