A 2004 Olympian, Brad Vering will make his second straight Olympic appearance at Greco-Roman’s 84kg/185 lbs division. The Nebraska native won silver at the 2007 World Championships, at which the U.S. won the team world title. The avid fisherman spoke with NBC Olympics about his previous Games experience, his pride in cauliflower ear and why fishing is his favorite hobby.

Having been to Athens, how do you feel about Beijing? Are you better prepared?
Yeah, I think all the kind of glitz and glamour of going to the Olympics is kind of past me now, and now I’m really focused on getting the job done. And not worried so much about — you know, I really enjoyed the Olympics and the Olympic spirit, but right now I’m really focused on getting a medal. That’s the most important thing for me

Wrestlers constantly need to cut weight before a competition. What’s it like to always have to be mindful of that?
It’s tough, and you’ve always got to be on top of your game. But as an elite athlete, that’s what you got to do no matter what sport you do. So you just try to do things professionally, whether they’re losing weight or gaining weight or whatever you have to do to perform at your optimum.