Jordan Burroughs poses for a portrait at the 2016 Team USA Media Summit at The Beverly Hilton Hotel on March 9, 2016 in Los Angeles.
Reigning Olympic wrestling champion Jordan Burroughs was forced to withdraw from this weekend's Freestyle World Cup event in Los Angeles.
Don’t fret, the three-time world champion hasn’t been injured less than two months away from attempting to defend his Olympic gold medal. He had a more pressing engagement: the birth of his second child.
Ora Reece Burroughs was born at 4:45 a.m. MT Saturday, giving Burroughs and his wife Lauren their first daughter. Their son Beacon was born in July of 2014. Ora weighed 7 pounds, 14 ounces, and measured 19.5 inches long. Both Lauren and Ora are doing well, Burroughs reported in a Tweet.
Doctors had pegged the baby’s due date at June 13, but the couple anticipated an earlier arrival since Beacon arrived two weeks early. Since the baby had not arrived by the time Burroughs was scheduled to depart for Los Angeles, he chose withdraw from a tournament he had won the past four years.
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| "It's a girl! Welcome to the world! Ora Reece Burroughs." - @alliseeisgold |
“I wanted to be there for the birth and to make sure Lauren was home and doing well before I went to wrestle,” Burroughs said in USA Wrestling’s announcement of his withdrawal from the World Cup. “I can’t consciously, as a father and a husband, leave my wife before the birth or when she is still in the hospital. I want to be there for her. I was a family priority decision.”
Burroughs enjoyed the full support of USA Wrestling in his decision.
“This is another example of what a tremendous human being and role model that Jordan Burroughs is,” USA Wrestling Executive Director Rich Bender said. “He wanted to be part of Team USA and put in his full effort to train and prepare for the World Cup, even though he and his wife were so close to the birth of their child. He is a great leader, a great teammate and also understands the importance of family. We are proud of Jordan and look forward to him getting back on the mat in Germany in a few weeks.”
Burroughs will join the members of the U.S. Olympic Wrestling Team July 2-3 in Dortmund, Germany, for a grand prix event that will serve as a tune-up for the Rio 2016 Olympic Games.