Yaraslau Slavikouski is determined to win national title in final Rutgers wrestling season
When graduate student 285-pounder Yaraslau Slavikouski entered the transfer portal on April 3, fans of the Rutgers wrestling team were shocked. Head coach Scott Goodale thought he had lost his starter at heavyweight, the program's first All-American at that weight class since 1964.
"Usually you go in the portal, you don't come out," Goodale said. "He's not from this country, this was an opportunity for him, he did that. Fortunately, he came back and we're glad to have him, I can tell you that."
It was a surprising turn of events – after earning All-American honors at the NCAA Championships on March 23, Slavikouski was asked if he would return for his final year of eligibility.
"That's the plan," he told the media. So, the confusion was justified when the news that Slavikouski had decided to enter the transfer portal broke. But 26 days later, Slavikouski decided to come back to the Banks for his final season as a Scarlet Knight.
But why did Slavikouski enter the portal in the first place? And why did he decide to come back to Rutgers?
"After nationals I just wanted to evaluate and consider all options I had to become better and to become a national champion this year," he said. "The decision was that Rutgers was the best option for me and we made it work and I'm happy to be here."
Slavikouski's ultimate goal of winning a national title is far from impossible – he finished seventh at the NCAA Championships and fourth at the Big Ten Championships. He's currently ranked No. 5 in his weight class by Intermat.
Over the summer, Slavikouski spent three weeks with Georgian wrestler Geno Petriashvili, the gold medal winner in the men's 125kg freestyle event at the 2024 Summer Olympics.
"That was an awesome experience," Slavikouski said. "I sparred with (Petriahsvili), I wrestled him so many times I lost count … It was awesome to have that opportunity to wrestle with the best and compare myself to the best out there to see their work ethic, see their approach to match, to train, to warmups, to everything. He's a great guy, he's a super nice guy and super welcoming."
Goodale is confident in Slavikouski and knows he has improved over the summer.
"He's got a lot better, but he goes about it differently, he's just so darn quiet, which is great, it's really refreshing," he said.
Slavikouski still has some tough competition ahead of him. Penn State's Greg Kerkvliet is the favorite to win the national title for a second straight season and defeated Slavikouski 9-0 in the semifinals of the Big Ten Championships in March.
When asked if Slavikouski could win a national title this season, Goodale fully backed the Rechitsa, Belarus, product.
"Can he? On any given day sure, he's good enough to do that," Goodale said. "But there's some really good guys there, there's a defending national champ there and I just want him to get better today."
Slavikouski and the Knights will start their season on November 9 in Bethlem, Pennsylvania, against Duke and Franklin & Marshall.
"I know that I'm up there, and I'm one of the best guys in the heavyweight division," Slavikouski said. I'm looking forward to this year to pretty much correct mistakes I made last season and get better."
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