Wilson's lofty hopes take unexpected tumble

By SCOTT PITONIAK

Gannett News Service

ATHENS, Greece — The higher the expectations, the harder the fall. Ellen Wilson entered her second Olympics with lofty hopes of a top-seven finish, perhaps even a medal, in judo.

Instead, she was thrown for a loss, dropping both of her matches.

"I went into the day feeling great,'' the Salinas, Calif., native said several hours later, while hanging out with her parents, Tommy and Joanne Wilson. "I was totally pumped up. What happened totally blew me away. I'm still stunned.''

What happened was a loss in five minutes to Cinzia Cavazzuti of Italy and a loss in 4:01 to Deborah Gravenstijn of the Netherlands.

"The first match was going well against a girl who was really strong,'' Wilson said. "I was fending her off really well. But she just overpowered me and caught me on the side of the mat. In the second match, I entered on a turn and she caught me, too.''

A junior at the University of Colorado, Wilson plans to return to school and complete her studies toward a degree in communications.

She isn't sure about her future in judo.

"I'm not ruling anything out yet,'' Wilson said when asked about the possibility of giving it another shot at the 2008 Olympics in Beijing. "I need to get back to school and finish work toward my degree. That's going to become a priority.''

She said she will remain in Greece for the remainder of the Games and take in as many events as possible.

"I'm thinking if this is my last one, I'm going to make the best of it and take in the sights around Athens and Greece,'' she said. "I need to clear my head.''