#wrestlebishkek

Asian Championships 2024 Entry List

By United World Wrestling Press

BISHKEK, Kyrgyzstan (April 3) -- The Asian Championships will return to Bishkek after six years with 366 wrestlers scheduled to compete at the April 11-16 event in the Kyrgyzstan capital.

Across the 30 weight classes, 13 returning champions are entered with only one -- Ibragim MAGOMADOV (KAZ) -- moving from 72kg to 77kg in Greco-Roman. Freestyle has four returning championships, Women's Wrestling has two and Greco-Roman has seven.

Japan will send a strong team to the Asian Championships led by Yui SUSAKI (JPN). Four of the six wrestlers for Japan's Paris Olympics team are set to compete in women's wrestling.

For the hosts, world champions Akzhol MAKHMUDOV (KGZ) and Aisuluu TYNYBEKOVA (KGZ) will look to win gold medals in front of the home crowd. Aiperi MEDET KYZY (KGZ) is also entered at 76kg.

World champion and defending Asian champion Akhmed TAZHUDINOV (BRN) will be wrestling at 97kg and will look to earn his second gold medal at the Asian Championships.

This tournament will also mark the first competition with Indian wrestlers competing under the country's name and flag after United World Wrestling lifted the suspension of the Wrestling Federation of India last month.

Freestyle

57kg
Weiyu LI (CHN)
UDIT (IND)
Ebrahim KHARI (IRI)
Khattab AL ANI (IRQ)
Kento YUMIYA (JPN)
Meirambek KARTBAY (KAZ)
Almaz SMANBEKOV (KGZ)
Changjun PARK (KOR)
Zanabazar ZANDANBUD (MGL)
Muhammad BILAL (PAK)
Kum Hyok KIM (PRK)
Gayan KATHURANGANA (SRI)
Aiaal BELOLYUBSKII (TJK)
Kabe MATJANOV (TKM)
Nodirbek JUMANAZAROV (UZB)

61kg
Zhipeng JIANG (CHN)
Akash DAHIYA (IND)
Reza ATRI (IRI)
Kaisei TANABE (JPN)
Assyl AITAKYN (KAZ)
Taiyrbek ZHUMASHBEK UULU (KGZ)
Sanghyeon SON (KOR)
Enkhbold ENKHBAT (MGL)
Alvin LOBREGUITO (PHI)
Ali ABURUMAILA (PLE)
Kum Chol RI (PRK)
Tharindu CHANDRASEKARA (SRI)
Dzhamshed SHARIFOV (TJK)
Amir HAMAYUN (TKM)
Sardor RUZIMOV (UZB)
Ibrahim GUZAN (YEM)

65kg
Baowen WEI (CHN)
ROHIT (IND)
Rahman AMOUZAD (IRI)
Mohammed KAREEM (IRQ)
Masanosuke ONO (JPN)
Sanzhar MUKHTAR (KAZ)
Ulukbek ZHOLDOSHBEKOV (KGZ)
Seonho YOO (KOR)
Tulga TUMUR OCHIR (MGL)
Muhammad ABDULLAH (PAK)
Abdullah ASSAF (PLE)
Hyon Song HAN (PRK)
Divoshan CHARLES FERNANDO (SRI)
Kamol BEGAKOV (TJK)
Jelaletdin SEYIDOV (TKM)
Abbos RAKHMONOV (UZB)

70kg
Shijian ZHOU (CHN)
ABHIMANYOU (IND)
Amirmohammad YAZDANI (IRI)
Yoshinosuke AOYAGI (JPN)
Meirzhan ASHIROV (KAZ)
Alibek OSMONOV (KGZ)
Seungchul LEE (KOR)
Chinzorig TSERMAA (MGL)
Fierre AFAN (PHI)
Yan LEE (SGP)
Mustafo AKHMEDOV (TJK)
Perman HOMMADOV (TKM)
Begijon KULDASHEV (UZB)

74kg
Yi LI (CHN)
YASH (IND)
Hossein ABOUZARIPASHKOLAEI (IRI)
Ali AL OBAIDI (IRQ)
Kota TAKAHASHI (JPN)
Syrbaz TALGAT (KAZ)
Kanat KERIMBEKOV (KGZ)
Sangho HAN (KOR)
Batbayar BATSUKH (MGL)
Muhammad ULLAH (PAK)
Yong Nam SO (PRK)
Mark PETER (SGP)
Madushanka LAKMAL (SRI)
Viktor RASSADIN (TJK)
Alp BEGENJOV (TKM)
Zafarbek OTAKHONOV (UZB)

79kg
Khidir SAIPUDINOV (BRN)
Nan CAO (CHN)
Parvinder SINGH (IND)
Mohammad NOKHODI (IRI)
Erzo ISAKOV (JOR)
Ryunosuke KAMIYA (JPN)
Azamat OMURZHANOV (KAZ)
Adilet MARATBAEV (KGZ)
Bumgue SEO (KOR)
Byambadorj ENKHBAYAR (MGL)
Muhammad TAHIR (PAK)
Magomet EVLOEV (TJK)
Gurbanmyrat OVEZBERDIYEV (TKM)
Asomiddin HASANOV (UZB)

86kg
Vuthy HENG (CAM)
Peilong LI (CHN)
Sandeep MANN (IND)
Hadi VAFAEIPOUR (IRI)
Mustafa AL OBAIDI (IRQ)
Tatsuya SHIRAI (JPN)
Azamat DAULETBEKOV (KAZ)
Atai IZABEKOV (KGZ)
Gyeongyeon LEE (KOR)
Batbilguun NAADAMBAT (MGL)
Haider BUTT (PAK)
Dovletmyrat ORAZGYLYJOV (TKM)
Javrail SHAPIEV (UZB)

92kg
Magomed SHARIPOV (BRN)
Suhe GANG (CHN)
VINAY (IND)
Amirhossein FIROUZPOUR (IRI)
Issa AL OBAIDI (IRQ)
Satoshi MIURA (JPN)
Adilet DAVLUMBAYEV (KAZ)
Nurtilek KARYPBAEV (KGZ)
Jinmyeong KIM (KOR)
Batzul DAMJIN (MGL)
Orazmuhammet HOJALYYEV (TKM)
Sherzod POYONOV (UZB)

97kg
Akhmed TAZHUDINOV (BRN)
Tuerxunbieke MUHEITE (CHN)
VICKY (IND)
Mohammadhossein MOHAMMADIAN (IRI)
Hibiki ITO (JPN)
Rizabek AITMUKHAN (KAZ)
Andrey ARONOV (KGZ)
Jeongwoo PARK (KOR)
Batzul ULZIISAIKHAN (MGL)
Muhammad INAM (PAK)
Badzha KHUTABA (SYR)
Shatlyk HEMELYAYEV (TKM)
Makhsud VEYSALOV (UZB)

125kg
Shamil SHARIPOV (BRN)
BUHEEERDUN (CHN)
Anirudh KUMAR (IND)
Amir Hossein ZARE (IRI)
Koki YAMAMOTO (JPN)
Abylay SOVET (KAZ)
Aiaal LAZAREV (KGZ)
Hyunsu HAN (KOR)
Odgerel BATKHISHIG (MGL)
Zaman ANWAR (PAK)
Omar SAREM (SYR)
Zyyamuhammet SAPAROV (TKM)
Sardorbek KHOLMATOV (UZB)

Aisuluu TYNYBEKOVA (KGZ)Aisuluu TYNYBEKOVA (KGZ) and Sakura MOTOKI (JPN) will clash for the third time with the Kyrgyz leading the head-to-head 2-0. (Photo: UWW / Kostadin Andonov)

Women’s Wrestling

50kg
Samnang DIT (CAM)
Ziqi FENG (CHN)
Shivani PAWAR (IND)
Yui SUSAKI (JPN)
Irina ZHANIBEKOVA BORISSOVA (KAZ)
Miseon KWON (KOR)
Otgonjargal DOLGORJAV (MGL)
Munkhgerel MUNKHBAT (MGL)
Jiah PINGOT (PHI)
Yong Ok HWANG (PRK)
Nipuni WASANA (SRI)
Ciao Yun LI (TPE)
Jasmina IMMAEVA (UZB)
Thi NGUYEN (VIE)

53kg
Chun LEI (CHN)
ANJU (IND)
Nagisa HARADA (JPN)
Ayazhan MARKASHEVA (KAZ)
Aizhan SABYRBEK KYZY (KGZ)
Yeji MIN (KOR)
Otgontuya CHINBOLD (MGL)
Aliah GAVALEZ (PHI)
Ji Hyang KIM (PRK)
Nethmi AHINSA (SRI)
Vatansulton SHAKARSHOEVA (TJK)
Lachyn ANNAMURADOVA (TKM)
Yi Jing CHEN (TPE)
Dilshoda MATNAZAROVA (UZB)
Thi NGUYEN (VIE)

55kg
Min ZHANG (CHN)
TAMANNA (IND)
Moe KIYOOKA (JPN)
Zulfiya YAKHYAROVA (KAZ)
Aruuke KADYRBEK KYZY (KGZ)
Jungeun LEE (KOR)
Dulguun MUNKHBOLD BOLORMAA (MGL)
Kyong OH (PRK)
Madina ARIPOVA (TKM)
Madina USMONJONOVA (UZB)

57kg
Yongxin FENG (CHN)
SARITA (IND)
Tsugumi SAKURAI (JPN)
Laura ALMAGANBETOVA (KAZ)
Kalmira BILIMBEKOVA (KGZ)
Bogyeong KIM (KOR)
Gantuya ENKHBAT (MGL)
Hyon Ju YUN (PRK)
Ulmeken ESENBAEVA (UZB)

59kg
Qi ZHANG (CHN)
Pushpa YADAV (IND)
Risako KINJO (JPN)
Diana KAYUMOVA (KAZ)
Tancholpon KYBALBEKOVA (KGZ)
Eunsu JEONG (KOR)
Anudari BATKHUYAG (MGL)
Dilfuza AIMBETOVA (UZB)

62kg
LILI (CHN)
MANISHA (IND)
Sakura MOTOKI (JPN)
Tynys DUBEK (KAZ)
Aisuluu TYNYBEKOVA (KGZ)
Subeen JO (KOR)
Tserenchimed SUKHEE (MGL)
Arian CARPIO (PHI)
Su Gyong CHOE (PRK)
Miyasar KUSHMURATOVA (UZB)

65kg
Yaru WU (CHN)
ANTIM (IND)
Mahiro YOSHITAKE (JPN)
Irina KAZYULINA (KAZ)
Dilnaz SAZANOVA (KGZ)
Soobin KIM (KOR)
Enkhjin TUVSHINJARGAL (MGL)
Naziya JORAYEVA (TKM)
Dinora RUSTAMOVA (UZB)

68kg
Zelu LI (CHN)
RADHIKA (IND)
Nonoka OZAKI (JPN)
Albina KAIRGELDINOVA (KAZ)
Gulnura TASHTANBEKOVA (KGZ)
Hyeonyeong PARK (KOR)
Delgermaa ENKHSAIKHAN (MGL)
Po Gyong RI (PRK)
Ariukhan JUMABAEVA (UZB)

72kg
Qian JIANG (CHN)
HARSHITA (IND)
Sumire NIIKURA (JPN)
Anastassiya PANASSOVICH (KAZ)
Nurzat NURTAEVA (KGZ)
Jiseon LEE (KOR)
Bolortungalag ZORIGT (MGL)
Oguljan EGEMBERDIYEVA (TKM)
Ozoda ZARIPBOEVA (UZB)

76kg
Yuanyuan HUANG (CHN)
PRIYA (IND)
Yasuha MATSUYUKI (JPN)
Elmira SYZDYKOVA (KAZ)
Aiperi MEDET KYZY (KGZ)
Seoyeon JEONG (KOR)
Zagardulam NAIGALSUREN (MGL)
Hui Tsz CHANG (TPE)
Valentina TORENIYAZOVA (UZB)

Amin MIRZAZADEH (IRI)World champion Amin MIRZAZADEH (IRI) will look to defend his 130kg Greco-Roman title. (Photo: UWW / Sachiko Hotaka)

Greco-Roman

55kg
HUSIYUETU (CHN)
Arjun HALAKURKI (IND)
Poya DAD MARZ (IRI)
Sajjad ALBIDHAN (IRQ)
Kagetora OKAMOTO (JPN)
Nurzat KABDYRAKHIMOV (KAZ)
Ulan MURATBEK UULU (KGZ)
Taemin KIM (KOR)
Yu Chol RO (PRK)
Alexander CUEVAS (SGP)
Abduvali RAHIMBAYEV (TKM)
Jasurbek ORTIKBOEV (UZB)

60kg
Liguo CAO (CHN)
SUPARMANTO (INA)
PRAVESH (IND)
Amirreza DEHBOZORGI (IRI)
Ali ALBIDHAN (IRQ)
Kaito INABA (JPN)
Galym KABDUNASSAROV (KAZ)
Zholaman SHARSHENBEKOV (KGZ)
Seunghak KIM (KOR)
Hassan ALHARTHI (KSA)
Baljinnyam TSEVEENRAVDAN (MGL)
Mark OLIVEROS (PHI)
Hyok SONG (PRK)
Aslamdzhon AZIZOV (TJK)
Umit DURDYYEV (TKM)
Jui Chi HUANG (TPE)
Ilkhom BAKHROMOV (UZB)

63kg
Haodong TAN (CHN)
UMESH (IND)
Iman MOHAMMADI (IRI)
Karrar ALBIDHAN (IRQ)
Ayata SUZUKI (JPN)
Yerzhet ZHARLYKASSYN (KAZ)
Dastan KADYROV (KGZ)
Dokyung JUNG (KOR)
Rayan B HAWSAWI (KSA)
Chan KIM (PRK)
Walid HINDI (QAT)
Islomjon BAKHRAMOV (UZB)

67kg
Lei LI (CHN)
Muhammad ALIANSYAH (INA)
Vinayak PATIL (IND)
Saeid ESMAEILI LEIVESI (IRI)
HARUTO YABE (JPN)
Almatbek AMANBEK (KAZ)
Razzak BEISHEKEEV (KGZ)
Hanjae CHUNG (KOR)
Saud ALSUBAIE (KSA)
Ganbayar NAMSRAI (MGL)
Jason BAUCAS (PHI)
Man Gwang SON (PRK)
Firuz MIRZORAJABOV (TJK)
Rovshen ATDAYEV (TKM)
Shermukhammad SHARIBJANOV (UZB)

72kg
Ji LENG (CHN)
Ankit GULIA (IND)
Mohammadreza ROSTAMI (IRI)
Shingo HARADA (JPN)
Nikolay KHAPKO (KAZ)
Adilkhan NURLANBEKOV (KGZ)
Jiyeon LEE (KOR)
Ahmed BARAHMAH (KSA)
Mohamad ALOBEID (SYR)
Begmyrat NOBATOV (TKM)
Abdullo ALIEV (UZB)

77kg
Tongyu CHEN (CHN)
SAJAN (IND)
Amir Ali ABDI (IRI)
Ali ALABODA (IRQ)
Nao KUSAKA (JPN)
Ibragim MAGOMADOV (KAZ)
Akzhol MAKHMUDOV (KGZ)
Yeonghun NOH (KOR)
Temuulen ENKHTUYA (MGL)
Gadiel MISSO (SGP)
Bazargeldi EZIMOV (TKM)
Lai Hsing YAO (TPE)
Doniyorkhon NAKIBOV (UZB)

82kg
Rohit DAHIYA (IND)
Rasoul GARMSIRI (IRI)
Taizo YOSHIDA (JPN)
Yevgeniy POLIVADOV (KAZ)
Bekzat ORUNKUL UULU (KGZ)
Sejin YANG (KOR)
Mukhammadkodir RASULOV (UZB)

87kg
Chengwu WANG (CHN)
AJAY (IND)
Naser ALIZADEH (IRI)
Sultan EID (JOR)
Masato SUMI (JPN)
Nursultan TURSYNOV (KAZ)
Atabek AZISBEKOV (KGZ)
Seunghwan LEE (KOR)
Turbold GANBOLD (MGL)
Aryan BIN AZMAN (SGP)
Sukhrob ABDULKHAEV (TJK)
Yhlas ABDURAZAKOV (TKM)
Rahimjon UZOKOV (UZB)

97kg
Houzhi HAO (CHN)
Narinder CHEEMA (IND)
Mohammadhadi SARAVI (IRI)
Masayuki AMANO (JPN)
Iussuf MATSIYEV (KAZ)
Beksultan MAKHMUDOV (KGZ)
Jeongyul KWON (KOR)
Badamdorj BALTMUNKH (MGL)
Mirzoamin SAFAROV (TJK)
Amanberdi AGAMAMMEDOV (TKM)
Abdikodir JALILOV (UZB)

130kg
Lingzhe MENG (CHN)
Mehar SINGH (IND
Amin MIRZAZADEH (IRI)
Ali AL SHARUEE (IRQ)
Keita KOBAYASHI (JPN)
Mansur SHADUKAYEV (KAZ)
Erlan MANATBEKOV (KGZ)
Minseok KIM (KOR)
Ganzolboo BUYANTOGTOKH (MGL)
Eduard BABENOSHEV (TJK)
Aybegshazada KURRAYEV (TKM)
Islomjon RAKHMATOV (UZB)

#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.