Takhti Cup

23 Countries Set to Compete in Freestyle Takhti Cup

Tuesday, February 6, 2018 - 04:46 By Ali Feizasa

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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

Obituary

Remembering Saitiev: Master on mat who inspired many

Monday, April 7, 2025 - 12:53 By Vinay Siwach

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CORSIER-SUR-VEVEY, Switzerland (April 7) -- Buvaisar SAITIEV was an unknown before the 1996 Atlanta Olympics. And after that he became the legend. 

At 21, Saitiev thrilled the crowd and displayed techniques that the world thought were impossible to execute at 74kg. Saitiev would go on to win two more Olympic golds -- 2004 and 2008 -- as he became the best 74kg wrestler out there. A three-time Olympic champion, six-time world champion, and an inspiration to the wrestling world, Saitiev passed away earlier this month at the age of 49.

"Biggest and greatest wrestler" - Nenad LALOVIC, UWW President

Brandon SLAY (USA) was in that crowd at the 1996 Atlanta Olympics. The 21-year-old was amazed what he saw. He watched another 21-year-old win the gold medal.

"It was an honor to watch him in Atlanta," Slay said. "Then study him and compete against him four years later."

Believe it or not, that was the first time Russia won Olympic gold medal at 74kg, a weight class now synonymous with their domination, both at senior and youth level.

Buvaisar SAITIEV (RUS)Buvaisar SAITIEV (RUS). (Photo: United World Wrestling / Martin Gabor)

At the time, the U.S. was focused on defending its dominance at 74kg, with Iran also challenging for supremacy, while Saitiev had yet to make his mark internationally. The Olympic history saw wrestlers from Turkiye, Japan, the United States and Korea win gold medal in this weight class. So when Saitiev arrived, he was the underdog. In the 1996 Atlanta final, he defeated the defending Olympic champion Park JANG SOON and ushered an era of Russian dominance at this weight class.

It took a once-in-a-lifetime talents like Jordan BURROUGHS (USA) and Hassan YAZDANI (IRI) to deny the gold medals to Russia in 2012 and 2016 respectively. However, Russia is now at top. Zaurbek SIDAKOV (ROC) won gold medals at the 2018 and 2019 World Championships, 2020 Tokyo Olympics [held in 2021] before winning it again in 2023 and Russian transfer to Uzbekistan and Saitiev's student Razambek JAMALOV (UZB) won in 2024.

A little insight on how the U.S. discovered Saitiev is provided in the the documentary 'Slaying Saitiev". Pat SMITH (USA), who was wrestling at the 1995 Ivan Yarygin Memorial, recalls when he first saw Saitiev, his opponent in the final.

Saitiev had not wrestled senior-level yet internationally and was till three months away from winning his first World Championships gold. So Smith and his team thought they are favorites to win the gold medal at the Yarygin.

"I go out on the mat, I see Saitiev, the fight starts," Smith recalls in the documentary. "And right away, right away I thought: “This is the best they have.” Because the way he was punching, his movement, the way he was flowing from one position to another... he was simply unstoppable. I did some takedowns, but in the end he gave me a pretty good beating. I come off the mat, Bruce is standing there, I say: “You were wrong. That guy from the semi-finals wasn’t the best. This is the best . ” – “I didn’t even know who it was!” – “Now you know. Buvaisar Saitiev.” And two months later he won the world championship. The best wrestler I’ve ever wrestled. There’s no question about that. The best.

"He looked like a librarian, skinny, gangly. But the positions he scores from, the way he moves you around the mat... I've never wrestled anyone like that again."

Smith’s observation wasn’t just a fleeting comment. It captured the essence of what made Saitiev so formidable on the mat. Saitiev, standing at 6 feet, defied convention of a tall wrestler standing upright. He would engage in ties which forced his opponents to shoot while he was in control. Saitiev would counter rather easily and score.

Saitiev used to engage with his opponents and yet they found it extremely difficult to score a takedown on him.

Brandon SLAY (USA)Brandon SLAY (USA) over Buvaisar SAITIEV (RUS) at the 2000 Olympics. (Photo: United World Wrestling / Martin Gabor)

Slay, who defeated Saitiev at the 2000 Sydney Olympics, had to study Saitiev for years before breaking through in their Olympic meeting.

"The greatness of Saitiev came from how extremely hard it was to finish takedowns on him," Slay says. "Most of the time when people attacked Saitiev, either he scored or no one scored. And, most of the time when he attacked, he scored. That makes for a very challenging opponent to beat, which is why he rarely lost. I am so thankful I had the opportunity to wrestle the greatest wrestler of all time."

Saitiev had it all. Snapdowns, feints, two-on-one, underhooks, overhooks, defense, attack, chain wrestling, innovations, and techniques that made him score points from any positions. So many options to immobilize his opponents who would eventually break down.

On March 3, the day he passed away, the internet saw outpouring tributes to his legacy. But some of the most shared posts were his clips from various bouts on his career. A few wrote how they began wrestling because of him, others explained why he inspired them to adapt and study wrestling.

Buvaisar SAITIEV (RUS)Buvaisar SAITIEV (RUS). (Photo: United World Wrestling)

2008 Olympic champion Henry CEJUDO (USA) called him the "greatest" and he was a 'fanboy.'

"A man that was poetry in motion at its finest, and in my opinion, the greatest athlete who has ever ever lived or walked on planet Earth," Cejudo wrote on his Instagram. "I would never fanboy over anybody but Buvaisar. I was so honored of the times that I did get a chance to hang out as I had a permanent smile the whole day. Thank you for all the great years that you gave the wrestling community and inspiring millions of people across the world. I can honestly say without Saitiev I wouldn’t be the wrestler that I am today."

John DIAKOMIHALIS (USA), a wrestler known for his crafty moves and detailing of wrestling, tributed his passion to Saitiev, who himself was known as a wizard on the mat for his moves.

"Buvaisar Saitiev was how I fell in love with the art of wrestling, I wanted to be like him," Diakomihalis wrote on X. "His innovation and passion for improvement were some of the staples of how I approached learning the sport or learning anything in my life."

Saitiev had that impact on people. Jamalov, who won the 2024 Paris Olympic gold medal, was Saitiev's student. Jamalov said that Saitiev was family.

"His approach was very subtle and deep, he always knew how to choose the right and necessary words for support," Jamalov said. "Every meeting with him was unforgettable and every word of his was unforgettable. Outside of wrestling, he was very caring and compassionate towards me, he was always worried about my injuries and operations."

While Jamalov was his student, Saitiev never backed from helping any wrestler. He 'couldn't stop himself from talk to even strangers if he had a broken ear.'

 

After Tokyo Olympic champion Yui SUSAKI (JPN) lost her first-ever international bout to VINESH (IND) in Paris, she talked to Saitiev who had lost in Sydney after winning Atlanta but still won two more Olympic golds.

"I had a video call with him right after the Paris Olympics," Susaki said. "Like me, he didn't do well in his second Olympics. But he won gold medals in two more Olympics. I vowed to him that I would win gold medals in two more Olympics like him to become a legend.

"He also taught me that to become a legend, I should never lose again. I owe it all to him that I was able to stand up strong after losing. Thanks to him, I decided to keep fighting to win two more Olympic gold medals. And I vowed to become a legendary wrestler like him. I won't lose anymore. I will keep winning. Your message is a treasure for my life. He is a legend and his wrestling has always fascinated me. His matches are always amazing to watch and I think he is the most talented wrestler in history."

This off the mat personality of Saitiev resonated with many, even with people outside of wrestling. He was humble, witty and respectful.

Sports Express journalist Yuri GOLYSHAK recalled his moments with Saitiev who was part of many reception after his 2008 Beijing gold medal. 

"I was sure that we would meet again. Saitiev had enough stories for ten interviews," Golyshak wrote in his tribute. "I even imagined how it would be - not in a hurry, like after Beijing. Not in a car, no. Everything will be different. I will come to his home in Khasavyurt. It will be a fairy tale. We will go to the mountains. I will understand something that I did not understand before, in this amazing, invincible man. And in life in general."

Saitiev's influence transcends mere records and titles. His tactics on the mat just when the internet era arrived gave insights into a wrestler may only be imagined. He passed on that mastery to a special few who remember him as a mentor, inspiration and the greatest ever.