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10 seeded showdowns we need to see at Paris 2024 (No. 6-10)

Wednesday, July 17, 2024 - 14:29 By Eric Olanowski

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PARIS, France (July 17) – We’re still a few weeks out from the Paris 2024 draws taking place on August 4. However, with the release of the top eight seeds per style, we can start to project potential matches that could take place as early as the quarterfinals.

SCHEDULE | PARIS 2024 EVENT PAGE 

The top eight Ranking Series point collectors from the 2023 World Championships, 2024 Continental Championships, and the Croatian and Hungarian Ranking Series events earned a top eight seed. The remaining eight wrestlers will be randomly drawn into their respective brackets.

Here are the top ten matches that we could see between seeded wrestlers from the quarterfinals on:

10. WW 68kg QUARTERFINAL - No. 3 Koumba LARROQUE (FRA) vs. No. 6 Blessing OBORUDUDU (NGR)
Koumba Larroque has been a prominent figure in French wrestling since her bronze medal at the 2017 World Championships at just 19 years old. Now in the prime of her career, she’s France’s best shot at a medal.

Larroque’s path to an Olympic medal will be bumpy, to say the least. She’s the third-seeded athlete in a bracket with six world champions and includes a potential quarterfinal clash with  familiar foe No. 6 Blessing OBORUDUDU (NGR).

Larroque and Oborududu met twice in their career, splitting their pair of previous encounters.

Oborududu won their opening meeting at the 2020 Matteo Pellicone Ranking Series event, but Larroque returned the favor a year later at the Poland Open, evening the score at 1-1.

If Larroque and Oborududu win their first match, their third career meeting would take place August 5 in the 68kg quarterfinals.

9.  FS 65kg SEMIFINAL –  No. 2 Rahman AMOUZAD (IRI) vs. No. 3 Ismail MUSUKAEV (HUN)
Amouzad and Musukaev are nightmare opponents for each other and are stylistically opposites.

Amouzad, the 65kg world champ from two years ago, is a guy who wants to close the gap with his right-side underhook and fill as much space as possible. Conversely, Musukaev, the reigning 65kg world champion, wants as much space as possible to flow freely.

In their first meeting—the semifinals of the 2022 World Championships-- Musukaev fell victim to Amouzad’s pace and was shut out 6-0. In their second matches—the semifinals of the 2023 World Championships—Musukaev weathered the first period storm, saved enough energy for a last-ditch effort and stole the world finals spot, 6-5, with less than 10 seconds remaining.

If Amouzad and Musukaev meet for a third time, it’ll be on August 10 in 65kg semifinals.

8. 57kg SEMIFINAL – No. 2 Anastasia NICHITA (MDA) vs. No. 3  Odunayo ADEKUOROYE (NGR)
The Nichita and Adekuoroye rivalry is one that dates back to the 2019 World Championships but has since changed hands from their pre-COVID meeting.

The seasoned vet Adekuoroye is an anomaly in the wrestling world. Her style can’t be mimicked or replicated. She’s the tallest and lengthiest 57kg wrestler in the world but has also learned to use her leverage to become one of the most powerful wrestlers in the weight.

Adekuoroye’s unique style gave Nichita fits in their first meeting, as the four-time world medalist opened their three-match series with a dominant 10-0 win.

But Nichita carried what she learned from their first meeting into their next matches and had her hand raised on subsequent occasions.

In Tokyo, Nichita fell behind early but capitalized on an uncharacteristic Adekuoroye’s mistake and picked up a dramatic come-from-behind fall while trailing 8-2. Their next meeting came at the 2023 World Championships, where Nichita doubled Adekuoroye before ending the match in the first period with a left-sided trap arm gut, 10-0.

The fourth meeting between Nichita and Adekuoroye will take place August 8 in the 57kg semifinals.

7. GR 67kg QUARTERFINAL – No. 2 Luis ORTA SANCHEZ (CUB) vs. No. 7 Saeid ESMAEILI (IRI)
If there were ever a lesson from losing a match, Saeid ESMAEILI (IRI) certainly learned it the hard way.

Earlier this year at the Hungarian Open Ranking Series event, Esmaelil led reigning Olympic champion Orta, 7-5, with 0.4 seconds left in the match.

But before we get to the ending of the match, it’s important to note that Esmaeili was in a domestic battle with reigning Olympic gold medalist Reza GERAEI (IRI) for Iran’s 67kg Paris Olympic spot. If Esmaeili beat Orta, he cemented his spot on Iran’s Olympic team. If he lost, Esmaeili and Geraei would go to a three-match wrestle off and the winner goes to Paris.

Now, circling back to the match: With less than a second to go in the match, Esmaeili began celebrating as he thought the clock expired.

During Esmaeili’s lapse of judgement, Orta, being the experienced guy, continued to wrestle through the whistle. Orta took a peek at the clock, saw there was still time left, locked up a throw and picked up four points, stealing the match, 9-7.

Esmaeili will try to get his revenge on Orta August 7 in the 67kg quarterfinals.

*Esmaeili ended up beating Geraei in two straight matches to earn the Olympic spot.

6. WW 57kg SEMIFINAL - No. 1 Tsugumi SAKURAI (JPN) vs. No. 5 Helen MAROULIS (USA)
Through the first two meetings between Sakurai and Maroulis, it’s been a one-sided affair. Sakurai is 2-0 against Maroulis, outscoring the Rio Olympic champion, 9-0, while picking up four offensive takedowns and not surrendering a single point.

Sakurai and Maroulis’ meeting at the 2022 World Championships was a slow-paced match, where the Japanese wrestler did enough to win but didn’t really establish her dominance.

That came in the second match.

In their second meeting, the biggest difference was Sakurai’s tatical use of her right hand when tied up with Maroulis. She used it to score three takedowns—one from an underhook front headlock, one from a underhook throw-by and the final one coming from a two-on-one—besting the American, 6-0.

The third meeting between Sakurai and Maroulis would take place August 8 in the 57kg semifinals.

Wrestling at the Paris Olympic Games starts Agust 5-11 and can be followed on www.uww.org.

#WrestleParis

Wrestling at Paris 2024: Fujinami dominates, Orta stunned

Wednesday, August 7, 2024 - 08:41 By Ken Marantz & Vinay Siwach

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PARIS (August 7) -- Third day of wrestling at the Paris 2024 Olympics and we are finishing with the final two weights of Greco-Roman -- 67kg and 87kg. Women's Wrestling is continuing with 53kg.

LIVE MATCH ORDER | PARIS DAY 2

13:46: Saeid ESMAELI (IRI) looks impressive in ending the bid of Luis ORTA (CUB) to win consecutive Olympic golds, scoring two stepouts and a takedown in the second period to finish up a 9-0 victory. Esmaeli opens the first period with a shrug-by takedown, then adds a passivity point. Although he can't turn Orta, he shows he is the more dominant on his feet when he nearly gets a takedown that, on a challenge, results in a 2-point penalty against Orta to make it 5-0 at the break.

13:35: Slavik GALSTYAN (ARM) withstands the attack of Mamadassa SYLLA (FRA) and a boisterous partisan crowd to advance to the Greco 67kg semifinals with a 3-2 win. Galstyan scores a first-period takedown, which gives him the criteria lead when Sylla ties the match with a stepout and a passivity point. Sylla had his chance but couldn't budge Galstyan from par terre, and a somewhat frivolous challenge at the end gives the Armenian his third point.

13:21: What a comeback for Parviz NASIBOV (UKR) in his Greco 67kg quarterfinal. The Tokyo silver medalist trails 6-2 going into the second period against Amantur ISMAILOV (KGZ), who had a 4-point takedown to maintain any criteria advantage. But Nasibov scores a takedown, then three consecutive stepouts to win 7-6.

13:12: Qianyu PANG (CHN) gets a 4-point takedown early on and rolls to a 10-0 victory over Jonna MALGREN (SWE) and a spot in the women's 53kg semifinals against Fujinami. Pang and Fujinami faced each other at the 2023 Asian Games, with Fujinami winning 10-0. 

13:07: Hasrat JAFAROV (AZE) gets a stepout that is upheld on an unsuccessful challenge, giving him a 3-1 win over Valentin PETIC (MDA) and a spot in the Greco 67kg semifinals.

13:02: Akari FUJINAMI (JPN) falls behind in her women's 53kg quarterfinal against Khulan BATKHUYAG (MGL), but it's only momentarily. The Japanese star quickly retakes the lead, then bulls Batkhuyag over and gains a fall. Fujinami spends most of the match fighting off Batkhuyag's whizzer, which the Mongolian used to set up a trip for a takedown that put her ahead 2-2 on criteria early in the second period. But Fujinami quickly comes back with a pair of takedowns, scoring the fall after the second one.

12:54: Luis ORTA (CUB), the Tokyo champion at Greco 60kg, gets her quest to add the gold at 67kg with an 8-0 victory over Asian silver medalist Kyotaro SOGABE (JPN). Orta finishes the match with his third stepout of the first period.  

12:53: It ain't over til it's over. Annika WENDLE (GER) had just given up a takedown and gut wrench to fall behind 5-0 against Zeynep YETGIL (TUR) in their women's 53kg quarterfinal. Wendle, however, bulls Yetgil over on a counter and slams her onto her back for a fall.

12:48: Asian champion Saeid ESMAELI (IRI) hits a 4-point throw from par terre en route to a 10-0 victory over Ishak GHAIOU (ALG) and a place in the Greco 67kg quarterfinals.

12:45: European champion Aleksandr KOMAROV (SRB) shows why he is the favorite to win gold here in Paris. He rolls over Payton JACOBSON (USA) 10-0 in two minutes and 10 seconds.

12:44: Lucia YEPEZ (VEN) powers into the women's 53kg semifinals with a victory by fall over Andreea ANA (ROU). The world bronze medalist goes ahead 5-0 in the first period with an activity point, takedown, fleeing point and lost challenge. In the second period, she takes Ana down to her back and secures the fall.

12:40: Not much scoring, but a welcome victory for the home team nonetheless. Mamadassa SYLLA (FRA) gets the second of the passivity points and he advances to the Greco 67kg quarterfinals with a 1-1 win on last-point criteria over Souleyman NASR (TUN).  

12:33: Two-time former European champion Emma MALMGREN (SWE), looking to preserve her 3-3 lead on criteria, gets in on a double against Betzabeth ARGUELLO (VEN) in the final minute. As Arguello reaches over for a counter lift, Malmgren presses ahead and ends up with a victory by fall.  

12:30: Not the most action-packed bout Lasha GOBADZE (GEO) manages to beat Bachir SID AZARA (ALG) 2-1 and move to the quarterfinals at 87kg. He will take on Novikov.

12:29: Slavik GALSTYAN (ARM) is made to work hard for his 3-2 victory over a gutsy Andres MONTANO (ECU) at Greco 67kg, scoring a creative 2-point exposure in the second period to secure a place in the quarterfinals.

12:24: Tokyo silver medalist PANG Qianyu (CHN) makes short work of Mia AQUINO (GUM) at women's 53kg, getting a quick takedown and reeling off four gut wrenches for a 10-0 win in 27 seconds.

12:21: 2022 world silver medalist Khulan BATKHUYAG (MGL) gets a takedown straight to the back and records the fall over Christianah OGUNSANYA (NGR), earning her a clash with Fujinami in the women's 53kg quarterfinals. 

12:15: Tokyo Olympic silver medalist Parviz NASIBOV (UKR) scores a takedown with :05 left to pull off a 3-2 victory over former world champion Mate NEMES (SRB) at Greco 77kg.

12:15: Two-time world champion Akari FUJINAMI (JPN) avoids the upset bug that has hit her compatriots, launching her Olympic debut with a victory by fall over Dominique PARRISH (USA) at women's 53kg. It was the match that never was at the 2022 World Championships, where Parrish won the gold after Fujinami withdrew due to injury. With the win, Fujinami stretched her current winning streak to 133 in a row dating back to junior high school.

12:10: Defending champion Zhan BELENIUK (UKR) has no problem seeing off Haitao QIAN (CHN) at 87kg. Followed by Semen NOVIKOV (BUL) defends from par terre and clinches a 5-1 win over Turpal BISULTANOV (DEN)

12:09: Two-time European bronze medalist Zeynep YETGIL (TUR) overwhelms 2022 world bronze medalist ANTIM (IND) for a 10-0 victory at women's 53kg. Staked to a 4-0 lead, Yetgil scores a 4-point takedown, then adds a gut wrench to end the match in 1:41.

12:05: Annika WENDLE (GER) scores a takedown with 52 seconds left, then survives a late surge by eight-time European medalist Maria PREVOLARAKI (GRE) to hold on for a 3-2 at women's 53kg. The 32-year-old Prevolaraki, who is looking for her first medal in three Olympic appearances, nearly gets a last-second takedown, but it ends up as a stepout on the challenge.

12:03: In a battle of former world bronze medalists, Amantur ISMAILOV (KGZ) gets a 4-point throw and 2-point roll from par terre, then stuffs a back roll attempt by Ramaz ZOIDZE (GEO) for 4 more in a 12-1 win at Greco 77kg.

11:53: Three-time reigning European 55kg champion Andreea ANA (ROU), a first-round loser three years ago in Tokyo, scores two takedowns in the second period and ousts world bronze medalist Mariana DRAGUTAN (MDA) 5-0 at women's 53kg.

11:53: Valentin PETIC (MDA) gets a pair of passivity points and another 2 for an illegal hold penalty to defeat Nestor ALMANZA (CHI) 4-0 to advance to the Greco 77kg quarterfinals.

11:47: How do you start your Olympics? Alireza MOHMADIPIANI (IRI) begins with a huge five-pointer and wins his first bout at 87kg 9-0 against Carlos MUNOZ (COL)

11:42: World bronze medalist and top seed Lucia YEPEZ (ECU) dodges a bullet in edging Asian Games bronze medalist Hyogyong CHOE (PRK) 7-4 at women's 53kg. Yepez leads 4-2 when Choe scores a takedown off a single with :18 left. But Yepez takes the lead right back with a takedown five seconds later, gets a penalty point for stalling by the exhausted Choe, then holds on for the win.

11:41: European champion and two-time world medalist Hasrat JAFAROV (AZE) knocks off Tokyo bronze medalist Mohamed ELSAYAD (EGY) 9-0 in the opening match at Greco 67kg. Jafarov can't score from par terre in the first period, but gets a 4-point throw off an underhook to go ahead 5-0. He takes advantage of a second chance in par terre in the second period, getting a 2-point throw to end the match.

11:40: The first world champion wrestling today falls! Ali CENGIZ (TUR) has no answer to Arkadiusz KULYNYCZ (POL) defense and drops his opening bout at 87kg 5-3.

11:18: After a stunning loss in yesterday's quarterfinals derailed his gold-medal hopes, Tokyo silver medalist Akzhol MAKHMUDOV (KGZ) earns a chance for a bronze medal with a 9-0 rout of Jair CUERO (COL). Makhmudov opens with a 4-point throw, then gets a pair of gut wrenches from par terre in the second period. He will face Sanan SULEYMANOV (AZE) later tonight in a bid to become a two-time Olympic medalist.

11:08: In a Greco 77kg repechage match to start the action on Mat A, European champion Aram VARDANYAN (ARM) gets three rolls from par terre in the first period, then scores a takedown in the second to close out a 9-0 victory over Abd OUAKALI (ALG).

11:05: With the women's 50kg program reshuffled by the shocking Vinesh disqualification, there is only one repechage match. World bronze medalist Ziqi FENG (CHN) builds up a six-point lead against Ibtissem DOUDOU (ALG), then ends the match at 1:53 with a 4-point throw to advance to the bronze-medal match.

11:02: A big update for tonight's 50kg final of women's wrestling

Vinesh VINESH, from NOC of India in 50kg, failed the weigh-in on day two of her competition which has forced United World Wrestling to promote Yusneylis GUZMAN LOPEZ (CUB) to the final of 50kg at the Paris Olympics. She will take on Sarah HILDEBRANDT (USA) in the final.

11:00: Welcome to day three at the Champs de Mars Arena.