#WrestleSofia

Bonka Produces Historic Night for Belarus at #WrestleSofia

Saturday, August 3, 2019 - 17:50 By Taylor Miller

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Photo of Dzmitry BONKA (BLR).

SOFIA, Bulgaria – On Saturday night, Dzmitry BONKA (BLR) became the first Cadet World Greco-Roman champion for Belarus since 1997, winning the 65 kg bracket at the 2019 Cadet World Championships in Sofia, Bulgaria.

In his gold-medal match, Bonka scored two takedowns and two points on exposure to defeat 2019 Cadet Asian bronze medalist Sheroz OCHILOV (TJK), 6-2.

The last to win a Cadet World title for Belarus was Alexander RUTSCHKO (BLR) at 57 kg at the 1997 Cadet World Championships in Maribor, Slovenia.

Iran produced two gold medalists in the first night of Greco-Roman finals on Saturday.

The first champ of the night was Amirreza Mohammadreza DEHBOZORGI (IRI), who added a Cadet World title at 48 kg to his resume.

Dehbozorgi, a 2018 Youth Olympic Games champion and two-time European champion, outwrestled Ziya BABASHOV (AZE) for a 3-1 victory and a gold medal.

Also collecting gold for Iran was 2019 Cadet Asian bronze medalist Shahrokh Abouzar MIKAEILI (IRI), who won the 110 kg weight class, grinding out a 1-0 decision against Razmik KURDYAN (ARM), who was fifth at 2019 European Championships.

Nihat Zahid MAMMADLI (AZE) finally topped the World podium on Saturday night at 55 kg. A 2017 Cadet World runner-up and European Youth Olympic Festival bronze medalist, Mammadli defeated Asian bronze medalist Pravin Pandurang PATIL (IND) with a dominating 9-0 performance.

Also winning a gold medal with a technical superiority was Mykyta ALIEKSIEIEV (UKR), who overpowered 2018 Cadet Balkan champion Gabriel LUPASCO (MDA), 12-3, in the 80 kg title match.

Alieksieiev greatly improved upon his 2018 Cadet World finish as he went from seventh place to first.

At 65 kg, Dzmitry BONKA (BLR) became the first Cadet World Greco-Roman champion for Belarus since 1997.

In his gold-medal match, Bonka scored two takedowns and two points on exposure to defeat 2019 Cadet Asian bronze medalist Sheroz OCHILOV (TJK), 6-2.

Finals matchups                   
48 kg
GOLD - Amirreza Mohammadreza DEHBOZORGI (IRI) dec. Ziya BABASHOV (AZE), 3-1
BRONZE – Rupin RUPIN (IND) dec. Riehan BOTHA (RSA), 5-0
BRONZE - Yerbol KAMALIYEV (KAZ) dec. Alibek AMIROV (RUS), 6-1

55 kg
GOLD - Nihat Zahid MAMMADLI (AZE) df. Pravin Pandurang PATIL (IND), 9-0
BRONZE – Abror ATABAEV (UZB) dec. Seyitcan BEYTEKIN (TUR), 6-4
BRONZE – Firuz MIRZORAJABOV (TJK) dec. Omar BUDAEV (RUS), 6-5

65 kg
GOLD - Dzmitry BONKA (BLR) dec. Sheroz OCHILOV (TJK), 6-2
BRONZE – Arman KHACHIKYAN (ARM) dec. Hojat Hassan REZAEI (IRI), 9-8
BRONZE – Attila Tamas TOESMAGI (HUN) df. Neeraj NEERAJ (IND), 10-2

80 kg
GOLD - Mykyta ALIEKSIEIEV (UKR) df. Gabriel LUPASCO (MDA), 12-3
BRONZE – Maksat SAILAU (KAZ) df. Jonni Kunnari SARKKINEN (FIN), 8-0
BRONZE – Vigen NAZARYAN (ARM) dec. Kamran Abdolreza ARGHASH (IRI), 5-3

110 kg
GOLD - Shahrokh Abouzar MIKAEILI (IRI) dec. Razmik KURDYAN (ARM), 1-0
BRONZE – Mate GOKADZE (GEO) df. Dominik Tomasz KRAWCZYK (POL), 8-0
BRONZE – Adolf BAZSO (HUN) dec. Grigorios KONTOVOUNISIOS (GRE), 4-0

 

#GrecoRoman

'Thank you, wrestling': Tokyo Olympic medalist Elsayed, 27, retires

Monday, July 14, 2025 - 10:34 By Vinay Siwach

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EGYPT (July 14) -- Tokyo Olympic bronze medalist Mohamed ELSAYED (EGY) has announced his retirement from wrestling, concluding a distinguished career that included two Olympic appearances and two world U23 gold medals.

Elsayed posted on Instagram about his struggles with injuries and shared that the decision to retire was the "most difficult" for the 27-year-old wrestler.

"After many years of hard work, challenges, and victories [and] after I honored my country and raised its flag in internationally, and was able to achieve my dream and win an Olympic medal in Greco-Roman wrestling, I have reached the most difficult decision in my sports career.  I have decided to officially announce my retirement," Elsayed wrote in an emotional post.

Having won five gold medals at the African Championships, Elsayed was a trailblazer in Greco-Roman and was Egypt's new-found hope for the Olympics. He did not disappoint in Tokyo, where he had a surprising run to the semifinal, which he lost to Parviz NASIBOV (UKR), 7-6.

He bounced back in the bronze-medal bout and defeated Artem SURKOV (ROC), 1-1 to capture bronze, Egypt's first medal since 2012 London Olympics and only the third since 1960.

"Wrestling has always been more than just a sport to me," he wrote. "It was my life, my passion, and my support in the most difficult times. I thank God for every moment I lived on the mat and every moment of pride, and every encouragement I heard from my family, fans, and country."

One of the biggest achievements of Elsayed, apart from the Olympic medal, was winning successive world U23 gold medals in 2018 and 2019 at 67kg.

Elsayed expressed gratitude to various individuals who supported him throughout the journey including coaches and trainers. He also thanked wrestling.

"I thank every coach who helped me, every colleague who stood by me, and everyone who supported me with a kind word or a prayer from the heart. Thank you to everyone who was part of the journey.

"Thank you to wrestling, which taught me to be a man before being a champion."