Burroughs Makes 10th Senior World Team

Monday, September 13, 2021 - 14:34 By Gary Abbott

Jordan BURROUGHS (USA) won five matches over the weekend and punched his ticket to an eighth World Championships. (Photo: Sam Janicki)

LINCOLN, Nebraska (September 13) -- Jordan BURROUGHS of the Sunkist Kids won a new weight class to qualify for his 10th career U.S. World or Olympic Team, with an impressive victory at the World Team Trials in his college hometown of Lincoln, Neb. on Sunday.

Burroughs has made his eighth Senior World teams, along with two U.S. Olympic Team berths. In his previous nine World or Olympic appearances, he has won eight medals, five gold and three bronze.

He defeated talented Alex DIERINGER of the Titan Mercury WC/CKWC in the finals series to the delight of his local fans. He secured a 10-5 victory in the first match, winning the key positions, then got an early lead and scored a 4-3 win over Dieringer in match two. Burroughs was a Hodge Trophy winner for Nebraska, then trained there during his international career until recently moving back to his Jersey roots with the Pennsylvania RTC.

Two-time World champion J’den COX ox of the Titan Mercury WC/NJRTC secured a spot on his fourth Senior World team with two-match sweep over Kollin MOORE of the Titan Mercury WC/Ohio RTC at 97kg. Cox shut out Moore in both matches, winning 5-0 in the first match and 4-0 in the second bout. Cox boasts two World titles, an Olympic bronze and a World bronze in his four World-level appearances, winning a medal every time.

James GREEN of the Titan Mercury WC/SERTC is making his sixth trip to the Senior World Championships, after claiming the 70kg weight class with a two-match sweep over Ryan Deakin of the Titan Mercury WC/Wildcat WC. Green scored late in the first match to secure a 6-6 criteria decision over Deakin in bout one. He took the lead and kept the edge for a 4-2 win in bout two. Like Burroughs, he was a star for Nebraska and trained here for years, before moving to his new location at Virginia Tech.Green has won a World silver medal in 2017 and a World bronze medal in 2015.

Two-time World bronze medalist Nick GWIAZDOWSKI of the Titan Mercury WC/Spartan Combat RTC qualified for his fourth Senior World Championships, with a two-match sweep over 2019 Junior World champion Mason PARRIS of the Cliff Keen WC at 125kg. Gwiazdowski had an edge on power and technique, winning the first match 6-0, then adding more offense in a 10-3 win in bout two.

Making a second career Senior World Team was Daton FIX of the Titan Mercury WC/CWC, who secured a two-match sweep over Nathan Tomasello of the Titan Mercury WC/OKRTC at 61kg. Fix was aggressive in both of his wins, taking bout one by an 8-3 margin and bout two with a 7-0 shutout.

The only new Senior World Team member was Yianni DIAKOMIHALIS of the Titan Mercury WC/Spartan Combat WC, who needed three matches to defeat tough Joey MCKENNA of the Titan Mercury WC/PRTC) at 65kg. It was McKenna who had late heroics with a counter exposure for an 8-7 win in bout one. Diakomihalis rallied for a 5-2 victory in match two. In the deciding third bout, Diakomihalis opened up his scoring attack for a 12-2 technical fall and the team berth.

Four 2020 Olympic medalists chose to compete at the World Championships also, and their weight classes are not being contested this weekend: Olympic champion David Taylor (86kg), Olympic silver medalist Kyle Snyder (97kg), Olympic bronze medalist Thomas Gilman (57kg) and Olympic bronze medalist Kyle Dake (74kg).

*For more articles and recaps from USA Wrestling, please visit https://www.teamusa.org/USA-Wrestling.

Men’s freestyle Champions Series results

61kg
1st - Daton Fix (Titan Mercury WC/CWC) vs. Nathan Tomasello (Titan Mercury WC/OKRTC), two matches to none
Bout One –Fix dec. Tomasello, 8-3
Bout Two – Fix dec. Tomasello, 7-0
3rd – Carter Young (Cowboy WC) dec. Seth Gross (Sunkist Kids), 15-12

65kg
1st - Yianni Diakomihalis (Titan Mercury WC/Spartan Combat RTC) dec. Joey McKenna (Titan Mercury WC/PRTC) , two matches to one
Bout One –McKenna dec. Diakomihalis, 8-7
Bout Two – Diakomihalis dec. McKenna, 5-2
Bout Three – Diakomihalis tech. fall McKenna, 12-2
3rd –Evan Henderson (Titan Mercury WC/Ohio RTC) tech. fall Luke Pletcher (Titan Mercury WC/Pitt RTC)

70kg
1st - James Green (Titan Mercury WC/SERTC) dec. Ryan Deakin (Titan Mercury WC/Wildcat WC), two matches to none
Bout One – Green dec. Deakin, 6-6
Bout Two – Green dec. Deakin 4-2
3rd – Zain Retherford (Titan Mercury WC/NLWC) tech. fall Tyler Berger (Titan Mercury WC/California RTC), 11-0, 2:49

79kg
1st - Jordan Burroughs (Sunkist Kids) dec. Alex Dieringer (Titan Mercury WC/CKWC), 4-3
Bout One –Burroughs dec. Dieringer, 10-5
Bout Two – Burroughs dec. Dieringer, 4-3
3rd – Carter Starocci (Titan Mercury WC/NLWC) dec. Jason Nolf (Titan Mercury WC/NLWC), 4-3

92kg
1st - J’den Cox (Titan Mercury WC/NJRTC) dec. Kollin Moore (Titan Mercury WC/Ohio RTC), two matches to none
Bout One – Cox dec. Moore, 5-0
Bout Two – Cox dec. Moore, 4-0
3rd – Trent Hidlay (Titan Mercury WC) dec. Drew Foster (Panther WC RTC), 8-1

125kg
1st - Nick Gwiazdowski (TMWC/Spartan Combat RTC) dec. Mason Parris (Cliff Keen WC), two matches to none
Bout One – Gwiazdowski dec. Parris, 6-0
Bout Two – Gwiazdowski dec. Parris, 10-3
3rd – Hayden Zillmer (Gopher WC RTC) dec. Dominique Bradley (Sunkist Kids), 4-2

Women’s freestyle championship series results

53kg
1st - Amy Fearnside (Titan Mercury WC/USOPTC) dec. Ronna Heaton (Sunkist Kids), two matches to none
Bout One – Fearnside dec. Heaton, 5-3
Bout Two – Fearnside dec. Heaton, 3:29
3rd – Arena Villaescusa (Army WCAP) by forfeit over Alyssa Lampe (Sunkist Kids)

55kg
1st - Jenna Burkert (Army WCAP) dec. Jacarra Winchester (Titan Mercury WC/USOPTC), two matches to one
Bout One –Burkert dec. Winchester, 7-6
Bout Two – Winchester dec. Burkert, 9-8
Bout Three – Burkert dec. Winchester, 4-3
3rd – Marissa Gallegos (Colorado Mesa WC) pin Amanda Martinez (Cardinal WC), 4:49

59kg
1st - Maya Nelson (Sunkist Kids) dec. Megan Black (Army WCAP), two matches to none
Bout One –Nelson dec. Black, 5-4
Bout Two – Nelson pin Black, 5:13
3rd – Xochilt Mota-Pettis (Rise RTC) tech. fall Michaela Beck (Sunkist Kids), 10-0, 1:59

62kg
1st - Kayla Miracle (Sunkist Kids) vs. Mallory Velte (Titan Mercury WC/Beaver Dam RTC)
Bout One – Miracle dec. Velte, 5-3
Bout Two – Miracle dec. Velte, 10-2
3rd – Jennifer Page (Titan Mercury WC/NLWC) dec. Gracie Figueroa (Titan Mercury WC), 8-6

65kg
1st - Forrest Molinari (Sunkist Kids) dec. Emma Bruntil (Titan Mercury WC/Bearcat WC), two matches to none
Bout One – Molinari dec. Bruntil, 4-3
Bout Two – Molinari dec. Bruntil, 9-0
3rd – Alara Boyd (McKendree Bearcat WC) dec. Skylar Grote (NYAC/Beaver Dam RTC), 7-4

72kg
1st - Kylie Welker (Titan Mercury WC) dec. Kennedy Blades (Sunkist Kids), 2 matches to 0
Bout One – Welker dec. Blades, 4-4
Bout Two – Welker inj. dft. Blades, 4:02
3rd – Yelena Makoyed (Cardinal WC) dec. Dymond Guilford (Titan Mercury WC/USOPTC), 10-8

Greco-Roman Championship Series results

55kg
1st - Max Nowry (Army WCAP) dec. Brady Koontz (TMWC), two matches to none
Bout One – Nowry dec. Koontz, 2-1
Bout Two – Nowry dec. Koontz, 3-1
3rd – Dalton Duffield (Army WCAP) pin Jacob Cochran (Florida), 1:52

60kg
1st - Dalton Roberts (Army WCAP) dec. Ildar Hafizov (Army WCAP), two matches to one
Bout One –Hafizov dec. Roberts, 3-2
Bout Two – Roberts dec. Hafizov, 5-3
Bout Three -Roberts tech. fall Hafizov, 9-0
3rd – King Sandoval (Bandits WC) tech. fall Dylan Koontz (Titan Mercury WC)

63kg
1st - Sam Jones (NYAC) dec. David Stepanian (NYAC), two matches to none
Bout One –Jones tech fall Stepanian, 9-0, 2:01
Bout Two – Jones dec. Stepanian, 10-6
3rd – Dylan Gregerson (Brunson UVRTC) tech. fall We Rachal (Illinois RTC/Illini WC)

67kg
1st - Peyton Omania (NYAC) dec. Alejandro Sancho (Army WCAP), two matches to none
Bout One –Omania dec. Sancho, 6-3
Bout Two – Omania dec. Sancho, 3-2
3rd – Hayden Tuma (Suples WC) tech. fall Jesse Thielke (Army WCAP), 8-0, 1:08

72kg
1st - Patrick Smith (Minnesota Storm) dec. Benjamin Peak (Sunkist Kids), two matches to none
Bout One – Smith dec. Peak, 3-3
Bout Two – Smith dec. Peak 6-4
3rd –Jamel Johnson (Marines) dec. Michael Hooker (Army WCAP), 7-4

77kg
1st - Jesse Porter (NYAC) dec. Fritz Schierl (Titan Mercury WC/Ohio RTC), two matches to none
Bout One – Porter tech. fall. Schierl, 9-0
Bout Two – Porter dec. Schierl, 9-7
3rd – Britton Holmes (Army WCAP) tech. fall Peyton Walsh (Marines), 14-6, 3:57

82kg
1st - Ben Provisor (NYAC) dec. Spencer Woods (Army WCAP), two matches to none
Bout One – Provisor dec. Woods, 7-1
Bout Two – Provisor dec. Woods, 4-2
3rd - Richard Carlson (Minnesota Storm) dec. Tommy Brackett (Gator WC), 6-4

87kg
1st - Alan Vera (NYAC) dec.. Ryan Epps (Minnesota Storm), two matches to none
Bout One – Vera tech. fall Epps, 9-0
Bout Two – Vera tech. fall Epps, 8-0
3rd – Tanner Hannah (Combat WC School of Wrestling) dec. George Sikes (NYAC), 4-3

97kg
1st - G’Angelo Hancock (Sunkist Kids) dec. Nicholas Boykin (Sunkist Kids) , two matches to one
Bout One –Hancock dec. Boykin, 8-2
Bout Two – Hancock dec. Boykin, 5-0
3rd – Khymba Johnson (NYAC) tech. fall James Souza (Army WCAP), 9-0

130kg
1st - Cohlton Schultz (Sunkist Kids) dec. Jacob Mitchell (Army WCAP), two matches to one
Bout One – Mitchell dec. Schultz, 4-2
Bout Two – Schultz tech. fall Mitchell, 8-0 in 1:00
Bout Three – Schultz dec. Mitchell, 6-0
3rd – Tanner Farmer (NYAC) tech. fall Donny Longendyke (Minnesota), 8-0, 2:03

#WrestleOslo

#WrestleOslo Day Six Preview: GR 55kg, 72kg, 77kg and 82kg

Thursday, September 23, 2021 - 14:52 By Eric Olanowski

CORSIER-SUR-VEVEY, Switzerland (September 23) – After a grueling weight cut down to 77kg for the Tokyo Games, newly-minted Olympic bronze medalist Rafig HUSEYNOV (AZE) has his eyes set on etching his name in the Azeri record books -- and an 82kg world title would do just that.

In addition to 82kg, the other three weight classes in action on October 7 will be the Olympic weight of 77kg and the non-Olympic weights of 55kg and 72kg.

Huseynov enters Oslo fresh off winning Olympic bronze at 77kg, but after the taxing weight cut in Tokyo, he'll make the ascent back up to 82kg and try to improve on his runner-up finish from the '19 Nur-Sultan World Championships.

"After the '19 World Championships, I started to think about the Olympic Games; I wanted to wrestle at 87kg in Tokyo, but the Federation suggested that I wrestle at 77kg," said the five-language speaking Azeri.

In preparation to make an Olympic run, Huseynov used the early part of '20 to get his weight under control. In early '20, he steadily stepped on the scale weighing just over 78kg. Then, COVID turned the world upside down, and after the Olympics got postponed, Huseynov started to pack on the kilos.

Huseynov's Weight in '20
Rafiq HUSEYNOV (AZE) weight nearly 91kg in '20, but dropped to 77kg and won an Olympic bronze medal. (Photo: Rafiq Huseynov)

"In September '20, I weighed 90.80kg and thought I'd compete at 87kg. Again, our Federation suggested that I wrestle at 77kg." So, thinking back to March '20 when he weighed one kilo over the Olympic weight, Huseynov told himself, "If I can lose it once, I can do it again." He enlisted the help of professional dietitians, dropped the weight the right way, and set his sights on qualifying Azerbaijan for the Olympic Games at 77kg.

His opening test came in Bulgaria in May '21, where he competed below 80kg for the first time '14.

During that competition, he was arguably the brightest Greco-Roman wrestler of the competition. He was offensive and assertive on his way to punching Azerbaijan's ticket to the Tokyo Olympic Games. He picked up shutout wins over Gurpreet SINGH (IND) and Abd Elkrim OUAKALI (ALG) before locking up his Tokyo spot with a three-point victory over world champion Viktor NEMES (SRB).

Then, Huseynov's success continued into the Olympic Games. The 33-year-old's life forever changed with three victories that ultimately led to an Olympic bronze medal.

"After the Olympics, my life changed a lot. Before Tokyo, two out of ten people knew me, now five or six out of ten people know me. In addition, Mr. President Ilham Aliyev presented me with a large sum of money and awarded me a state medal."

Rafig HUSEYNOV (AZE) and Alex KESSIDIS (SWE) battle in the first round of the Tokyo Olympic Games. They'll both compete at 82kg at the World Championships. (Photo: Tony Rotundo)

If Huseynov wins a world title in Oslo, he'll etch his name in his nation's history books. The list of Azerbaijani wrestlers who've won both world and European titles is extremely short – three wrestlers to be exact -- but Huseynov knows that upgrading his Nur-Sultan '19 world silver would put in him a rarified heir.

"If I become a world champion, I will be the fourth person in the history of Azerbaijan to be both a world and European champion," said Huseynov. "I always say that the silver and bronze medals are for myself, but the gold medal remains in history. This time, I want to go down in history."

But Huseyov knew to get that long-awaited world title, he'd have to cut the Olympic celebration short. He took ten days off before he readjusted his goals to winning a world title. "I know that Alex KESSIDIS (SWE) and Adlan AKIEV (RWF) prepare well, so I started training ten days after arriving home from the Olympics. But now, I have additional motivation -- an Olympic medal."

One of the two guys that Huseynov mentioned as a top threat to block his history-making hopes was Sweden's Alex Kessidis.

Kessidis is on a quest to one-up his Nur-Sultan run, where he scored wins over Daniel CATARAGA (MDA), Mohammadali GERAEI (IRI) and Karapet CHALYAN (ARM), and reached the '19 world finals.

"I'm still young and very motivated to achieve my goals which are to become European, world and Olympic champ,' said Kessidis. "I have wrestled and dreamt about becoming a world champion my whole life, and it would be great for Sweden since we have not won a world title since 2003."

Coincidentally, Kessidis and Huseyov have a history against each other, and you only have to go back to the opening round of the Tokyo Olympic Games for the meeting.

Kessidis dropped that match, 1-1, but has his sights on getting revenge at the World Championships.

"Rafiq is, of course, a threat since I lost last time, but this won't happen again. Hopefully, I'm better prepared this time, and now I have the experience with me from the previous world championship final."

Also of note at 82kg, two-time Olympian Bozo STARCEVIC is moving up from 77kg to 82kg, and Daniel CARTARAGA (MDA), a two-time U23 world champion, was expected to compete in Oslo but was late-scratched due to a back injury.

At 77kg, Tokyo Olympians Mohammadali GERAEI (IRI) and Aik MNATSAKANIAN (BUL) headline the long list of 36-entries. The two-time world bronze medalists are the favorites to get over the hump and compete for world supremacy.

Mnatsakanian won back-to-back world bronze medals in '18 and '19, while Geraei, known worldwide as 'The Falcon,' claimed his world bronze medalist in '17 and '19. Geraei was unable to be reached, but Mnatsakanian said, "I was dissatisfied with the results at the Olympic Games, but my goal in Oslo is to become a world champion."

As the entries sit now, the Russian Wrestling Federation entered Abuiazid MANTSIGOV (RWF) at 77kg. But don't be surprised to see a last-minute adjustment. Mantsigov, a Nur-Sultan world champion, dropped his early-September gold-medal match at the Ljubomir Ivanovic Gedza International against two-time Olympic champion Roman VLASOV (RWF), so their entry is still up in the air.

National Federations have until three days prior to the start of the Greco-Roman portion of the competition to make updates to their entries.

At 55kg, Russian Wrestling Federation youngster Emin SEFERSHAEV (RWF) is the front runner to win world gold. Earlier this year, he reached the top of the 55kg podium at the European Championships in a bracket that featured world champions Eldaniz AZIZLI (AZE) and Nugzari TSURTSUMIA (GEO), and Ekrem OZTURK (TUR).

All four guys will compete at 55kg for the World Championships.

Sefershaev won four matches in Warsaw – including wins over Azizli and Ozturk – en route to claiming his first European gold medal. The 23-year-old's win over Azizli was his second victory over the '18 world champion in a four-month span. He also thumped Azizli, 9-1, in the quarterfinals of December's Individual World Cup on his way to winning gold.

Turkey's '18 world bronze medalist Ozturk ended his European campaign with a silver medal, while Azizli won the battle against fellow world champ Tsurtsumia on his way to finishing in third place.

Shmagi BOLKVADZE (GEO) defeated Malkhas AMOYAN (ARM), 4-1, in the gold-medal match at the '21 European Championships. (Photo: Kadir Caliskan)

The last weight class that'll be contested on Day Six will be 72kg.

Continental finals foes Shmagi BOLKVADZE (GEO) and Malkhas AMOYAN (ARM) top the entries, but two others to pay attention to are '14 world champion Chingiz LABAZANOV (RWF) and Kyrgyzstan's six-time Asian medalist Ruslan TSAREV (KGZ).

The Day Six action in Oslo kicks off on October 7 at 10:30 (local time) and will be streamed live on www.uww.org.

Burroughs Makes 10th Senior World Team

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#WrestleOslo Day Six Preview: GR 55kg, 72kg, 77kg and 82kg