The Amateur Wrestler sits down with 1999 World and 2000 Olympic Wrestling Champion, Daniel Igali.

Q: When did you start wrestling?
A: I started wrestling at a very young age, maybe around age six. However, I didn't start getting instruction in freestyle wrestling until 1990. Before then, I was involved in a Nigerian folkstyle wrestling.

Q: How did you get involved with wrestling?
A: Well, I'm not really sure. I just grew up wrestling. There was not one incident or one person that sparked a fire in me. In my tribe, the Ijaw tribe in Nigeria, wrestling is our favorite pastime and most people wrestle for the fun of it.

Q: What do you like most about wrestling?
A: The fact that you get to make all the decisions which in the end either makes or breaks you. Though referees can be influential in matches these days, for the most part, I have the power to decide my own fate. There's no better feeling then when I'm in the center of a mat going head to head with my opponent. I like that feeling of control.

Q: How has your life changed since winning the World Championships?
A: My life has been a little different. People call me the Champ or World champ, which sometimes takes me back a bit. I always wondered how a World Champion felt when the belt was put on his/her waist, but now I know. Financially, my life has improved as well, but not as much as a World Champion should be getting. But all the same, I am grateful to God for all his mercies. The fact remains that I will be a World Champion for life. What interests me the most about winning the World Championship is the recognition the sport has received. I believe it is very good for wrestling.

Q: What are your goals/dreams (wrestling and in life)
A: Well, my goals in wrestling are to have a successful wrestling career, and hopefully win a gold medal at the Olympics Games, God willing. I want to end my career on my own terms, without any nagging injuries and to be able to impart my knowledge to younger ones in the sport. In terms of a career, my aim is to work in the criminal justice department in some capacity after I will finish my criminology degree in the fall, right after the Olympics. But if I land a job working in a sporting field, criminology might have to take second place.

Q: What are you doing to prepare for the Olympics in Sydney?
A: The Olympics are my biggest dream, and I am grateful to God that it is almost a reality. With the adequate and competent guidance of my Coaches, Dave Mckay and Mike Jones, I am following a well regimented training schedule which consists of three cardio sessions, three weight sessions and five scrimmage sessions per week. In addition, with the assistance of Pacisic sports and the National Training Centre in Vancouver, I have access to physicians and a massage therapist who I see a few times per week. So, things in that respect are going really well.

>> Continued (Part 2 of 2)

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