#WrestleOslo

25 Tokyo Olympic Medalists Highlight #WrestleOslo World Entries

By Eric Olanowski

CORSIER-SUR-VEVEY, Switzerland (September 8) – Fresh off winning his second Olympic title, wrestling's most prominent star Abdulrashid SADULAEV (RWF) will return to the mat October 02-10 for the Oslo World Championships. He'll lead a group of 25 newly minted Olympic medalists – including four champs – into Norway for this year's historic World Championships.

Due to the Tokyo Olympic Games postponement, the 2021 World Championships will be the first of its kind. It'll be the first time wrestling has held the Olympic Games and an all-weight world championship in the same year.

Sadulaev, alongside fellow Tokyo champs David TAYLOR (USA), Tamyra STOCK-MENSAH (USA) and Mohammadreza GERAEI (IRI) will have the unprecedented opportunity to win World and Olympic gold in the same season.

But the path to history for 'The Russian Tank,' Taylor and Mensah-Stock, in particular, won't be easy. Instead, they'll share the bracket with at least two other Tokyo Olympic medalists – including the wrestlers they defeated in early August to win Olympic gold. 

Sadulaev will have to get through Kyle SNYDER (USA) to win his fifth world title. His American nemesis is the only person who's handed him a world championship loss in his previous five world appearances. But, as of last month, the 25-year-old Russian broke the series tie and gained the one-match advantage on Snyder with his 6-3 victory in the 97kg Tokyo gold-medal match. He also defeated 'Captain America' to win '18 world gold, which came a year after falling to Snyder in the '17 world finals. 

Outside of Sadulaev and Snyder, Olympic bronze medalist Abraham de Jesus CONYEDO RUANO (ITA) will also compete at 97kg.

Taylor will share the 86kg bracket with Rio Olympic champion Hasan YAZDANI (IRI). They've met three times since 2017, with "The Magic Man" owning the 3-0 series lead. Taylor picked up his most recent victory over 'The Greatest' in Tokyo with a last-second takedown to claim the 86kg Olympic title.

Artur NAIFONOV, the Russia Wrestling Federation's Toyko Olympic bronze medalist, is also entered at 86kg.

Mensah will wrestle alongside Blessing OBORUDUDU (NGR) and Meerim ZHUMANAZAROVA (KGZ) in the 68kg bracket. She defeated her Nigerian foe for gold, while the Kyrgyz wrestler ended her Tokyo campaign with a bronze medal.

On the Greco-Roman side of the competition Olympic champ Geraei will compete at 67kg.

Freestyle wrestling kicks off the 2021 World Championships on October 2. Women’s wrestling takes center stage at the Jordal Amfi Arena on October 4, with Greco-Roman closing out the competition in Norway beginning on October 7.

*Please note that these entries are subject to change, and National Federations can update names and weight categories until three days before the start of each style.

Musa EVLOEV (RWF) celebrates with his coaches after winning 97kg gold in Tokyo. He'll wrestle at 97kg in Oslo. (Photo: Tony Rotundo)

Here's a breakdown of all of the reigning Tokyo Olympic medalists that'll lay it on the line in Oslo. 

By the numbers:
Freestyle: 11 medalists (2 gold, 3 silver and 6 bronze)
Greco-Roman: 5 medalists (1 gold, 1 silver and 3 bronze)
Women’s Wrestling: 9 medalists (1 gold, 3 silver and 5 bronze)

Freestyle
57kg  - Thomas Patrick GILMAN (USA) – Tokyo Olympic bronze
74kg - Kyle Douglas DAKE (USA) - Tokyo Olympic bronze
86kg  - David Morris TAYLOR III (USA) - Tokyo Olympic gold
86kg - Hassan Aliazam YAZDANICHARATI (IRI) - Tokyo Olympic silver
86kg - Artur NAIFONOV (RWF) - Tokyo Olympic bronze
97kg - Abdulrashid SADULAEV (RWF) - Tokyo Olympic gold
97kg - Kyle SNYDER (USA) - Tokyo Olympic silver
97kg - Abraham de Jesus CONYEDO RUANO (ITA) - Tokyo Olympic bronze
125kg  -Geno PETRIASHVILI (GEO) - Tokyo Olympic silver
125kg - Amir Hossein Abbas ZARE (IRI) - Tokyo Olympic bronze
125kg - Taha AKGUL (TUR) - Tokyo Olympic bronze

Greco-Roman
67kg  - Mohammadreza Abdolhamid GERAEI (IRI) - Tokyo Olympic gold
82kg  - Rafig HUSEYNOV (AZE) - Tokyo Olympic bronze
87kg  - Zurabi DATUNASHVILI (SRB) - Tokyo Olympic bronze
97kg - Mohammadhadi Abdollah SARAVI (IRI) - Tokyo Olympic bronze
130kg  - Iakobi KAJAIA (GEO) - Tokyo Olympic silver

Women’s Wrestling
50kg  - Sarah Ann HILDEBRANDT (USA) - Tokyo Olympic bronze
53kg  - Bolortuya BAT OCHIR (MGL) - Tokyo Olympic bronze
57kg - Helen Louise MAROULIS (USA) - Tokyo Olympic bronze
57kg - Evelina Georgieva NIKOLOVA (BUL) - Tokyo Olympic bronze
62kg  - Aisuluu TYNYBEKOVA (KGZ) - Tokyo Olympic silver
68kg  - Tamyra Mariama STOCK MENSAH (USA) - Tokyo Olympic gold
68kg - Blessing OBORUDUDU (NGR) - Tokyo Olympic silver
68kg - Meerim ZHUMANAZAROVA (KGZ) - Tokyo Olympic bronze
76kg - Adeline Maria GRAY (USA) - Tokyo Olympic silver

David TAYLOR (USA) finishes a shot on Hassan YAZDANI (IRI) during their meeting in Tokyo for 86kg gold. They are both entered at 86kg. (Photo: Tony Rotundo)

Freestyle

57kg 
Afgan KHASHALOV (AZE)
Mikyay Salim NAIM (BUL)
Darthe CAPELLAN (CAN)
Levan  METREVELI VARTANOV (ESP)
Goga DZIGUA (GEO)
Horst Justin Junior LEHR (GER)
Pankaj PANKAJ (IND)
Alireza Nosratolah SARLAK (IRI)
Toshiya ABE (JPN)
Meirambek KARTBAY (KAZ)
Simon Kamau WAINAINA (KEN)
Changjun PARK (KOR)
Bekhbayar ERDENEBAT (MGL)
Vladimir EGOROV (MKD)
Abubakar MUTALIEV (RWF)
Suleyman ATLI (TUR)
Roman HUTSULIAK (UKR)
Thomas Patrick GILMAN (USA)
Gamal Mohammed Yahya ALSABRI (YEM)

61kg
Arsen HARUTYUNYAN (ARM)

Kanan HEYBATOV (AZE)
Alibeg ALIBEGOV (BRN)
Georgi Valentinov VANGELOV (BUL)
Arman Norik ELOYAN (FRA)
Beka LOMTADZE (GEO)
Nico MEGERLE (GER)

Gamzatgadzsi HALIDOV (HUN)
Ravinder RAVINDER (IND)
Rahman Mousa AMOUZADKHALILI (IRI)
Toshihiro HASEGAWA (JPN)
Kenneth KOECH (KEN)
Ulukbek ZHOLDOSHBEKOV (KGZ)
Sunggwon KIM (KOR)
Chakir ANSARI (MAR)

Igor CHICHIOI (MDA)
Tuvshintulga TUMENBILEG (MGL)
Eduard GRIGOREV (POL)
Abasgadzhi MAGOMEDOV (RWF)
Stevan Andria MICIC (SRB)
Emrah ORMANOGLU (TUR)
Yaroslav HURSKYY (UKR)
Daton FIX (USA)

65kg
Vazgen TEVANYAN (ARM)
Gabriel JANATSCH (AUT)
Ali RAHIMZADE (AZE)
Ayub Muratovitch MUSAEV (BEL)
Marcos Wesley DE BRITO SIQUEIRA (BRA)
Haji Mohamad ALI (BRN)
Ruhan Hyusnyu RASIM (BUL)
Dillon Emmanuel WILLIAMS (CAN)
Ilman MUKHTAROV (FRA)
George Anthony RAMM (GBR)
Rohit ROHIT (IND)
Amirmohammad Babak YAZDANICHERATI (IRI)
Colin John REALBUTO (ITA)
Kaiki YAMAGUCHI (JPN)
Alibek OSMONOV (KGZ)
Junsik YUN (KOR)
Maxim SACULTAN (MDA)
Tulga TUMUR OCHIR (MGL)
Krzysztof BIENKOWSKI (POL)
Sebastian C RIVERA (PUR)
Zagir SHAKHIEV (RWF)

Selahattin KILICSALLAYAN (TUR)
Vasyl SHUPTAR (UKR)
John Michael DIAKOMIHALIS (USA)

70kg
Arman ANDREASYAN (ARM)
Turan BAYRAMOV (AZE)
Adam BATIROV (BRN)
Carlos Eduardo ROMERO MILLAQUEO (CHI)
Nicolae COJOCARU (GBR)
Zurabi IAKOBISHVILI (GEO)
Shamil USTAEV (GER)
Daniel ANTAL (HUN)
Sushil SUSHIL (IND)
Erfan Mohammad ELAHI (IRI)
Gianluca TALAMO (ITA)
Jintaro MOTOYAMA (JPN)
Ernazar AKMATALIEV (KGZ)
Seungchul LEE (KOR)
Nicolai GRAHMEZ (MDA)
Temuulen ENKHTUYA (MGL)
Magomedmurad GADZHIEV (POL)

Evgenii ZHERBAEV (RWF)
Zaur EFENDIEV (SRB)
Anil NiroshanMunasinghe KARUNA PELI GEDARA (SRI)
Marc DIETSCHE (SUI)
Daniel CHOMANIC (SVK)

Mustafa KAYA (TUR)
Ivan KUSYAK (UKR)
James Malcolm GREEN (USA)

Hussein Abdullah Hussein Abdullah AL AZZANI (YEM)

74kg
Joshgun AZIMOV (AZE)
Ali Pasha Ruslanovich UMARPASHAEV (BUL)
Jasmit Singh PHULKA (CAN)
Aimar ANDRUSE (EST)
Avtandil KENTCHADZE (GEO)
Osman Kubilay CAKICI (GER)
Murad KURAMAGOMEDOV (HUN)
Yash YASH (IND)
Yones Aliakbar EMAMICHOGHAEI (IRI)
Mitchell Louis FINESILVER (ISR)
Masaki SATO (JPN)
Mathayo Matonya MAHABILA (KEN)
Byungmin GONG (KOR)
Vasile DIACON (MDA)
Byambadorj BAT ERDENE (MGL)
Suresh CHUNARA (NEP)
Kamil RYBICKI (POL)

Timur BIZHOEV (RWF)
Malik Michael AMINE (SMR)
Hetik CABOLOV (SRB)
Tajmuraz Mairbekovic SALKAZANOV (SVK)
Fazli ERYILMAZ (TUR)
Zielimkhan TOHUZOV (UKR)
Kyle Douglas DAKE (USA)

79kg
Arman AVAGYAN (ARM)
Ashraf ASHIROV (AZE)
Oktay Ruzhdi HASAN (BUL)
Samuel Jacob BARMISH (CAN)
Erik REINBOK (EST)
Saifedine ALEKMA (FRA)
Nika KENTCHADZE (GEO)
Georgios KOUGIOUMTSIDIS (GRE)
Csaba VIDA (HUN)
Baliyan GOURAV (IND)
Mohammad Ashghar NOKHODILARIMI (IRI)
Aron CANEVA (ITA)
Ryuki YOSHIDA (JPN)
Saiakbai USUPOV (KGZ)
Manho OH (KOR)
Alans AMIROVS (LAT)
Wilson Hallowanger TOAYEN (LBR)
Evgheni NEDEALCO (MDA)
Bat Erdene BYAMBASUREN (MGL)
Andrzej Piotr SOKALSKI (POL)
Maxim VASILIOGLO (ROU)

Radik VALIEV (RWF)
Akhsarbek GULAEV (SVK)
Muhammet Nuri KOTANOGLU (TUR)

Rustam RASUIEV (UKR)
Jordan Ernest BURROUGHS (USA)

86kg
Abubakr ABAKAROV (AZE)
Dzhemal Rushen ALI (BUL)
Hunter Jeffery LEE (CAN)
Taimuraz FRIEV NASKIDAEVA (ESP)
Akhmed AIBUEV (FRA)
Sandro AMINASHVILI (GEO)
Ahmed Ruslanovic DUDAROV (GER)
Sandeep Singh MANN (IND)
Hassan Aliazam YAZDANICHARATI (IRI)
Uri KALASHNIKOV (ISR)
Hayato ISHIGURO (JPN)
Mark Omumasaba INGUYESI (KEN)
Gwanuk KIM (KOR)
Ivars SAMUSONOKS (LAT)

Piotr IANULOV (MDA)
Gankhuyag GANBAATAR (MGL)
Sebastian JEZIERZANSKI (POL)
Ethan Adrian RAMOS (PUR)
Artur NAIFONOV (RWF)
Boris MAKOEV (SVK)
Osman GOCEN (TUR)
Mukhammed ALIIEV (UKR)
David Morris TAYLOR III (USA)

92kg
Osman NURMAGOMEDOV (AZE)

Akhmed Adamovich MAGAMAEV (BUL) 
Jordan STEEN (CAN)
Heriberto SANDI CASTILLO (CRC)
Irakli MTSITURI (GEO)

Pruthviraj Babasaheb PATIL (IND)
Kamran Ghorban GHASEMPOUR (IRI)
Simone IANNATTONI (ITA)
Takuma OTSU (JPN)
John Odhiambo OMONDI (KEN)
Hyeokbeom GWON (KOR)
Georgii RUBAEV (MDA)
Orgilokh DAGVADORJ (MGL)
Zbigniew Mateusz BARANOWSKI (POL)
Magomed Guseynovitch KURBANOV (RWF)
Erhan YAYLACI (TUR)
AndriI VLASOV (UKR)
Jden Michael Tbory COX (USA)
Gilberto Segundo AYALA RODRIGUEZ (VEN)

97kg
Islam ILYASOV (AZE)
Ahmed Sultanovich BATAEV (BUL)

Nishan Preet Singh RANDHAWA (CAN)
Maxwell Lemar LACEY GARITA (CRC)
Elizbar ODIKADZE (GEO)
Satywart KADIAN (IND)
Mojtaba Mohammadshafie GOLEIJ (IRI)
Abraham de Jesus CONYEDO RUANO (ITA)
Takashi ISHIGURO (JPN)
Dan Aura CHEPTAI (KEN)
Minwon SEO (KOR)
Lukas KRASAUSKAS (LTU)
Radu LEFTER (MDA)
Batzul ULZIISAIKHAN (MGL)
Magomedgadji Omardibirovich NUROV (MKD)
Sumir Kumar SAH (NEP)
Radoslaw BARAN (POL)
Abdulrashid SADULAEV (RWF)
Suleyman KARADENIZ (TUR)
Mahamed ZAKARIIEV (UKR)
Kyle Frederick SNYDER (USA)

125kg
Johannes LUDESCHER (AUT)
Amarveer DHESI (CAN)

Youssif Mohamed Badea HEMIDA (EGY)
Jere Tapani HEINO (FIN)
Geno PETRIASHVILI (GEO)

Azamat KHOSONOV (GRE)
Kumar ANIRUDH (IND)
Amir Hossein Abbas ZARE (IRI)
Taiki YAMAMOTO (JPN)
Yeihyun JUNG (KOR)
Egor OLAR (MDA)
Lkhagvagerel MUNKHTUR (MGL)
Robert BARAN (POL)

Zelimkhan KHIZRIEV (RWF)
Taha AKGUL (TUR)
Oleksandr KOLDOVSKYI (UKR)
Nicholas Edward GWIAZDOWSKI (USA)

Mohammadreza GERAEI (IRI) looks to expose Parviz NASIBOV (UKR) during their 67kg battle for Olympic gold. Geraei is entered at 67kg. (Photo: Kadir Caliskan)

Greco-Roman

*Tokyo Olympic bronze medalist Mohammadhadi Abdollah SARAVI (IRI) was registered at 97kg freestyle. He's been moved to 97kg Greco-Roman.

55kg
Norayr HAKHOYAN (ARM)
Eldaniz AZIZLI (AZE)
Marat GARIPOV (BRA)
Nugzari TSURTSUMIA (GEO)
Fabian Bernhard SCHMITT (GER)
Sandeep SANDEEP (IND)
Sajjad Javid ABBASPOURRAGANI (IRI)
Ken MATSUI (JPN)
Khorlan ZHAKANSHA (KAZ)
Nurmukhammet ABDULLAEV (KGZ)
Hyeokjin JEON (KOR)
Snorre Harsem LUND (NOR)
Emin Narimanovitch SEFERSHAEV (RWF)
Ekrem OZTURK (TUR)
Koriun SAHRADIAN (UKR)
Max Emiliano NOWRY (USA)

60kg
Gevorg GHARIBYAN (ARM)
Murad MAMMADOV (AZE)
Helary MAEGISALU (EST)
Irakli DZIMISTARISHVILI (GEO)
Krisztian KECSKEMETI (HUN)
Gyanender GYANENDER (IND)
Mehrdad Abdmohammad MARDANI (IRI)
Ayata SUZUKI (JPN)
Aidos SULTANGALI (KAZ)
Zholaman SHARSHENBEKOV (KGZ)
Jinwoong JUNG (KOR)
Justas PETRAVICIUS (LTU)
Victor CIOBANU (MDA)
Michal Jacek TRACZ (POL)
Razvan ARNAUT (ROU)

Stepan MARYANYAN (RWF)
Ahmet UYAR (TUR)
Zhora ABOVIAN (UKR)
Dalton ROBERTS (USA)

63kg
Hrachya POGHOSYAN (ARM)
Taleh MAMMADOV (AZE)

Ivan LIZATOVIC (CRO)
Mostafa Hassan Abdelaal MOHAMED (EGY)
Leri ABULADZE (GEO)
Deniz MENEKSE (GER)
Erik TORBA (HUN)
Neeraj NEERAJ (IND)
Meysam Karamali DALKHANI (IRI)
Kensuke SHIMIZU (JPN)
Sultan ASSETULY (KAZ)
Kaly SULAIMANOV (KGZ)
Hanjae CHUNG (KOR)
Aleksandrs JURKJANS (LAT)
Stig Andre BERGE (NOR)
Artor Zaitsev HAGERUP (NOR)
Mihai Radu MIHUT (ROU)
Ibragim LABAZANOV (RWF)
Perica DIMITRIJEVIC (SRB)

Virgil Alexander BICA (SWE)
Mehmet CEKER (TUR)
Lenur TEMIROV (UKR)
Sam JONES (USA)

67kg
Slavik GALSTYAN (ARM)

Hasrat JAFAROV (AZE)
Ott SAAR (EST)
Elmer Joakim MATTILA (FIN)
Mamadassa SYLLA (FRA)
Ramaz ZOIDZE (GEO)
Witalis LAZOVSKI (GER)
Krisztian Istvan VANCZA (HUN)
Gaurav DUHOON (IND)
Mohammadreza Abdolhamid GERAEI (IRI)
Zaur KABALOEV (ITA)
Tsuchika SHIMOYAMADA (JPN)
Almat KEBISPAYEV (KAZ)

Gilbert Mbevoni KABOCHE (KEN)
Amantur ISMAILOV (KGZ)
Hansu RYU (KOR)
Morten THORESEN (NOR)
Mateusz Lucjan BERNATEK (POL)
Pedro Miguel DE MATOS OLIVEIRA DE MORAIS CA (POR)
Nazir Rachidovitch ABDULLAEV (RWF)
Sebastian NAD (SRB)
Andreas VETSCH (SUI)
Murat FIRAT (TUR)
Oleksii MASYK (UKR)
Peyton OMANIA (USA)

72kg
Malkhas AMOYAN (ARM)
Christoph BURGER (AUT)
Ulvu GANIZADE (AZE)
Deyvid Tihomirov DIMITROV (BUL)
Jair Alexis CUERO MUNOZ (COL)
Mikko Petteri PELTOKANGAS (FIN)
Ibrahim Mahmoud Hamed Hassan GHANEM (FRA)
Shmagi BOLKVADZE (GEO)

Idris Hanpasaevic IBAEV (GER)
Robert Attila FRITSCH (HUN)
Vikas VIKAS (IND)
Mohammad Reza Hojatollah MOKHTARI (IRI)
Tomohiro INOUE (JPN)
Kaharman KISSYMETOV (KAZ)
Ruslan TSAREV (KGZ)
Jiyul LEE (KOR)
Kristupas SLEIVA (LTU)
Valentin PETIC (MDA)
Juan Sebastian AAK (NOR)
Haavard JOERGENSEN (NOR)
Roman PACURKOWSKI (POL)

Sergei KUTUZOV (RWF)
Aleksa ERSKI (SRB)
Leos DRMOLA (SVK)

Cengiz ARSLAN (TUR)
Maksym YEVTUSHENKO (UKR)

Patrick SMITH (USA)

77kg
Boris FRROKAJ (ALB)
Sanan SULEYMANOV (AZE)
Joilson DE BRITO RAMOS JUNIOR (BRA)
Aik MNATSAKANIAN (BUL)
Antonio KAMENJASEVIC (CRO)
Oliver Marco KRUEGER (DEN)
Matias Olavi Iisakki LIPASTI (FIN)
Evrik NIKOGHOSYAN (FRA)
Gela BOLKVADZE (GEO)
Roland SCHWARZ (GER)
Tamas LEVAI (HUN)
Sajan SAJAN (IND)
Mohammadali Abdolhamid GERAEI (IRI)
Kodai SAKURABA (JPN)
Tamerlan SHADUKAYEV (KAZ)

Mathayo Matonya MAHABILA (KEN)
Kairatbek TUGOLBAEV (KGZ)
Yeonghun NOH (KOR)
Paulius GALKINAS (LTU)
Alexandrin GUTU (MDA)
Emmanuel Alexis BENITEZ CASTRO (MEX)
Per Anders KURE (NOR)
Rabie K. A. KHALIL (PLE)
Gevorg SAHAKYAN (POL)
Bakhit Sharif K BADR (QAT)

Roman VLASOV (RWF)
Viktor NEMES (SRB)
Bogdan KOURINNOI (SWE)

Daler REZA ZADE (TJK)
Yunus Emre BASAR (TUR)
Dmytro PYSHKOV (UKR)
Jesse Alexander PORTER (USA)

82kg
Gegham TORGOMYAN (ARM)
Rohan Peter KALISCH (AUS)
Rafig HUSEYNOV (AZE)
Tarek Mohamed ABDELSLAM SHEBLE MOHAMED (BUL)
Bozo STARCEVIC (CRO)
Oldrich VARGA (CZE)
Ranet KALJOLA (EST)
Aivengo RIKADZE (GEO)
Hannes WAGNER (GER)
Laszlo SZABO (HUN)
Singh HARPREET (IND)
Pejman Soltanmorad POSHTAM (IRI)
Igor PETRISHIN (ISR)
Satoki MUKAI (JPN)
Maxat YEREZHEPOV (KAZ)
Kalidin ASYKEEV (KGZ)
Byeongcheol SHIN (KOR)

Per Anders KURE (NOR)
Edgar BABAYAN (POL)
Adlan AKIEV (RWF)
Branko KOVACEVIC (SRB)
Alex Michel BJURBERG KESSIDIS (SWE)
Burhan AKBUDAK (TUR)
Dmytro GARDUBEI (UKR)
Benjamin Errol PROVISOR (USA)

87kg
Artur SHAHINYAN (ARM)
Michael WAGNER (AUT)
Islam ABBASOV (AZE)
Yoan Danielov DIMITROV (BUL)
Vjekoslav LUBURIC (CRO)
Petr NOVAK (CZE)
Turpan Ali Alvievich BISULTANOV (DEN)
Raido LIITMAEE (EST)
Lasha GOBADZE (GEO)
Pascal EISELE (GER)
Istvan TAKACS (HUN)
Kumar SUNIL (IND)
Ramin Soltanmorad TAHERISARTANG (IRI)
Takahiro TSURUDA (JPN)
Nursultan TURSYNOV (KAZ)
Seunghwan LEE (KOR)
Julius MATUZEVICIUS (LTU)
Mihail BRADU (MDA)
Ruben Elias BEEN (NOR)
Magnus GROENVIK (NOR)
Arkadiusz Marcin KULYNYCZ (POL)

Milad Valerikovitch ALIRZAEV (RWF)
Zurabi DATUNASHVILI (SRB)
Kristoffer Zakarias BERG (SWE)

Metehan BASAR (TUR)
Alan VERA (USA)
Semen NOVIKOV (UKR)

97kg
Murat LOKIAYEV (AZE)
Kiril Milenov MILOV (BUL)
Ioannis NARLIDIS (CAN)
Artur OMAROV (CZE)
Mathias BAK (DEN)
Melonin NOUMONVI (FRA)
Giorgi MELIA (GEO)
Peter OEHLER (GER)
Alex Gergo SZOKE (HUN)
Ravi RAVI (IND)

Mohammadhadi Abdollah SARAVI (IRI)
Yuta NARA (JPN)
Yerulan ISKAKOV (KAZ)
Beksultan Makhamadzhanovich MAKHMUDOV (KGZ)
Jewoo PARK (KOR)
Vilius LAURINAITIS (LTU)
Felix BALDAUF (NOR)
Marcus WORREN (NOR)
Gerard Cyprian KURNICZAK (POL)

Artur SARGSIAN (RWF)
Mihail KAJAIA (SRB)
Pontus Johan LUND (SWE)
Ibrahim TIGCI (TUR)
Yevhenii SAVETA (UKR)
Tracy Gangelo HANCOCK (USA)

130kg
David OVASAPYAN (ARM)
Beka KANDELAKI (AZE)
Radoslav Plamenov GEORGIEV (BUL)
Yasmani ACOSTA FERNANDEZ (CHI)
Marko KOSCEVIC (CRO)

Stepan DAVID (CZE)
Konsta Johannes MAEENPAEAE (FIN)
Iakobi KAJAIA (GEO)
Jello KRAHMER (GER)
Naveen NAVEEN (IND)

Aliakbar Hossein YOUSOFIAHMADCHALI (IRI)
Arata SONODA (JPN)
Alimkhan SYZDYKOV (KAZ)

Seungchan LEE (KOR)
Mantas KNYSTAUTAS (LTU)
Oskar MARVIK (NOR)
Nikola MILATOVIC (NOR)
Rafal Andrzej KRAJEWSKI (POL)
Alin ALEXUC CIURARIU (ROU)

Zurabi GEDEKHAURI (RWF)
Mykola KUCHMII (UKR)
Cohlton Michael SCHULTZ (USA)

 Tamyra MENSAH STOCK (USA) finishes a shot on Blessing OBORUDUDU (NGR) during their battle for the 68kg Olympic title. They are both registered at 68kg. (Photo: Tony Rotundo)

Women’s Wrestling

50kg
Patricia Alejandra BERMUDEZ (ARG)
Turkan NASIROVA (AZE)
Kamila BARBOSA VITO DA SILVA (BRA)
Miglena Georgieva SELISHKA (BUL)

Madison Bianca PARKS (CAN)
Lisa ERSEL (GER)
Kumari HANNY (IND)
Remina YOSHIMOTO (JPN)
Miran CHEON (KOR)
Gabija DILYTE (LTU)
Emilia CIRICU BUDEANU (MDA)

Otgonjargal DOLGORJAV (MGL) 
Ramona ERIKSEN (NOR)
Anna LUKASIAK (POL)
Emilia Alina VUC (ROU)
Nadezhda SOKOLOVA (RWF)
Evin DEMIRHAN (TUR)
Bohdana KOKOZEI YASHCHUK (UKR)
Sarah Ann HILDEBRANDT (USA)

53kg
Samantha Leigh STEWART (CAN)
Annika WENDLE (GER)
Pooja POOJA (IND)
Akari FUJINAMI (JPN)
Eunyoung PARK (KOR)
Kamile SERNAUSKAITE (LTU)
Iulia LEORDA (MDA)
Bolortuya BAT OCHIR (MGL)
Katarzyna KRAWCZYK (POL)
Anzhelika VETOSHKINA (RWF)
Emma Jonna Denise MALMGREN (SWE)
Zeynep YETGIL (TUR)
Khrystyna BEREZA (UKR)

Amy FEARNSIDE (USA)

55kg
Natasha Irene Vera FOX KRAMBLE(CAN)
Nina HEMMER (GER)
Pinki PINKI (IND)
Tsugumi SAKURAI (JPN)
Soyeon KIM (KOR)
Sumiya ERDENECHIMEG (MGL)
Esther Omolayo KOLAWOLE (NGR)
Anne SVARSTAD (NOR)
Roksana Marta ZASINA (POL)
Andreea Beatrice ANA (ROU)
Olga KHOROSHAVTSEVA (RWF)

Mehlika OZTURK (TUR)
Oleksandra KHOMENETS (UKR)
Jenna BURKERT (USA)  

57kg
Jeannie Agnes KESSLER (AUT)
Giullia RODRIGUES PENALBER DE OLIVEIRA (BRA)
Evelina Georgieva NIKOLOVA (BUL)
Alexandria Rebekkah TOWN (CAN)
Elena Heike BRUGGER (GER)
Ramona GALAMBOS (HUN)
Anshu ANSHU (IND)
Sae NANJO (JPN)
Sophia Omutichio AYIETA (KEN)
Davaachimeg ERKHEMBAYAR (MGL)

Patrycja GIL (POL)
Veronika CHUMIKOVA (RWF)

Elvira KAMALOGLU (TUR)
Solomiia VYNNYK (UKR)
Helen Louise MAROULIS (USA)

59kg
Alyona KOLESNIK (AZE)
Bilyana Zhivkova DUDOVA (BUL)

Linda MORAIS (CAN)
Sandra PARUSZEWSKI (GER)
Sarita SARITA (IND)
Akie HANAI (JPN)
Ineta DANTAITE (LTU)

Shoovdor BAATARJAV (MGL)
Grace Jacob BULLEN (NOR)

Jowita Maria WRZESIEN (POL)
Svetlana LIPATOVA (RWF)
Sara Johanna LINDBORG (SWE)

Ebru DAGBASI (TUR)
Oksana KUKHTA HERHEL (UKR)
Maya Gabriella NELSON (USA)

62kg
Lais NUNES DE OLIVEIRA (BRA)
Ana Paula GODINEZ GONZALEZ (CAN)
Luisa Helga Gerda NIEMESCH (GER)
Sangeeta SANGEETA (IND)
Nonoka OZAKI (JPN)
Aisuluu TYNYBEKOVA (KGZ)
Hwa Young SUNG (KOR)

Gantuya ENKHBAT (MGL)
Aleksandra WOLCZYNSKA (POL)
Alina KASABIEVA (RWF)

Merve KARADENIZ (TUR)
Ilona PROKOPEVNIUK (UKR)
Kayla Colleen Kiyoko MIRACLE (USA)

65kg
Elis MANOLOVA (AZE)
Mimi Nikolova HRISTOVA (BUL)
Koumba Selene Fanta LARROQUE (FRA)
Eyleen SEWINA (GER)
Bhateri BHATERI (IND)
Miwa MORIKAWA (JPN)

Winrose ALIVISA (KEN)
Hyebin AHN (KOR)
Irina RINGACI (MDA)

Enkhjin TUVSHINJARGAL (MGL)
Ingrid Bergh SKARD (NOR)

Kamila Czeslawa KULWICKA (POL)
Kriszta Tunde INCZE (ROU)
Dinara KUDAEVA SALIKHOVA (RWF)
Malin Johanna MATTSSON (SWE)

Asli DEMIR (TUR)
Tetiana RIZHKO (UKR)

Forrest MOLINARI (USA) 

68kg
Olivia Grace DI BACCO (CAN)
Adela HANZLICKOVA (CZE)
Ritu RITU (IND)
Rin MIYAJI (JPN)
Meerim ZHUMANAZAROVA (KGZ)
Minji HA (KOR)
Danute DOMIKAITYTE (LTU)
Delgermaa ENKHSAIKHAN (MGL)
Blessing OBORUDUDU (NGR)

Natalia Iwona STRZALKA (POL)
Khanum VELIEVA (RWF)
Nesrin BAS (TUR)
Anastasiia LAVRENCHUK (UKR)
Forrest Ann MOLINARI (USA)
Tamyra Mariama STOCK MENSAH (USA)

72kg
Sofiya Hristova GEORGIEVA (BUL)
Kayla Mary BEDNARCIK BRODNER (CAN)
Anna Carmen SCHELL (GER)
Divya KAKRAN (IND)
Masako FURUICHI (JPN)
Davaanasan ENKH AMAR (MGL)

Kseniia BURAKOVA (RWF)
Zsuzsanna MOLNAR (SVK)
Buse CAVUSOGLU TOSUN (TUR)

Alla BELINSKA (UKR)
Kylie Renee WELKER (USA)

76kg
Mariya Gerginova ORYASHKOVA (BUL)
Samar Amer Ibrahim HAMZA (EGY)
Epp MAEE (EST)
Cynthia Vanessa VESCAN (FRA)
Georgina Olwen NELTHORPE (GBR)
Francy RAEDELT (GER)
Zsanett NEMETH (HUN)
Kiran KIRAN (IND)
Yasuha MATSUYUKI (JPN)
Aiperi MEDET KYZY (KGZ)
Cholee KIM (KOR)
Kamile GAUCAITE (LTU)
Zagardulam NAIGALSUREN (MGL)
Iselin Maria Vilde Moen SOLHEIM (NOR)

Marina SUROVTSEVA (RWF)
Aysegul OZBEGE (TUR)
Anastasiia OSNIACH SHUSTOVA (UKR)
Adeline Maria GRAY (USA)

#WrestleTirana

U23 Worlds: Masoumi, Firouzpour add more age-group titles

By Vinay Siwach

Tirana, Albania (October 26) -- Two years after they won their first U23 world titles, Amirreza MASOUMI (IRI) and Amirhossein FIROUZPOUR (IRI) repeated as U23 world champions in 125kg and 92kg respectively in Tirana, Albania.

Now a six-time age-group world champion, Masoumi showed another dominant performance in the tournament, outscoring his opponents 41-0. A month ago, Masoumi won the U20 world title as well.

Carrying the injured left elbow, Masoumi faced U23 European champion Alen KHUBULOV (BUL) in the final on Saturday and won 11-0 with yet another masterclass in underhooks and aggressive wrestling. Khubulov struggled to find an opening as Masoumi kept an eye on his attempted underhooks.

The gold medal was the 20-year-old's sixth in the age-group World Championships and second at U23 level. However, he has Olympic silver medalist Amirhossein ZARE (IRI) as the biggest domestic competitor, and he will have to beat him next year to be Iran's representative on the senior team.

Iran's second gold as Firouzpour added his second U23 world title to take his total to five. Firouzpour gave up a takedown and turn against Jacob CARDENAS (USA) but looked in control of the 92kg final and won it 11-4.

Firouzpour, who had moved up to 97kg in a bid to be at the Paris Olympics, was back at 92kg at the start of this year and has won all the three tournaments he has participated in.

Defending his gold medal from last year was Bashir MAGOMEDOV (AIN) who defeated rising star from Azerbaijan Ruslan ABDULLAYEV (AZE) in the 61kg. The score was identical to his 4-0 win in the final last year.

"Final match is always different," Magomedov said. "Silver medal for me doesn’t mean anything. I was ready to die. I had a couple of attacks that were needed, scored the points and won the match. I’ve completed the plan that was given to me by my coach."

Abdullayev got on Magomedov's legs a couple of times but failed to finish his attacks. Magomedov, on the other hand, was in no hurry to finish the bout and took his own sweet time to win.

With two U23 gold medals in two years, Magomedov will be moving up to 65kg next season. However, gain weight still remains his biggest challenge.

"I am going to move up to the Olympic weight class of 65kg," he said. "However, my weight is just 66kg, that’s not enough. If I get to 67, 68kg, then I can think of moving to 65kg. I try to wrestle with everyone. Even if there is a chance to wrestle the Japanese guy, I would definitely do that. This kind of experience is very important."

A big result came at 86kg as Arslan BAGAEV (AIN) upgraded his bronze medal from last year to gold in a thrilling final against Arsenii DZHIOEV (AZE). After a slow start to the final, Bagaev led 2-1 with two minutes remaining. However, Dzhioev scored a takedownand took a 3-2 lead and kept the pressure on. Dzhioev went for a double-leg attack in the zone but Bagaev countered him with lift and scored four points which were awarded only after Bagaev challenged.

That changed the flow of the bout as Dzhioev needed four points to win and did not get the opening to score any more points, suffering a 6-3 loss.

The win marked the first time Bagaev won a world title and he was relieved. 

"I competed three times at the age-group World Championship, but I couldn’t win in previous years," Bagaev said. "Finally, this year, I managed to win. I probably worked harder than anyone, and luck was on my side."

In the final, wrestling his friend and training partner Dzhioev made it emotional but Bagaev always believed that he will win the final.

"We almost train at the same gym," he said. "Everyone was waiting for this match. I knew I was going to win, I was wrestling till the very end. In the end, we both got a little bit emotional, but this is wrestling, everybody wants to win."

Takahashi's golden run

Kota TAKAHASHI (JPN) pulled off one of the most incredible run at the U23 World Championships on one leg, literally. After getting injured against Mitchell MESENBRINK (USA), Takahashi had a heavy strapping on his knee.

In the final, Takahashi pulled out a takedown in the final minute of a tense final against Orozobek TOKTOMAMBETOV (KGZ) and held on to a 3-1 lead to upgrade his bronze medal from last year to gold.

Takahashi led 1-0 at the break against Toktomambetov was called for passivity in the first period and he failed to score in the activity time. Toktomambetov took a 1-1 criteria lead after Takahashi was put on the activity clock in the second period.

Takahashi kept his attacks and the referee was about to warn Toktomambetov for a second passivity when Takahashi got his takedown on the edge and claimed the lead. He held on to the 3-1 lead, avoiding much contact with Toktomambetov.

How hurt Takahashi was could be judged by the fact that he failed to perform the victory lap with the flag. After he won, the Japan team cheered for Takahashi and was proud that he managed to win the gold medal on one knee.

"I'm very happy and relieved that I won," Takahashi said. "I'm a tackler. I was good at attacking wrestling, and my opponent was very defensive, but I thought I could break down that defense by wrestling like I normally do, so I just did what I always do."

Takahashi threw some light on his style and said that countering is the way of wrestling he has been following since he began the sport.

"What I love most is winning," he said. "I've been doing tackles and attacking wrestling since I was little, so it's fun and I like it when I can make a tackle on my opponent."

Takahashi is registered for the World Championships in Non-Olympic Weight Classes at 79kg but with an injured knee, it will be interesting to see if Takahashi goes on to compete. But if he does, he is ready to challenge the pros.

"In the 79kg weight class, my opponent will be a bit bigger and bigger," he said. "I'm looking forward to seeing how well my speed and attacking wrestling will work against that opponent."

RESULTS

61kg
GOLD: Bashir MAGOMEDOV (AIN) df. Ruslan ABDULLAYEV (AZE), 4-0

BRONZE: Abhishek DHAKA (IND) df. Mykyta ABRAMOV (UKR), 3-1
BRONZE: Ebrahim KHARI (IRI) df. Levik MIKAYELYAN (ARM), 4-3

74kg
GOLD: Kota TAKAHASHI (JPN) df. Orozobek TOKTOMAMBETOV (KGZ), 3-1

BRONZE: Mitchell MESENBRINK (USA) df. Magomedrasul ASLUEV (BRN), 6-0
BRONZE: Dzhabrail GADZHIEV (AZE) df. Ismail KHANIEV (AIN), 8-6

86kg
GOLD: Arslan BAGAEV (AIN) df. Arsenii DZHIOEV (AZE), 6-3

BRONZE: Yudai TAKAHASHI (JPN) df. Joshua MORODION (GER), 9-2
BRONZE: Eugeniu MIHALCEAN (MDA) df. Vladimeri GAMKRELIDZE (GEO), 6-5

92kg
GOLD: Amirhossein FIROUZPOUR (IRI) df. Jacob CARDENAS (USA), 11-4

BRONZE: Ion DEMIAN (MDA) df. Fatih ALTUNBAS (TUR), via fall (8-6)
BRONZE: Mustafagadzhi MALACHDIBIROV (AIN) df. Musza ARSUNKAEV (HUN), 10-1

125kg
GOLD: Amirreza MASOUMI (IRI) df. Alen KHUBULOV (BUL), 11-0

BRONZE: Volodymyr KOCHANOV (UKR) df. Aydin AHMADOV (AZE), 11-0
BRONZE: Abdulla KURBANOV (AIN) df. Lucas STODDARD (USA),

Semifinals

57kg
GOLD: Abdymalik KARACHOV (KGZ) vs. CHIRAG (IND)

SF 1: Abdymalik KARACHOV (KGZ) df. Ali MOMENI (IRI), 4-3
SF 2: CHIRAG (IND) df. Allan ORALBEK (KAZ), 8-0

65kg
GOLD: Kaiji OGINO (JPN) vs. Ibragim IBRAGIMOV (AIN)

SF 1: Ibragim IBRAGIMOV (AIN) df. Umidjon JALOLOV (UZB), 3-0
SF 2: Kaiji OGINO (JPN) df. Abbas EBRAHIM (IRI), 11-5

70kg
GOLD: Magomed KHANIEV (AZE) vs. Magomed ELTEMIROV (AIN)

SF 1: Magomed ELTEMIROV (AIN) df. Ali KHORRAMDEL (IRI), 5-3
SF 2: Magomed KHANIEV (AZE) df. SUJEET (IND), via fall (8-4)

79kg
GOLD: Mahdi YOUSEFI (IRI) vs. Feng LU (CHN)

SF 1: Feng LU (CHN) df. Arsen BALAIAN (AIN), 4-2
SF 2: Mahdi YOUSEFI (IRI) df. Masaki SATO (JPN), 12-1

97kg
GOLD: Mahdi HAJILOUEIAN (IRI) vs. Rizabek AITMUKHAN (KAZ)

SF 1: Rizabek AITMUKHAN (KAZ) df. Shamil GADZHIALIEV (AIN), 7-2
SF 2: Mahdi HAJILOUEIAN (IRI) df. VICKY (IND), 11-8