Amine downs Kurguliev, USA wins three #WrestleBudapest gold

Thursday, July 13, 2023 - 15:50 By Vinay Siwach

BUDAPEST, Hungary (July 13) -- The 86kg weight class in wrestling has long revolved around two superstars, Hassan YAZDANI (IRI) and David TAYLOR (USA). These two athletes have been trading World Championships and Olympic gold for the past five years.

However, their dominance is being challenged by a rising group of wrestlers, including Myles AMINE (SMR), the 2022 European champion. Amine, who won the Tokyo Olympic bronze medal, won a historic first European title for San Mario in Budapest last year and added silver at the 2023 edition.

Three months after their intense European Championships final, Amine and Kurguliev faced off again in the Budapest Ranking Series final on Thursday. It seemed like a déjà vu for Amine as he found himself trailing 1-1, with Kurguliev threatening to score a takedown and take the lead, much like in the European final.

Amine recognized the importance to attack and he executed a single leg takedown. Kurguliev countered and came close to securing a takedown before Amine escaped and earned two points by taking Kurguliev down. That was all Amine needed and he knew he had done enough.

Although Amine did give up a stepout in the remaining minute of the bout, it didn't matter much as he held on to win 3-2, seeking revenge for his loss in Zagreb.

"I wanted to remain locked in for six minutes," Amine said. "It was really simple -- a takedown or scramble."

Amine, who trains at the Cliff Keen Wrestling Club at the University of Michigan, looked like being on a mission on Thursday, beginning with a 4-2 win over Sebastian JEZIERZANSKI (POL) in the opening round. He followed that with an 11-1 technical superiority win over Nurzhan ISSAGALIYEV (KAZ) and a 5-0 win over Lars SCHAEFLE (GER) in the quarterfinals.

In the semifinals, Osman GOCEN (TUR) posed a threat by leading 4-2. However, Amine managed to score every time he fell behind and secured a 9-8 victory.

Similar to the European final, the Budapest Ranking Series final began slowly with both wrestlers receiving penalties for inactivity. Kurguliev even took two injury timeouts for his ankle. Despite their attempts to maintain control, it was evident that a scramble was imminent.

"I think it [Thursday's bout] was similar to the European Championships final," Amine said. "My execution was better as I wanted to remain locked in for six minutes."

Perhaps Kurguliev felt the heat of Amine's constant pressure that even though he got behind Amine in a scramble but failed to finish.

"I was not thinking anything during that scramble," Amine said. "I've pulled the rabbit out of the hole a few times in my career and I attribute that to not thinking too much. I wrestle every day and I am in these situations so."

Amine's win puts the focus back on the 86kg field for the World Championships. Wrestlers have been trying to catch up with Taylor and Yazdani and the Belgrade World Championships could be the first when both can be challenged.

"Those guys [Taylor and Yazdani] have earned the place with consistent results," Amine said. "But that's what we all are trying to do now [and catch them]. I treat it as one bout at a time."

The University of Michigan had a field day as Mason PARRIS (USA) won gold at 125kg after beating local star Daniel LIGETI (HUN) in the final.

Ligeti got the crowd with a four-point arm throw, but he was forced to forfeit the bout due to a leg injury. At that point, Parris was leading 9-4.

Kyle SNYDER (USA) added another gold medal for the United States, triumphing in the 97kg weight class after Magomedkhan MAGOMEDOV (AZE) withdrew from the gold medal bout.

Although both wrestlers reached the final, they had a slow start. Magomedov narrowly defeated Vladislav BAITCAEV (HUN) 7-6 in the opening bout, while Snyder secured a one-point victory over Givi MATCHARASHVILI (GEO), winning 3-2.

However, as the day progressed, both wrestlers found their rhythm. Snyder achieved a dominant 10-0 victory over Kanybek ABDULKHAIROV (KGZ), while Magomedov defeated Alisher YERGALI (KAZ) 6-3.

In the semifinals, Snyder continued his impressive form with another 10-0 win, this time against Bekzat URKIMBAY (KAZ), while Magomedov secured a 7-2 victory against Erik THIELE (GER).

Zahid VALENCIA (USA) won gold at 92kg after he defeated Matthew FINESILVER (USA) 10-0 in the final.

Valencia experienced a setback in Round 1 with a 6-3 loss against Amirali AZARPIA (IRI), but he composed himself and bounced back to win the gold against Finesilver.

After the initial loss, Valencia defeated Denys SAHALIUK (UKR) 8-2 in Round 2 and overcame world bronze medalist Miriani MAISURADZE (GEO) 5-3 to secure a spot in the semifinals, where he defeated Rizabek AITMUKHAN (KAZ) 10-0.

Tumur Ochir wins again

Tulga TUMUR OCHIR (MGL) maintained his exceptional performance this year by claiming another gold medal in the Ranking Series. He previously won in Zagreb and Bishkek and secured a silver medal at the Asian Championships. His only loss this year came against world champion Rahman AMOUZAD (IRI).

Tumur Ochir's impressive performance in Budapest included victories over Iszmail MUSZUKAJAEV (HUN) and Nicholas LEE (USA). Notably, Lee, who will represent the US at the World Championships this year, suffered a surprising 10-0 loss in the final.

After defeating Ikromzhon KHADZHIMURODOV (KGZ), Tumur Ochir faced Muszukajaev once again and utilized his underhooks effectively to keep the Hungarian wrestler at bay. Muszukajaev struggled to mount an attack and lost 3-0, marking his second loss to Tumur Ochir this year, following their encounter in Zagreb.

Lachlan MCNEIL (CAN) met a similar fate as Tumur Ochir dominated their semifinal, winning 10-0 and securing a place in the final against Lee, who achieved a commanding 10-0 victory against Joshua FINESILVER (ISR) and Alibek OSMONOV (KGZ).

Lee had no business winning the semifinal against Islam DUDAEV (ALB) but pulled off a buzzer-beating takedown to win 6-4.

However, Tumur Ochir wasted no time in asserting his dominance in the final, executing a big four-point move using underhooks and nearly pinning Lee. As Lee defended, Tumur Ochir capitalized with two gut wrenches to take an 8-0 lead. A final takedown sealed the victory for the 2021 world bronze medalist.

At 57kg, Wanhao ZOU (CHN) surprised everyone by claiming the gold medal with an 11-3 victory over Almaz SMANBEKOV in the final.

Zou began his campaign with a 5-0 win over Kamil KERYMOV (UKR) and proceeded to defeat Roberti DINGASHVILI (GEO) 3-1 in the quarterfinals. He then shut out Ahmad MOHAMMADNEZHADJAVAN (IRI) with a 5-0 win to secure a spot in the final against Smanbekov, who advanced with a 2-2 victory over Zane RICHARDS (USA).

RESULTS

57kg
GOLD: Wanhao ZOU (CHN) df. Almaz SMANBEKOV (KGZ), 11-3

BRONZE: Kamil KERYMOV (UKR) df. Ahmad MOHAMMADNEZHADJAVAN (IRI),8-4
BRONZE: Zane RICHARDS (USA) df. Niklas STECHELE (GER), 5-2

65kg
GOLD: Tulga TUMUR OCHIR (MGL) df. Nicholas LEE (USA), 10-0

BRONZE: Islam DUDAEV (ALB) df. Alibek OSMONOV (KGZ), 11-5
BRONZE: Ikromzhon KHADZHIMURODOV (KGZ) df. Lachlan MCNEIL (CAN), 10-0

74kg
GOLD: Murad KURAMAGOMEDOV (HUN) df. Nurkozha KAIPANOV (KAZ), 5-2

BRONZE: Krisztian BIRO (ROU) df. Byungmin GONG (KOR), 8-7
BRONZE: Feng LU (CHN) df. Mitchell FINESILVER (ISR), 8-3

86kg
GOLD: Myles AMINE (SMR) df. Dauren KURUGLIEV (GRE), 3-2

BRONZE: Rakhim MAGAMADOV (FRA) df. Tariel GAPHRINDASHVILI (GEO), 2-0
BRONZE: Osman GOCEN (TUR) df. Lars SCHAEFLE (GER), 8-0

92kg
GOLD: Zahid VALENCIA (USA) df. Matthew FINESILVER (ISR), 10-0

BRONZE: Rizabek AITMUKHAN (KAZ) df. Amirali AZARPIRA (IRI), via inj. def.

97kg
GOLD: Kyle SNYDER (USA) df. Magomedkhan MAGOMEDOV (AZE), via inj. def.

BRONZE: Givi MATCHARASHVILI (GEO) df. Bekzat URKIMBAY (KAZ), 9-0
BRONZE: Alisher YERGALI (KAZ) df. Erik THIELE (GER), 3-1

125kg
GOLD: Mason PARRIS (USA) df. Daniel LIGETI (HUN), via injury (8-4)

BRONZE: Zhiwei DENG (CHN) df. Abraham CONYEDO RUANO (ITA), 6-1
BRONZE: Yurii IDZINSKYI (UKR) df. Gennadij CUDINOVIC (GER), 7-6

#JapanWrestling

Olympic champ Fumita joins Ono as late withdrawal from Emperor's Cup

Wednesday, December 17, 2025 - 07:42 By Ken Marantz

TOKYO (December 17) -- Five days after former world champion Masanosuke ONO made the stunning announcement that he was pulling out of the Emperor's Cup All-Japan Championships, another high-profile star aborted a long-awaited return to action by joining him on the sidelines.

Olympic champion Kenichiro FUMITA announced Wednesday on the eve of the tournament that he was withdrawing due to an injury, keeping him out of what would have been his first tournament since his triumph at the Paris Olympics.

Fumita, who won the Paris gold at Greco 60kg but was entered at 63kg, made the announcement on his X account. Without disclosing the injury, he said it "was not a major injury that will have an effect on my wrestling career, but I feel it is not worth the risk at this time so I decided to withdraw."

The Emperor's Cup is also serving as the domestic qualifier for the 2026 Asian Championships, and as the first of two national domestic qualifiers for this year's World Championships and Asian Games. The latter holds particular significance in that Japan will be hosting the event.

Fumita, the silver medalist at the 2021 Tokyo Olympics and a two-time former world champion, had only competed at 63kg once in his career, at the 2023 German Grand Prix, where he placed second as a warmup for the World Championships, where he took home the silver.

The 30-year-old was due to take the mat on Thursday, the first day of the four-day tournament at Tokyo's Komazawa Gym.

"I deeply apologize to everyone who was looking forward [to seeing me] and to all those involved [with the tournament]," Fumita said. "I will make the utmost effort to be in top condition and be able to perform at the next competition."

Last Friday, Ono announced that he had withdrawn for health reasons, a move that indefinitely delays his return to the mats of his native country.

Ono revealed on social media that he had been diagnosed with a kidney problem, possibly linked to cutting weight to get down to 57kg, according to a report by Japan's top wrestling website Wrestling Spirits.

Ono has been competing at either 61kg or 65kg in recent years, and the stress of getting down to 57kg might have taken too big a toll. Ono said that he had gotten near 57kg the previous week when he experienced thickening of the urine, which can be regarded as a sign of dehydration.

Upon consultation with a doctor, it was decided "I will play it safe this time," Ono said.

The 22-year-old Ono has become a worldwide sensation, first by winning the senior world title at freestyle 61kg in 2024 with one-sided victories that included beating a past Olympic gold medalist and the reigning world champion, then for leaving the comfort of Yamanashi Gakuin University for the challenge of competing in American folkstyle at powerhouse Penn State University.

The Emperor's Cup would have provided a rare chance for Ono to compete in a freestyle tournament again, the first step on the path to getting back to the World Championships.

Ono said he will now return to Penn State, where he will resume his introduction into folkstyle. While he is redshirting this year -- the system that allows him to train with the team but not enter official competitions to preserve a year of eligibility -- he plans to enter an open tournament in January.

As pointed out by Wrestling Spirits, the big issue facing Ono now is whether or not he will be afforded a spot in the Meiji Cup All-Japan Invitational Championships in May next year, which will be the second domestic qualifier for the worlds and Asian Games.

As the name implies, the field is limited to invitees, using criteria set by the Japan Wrestling Federation based on results from major competitions over the past year. There are exceptions made for a wrestler who has been out of action for an extended time but has achieved "particularly outstanding results."

In the past, this has been interpreted to mean medaling at an Olympics, as the majority of wrestlers take time off following Olympic success. The question the federation will have to answer is, will a world title in 2024 earn Ono an invitation?

Asked directly by Wrestling Spirits, Kenji INOUE, the federation's chairman of the technical enhancement committee, replied, "At this stage, nothing has been decided."

There is one incentive for the publicity-starved JWF to include Ono in the Meiji Cup field -- it could set up a classic match-up between him and Paris Olympic champion Rei HIGUCHI.

Higuchi has not competed since winning the Paris gold, but has already stated he plans to return at the Meiji Cup with eyes on a first Asian Games appearance.

Ono has not competed in Japan since June 2024, when he participated in the East Japan Collegiate League, a team competition in which he helped Yamanashi Gakuin win the Division I title.

After winning the gold at the Non-Olympic Weight Class World Championships in Tirana in October 2024, he revealed he had been dealing with a broken ankle.

That kept him out of competition for awhile, then early in 2025, he headed across the Pacific to begin training with the Nittany Lion Wrestling Club. In March, he made the blockbuster announcement that he would enroll at Penn State.

Ono had been entered at 57kg at the Bill Farrell Memorial Invitational in New York in November, but was a late withdrawal for undisclosed reasons.

At the Emperor's Cup, Olympic weight classes will be contested over two days in the same format at the World Championships, while non-Olympic weights will be finished in a single day.

Although Fumita will no longer be competing, fellow Paris gold medalist Yuka KAGAMI will be making her return to the mat for the first time since her Olympic triumph at women's 76kg, which gets started on Thursday.

Amine downs Kurguliev, USA wins three #WrestleBudapest gold

Comments

Olympic champ Fumita joins Ono as late withdrawal from Emperor's Cup