#BuchaWrestU23

China and Japan Each Advance Four Women to #BuchaWrestU23 Semifinals

Wednesday, November 14, 2018 - 14:17 By Taylor Miller

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Photo of Miho IGARASHI (JPN) by Martin Gabor. 

BUCHAREST, Romania – The first batch of women’s freestyle semifinals are set for the 2018 U23 World Championships in Bucharest, Romania, highlighted by four wrestlers from China and four from Japan.

There are no semifinal head-to-head matchups between the two nations.

For Japan, the four semifinalists include Miho IGARASHI at 50 kg, Saki IGARASHI at 55 kg, Yuzuru KUMANO at 59 kg and Miwa MORIKAWA at 68 kg.

Wrestling tonight for China is Junling OUYANG at 55 kg, Ningning RONG, Chuying TANG at 68 kg and Paliha PALIHA at 76 kg.

2017 U23 World champion Miho Igarashi advanced to the semis at 50 kg, where she will take on two-time age-group World bronze medalist Stefania PRICEPUTU (ROU). Miho seeks her fifth World title as she is also a two-time Junior World champion and a 2014 Cadet World champion.

The other semifinal at 50 kg features 2011 Cadet World champion and two-time World silver medalist Nadezhda SOKOLOVA (RUS) and Namuuntsetseg TSOGT OCHIR (MGL).

Photo of Junling OUYANG (CHN) by Martin Gabor. 

At 55 kg, the other Igarashi, Saki, will take on 2016 Junior World bronze medalist and 2014 Cadet World bronze winner Elena Heike BRUGGER (GER). Saki was this year’s 2018 Junior World champion and claimed Cadet World silver in 2015.

On the other side of the bracket, it’s China’s Ouyang against Marina SEDNEVA (KAZ), who is a two-time Junior World medal winner.

Photo of Grace BULLEN (NOR) by Martin Gabor. 

World champions Rong of China and Kumano of Japan are on opposite sides of the 59 kg bracket.

Rong, who won the 2018 Senior World title at 57 kg two weeks ago, will battle two-time Cadet World champion and two-time Junior World medalist Olena KREMZER (UKR), while the reigning U23 World champion Kumano will face Youth Olympic Games champion and 2017 Junior World bronze medalist Grace BULLEN (NOR).

Photo of Yudari SANCHEZ RODRIGUEZ (CUB) by Martin Gabor.

The last weight that features wrestlers from both China and Japan is at 68 kg.

2018 Junior World bronze medalist Morikawa will have to go through Khishigmaa MUNKHBAT (MGL) to earn a spot in the finals. Most recently, Munkhbat was 10th at the Ivan Yarygin Memorial.

Tang of China took seventh at the World Championships in Budapest, Hungary, last month. In order to guarantee a spot on the podium, Tang must make her way past Yudari SANCHEZ RODRIGUEZ (CUB), who is a 2017 U23 World silver medalist and 2017 Junior World bronze medalist.

At 76 kg, Paliha will face 2015 Junior World bronze winner Gulmaral YERKEBAYEVA (KAZ). On the other side, 2017 U23 World finalist Gracelynn DOOGAN (CAN) will go head-to-head with Aysegul OZBEGE (TUR).

Semifinals will begin Wednesday at 5:15 p.m. local time (10:15 a.m. ET). Fans can watch live on unitedworldwrestling.org.

Semifinal matchups

50 kg
Miho IGARASHI (JPN) vs. Stefania PRICEPUTU (ROU)
Nadezhda SOKOLOVA (RUS) vs. Namuuntsetseg TSOGT OCHIR (MGL)

55 kg
Marina SEDNEVA (KAZ) vs. Junling OUYANG (CHN)
Elena Heike BRUGGER (GER) vs. Saki IGARASHI (JPN)

59 kg
Ningning RONG (CHN) vs. Olena KREMZER (UKR)
Yuzuru KUMANO (JPN) vs. Grace Jacob BULLEN (NOR)

68 kg
Miwa MORIKAWA (JPN) vs. Khishigmaa MUNKHBAT (MGL)
Chuying TANG (CHN) vs. Yudari SANCHEZ RODRIGUEZ (CUB)

76 kg
Paliha PALIHA (CHN) vs. Gulmaral YERKEBAYEVA (KAZ)
Aysegul OZBEGE (TUR) vs. Gracelynn DOOGAN (CAN)

#JapanWrestling

World Champs Morikawa, Ishii Set Up Clash in 68kg Final

Friday, May 22, 2026 - 12:40 By Ken Marantz

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TOKYO (May 22) -- The first of what could be several clashes of Japanese women titans was set up when reigning world champions Miwa MORIKAWA and Ami ISHII advanced to the 68kg final at the Meiji Cup All-Japan Championships in Tokyo on Friday.

Morikawa, the world champion at 65kg, had her hands full in grinding out a 3-2 win over world U20 champion Rey HOSHINO in their semifinal, scoring the decisive takedown off a counter in the final minute.

Ishii, the current 68kg world champ, had little trouble piling up the takedowns in a 10-0 victory over former world champion Masako FURUICHI.

Morikawa got the best of Ishii at the Emperor's Cup All-Japan Championships last December, winning 5-3 to earn a trip to the Asian Championships, where she had to settle for the silver medal.

This time there is more at stake in the final on Saturday, as the Meiji Cup is serving as the final qualifier for this year's Asian Games, to be hosted by Japan, and the World Championships.

Winners of both the Emperor's Cup and Meiji Cup automatically earn places on the national team; if they are different, a playoff is held between the two at the end of the day.

Given the stakes, Morikawa knows Ishii will be coming at her with all guns blazing, knowing she need to beat Morikawa twice to earn a national team berth.

"That [Emperor's Cup win] doesn't matter," Morikawa said. "In that match, I went all out to the end and came up with the victory. I think that tomorrow, she will really be coming after me. I have to show the willpower and guts to not give in. I will do my utmost to secure the national team place in one fell swoop."

Morikawa naturally would not reveal what strategy she has for Ishii, but says she will rely on what her coach, four-time Olympic champion Kaori ICHO, comes up with.

"She's really good with her attacks, and my strong point is defense," Morikawa said. "Kaori will devise a plan, and I'll just go along with that."

Yuka KAGAMI (JPN)Yuka KAGAMI (JPN) reached the 76kg final at the Meiji Cup. (Photo: wrestling-spirits.jp / Takeo Yabuki)

In other semifinals on the second day of the four-day tournament at Tokyo's Komazawa Gym, Paris Olympic champion Yuka KAGAMI moved a step closer to returning to the global stage by making the 76kg final.

Kagami posted a slim 2-1 victory over Ayana MORO, with all of the points scored on the activity clock, to set up a meeting with Yasuha MATSUYUKI, who dealt her a stunning loss in the final of the Emperor's Cup, which was her first competition since Paris.

"I came to realize that last time, the fighting spirit that I had at the Olympics was taking a nap," Kagami said. "For these five months, I have prepared to come here and definitely win the title, then the playoff."

At 53kg, world champion Haruna MURAYAMA outlasted longtime rival and former Olympic champion Mayu SHIDOCHI 2-1 -- with all points scored on the activity clock -- to set up a final against Moe KIYOOKA for the second straight year.

Murayama defeated Kiyooka, the world 55kg champion in 2024, twice last year -- 3-1 in the final, then again 4-1 in the playoff -- to make the team to the World Championships in Zagreb, where she claimed her fourth career gold.

Kiyooka came back to win the Emperor's Cup title in Murayama's absence, and will be looking to avenge last year's losses as she attempts to fill the void left when Olympic champion Akari FUJINAMI moved up to 57kg.

In a tragic incident, Taishi NARIKUNI's bid to repeat the Freestyle-Greco double that he accomplished at the Emperor's Cup ended when he suffered a serious eye injury in his Greco 70kg quarterfinal -- which he won nonetheless, but then was easily beaten in the semifinals.

Facing Takara FUKUZAWA in the last eight, Narikuni took a hard shoulder to the eye, which knocked him woozy for awhile. He managed to continue on, finishing up a 5-0 victory. But, wearing a patch over his right eye in the semifinals against Hajime KIKUTA, he went down 8-0 in 28 seconds.

Narikuni was scheduled to also take the mat later in the day in the Freestyle 72kg final, but would end up defaulting that match. Family members said he was taken to the hospital and was diagnosed with a broke cheek bone below his eye and would undergo surgery on Saturday.

As defending Freestyle 97kg champion Arash YOSHIDA awaited his final, it was a tough day for rest of his family, whose Iranian father runs the kids wrestling club where the siblings got their start in the sport.

Keivan YOSHIDA, Arash's older brother who preceded him as 97kg champion in 2024, was ousted in the semifinals at 125kg, losing 11-1 to Hosei FUJITA.

Just moments later on an adjacent mat, younger brother Ariya YOSHIDA was dealt a tough 10-9 loss at 79kg to Kanata YAMAGUCHI.

In the final, Yamaguchi will face another wrestler with Iranian heritage, newly crowned Asian champion Keyvan GHAREHDAGHI, a 10-0 winner over Kohei KITAMURA in the other semifinal.