Takhti Cup

23 Countries Set to Compete in Freestyle Takhti Cup

By Ali Feizasa

The 38th Freestyle Takhti Cup will be held Thursday and Friday in Tabriz, Iran. The field is expected to include aproximately190 wrestlers representing 23 different countries. 

Below is a look at the top competitors in each weight class. 

57kg: Mongolian Erdenebat among favorites at lightweight 

The favorites at lightweight are two-time world bronze medal winner and Asian champion Bekhbayar ERDENEBAT (MGL), 2016 Asian champion Sandeep TOMAR (IND) and Dmitrii AKSENOV (RUS), who placed third at the 2017 Russian championships.

In the absence of Hassan RAHIMI (IRI), it seems best Iranian representative will be Nader HAJAGHANIA (IRI), who placed third at the 2017 Asian Indoor Games.
 
Asian Indoor Games silver medalist Gabit TOLEPBAY (KAZ) also competes at 57kg. Tolepbay beat Hajaghania in the Indoor Games semifinals by fall. A potential rematch would be interesting. 

61kg: Bulgaria, Turkey wrestlers seek gold

Two main rivals of 61kg are U23 world bronze medalist Suleyman ATLI (TUR) and 2015 world bronze medalist Vladimir DUBOV (BUL). Dubov placed fifth at the Rio Olympics. The Takhti Cup will be a test for him with the new rules.

65kg: Iranian Ehsanpoor in new weight class

Behnam EHSANPOOR (IRI), an Iranian national team member at the Olympics and World Championships, moved up to 65kg. It's his first appearance in the new weight class. 

Viktor RASSADIN (RUS), who placed second at the 2017 Russian Championships, will be a notable wrestler at 65kg. Other contenders include 2016 junior world champion Pejman BYABANI (IRI), 2015 world bronze medalist Vasyl SHUPTAR (UKR) and 2015 European bronze medalist Volodya FRANGULYAN (ARM). 

70kg: Battle of world medalists

Two world medalists step on the mat at 70kg. Nurlan BEKZHANOV (KAZ) and Uulu Elaman DOGDURBEK (KGZ) won won silver and bronze at the 2016 World Championships.

Turkey also sends strong team, which includes 2016 European silver medal winner Musfata KAYA (TUR) and 2016 junior world champion Enes USLU (TUR) at 70kg.

74kg: Gor against Iranians

Two-time world medal winner Yakup GOR (TUR) has a difficult job as two talented Iranians are looking to turn in strong performances for spots on the Iranian team at the upcoming World Cup and Asian Championships. Hamed RASHIDI (IRI) is a 2017 Asian bronze medalist, while Saeid DADASHPOUR (IRI) is a 2017 Asian Indoor Games bronze medal winner.

79kg: Veterans Azcuy, Shabanau in new weight class

Cuba and Belarus send experienced wrestlers to the Takhti Cup. 2012 Olympic bronze medal winner and two-time world medalist Livan Lopez AZCUY (CUB) competes at 79kg for the first time. Three-time world bronze medalist Ali SHABANAU (BLR), 2017 European silver medalist Murad SULEYMANOV (AZE) and two-time junior world medalist Ahmad BAZRI (IRI) are main rivals of Azcuy in 79kg.

86kg: Youngsters eye title

86kg is expected to see young wrestlers battling for medals. Two-time junior world medalist Gadzhimurad MAGOMEDSAIDOV (AZE), as well as two Iranians are the top wrestlers in the weight class.  

Kamran GHASEMPOUR (IRI) has had strong performances of late. Esmaeil MAHMOUDI (IRI) is another youngster who has an eye on the title.

92kg: Surrounded by Iranians 

Former junior world champion and 2017 Yarygin silver medalist Mohammad Javad EBRAHIMI (IRI) moved up from 86kg and wants to prove himself in the Iran national team lineup. 

Former Asian Games champion Jamal MIRZAEI(IRI) is back on the mat after an unsuccessful experience at 97kg. Reza BAYAT (IRI) and Ibrahim BOLUKBASI (TUR) are two others to watch in the weight class. 

97kg: Mohammadi seeks title

Amir MOHAMMADI (IRI) competed at the 2017 World Championships instead of Reza YAZDANI, who is out of competitions due to injury.

Now Mohammadi needs to win a 97kg title to be among the Iranians competing at the 2018 World Cup and Asian Championships.

Asian junior champion Danial SHARIATI (IRI) is young but motivated to prove himself at the Takhti Cup.

125kg: Experienced Saidau (BLR) among young rivals

2016 Olympics bronze medalist Ibrahim SAIDAU (BLR) is in the Belarus lineup but he has some young rivals.
U23 world bronze medalist Danylo KARTAVYI(UKR), junior world bronze medal winner Amir Reza AMIRI (IRI) and 2017 junior world silver medalist Naeim HASSANZADEH (IRI) are young contenders at heavyweight.

Takhti Cup schedule

Thursday
7:15 a.m:  Medical Examination
7:30: Weigh in (All weight categories)
10 to 14: Elimination rounds
15 to 16:30: Elimination rounds
16:30 to 17: Opening ceremony
17 to 21: Elimination rounds and semifinals 

Friday
7:45 a.m: Weigh in (All weight categories)
10 to 13: Repechage
13 to 16: Final matches
Expected rosters of the teams:

Mongolia (4 wrestlers)
57kg- Bekhbayar ERDENEBAT
65kg- Tulga TUMUR-OCHIR
97kg- Batzul ULZIISAIKHAN
125kg- Lkhagvagerel MUNKHTUR

Turkey (22 wrestlers)
57kg- Ali KARABOGA
57kg- Ismail BASKA
61kg- Saban KIZILTAS
61kg- Suleyman ATLI
70kg- Zafer DAMA
70kg- Enes USLU
70kg-Servet COSKUN
70kg- Musfata KAYA
74kg-Ilyas GUNES
74kg- Halil SARIKAYA
74kg- Yakup GOR
79kg- Ayhan SUCU
79kg-Abdulkadir OZMEN
79kg- Ender COSKUN
86kg- Ahmet BILICI
86kg- Osman GOCEN
92kg- Ibrahim BOLUKBASI
92kg- Semih YAZICI
97kg- Salih ERINC
97kg- Faruk AKKOYUN
125kg- Abdullah OMAC
125kg- Oktay GUNGOR

Ukraine (10 wrestlers)
57kg- Armen ARAKELIAN
61kg- Vitaliy HURSKYY
65kg- Vasyl SHUPTAR
70kg- Semen RADULOV
74kg- Ivan KUSYAK
79kg- Rustam DUDAIEV
86kg- Mraz DZHAFARIAN
92kg- Liubomyr SAGALIUK
97kg- Murazi MCHEDLIDZE
125kg- Danylo KARTAVYI

Kazakhstan (16 wrestlers)
57kg- Azamat TOIBEK
57kg- Gabit TOLEPBAY
57kg- Berdakh PRIMBAYEV
61kg- Yeldos ABIKENOV
61kg- Kuanysh ZHAKSYBAY
61kg- Madiyar BURKHAN
61kg- Nurlan TURGAN
65kg- Sayatbek OKASSOV
70kg- Nurlan BEKZHANOV
74kg- Bolat SAKAYEV
74kg- Bakhtiyar IZBASSAROV
74kg- Alexandr GOLTSMAN
79kg- Nurdaulet KOKTEUBAYEV
86kg- Saken AITZHANOV
86kg- Elkhan ASSADOV
86kg- Zhiger ZAKIROV

India (4 wrestlers)
57kg- Sandeep TOMAR
74kg- Parveen PARVEEN
92kg- Deepak PUNIA
97kg- Viky VIKY

Azerbaijan (10 wrestlers)
61kg- Parviz IBRAHIMOV
61kg- Elchin VALIYEV
70kg- Panah ILYASLI
70kg- Joshgun AZIMOV
79kg- Murad SULEYMANOV
86kg-Gadzhimurad MAGOMEDSAIDOV
86kg- Ibrahim YUSUBOV 
92kg- Javid SADIGOV
97kg- Roman BAKIROV 
125kg- Umar ISRAILOV

Hungary (4 wrestlers)
79kg- Péter NAGY
79kg- Mihály NAGY
92kg- Bendegúz TÓTH
125kg- Mihály NAGY

Bulgaria (4 wrestlers)
61kg- Vladimir DUBOV
65kg- Filip NOVACHKOV
74kg- Ali-Pasha UMARPASHAEV
79kg- Engin ISMAIL

Belarus (6 wrestlers)
57 kg- Dzimchyk RYNCHYNAU
61 kg- Asadulla LACHINAU
61 kg- Niurhun SKRABIN
79 kg- Ali SHABANAU
86 kg- Raman CHYTADZE
125 kg- Ibrahim SAIDAU

Armenia (12 wrestlers)
57kg- Mihran JABURYAN
61kg- Garik BARSEGHYAN
65kg- Volodya FRANGULYAN
70kg- Valter MARGARYAN
70kg- Narek SIRUNYAN
74kg- Grigor GRIGORYAN
74kg- Davit APOYAN
79kg- Varujhan KAJOYAN
86kg- Marzpet GALSTYAN
92kg- Shamir ATYAN
92kg- Arman MKRTCHYAN
125kg- Andranik GALSTYAN

Kirgizstan (10 wrestlers)
57kg- Almaz SMANBEKOV
61kg- Ulukbek ZHOLDOSHBEKOV
65kg- Ernazar AKMATALIEV
70kg- Uulu Elaman DOGDURBEK
70kg- Mansur SYRGAK UULU
74kg- Bekzhan KAMCHYBEKOV
79kg- Atai IZABEKOV 
86kg- Dinislam TAALAIBEK UULU
92kg- Baktyiar KARAGUL UULU 
97kg- Aibek USUPOV

Russia (2 wrestlers)
57kg- Dmitrii AKSENOV
65kg- Viktor RASSADIN

Georgia (12 wrestlers)
61kg- Levan MURTSKHVALADZE 
61kg- Giorgi REVAZISHVILI
65kg- Shota PHARTENADZE 
70kg- Giorgi SULAVA
74kg- Aleksander JATCHVADZE 
74kg- Giorgi LOBJANIDZE
86kg- Tornike ALADASHVILI
86kg- Dato PIRUZASHVILI
92kg- Davit KHUTSISHVILI
92kg- Iuza TSERTSVADZE 
97kg- Zviad METREVELI
125kg- Rolandi ANDRIADZE

Turkmenistan (10 wrestlers)
57kg-Meretmuhammet ATAYEV
61kg- Gerchek HEMRAYEV
65kg- Saparmyrat MYRODOV
70kg- Batyr ORAZGYLYJOV
74kg- Dovletmyrat ORAZGYLYJOV
79kg- Sahergeldi SAPARMYRADOV
86kg- Arslan HUDAYBERDIYEV
92kg- Selimmuhammet MUHADYYEV
97kg- Sohbet BELLIYEV
125kg- Yazmyrat GOKJAYEV

Afghanistan (10 wrestlers)
57kg- Hamidullah ABDULLAH
61kg- Zubaidullah TIMORI
65kg- Malik Jan SADEED
70kg- Mushtaq JABARI
74kg- Abdul Ghafar QADERI
79kg- Farhad MALIKZADA
86kg- Abdul Hai FAQIRI
92kg- Noor Ahmad AHMADI
97kg- Bezhand AMIRI
125kg- Sayed Khalid HASHIMI

Tajikistan (7 wrestlers)
61kg- Dzhamshed SHARIFOV
65kg- Azizbeki SHARIFZODA
70kg- Sorbon ABDULKHAEV
74kg- Gulomdzhon SHARIPOV
86kg- Bakhodur KODIROV
125kg- Farkhod ANAKULOV
Sakhob NIMATZODA

Wrestlers of Latin America (6 wrestlers)
57kg- Cristian Jose Mox ARIAS (GUA)
61kg-Agustin Alejandro DESTRIBATS (ARG)
65kg- Ipuz Hernan GUZMAN (COL)
70kg- Luis Isaias Portillo MEJJIA (ESA)
79kg- Livan Lopez AZCUY (CUB)
86kg- Pool Edinson Ambrocio GREIFO (PER)

Iran (38 wrestlers)
57kg- Nader HAJAGHANIA – Hamid KHALILI – Mehran REZAZADEH – Mohammad TAHMASEBI
61kg- Mohammad RAMEZANPOUR – Bagher YAKHKESHI – Ali HAJAGHANIA
65kg- Morteza GHIYASI – Shayan HAMZE – Pejman BYABANI – Behnam EHSANPOOR
70kg- Mohammadreza SARGOO – Nima ESHGHAGHI – Hossein MOSTAFAVI – Milad TAHMASEBI
74kg- Hamed RASHIDI – Omid KHEDMATI – Hamidreza ZARRINPEYKAR – Saeid DADASHPOUR
79kg- Omid HASSANTABAR – Aram RAHIMI – Mohammad MOTAGHINIA – Ahmad BAZRI
86kg- Kamran GHASEMPOUR – Masoud MADADI - Esmaeil MAHMOUDI
92kg- Mohammad Javad EBRAHIMI – Jamal MIRZAEI – Arashk MOHEBI – Reza BAYAT
97kg- Abazar ESLAMI – Alireza GOUDARZI – Amir MOHAMMADI – Danial SHARIATI
125kg- Jafar SHAMS NATERI – Elyas BAKHTIARI – Amirreza AMIRI – Naeim HASSANZADEH- Ahmad MIRZAPOUR

#WrestleZagreb

World Championships 2025 Day 1 FS 61kg, 70kg, 86kg, 125kg Highlights

By Ken Marantz & Vinay Siwach

ZAGREB, Croatia (September 13) -- The World Championships are underway in Zagreb. The competition kicks off with four weight classes in 61kg, 70kg, 86kg and 125kg.

WATCH LIVE | LIVE MATCH ORDER | FREESTYLE PREVIEW

14:35: European champion Giorgi MESHVILDISHVILI (AZE) given no chance to Vlagyiszlav BAJCAJEV (HUN) and wins his quarterfinal at 125kg 7-0.

14:34: Robert BARAN (POL), a four-time European medalist, moves closer to his first world medal with a dramatic 6-3 come-from-behind victory over Mohsen SIYAR (GER) in their 125kg quarterfinal. Siyar scored a first-period takedown and added a stepout early in the second to lead 3-0. But with :33 to go, Baran gets behind for a takedown, then goes ahead with another at the :13 mark. He adds a gut wrench in the final seconds to cap an amazing win.

14:27: Asian bronze medalist Shamil SHARIPOV (BRN) uses a well-time counter lift to roll back and put Abdulla KURBANOV (UWW) directly onto his back. After a short fight, Sharipov secures the fall at the 2:00 mark to advance to the 125kg semifinals. 

14:30: A technical superiority win and into the semifinals is world champion Amir Hossein ZARE (IRI) at 125kg. He scores two takedowns in the first period before a takedown and turn in the second for a 10-0 win over Solomon MANASHVILI (GEO).

14:23: Ahmad JAVAN (IRI) is in the semifinals at 61kg with an 8-4 victory over Kamil KERYMOV (UKR). Javan looks in control of his opponents throughout the bout as he showed today.

14:20: Teen phenom Jax FORREST (USA) continues his amazing run in Zagreb, scoring a pair of 4-point takedowns before holding off a late surge from Taiyrbek ZHUMASHBEK UULU (KGZ) to win 13-8 and advance to the 61kg semifinals.

14:18: Zavur UGUEV (UWW) was down 2-1 against Assylzhan YESSENGELDI (KAZ) but launches a gut-wrench and storms to a 13-2 victory at 61kg. He looks pretty determined to win that gold after six years.

14:13: Kum Hyok KIM (PRK) gets the takedown, puts his head between the legs of Leomid COLESNIC (MDA) and rolls four times for a 10-0 victory in 1:32 and a place in the 61kg semifinals.

14:11: Former world U20 champion Hayato ISHIGURO (JPN) with a big win over Arsenii DZHIOEV (AZE) in the 86kg quarterfinals. Ishiguro built a 6-2 lead before he got a counter for four and gave up two on exposure and led 10-4. But Azerbaijan challenged the call only to lose it and Ishiguro got one more points. Dzhioev scored two takedowns but they were not enough. Ishiguro won 11-8.

14:08: No last second heartbreaks for Kamran GHASEMPOUR (IRI) as he stuns Ibragim KADIEV (UWW) in the 86kg quarterfinals. Ghasempour led 1-0 after Kadiev was called passive but Kadiev scored a takedown to make it 2-1. Both wrestlers locked each other in chestwraps and threw. It was scored four for Kadiev and two for Ghasempour. Iran challenged the call and it was assessed that there was no danger in the throws. Kadiev got the takedown so he kept his two points to lead 4-1 with 1:28 left.

Ghasempour then waited to set Kadiev up. He faked a shot and Kadiev jumped for his legs. But Ghasempour, who was waiting for it, jumped over and to score the takedown and a turn to lead 5-4. He defended his lead for the last 20 seconds and enter the semifinals.

13:58: If Azamat DAULETBEKOV (KAZ) leaves Zagreb with a medal, it will have to be his third world bronze after he was decimated by Rakhim MAGAMADOV (FRA) in their 86kg quarter. Down 1-0, Magamadov secured a high lace lock and muscled Dauletbekov over five times for a 12-1 win in 1:04.

13:54: Zahid VALENCIA (USA) rolls to his third straight 10-0 victory, and this time he ended all in one swoop to advance to the 86kg semifinals. Valencia gets the takedown, then reels off four gut wrenches and that's all for Ivars SAMUSONOK (LAT) in just 35 seconds.

13:51: Arman ANDREASYAN (ARM) pulls off another close victory in advancing at 70kg, scoring a late takedown for an 8-6 victory over Kanan HEYBATOV (AZE). Heybatov led 6-3, scoring three takedowns to Andreasyan's three stepouts. But the Armenian closed the gap with a two stepouts before taking the lead for the first time with a takedown. An unsuccessful challenge added the final point.

13:50: A heat bout between Yoshinosuke AOYAGI (JPN) and Iszmail MUSZUKAJEV (HUN) at 70kg. Muszukajev was complaining of a hit from Aoyagi who himself was complaining of a punch from Muszukajev. But all said and done, Aoyagi is back in the semifinals with an 11-0 win over Muszukajev.

13:49: American-born Austin GOMEZ (MEX), looking to give Mexico its first-ever world medal, storms out to a 6-0 lead in his 70kg quarterfinal with reigning world champion Nurkozha KAIPANOV (KAZ). But Kaipanov gets a takedown before the break, then a takedown and exposure after it to go ahead 6-6 on criteria. Gomez isn't finished and gets a takedown with 1:04 left, but Kaipanov breaks Mexican hearts with a takedown with :24 left, then defends against a last-ditch attempt to win 10-8.

13:40: Tulga TUMUR OCHIR (MGL) with a technical superiority win over Akaki KEMERTELIDZE (GEO) in the quarterfinals at 70kg. Tumur Ochir with a takedown and four turns to win 11-0.

Quarterfinals begin at the same time in all the weight classes

13:10: Former world bronze medalist Azamat DAULETBEKOV (KAZ) absolutely dominates Mahamedkhabib KADZIMAHAMEDAU (UWW) in the 86kg 1/8 finals. He scored a takedown and two gut-wrench turns in his 8-1 victory.

13:09: European silver medalist Solomon MANASHVILI (GEO) makes short work of Gyeongmin KIM (KOR), scoring a quick 10-0 victory to earn a probable quarterfinal clash with Amir ZARE (IRI) at 125kg.

13:08: Leomid COLESNIC (MDA) pulls an upset at 61kg, building a 6-1 lead in the first period and holding on for a 7-4 victory over former world champion Zelimkhan ABAKAROV (ALB) to secure a spot in the quarterfinals.

13:02: Suprise on Mat D as Iranian-born Mohsen SIYAR (GER) knocks off two-time world medalist Lkhagvagerel MUNKHTUR (MGL) 5-2 for a place in the 125kg quarterfinals. Munkhtur gets an activity point for the lone score of the first period. In the second, the Mongolian is on the activity clock when Siyar scores a snapdown, go-behind takedown. A Munkhtur stepout cuts the lead to 3-2, but Siyar uses a counter lift for 2 to seal the deal.

12:52: Takara SUDA (JPN) cannot handle the pressure from Jaxen FORREST (USA) in their 61kg bout and drops his bout 7-2. Suda was put on the clock first and did not score as Forrest got a 1-0 lead. In the second period, Suda was more active but Forrest had unbelievable positioning to keep his lead. He managed to score a takedown on Suda for a 3-0 lead. He added another for a 5-0 lead before Suda got 2 points for exposure with less than a minute left. He failed to score any and got countered for two points as Forrest won 7-2

12:44: Kamran GHASEMPOUR (IRI) stayed on track to add to his two world golds at 92kg by advancing to the 86kg quarterfinals with a one-sided 10-0 victory over Batbilguun NAADAMBAT (MGL). Ghasempour had four takedowns, including a 4-pointer.

12:35: World U20 champion PJ DUKE (USA) gave it all he had against world champion Nurkozha KAIPANOV (KAZ) but the Kazakhstan wrestler finishes with a 11-7 victory at 70kg. Duke blasted two takedowns and led 4-0 before Kaipanov came back in the second period. He made it 4-4 before a gut-wrench gave him a 6-4 lead. Kaipanov led 9-7 when Duke tried a chest wrap but Kaipanov blocked it and scored the match closing takedown.

12:34: Former world U20 champion Hayato ISHIGURO (JPN) launches a big 4-point throw then finishes up a 10-0 win over Mukhammed ALIIEV (UKR) in just 1:25 to advance to the 86kg quarterfinals.

12:33: Iszmail MUSZUKAJEV (HUN) left it late, but kept alive his bid for a second career world title with a 4-2 victory over Saiyn KAZYRYK (UWW)  to make the 70kg quarterfinals. After giving up a stepout and activity point in the first period, Muszukajev comes back with a pair of stepouts, the second one coming with :51 left to go ahead on criteria. He picks up a takedown to finish the job.

12:32: Zahid VALENCIA (USA) storms into the 86kg quarterfinals with his second straight victory by 10-0 technical superiority. This time he takes out Fateh BENFERDJALLAH (ALG) with a similar combination of single-leg takedowns and lace locks as in his earlier win.

12:30: Returning silver medalist Yoshinosuke AOYAGI (JPN) humbles Asian champion Ernazar AKMATALIEV (KGZ) at 70kg with a leg-lace. 11-0 victory for Aoyagi

12:26: Tulga TUMUR OCHIR (MGL), nursing a 3-1 lead, ties up the arms of Mihail GEORGIEV (BUL) and pancakes him to the mat for a fall at 4:30 and he's into the 70kg quarterfinals.

12:16: Arman ANDREASYAN (ARM) continues to take a cautious approach, but it works for him in posting a 4-1 victory over Viktor VOINOVIC (SRB) to advance to the quarterfinals at 70kg. Andreasyan scores a stepout and activity point in the first period, then two stepouts in the second. Voinovic, trying to get something going, gets the Armenian's leg in the air, but all he can settle for is a stepout.

11:48: Ahmad JAVAN (IRI) with a 13-2 technical superiority Joshua KRAMER (ECU) at 61kg. Great counters from Javan to score takedowns.

11:47: In a classic battle between recent world U23 champions at 125kg, Abdulla KURBANOV (UWW) gets the big points in key situations to score a 14-4 victory over Wyatt HENDRICKSON (USA). Kurbanov comes out with single-leg takedown to the back for 4. Hendrickson replies with a stepout, but gives up a 2-point exposure when he tries to get behind. In the second period, Kurbanov gets a counter lift for 2 while giving up 1 for a reversal, making it 8-2. Hendrickson then counter lifts for 2 to pull within four. But Kurbanov stuffs an attempted lift for 2, then adds a gut wrench to finish up the match in the final minute.

11:36: Former world champion Zelimkhan ABAKAROV (ALB) scores a second-period takedown while on the activity clock and that's enough to give him a 3-0 victory over Emrah ORMANOGLU (TUR) at 61kg.

11:35: Jaxen FORREST (USA) keeps the unbeaten run of the United States going with a technical superiority win over Sangboum HAN (KOR) at 61kg

11:22: Two-time world bronze medalist Azamat DAULETBEKOV (KAZ) overwhelms Paulius LESCAUSKAS (LTU) 10-0 in his opening match at 86kg. Dauletbekov scores a takedown, then rolls Lescauskas back and forth three times to go up 8-0. He ends the match by countering a takedown attempt by locking the Lithuanian in a cradle and turning him over.

11:09: Zahid VALENCIA (USA), a 2023 world bronze medalist at 92kg, gets his campaign at 86kg off to an impressive start with a 10-0 victory over Mukul DAHIYA (IND). Valencia comes out like gangbusters, scoring a takedown and reeling off two lace locks for a quick 6-0 lead. He adds another takedown, but can't turn over Dahiya to go up 8-0. Despite Dahiya's stiff defense, Valencia finally gets behind to end the match.

11:02: Begijon KULDASHEV (UZB) gives up the go-ahead takedown to ROHIT (IND) in their 70kg qualification bout, but comes back with a takedown with :40 left to walk off a 5-4 winner. Next up is second seed Akaki KEMERTELIDZE (GEO).

10:57: Ibragim KADIEV (UWW), a two-time world U20 champion, starts 86kg with a 9-2 controlled win over Cezary SADOWSKI (POL) to advance at 86kg.

10:53: Amirmohammad YAZDANI (IRI) held his own for the first period but is totally outsmarted by Kanan HEYBATOV (AZE) in the second period as the Azerbaijan wrestler beats Yazdani 15-4 at 70kg.

10:50: PJ DUKE (USA), coming off a victory at the world U20 a few months ago, got his bid for the senior title at 70kg started with a 11-0 victory over Shuang CHEN (CHN). Duke used a 2-on-1 to score three stepouts, then used it to get behind for a takedown and leveraged Chen over for a 2-point exposure. In the second period, Duke needs just 18 seconds to get behind again, get another exposure and he's into the next round.

10:42: In a fierce opening match on Mat C, European silver medalist Arman ANDREASYAN (ARM) comes away with a nail-biting 5-5 over Asian silver medalist Viktor RASSADIN (TJK) at 70kg. Andreasyan holds a 3-3 criteria lead when Rassadin scores a stepout with a fleeing point added on to go ahead with :35 left. But the Armenian is not done yet, and gets a stepout and fleeing point of his own with 2.4 seconds left to notch the win.

10:37: Olympic medalist Islam DUDAEV (ALB), who moved up to 70kg for the World Championships, drops his first match against world champion Iszmail MUSZUKAJEV (HUN). Dudaev led 1-0 but is put on the activity clock in the second period. He fails to score and Muszukajev wins 1-1 ion criteria.

10:36: Saiyn KAZYRYK (UWW) built an 8-2 lead before securing a fall over Oleksii BORUTA (UKR) in the opening round bout at 70kg.

10:34: Two-time world medalist Ernazar AKMATALIEV (KGZ) makes short work of Jorge GATICA (CHI) in the opening bout on Mat D at 70kg, finishing off a 10-0 win in just a tick over two minutes. With the win, Akmataliev has set up a rematch with top-seeded Yoshinosuke AOYAGI (JPN) of his wild semifinal win at the Asian Championships.

10:30: The World Championships at the Arena Zagreb kicks off today! We have wrestling in 61kg, 70kg, 86kg and 125kg.