From 8-0 to 17-10: Amouzad Stuns Mamedov to Win 65kg Gold

Sunday, June 7, 2026 - 19:51 By Vinay Siwach

ULAANBAATAR, Mongolia (June 7) -- Rahman AMOUZAD (IRI) rarely falls behind in a bout. The last time was at the Paris Olympics final in 2024 when Kotaro KIYOOKA (JPN) stormed to a 10-1 lead and Amouzad failed to cover the deficit and lost 10-3.

The 23-year-old has since went on to win gold medals at the Muhamet Malo Ranking Series, the World Championships and the Islamic Solidarity Games, all in 2025. In the 14 matches last year, he did not let his opponent take the lead.

But on Sunday, Amouzad was staring at his first loss in two years and an uphill task of overcoming an 8-0 lead by Shamil MAMEDOV (BUL) in the 65kg final at the Ulaanbaatar Open.

Both Mamedov and Amouzad made their way to the 65kg final in the Mongolian capital and set up a top-tier clash, three years after they first clashed at the 2023 World Championships bronze-medal bout which the former won.

While Mamedov had began his 2026 season at the European Championships, Amouzad was wrestling for the first time this year.

Amouzad opened the bout aggressively as is the norm. But it was Mamedov who struck first.

Mamedov lifted the Iranian on his shoulders and then brought him down for four points. He did not let Amouzad settle on the mat for defense and rolled him twice using a gut-wrench to lead 8-0 before Amouzad defended the next turn, that would have ended the final.

Shamil MAMEDOV (BUL) loads to throw Rahman AMOUZAD (IRI) at the start of their 65kg final. (Photo: United World Wrestling / Kostadin Andonov)

As the referee asked the wrestlers to return to neutral with 4:10 left, it was Iran's coach Pejman DOROSTKAR who signaled Amouzad to remain calm. Perhaps he knew that Amouzad can still win. May be even Amouzad believed.

Amouzad began his comeback with a stepout two seconds later. He snapped hard and pressured Mamedov who was slowly showing signs of weak conditioning. The 30-second break came just in time for Mamedov, who led 8-1.

But a monstrous second period awaited both wrestlers. Amouzad scored two stepouts in a minute to make it 8-3 but Mamedov scored a takedown just when it looked it he had nothing left. With a 10-3 lead, it seemed that Mamedov will be able to defend that with 1:22 left.

Rahman AMOUZAD (IRI) scored 14 unanswered points on Shamil MAMEDOV (BUL) in the 65kg final. (Photo: United World Wrestling / Kostadin Andonov)

Amouzad scored a takedown five seconds later: 10-5. Mamedov was still fighting and defending but the pressure from Amouzad was unstoppable as the Iranian scored another stepout: 10-6. He made it 10-7 with 50 seconds left with another stepout.

Then came the double-leg attack that changed the bout. Amouzad quickly swept on Mamedov's left leg and the Bulgarian, struggling with conditioning, was slow to defend it as Amouzad wrapped the other leg as well and jumped with Mamedov landing on the mat in danger for four points. Amouzad scored a two-point exposure and then a complete turn to lead 15-10. It all changed all of a sudden.

Mamedov kept helpless as he legs became heavier to move and Amouzad found new spring in his steps. The Iranian scored one more takedown before the final whistle to complete a remarkable comeback and win 17-10, having scored 14 unanswered points in 82 seconds.

Amouzad is not unbeaten in his last 17 bouts and has lost only two matches out of his last 30 internationally.

Musa MEKHTIKHANOV (RUS) hits a fireman's carry on Chong Song HAN (PRK) during the 57kg final. (Photo: United World Wrestling / Kostadin Andonov)

The other world champion in action on Sunday at the Ulaanbaatar Open, Chong Song HAN (PRK) failed to complete a comeback like Amouzad. Han suffered a heartbreaking 6-6 criteria loss to European silver medalist Musa MEKHTIKHANOV (RUS) in the 57kg final.

Mekhtikhanov hit a mesmerizing fireman's carry for four points while he was on the 30-second activity clock. Han responded with a two-point exposure using a front headlock in the same sequence to make it 4-2. As Han tried the headlock again, Mekhtikhanov blocked him and held his back on the mat for two points to extend his lead to 6-2 at the break.

Han closed the gap with a stepout and hit a leg-attack to score two points via exposure and make it 6-5. As the sequence continued, Han and Mekhtikhanov went neutral and then Han scored a go-behind which was surprisingly scored only one point which made it 6-6.

Mekhtikhanov, with his criteria lead due to the bigger move, defended his lead for the remaining 50 seconds to upset the world champion and claim the gold medal.

Russia won two more golds as the Khaniev brothers captured their first-ever gold medals at a United World Wrestling senior tournaments. Ismail at 79kg completed a 10-0 technical superiority over U20 world champion Mahdi YOUSEFI (IRI) in the final to win gold. This was his fourth victory via superiority in Ulaanbaatar.

His brother Takhir began slowly but he also won the 97kg final with technical superiority, 10-0, against Demchigdorj TUMURBAATAR (MGL).

India Wins 2 Golds

India won two golds both at the expense of Kazakhstan, a welcome result for the country. At 61kg, unheralded DEEPAK (IND) defeated Assyl AITAKYN (KAZ), 6-0, in the final to capture the first gold.

Asian bronze medalist DINESH (IND) then held off U20 world champion Yedige KASSIMBEK (KAZ), 2-0, with both points coming from Kassimbek's passivity.

Host Mongolia won gold through Tulga TUMUR OCHIR (MGL) at 70kg after his opponent in the final, Rustamzhan KAKHAROV (KGZ), injury defaulted. Tumur Ochir also avenged his Asian Championships final loss to ABHIMANYOU (IND), 9-0, earlier in the day.

RESULTS

57kg
GOLD: Musa MEKHTIKHANOV (RUS) df. Chongsong HAN (PRK), 6-6

BRONZE: SUMIT (IND) df. Abzal OKENOV (KAZ), 6-3
BRONZE: Meirambek KARTBAY (KAZ) df. Aiaal BELOLYUBSKII (TJK), 8-0

61kg
GOLD: DEEPAK (IND) df. Assyl AITAKYN (KAZ), 6-0

BRONZE: Adilet ALMUKHAMEDOV (KAZ) df. Bair BAIANDUEV (RUS), 4-0
BRONZE: Ahora KHATERI (IRI) df. Batnasan GANKHULEG (MGL), 7-0

65kg
GOLD: Rahman AMOUZAD (IRI) df. Shamil MAMEDOV (BUL), 17-10

BRONZE: Kwang Jin KIM (PRK) df. Adlan ASKAROV (KAZ), 7-6
BRONZE: Mohit KUMAR (IND) df. Ossimzhan DASTANBEK (KAZ), 17-6

70kg
GOLD: Tulga TUMUR OCHIR (MGL) df. Rustamzhan KAKHAROV (KGZ), via inj. def.

BRONZE: Magomed ELTEMIROV (RUS) df. ABHIMANYOU (IND), 10-0
BRONZE: Aden SAKYBAEV (KGZ) df. Usukhbayar BAATARKHUU (MGL), 4-3

79kg
GOLD: Ismail KHANIEV (RUS) df. Mahdi YOUSEFI (IRI), 10-0

BRONZE: Shamsat TAIR (KAZ) df. Nurdaulet KUANYSHBAY (KAZ), 5-4
BRONZE: Suldkhuu OLONBAYAR (MGL) df. Sandeep MANN (IND), 10-0

97kg
GOLD: Takhir KHANIEV (RUS) df. Demchigdorj TUMURBAATAR (MGL), 10-0

BRONZE: VICKY (IND) df. Gankhuyag GANBAATAR (MGL), 4-0
BRONZE: TUXIGE (CHN) df. Nurdaulet BEKENOV (KAZ), 11-0

125kg
GOLD: DINESH (IND) df. Yedige KASSIMBEK (KAZ), 2-0

BRONZE: Robert BARAN (POL) df. Timur KOTAEV (RUS), 13-2
BRONZE: Kamil KOSCIOLEK (POL) df. Jose DIAZ (VEN), 4-2

#WrestleUlaanbaatar

On return, Dzhuzupbekov secures gold at Ulaanbaatar Open 2025

Thursday, May 29, 2025 - 18:08 By Vinay Siwach

ULAANBAATAR, Mongolia (May 29) -- Paris Olympic bronze medalist Uzur DZHUZUPBEKOV (KGZ) looked rusty on his return to competition since winning the medal in August 2024. But he had enough experience to win gold medal at the Ulaanbaatar Open 2025, his first competition since.

"This was my first start after the Olympics," Dzhuzupekov said. "It was very difficult, to be honest. It was quite tough to wrestle here, especially since the climate is different."

In his three bouts at 97kg, Dzhuzupbekov struggled for conditioning. He opened the day with a 10-6 win over Gankhuyag GANBAATAR (MGL) before beating Bat-Erdene BYAMBASUREN (MGL) 9-1. But it was his last match against Asian bronze medalist NITESH (IND) which troubled him the most.

Dzhuzupekov began the match with an arm-throw for four but Nitesh scored a reversal to make it 5-1 and the Indian the scored a turn to close the gap to 5-3 at the break. On resumption, Dzhuzupbekov held his position and was only called passive with just over a minute left.

Nitesh, now trailing 5-4, needed a turn to turn the match in his favor but he failed to score any and Dzhuzupbekov defended the one-point lead to win the gold medal at 97kg.

"It's dry here, and we're at an altitude of about 1,400 meters," he said. "That made it really challenging. It was hard for the whole team to compete. But overall, I’m happy with the result. Starting with the very first match it was really tough, I couldn't breathe properly here. We’ll analyze things and keep preparing."

Dzhuzupbekov has been off since winning bronze in Paris and got married after the Olympics. But as one of three medalists for Kyrgyzstan's Greco team, Dzhuzupbekov is now hoping to build on that result.

"I’ll be preparing for the World Championships," he said. "But I think there will be another tournament after this one — probably in Hungary or Poland. And we’ll likely prepare differently for that. Overall, I think the team spirit is good right now. I don’t focus too much on any one opponent, because the competition is very strong. Especially with all the Europeans — they’re all big and strong. I think I just have to be ready, be in good shape. I try not to overthink who I’ll wrestle or how the match will go. I just believe that if I’m in good form, I’ll win."

Dzhuzupbekov's gold was one of the three Kyrgyzstan won on day one of the tournament which doesn't award team title as it is not a championships.

Asian Championships silver medalist and Muhamet Malo Ranking Series gold medalist Razzak BEISHEKEEV (KGZ) defeated Murat FIRAT (TUR) in Round 2 bout and won the gold medal at 67kg.

Firat got the first par terre advantage in the first period but he failed to score and just before the break, Beishekeev surprised him with a headlock throw for four to lead 4-1. In the second period, Beishekeev got the par terre but he did not score and was happy to defend his 5-1 lead and win.

World U23 champion Asan ZHANYSHOV (KGZ) won the gold medal at 87kg after won his bouts with dominance. He defeated Batbayar TSOGTBAATAR (MGL), 8-0, and Karan KAMBOJ (IND), 9-0, to finish at the top.

Alperen BERBER (TUR) was also entered but he pulled out injured after suffering a hamstring injury in his first bout against Karan KAMBOJ (IND).

Another Turkiye wrestler who pulled out injured was Burhan AKBUDAK (TUR). He suffered an infection in his elbow day before coming to Mongolia and did not wrestle a single bout. Since only three wrestlers were entered at 82kg, Akbudak still managed to win gold.

But the gold medal was historic. Shahin BADAGHI (QAT) became the first wrestler from Qatar to win gold medal at any international event in Greco-Roman.

Badaghi, an Iranian transfer to Qatar, defeated PRINCE (IND) 9-0 in the only bout the two wrestled in the day. Badaghi scored a takedown and then a suplex for a 6-0 lead. India lost a challenge to make it 7-0 before Badaghi scored a takedown to finish the bout via technical superiority.

Ahmet YILMAZ (TUR) gave Turkiye its lone gold medal after beating Yryskeldi MAKSATBEK UULU (KGZ) in the 77kg final, 5-1. In the earlier Nelson bracket bout, Yilmaz defeated the Kyrgyzstan wrestler 11-3.

Iran and India also won gold medals as Asian champion Danial SOHRABI (IRI) put on a show to win four of his bouts and the gold medal at 72kg.

For India, Anil MOR (IND) won the gold medal at 55kg after he pinned Ulan MURATBEK UULU (KGZ) in the evening session. In his four bouts, Mor gave only two points, against Muratbek Uulu, but pinned him to remain one of the most dominant wrestler of the day.

The 19-year-old was wrestling his first senior international tournament and hails from Bass village, Hisar district in Haryana. He trains at the Guru Mehar Singh Akhada in Rohtak which has always given wrestlers to the Indian team.

For his Round 5 bout against Muratbek Uuku, Mor decided to defend more than attack.

"I had watched his bouts and he was trying to do the underhook and then throw you for the fall," Mor said. "I never gave my arm to him for the drag to underhook."

Though he was given passive in the first period, Mor knew that he has to get out of the par terre position quickly. He did so by sneaking out of Muratbek Uulu's gold and then scoring a takedown.

Instead of going for the turns, Mor held Muratbek Uulu to the mat and then secured the fall to get his first-ever senior medal internationally.

RESULTS

55kg
GOLD: Anil MOR (IND)
SILVER: Ulan MURATBEK UULU (KGZ)
BRONZE: Davaabandi MUNKH ERDENE (MGL)

67kg
GOLD: Razzak BEISHEKEEV (KGZ)
SILVER: Murat FIRAT (TUR)
BRONZE: NEERAJ (IND)

72kg
GOLD: Danial SOHRABI (IRI)
SILVER: Mustafa SAHIN (TUR)
BRONZE: Yryskeldi KHAMZAEV (KGZ)

77kg
GOLD: Ahmet YILMAZ (TUR) df. Yryskeldi MAKSATBEK UULU (KGZ), 5-1

BRONZE: Nishant PHOGAT (IND) df. Sumiyabazar ZANDANBUD (MGL), 11-0

82kg
GOLD: Shahin BADAGHI (QAT)
SILVER: PRINCE (IND)
BRONZE: Burhan AKBUDAK (TUR)

87kg
GOLD: Asan ZHANYSHOV (KGZ)
SILVER: Batbayar TSOGTBAATAR (MGL)
BRONZE: Karan KAMBOJ (IND)

97kg
GOLD: Uzur DZHUZUPBEKOV (KGZ)
SILVER: NITESH (IND)
BRONZE: Gankhuyag GANBAATAR (MGL)

From 8-0 to 17-10: Amouzad Stuns Mamedov to Win 65kg Gold

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On return, Dzhuzupbekov secures gold at Ulaanbaatar Open 2025