Amine won a bronze medal for San Marino in the 2020 Olympics.
Amine, representing the small republic in central Italy, became the University of Michigan's second-ever Olympic wrestling medalist. Amine is the top seed in the NCAA Wrestling Championships at the 184-weight class.
Amine was able to take an extra year of eligibility to come back and wrestle for a chance at individual and team titles, even though he wouldn't be wrestling this week. He has finished fourth and third in the NCAA tournament, but hasn't been able to win.
Amine has one last chance to win the game for himself and his team. Amine and his teammates are looking to win their first NCAA title when the tournament starts on Thursday.
He beat the NCAA champion from Penn State in overtime in the Big Ten tournament. He is one of two Michigan wrestlers who are 1-seeds in their divisions and have a good chance of winning.
After starting his career at Penn State, he moved to Rutgers where he won an individual title, and then to Michigan where he wants to repeat that result.
Amine, who grew up in Michigan and wrestled for Detroit Catholic Central, winning a national title in front of a home crowd at Little Caesar's Arena would be a storybook ending to his career.
He is one of the unique storylines to watch in the NCAA tournament. Here is a look at what to look out for this week.
NCAA athletes were given the chance to take an extra year of eligibility due to the restrictions from COVID-19.
Some wrestlers have taken a normal redshirt, some have also taken an Olympic redshirt, and some have taken medical redshirts. There is an opportunity for athletes such as Amine to participate in their seventh year. The more exciting tournaments could be made more exciting by the fact that there are so many experienced wrestlers in the field.
The end of the line for so many wrestlers means it will be an emotional tournament.
Kevin Claunch, a wrestling analyst at the website Bloodround.com, said that most aren't going pro in wrestling after wrestling. This is the deepest that the NCAA wrestling tournament has ever been.
Gable Steveson is one of the more talked about wrestlers in the tournament. He is the far and away No. 1 seed in his division because of his size, strength and technique.
Stevenson won an Olympic gold medal in Tokyo in August after trailing Georgia. He has a chance to win it all in the NCAA tournament, as he had two takedowns in the final 15 seconds to win the title.
WHAT JUST HAPPENED! 🥇@GableSteveson grabs the GOLD as time expires. #TokyoOlympics pic.twitter.com/yqMc3wbXsu
— NBC Olympics (@NBCOlympics) August 6, 2021
Steveson is above the competition this week according to Claunch.
The way he beats his competition, he takes these other guys who are some of the best in the world and makes it look like they just started wrestling. He is a wrestler and also a really good athlete. His technique is amazing, but he is a wrestler first.
Steveson has already signed a deal with the WWE that will allow him to become a pro wrestler after this.
Steveson was able to learn a lot from Brock Lesnar as he prepared for the NCAA tournament.
Gable said that when he was a kid, he didn't know how to make it to the WWE, but when he got to the University of Minnesota, he learned how to make connections. It is amazing that a guy like that has noticed me and has gone out of his way to be there for me and guide me in the right direction.
The Big Ten has a lot of wrestlers in the NCAA tournament. Its 88 wrestlers are 30 more than the next closest conference and 46 more than the next closest association.
The conference has seven wrestlers ranked as 1-seeds, including Steveson from Minnesota at 285 pounds, Amine from Michigan at 185, Carter Starocci from 174, Nick Lee from 141 and Roman Bravo-Young from 133.
The Big Ten is the best conference in the sport and this season is no different.
The Ivy League wrestlers did not participate last season because of COVID-19.
There is a chance for some of the Ivy League wrestlers to make a name for themselves in the tournament, given that no one saw them last season. The 1-seed in the 149-pound weight class from Cornell, Yianni Diakomihalis, has won two national titles and was a representative in the world championships last year.
He didn't wrestle last year because he took an Olympic redshirt and Cornell didn't compete.
Austin Gomez pinned Ridge Lovett in 20 seconds in the Big Ten tournament, which will be a tough road for Diakomihalis. If the tournament goes as predicted, he will find himself with another title.
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