Olympics 2021: Wrestler Erica Wiebe's projected path to finals 

Rio Olympic gold medallist in the women's 76kg freestyle category Erica Wiebe will begin her title defense as wrestling action begins in Tokyo on Sunday (August 1). The Canadian has always stepped up on big occasions, as evident by her two Commonwealth Games gold medals.

At the 2018 World Championships, she fell short and had to settle for a bronze medal. This time, Erica Wiebe would hope to go all the way and grab gold.

Accred ✅Mask ✅Bucket Hat ✅Olympic Essentials pic.twitter.com/Mze6EMFtbQ

— Erica Wiebe (@ericawiebe) July 30, 2021

So who could stand in the way of Erica Wiebe's quest for glory? Let's find out.

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Erica Wiebe's projected path to finals

Round of 16 - Epp Mae (Estonia)

Estonia's Epp Mae won bronze medals at the 2015 and 2019 World Championships and was Erica's first-round opponent at the 2016 Rio Olympic Games. That time, the Canadian came out on top with a margin of 6-4.

But with experience on her side, it remains to be seen if Epp Mae can make a turnaround this time.

Quarter-finals - Hiroe Minagawa (Japan)

Japan's Hiroe Minagawa won a silver medal at the 2019 World Championships before clinching bronze medals in the 2018 and 2017 editions of the tournament.

Despite being active in the same weight category for many years, Hiroe and Erica haven't come face-to-face with each other previously. A match at the Olympics should make for an interesting battle.

Semi-finals - Zhou Qian (China)

Zhou Qian at the podium of 2018 Asian Games

China's Zhou Qian has posed a threat to her challengers in the Asian circuit but hasn't enjoyed the same success at the international level. Qian was the winner of the 2018 Asian Games as well as the 2018 Asian Championships.

Qian will go all-out against Erica but the latter is expected to come out on top.

Finals - Adeline Gray (USA)

The finals of the women's 76kg freestyle category is expected to be a showdown between Canada's Erica Wiebe and USA's Adeline Gray. The duo crossed swords at the 2018 World Championships, with the latter emerging on top with a 3-1 victory.

Erica needs to put that defeat behind and look to turn the tables against Adeline at Tokyo Olympics 2020.