Meiji Cup

Cadet Champ Kagami Strikes Blow Against Veteran Minagawa in Move Up to 76kg

By Ken Marantz

TOKYO (June 13)---World cadet champion Yuka KAGAMI launched the first salvo in her bid to dethrone two-time world bronze medalist Hiroe MINAGAWA at 76kg, while Atsushi MATSUMOTO was dealt a setback in his attempt to move up to an Olympic weight class.

Kagami, coming off a gold-medal run at 72kg at the Asian Championships in April, defeated Minagawa 3-1 in their preliminary group match on the opening day of the All-Japan Invitational Championships, the second of the national qualifying tournaments for Japan’s team to the World Championships known.

Kagami and Minagawa both advanced to the semifinals out of their three-woman group and could clash again in the final on Friday at the tournament known as the Meiji Cup at Tokyo’s Komazawa Gym. 

“I knew that she wouldn’t be an opponent who is easy to beat, so I trained really hard,” Kagami said. “We just happened to meet in the first match. But I was prepared mentally and I think that was a factor in my win.”

At 17, Kagami is 14 years Minagawa’s junior, but showed no fear in scoring the winning takedown with 50 seconds left in their match. Both later defeated Rino Abe, the third wrestler in their group, to advance to the semifinals. 

In order to better prepare the wrestlers for the World Championships format, the Japan federation is running all weight classes over two days, even those with limited entries. 

Minagawa will face the winner of the other group, Yasuha MATSUYUKI, whom she beat 3-0 in the deciding round-robin bout for the title at the All-Japan Championships, known as the Emperor’s Cup, in December.

Winners of the Emperor’s Cup who take the gold at the Meiji Cup clinch a place on Japan’s team to this year’s World Championships in Kazakhstan. If the winners are different, they will meet in a playoff set for July 6.

There is added incentive for making the team to Nur-Sultan---the Japan Wrestling Federation has decreed that winning a medal there brings with it an automatic spot at the Tokyo 2020 Olympics, the ultimate goal for any Japanese wrestler. 

That has caused a scramble into the six Olympic weight classes for each style, bolstering those divisions while depleting the remainder. Kagami had won a watered-down 72kg class at the Emperor’s Cup, but decided to move up to 76kg with the aim of appearing at Tokyo 2020.

MatsumotoWorld bronze medalist Atsushi MATSUMOTO fell to Takeshi YAMAGUCHI, 4-2. (Photo: Sachiko Hotaka) 

Matsumoto, a world bronze medalist at freestyle 92kg, had the same idea when he decided to take a shot at the Olympic weight of 97kg. But that quest ended, for now, with a 4-2 loss to Takeshi YAMAGUCHI in the semifinals.

Matsumoto, who also won a bronze medal the Asian Championships in Xi’an, China, had a 2-0 lead, with both points coming on the activity clock. But Yamaguchi scored two takedowns in the final minute, the last coming as he fought off Matsumoto’s counter-lift attempt.

“I scored on the activity clock, but didn’t get any technical points, and that’s how I lost,” Matsumoto said. “There wasn’t much I could do when I gave up the first takedown. But the fact that I couldn’t come back, even with a pushout, showed more inferiority in strength.”

Although he cut it close, Yamaguchi said the outcome was no surprise to him.

“The match went just as I imagined and I did what I had planned,” Yamaguchi said. “From the start, Matsumoto is an opponent who goes on the attack. I didn’t want to get stuck in his type of match, where we just lock up arms.

“In the second period, I was confident I could score. That’s what I’ve been working on over the past six months. I knew I would get a chance for a single-leg tackle. I timed it well and when things got tense, I got in on it as I had planned.”

To hone his technique, Yamaguchi, an Asian bronze medalist in 2015 and 2018, paid his own way to compete at the Mongolian Open in April, where he won the silver medal.

In the final, Yamaguchi will renew his rivalry with defending champion Naoya AKAGUMA, who beat him 2-1 for the title at the Emperor’s Cup. A year ago, the two went to a playoff for the ticket to Budapest 2018, which Yamaguchi won 14-8 after trailing 6-2.

Despite the setback, Matsumoto is still eligible as Emperor’s Cup champion to enter the playoff at 92kg for Nur-Sultan 2019. And the door to Tokyo 2020 is not sealed either, although a few more locks have been added that he would have to get through---a process predicated on either Akaguma or Yamaguchi failing to medal at Nur-Sultan.

Sosuke TAKATANI is one win from earning a ticket to Nur-Sultan for the World Championships. (Photo: Sachiko Hotaka) 

Another top wrestler who is finding success after moving into an Olympic weight class is Sosuke TAKATANI, a former world 74kg silver medalist who is now at 86kg after spending a transition year at 79kg.

Takatani, who won the Emperor’s Cup in his debut at 86kg, moved one win from earning a ticket to Nur-Sultan when he advanced to the final, where he will face 2017 champion Masao MATSUSAKA. 

After a technical fall victory in his opening match, Takatani scored a 10-2 win the semifinal over Hayato ISHIGURO, the 2018 world junior champion at 79kg. 

“This is my second tournament since moving up to 86kg,” said Takatani, who also competed at the World Cup in March, where he beat the world silver medalist. “I won the last time, but I still go into the matches thinking of myself as the challenger. In tomorrow’s final, I’ll also go in as the challenger.”

Matsusaka’s semifinal victory over defending champion Shoto SHIRAI ended on a sad note. With Matsusaka leading 1-0 early in the second period, Shirai appeared to suffer a neck injury in a clash at the edge that caused him to default the match. As a precautionary measure, Shirai was taken off the mat on a stretcher and taken to a local hospital. 

Takatani did not yet know his final opponent when he was asked about his prospects.

“Both of them have been to the world championships and are strong wrestlers, and even as someone who has moved up a weight class, I was an Olympian and can hold my own,” Takatani said. 

“I want to show that Sosuke Takatani can be a winner at any weight class and I’ll do everything I can to win a medal at the world championships.”

Competition got underway in three Olympic weights in Greco-Roman, and all three Emperor’s Cup champions stayed on track to complete the national double. 

Naotsugu SHOJI will take on Shohei YABIKU in the 77kg finals. (Photo: Sachiko Hotaka) 

Naotsugu SHOJI squeezed into the 77kg final with a 4-4 semifinal win over Takeshi IZUMI, and will face two-time defending champion Shohei YABIKU, who avenged a loss at the Emperor’s Cup to Kodai SAKURABA with a 5-2 win in the quarterfinals. 

Masato SUMI posted a pair of 7-0 victories in his group matches at 87kg to make the semifinals, while Yuta NARA, aiming for a fourth straight Meiji Cup title, cruised into the 97kg final with back-to-back technical fall victories. 

Day 1 Results

Freestyle

79kg (4 entries)
Round-robin (through 2 rounds)
1. Yudai TAKANASHI (2-0); 2. Yuto IZUTSU (1-1); 3. Komei KAWABATA (1-1); 4. Toshiki AKACHI (0-2).

86kg (12 entries)
Semifinals
Sosuke TAKATANI df. Hayato ISHIGURO, 10-2
Masao MATSUSAKA df. Shota SHIRAI, by Injury Def., 2:04 (1-0)

97kg (12 entries)
Semifinals
Naoya AKAGUMA df. Keiwan YOSHIDA, 5-2
Takeshi YAMAGUCHI df. Atsushi MATSUMOTO, 4-2

125kg (12 entries)
Semifinals
Taiki YAMAMOTO df. Nobuyoshi ARAKIDA, 3-2
Katsutoshi NAKAZAWA df. Tetsuya TANAKA, 2-1

Greco-Roman

63kg (9 entries)
Semifinals
Yoshiki YAMADA df. Naoki GODA by TF, 8-0, :44
Ichito TOKUHIGA df. Masaki ISHIKAWA by TF, 10-0, 1:43

77kg (11 entries)
Semifinals
Naotsugu SHOJI df. Takeshi IZUMI, 4-4
Shohei YABIKU df. Shoma YAMASAKI by TF, 9-0, 1:43

87kg (7 entries)
Semifinal Pairings
Takahiro TSURUDA vs Ryota NASUKAWA
Masato SUMI vs Kanta SHIOKAWA

97kg (9 entries)Semifinals
Yuta NARA df. Naoki MATSUMOTO by TF, 10-0, 2:41
Masaaki SHIKIYA df. Taichi OKA by TF, 9-0, 3:32

Women’s Wrestling 

55kg (6 entries)
Semifinal Pairings
Saki IGARASHI vs Mizuki ISHIMORI
Kana HIGASHIKAWA vs Hikari HIGUCHI

59kg (6 entries)
Semifinal Pairings
Kiwa IWASAWA vs Sena NAGAMOTO
Yumeka TANABE vs Ayami SUGIYAMA

65kg (5 entries)
Round-Robin (through 3 rounds)
1. Mei SUZUKI (2-0); 2. Miki KAWAUCHI (2-0); 3. Yuki KIMURA (1-2); 4. Saki KAWAUCHI (1-1) and Misuzu ENAMOTO (1-2)

76kg (6 entries)
Semifinal Pairings
Yuka KAGAMI vs Miki SAITO
Yasuha MATSUYUKI vs Hiroe MINAGAWA

Meiji Cup

Susaki Avenges Loss to Irie to Grab 50kg Title at Meiji Cup

By Ken Marantz

TOKYO, Japan (June 17) —Yui SUSAKI got the revenge she sought and the second chance she needs in her continuing quest to defend her world title. 

For Rio 2016 Olympic champion Eri TOSAKA, the global stage remains a distant and currently unobtainable goal as she continues her comeback from a spate of injuries.

Susaki took a step closer to earning a place on Japan’s team to the world championships when she scored a stunning victory by fall over Yuki IRIE in the women’s 50kg final on the final day of the All-Japan Invitational Championships in Tokyo.

That avenged a devastating loss to Irie by technical fall in the semifinals of the All-Japan Championships, also known as the Emperor’s Cup, last December that left her in tears. The two will now face each other again in a winner-take-all playoff for the berth on the team to Budapest.

“My feeling at this moment is that I’m happy to win the title, and, as there is a playoff in three weeks and I earned a place in it, I will start working tomorrow so that I can win it and go to the world championships,” said the 18-year-old Susaki, a three-time world cadet champion who skipped the junior level and won the senior 48kg gold last year in Paris.

Under the Japan federation criteria, wrestlers who win their weight class at both the Emperor’s Cup and the invitational tournament, known as the Meiji Cup, automatically qualify for the world team. If the winners are different, then the two will face in a special playoff to be held July 7.  

“I lost at the Emperor’s Cup so I thought, I have nothing to lose, just put up a firm challenge and come out with the title,” Susaki said. “I was the aggressor and controlled the flow of the match, and I think that led to the victory.” 

In the final, Susaki, who posted technical fall victories in her first two matches, led 2-1 when she countered an Irie attack and pancaked her onto her back, securing the fall at 3:37 for her third straight Meiji Cup gold. 

For Susaki, now a freshman at Waseda University, the loss to Irie in December had even further ramifications, as it kept her off Japan’s team to the Asian Championships in February, the Women’s World Cup in March and the upcoming Asian Games in Jakarta.

“This time, I lost at the Emperor’s Cup and that kept me from being able to enter various tournaments,” Susaki said. “Seeing wrestlers other than me competing is very hard to take…So the only road open to me was to win here and get to the world championships. It became an obsession.”

She did not remain idle, winning the 50kg gold medal at the Klippan Lady Open in February with a victor in the final over Rio 2016 silver medalist Mariya STADNIK (AZE). 

“That win gave me confidence, but if I don’t win the national championships, I can’t go to overseas [championships]. I put everything into this tournament and I still have a ways to go, but to achieve one goal is great.”

Tosaka, competing in just her third tournament since winning the gold in Rio, was eliminated from the running for Budapest when she was dealt a 6-2 defeat by Irie in the semifinals. 

Tosaka scored the lone point of the first period when Irie was on the activity clock. But Irie roared back by scoring all of her points in the second period with a pair of takedowns and a roll. 

“Purely speaking, it was a match where I lacked strength,” said Tosaka, who beat Irie 4-0 in the Meiji Cup final in 2015, the year she won the last of three straight world titles. 

“At 1-0, I did well to get in on a tackle, but not being able to clearly finish it off, that was the turning point of the match. My physical preparation and current condition were not bad. My opponent had a stronger desire to win and that was why I lost.”

Tosaka underwent foot surgery after the Rio Olympics and returned to action in September 2017 at the lower level Japan Women’s Open. That prepared her for the Emperor’s Cup, but she suffered knee and ankle injuries just before the event and ended up defaulting her semifinal match.

“There is a gap between the expectations of those around me and my actual physical ability right now,” Tosaka said. “There are expectations as the Olympic champion and everyone thinks I will win. But my level has not yet caught up.”

Kawai, Okuno, Takahashi to defend world titles

In other action, Paris 2017 world champions Risako KAWAI, Haruna OKUNO and Yuki TAKAHASHI all completed the national double to secure their tickets to Budapest and earn a chance to defend their titles.

Meanwhile, Rio 2016 silver medalist Shinobu OTA took advantage of his main rival’s absence in the Greco-Roman 60kg class to clinch his first trip to a world championships, while another Rio silver medalist, Rei HIGUCHI, saw his bid for a place in the freestyle 65kg playoff foiled by rising star Takuto OTOGURO.


Kawai, the Rio 2016 gold medalist at 63kg, will aim for a second straight world title, this time at 59kg after crushing Yuzuru KUMANO by 10-0 technical fall in 5:28 of the final. 

Kawai scored all of her points on takedowns, and was less than enthusiastic about the quality of her performance in winning for the second straight year and third time overall.

“I switched weight classes with my sister, but I didn’t have to cut weight and I felt I had prepared,” Kawai said. “I can’t say the way I wrestled was that good. I only had two matches and both were against junior teammates. I don’t feel that I gained anything from my matches. There’s still parts of my game that are lacking.”

Kawai had won the Emperor’s Cup at 62kg, but switched weight classes with younger sister Yukako, who had triumphed at 59kg. Yukako won the 62kg title on Saturday. Technically, that set up playoffs between the sisters in both weight classes, but they have decided that Risako will stay at 59kg and Yukako will seek her first world medal at 62kg.

Okuno repeated her victory from the Emperor’s Cup over Yu MIYAHARA in the women’s 53kg final, scoring the bulk of her points with a 4-point tackle in a 6-0 victory.

Okuno, who won her second straight title, did not look sharp in her two earlier matches. She won both by fall in the final seconds, but was trailing in both on last-point criteria going into the final minute.


Takahashi, in contrast, was a whirlwind of activity, showing the speed and power that has brought him to the pinnacle of the freestyle 57kg division.

Following a pair of 10-0 technical falls that took 90 seconds or less each, Takahashi gave up an early takedown in the final against Tomohiro HASEGAWA -- as has become his trademark -- before scoring three takedowns of his own in a solid 7-2 win. 

“I was able to score points off my attack,” the 24-year-old Takahashi said. “I’ve worked hard with the aim of going to the world championships and defending my title. Anyway, I have to forget this tournament and start preparing for the next.”

Takahashi, whose last loss came in January 2017 in the first round of the Ivan Yarygin Grand Prix to Abasgadzhi MAGOMEDOV (RUS), knows it will be harder defending his world title than winning it the first time.

“I believe that suddenly winning out of the blue is not so difficult, but to win twice in a row, that’s the sign of true strength,” said Takahashi, who took home the Meiji Cup as the tournament’s most outstanding wrestler. 
 
In following up on his Emperor’s Cup victory, Ota did not have to contend this time with Paris 2017 champion Kenichiro FUMITA, who withdrew due to a knee injury. That opened the door for Ota to win his first Meiji Cup title and qualify for his first senior world championships. 

Ota, the gold medalist at the Asian Championships in Bishkek in February, did not have such an easy time, getting just two passivity points and giving up a point for fleeing in a 2-1 victory over Hayanobu SHIMIZU in the final.
 
“It’s very disappointing that I didn’t score any technical points,” Ota said. “At the end, I had no intention of fleeing, but I gave that impression and it gave him a point. That’s a sign of my immaturity and a lack of practice. I’ll work harder so I can always aim for a technical fall.”

Ota’s day nearly came to a premature end. In his opening match, recklessness on a throw attempt left him having to fight off his back before he came away with a 12-8 win over teenager Ayata SUZUKI. He was more focused in his semifinal, which he ended by 9-0 technical fall in 31 seconds.

The emergence of Otoguro at 65kg adds more depth to an already stacked weight class for Japan. The 19-year-old shut down Higuchi in posting a 6-0 win in the final and earning a place in the world team playoff against Emperor’s Cup champion Daichi TAKATANI. 


“There’s a feeling of relief to win the title, but I still have the qualifying match for the world championships,” said Otoguro, whose older brother Keisuke will take part in a playoff at 70kg. “I have to also win that. I’ll do what I need to be prepared.”

Higuchi was the runner-up in Rio at 57kg, but had since struggled to handle the extra size in moving up to the next Olympic weight of 65kg. Still, he held his own on Sunday, with his three wins en route to the final including an 8-5 decision over Takatani. 

Otoguro, the 2015 world cadet champion at 54kg, had faced Higuchi before, beating him 8-5 in the second round of the 2017 Emperor’s Cup. 

“Last year we faced each other, and it was a match that could have gone either way,” he said. “It looked like I would lose, but I ended up winning. That impression stuck with me and I won this time. Higuchi is strong and I’ll do what I can to keep him from catching me.”

Otoguro got a taste of global competition on the senior level in April as a member of the Japan team that won a bronze medal at the Freestyle World Cup in Iowa City. His two wins included a 10-5 victory over former world champion Logan Stieber of the United States.

“For the first time, I faced a former world champion,” he said. “I’m happy that I could win, but he’s not the champion now. The best thing is for me to go to the world championships and win the title. The World Cup was a good reference point and a good experience.”

Results from Day 4

Freestyle

57kg (15 entries)
Gold – Yuki TAKAHASHI df. Toshihiro HASEGAWA, 7-2
Bronze – Kanta OKADA and Rikuto ARAI
Semifinal – Yuki TAKAHASHI df. Kanta OKADA by TF, 10-0, 1:02
Semifinal – Toshihiro HASEGAWA df. Rikuto ARAI by Def.

65kg (15 entries)
Gold – Takuto OTOGURO df. Rei HIGUCHI, 6-0 
Bronze – Hirotaka ABE and Koki SHIMIZU
Semifinal – Rei HIGUCHI df. Hirotaka ABE, 10-6
Semifinal – Takuto OTOGURO df. Koki SHIMIZU by TF, 10-0, :41

Greco-Roman

60kg (10 entries)
Gold – Shinobu OTA df. Hayanobu SHIMIZU, 2-1
Bronze – Kiyoshi KAWAGUCHI and Ryotaro FUJINAMI
Semifinal – Shinobu OTA df. Kiyoshi KAWAGUCHI by TF, 9-0, :31
Semifinal – Hayanobu SHIMIZU df. Ryotaro FUJINAMI, 7-0 

Women’s Wrestling

50kg (9 entries)
Gold – Yui SUSAKI df. Yuki IRIE by Fall, 3:37 (4-1) 
Bronze – Eri TOSAKA and Miho IGARASHI 
Semifinal – Yuki IRIE df. Eri TOSAKA, 6-2
Semifinal – Yui SUSAKI df. Miho IGARASHI by TF, 10-0, 1:20

53kg (8 entries)
Gold – Haruna OKUNO df. Yu MIYAHARA, 6-0
Bronze – Yuka YAGO and Momoka KADOYA
Semifinal – Haruna OKUNO df. Yuka YAGO by Fall, 5:56 (8-2)
Semifinal – Yu MIYAHARA df. Momoka KADOYA, 6-2 

59kg (6 entries)
Gold – Risako KAWAI df. Yuzuru KUMANO by TF, 10-0, 5:28
Bronze – Kiwa IWASAWA and Yumeka TANABE
Semifinal – Risako KAWAI df. Kiwa IWASAWA by TF, 11-0, 1:44
Semifinal – Yuzuru KUMANO def. Yumeka TANABE by TF, 12-1, 3:35