#WrestleSassari

Entries Released for Sassari City Matteo Pellicone Memorial 

By Eric Olanowski

Sassari, Italy (May 15) - Sandy beaches, bright blue waters, and wrestling? Not something you hear very often (unless it's a beach wrestling event) - but that'll be the case next week when wrestling invades the island destination of Sardinia, Italy, for United World Wrestling's third Ranking Series event of the year, the Sassari City Matteo Pellicone Memorial. 

The tournament will be the first of its kind when speaking about Ranking Series events. United World Wrestling has never held a Ranking Series event with all three styles under one roof. The three-day Sassari City Matteo Pellicone Memorial, which starts on May 23, will begin with Greco-Roman. Women's wrestling takes over on the second day, and freestyle closes out the tournament on May 25. 

Though registration is not official until 24 hours before the first whistle, here are some of the world and Olympic medalists, among many others, that fans can expect to see in Sardinia: 

GR 77kg - KIM Hyeonwoo (KOR) – Olympic champion
FS 70kg - Soslan RAMONOV (RUS) – Olympic champion 
WW 76kg - Erica WIEBE (CAN) – Olympic champion
WW 76kg - Natalia VOROBEVA (RUS) – Olympic champion
FS 86kg - Selim YASAR (TUR) - Olympic silver 
WW 72kg - Anna FRANSSON (SWE) – Olympic bronze
FS 74kg - Frank CHAMIZO (ITA) –  Two-time world champion 
GR 67kg - RYU Hansu (KOR) – World champion 
WW 76kg - Aline ROTTER FOCKEN (GER) – World champion
WW 55kg - Vanesa KALADZINSKAYA (BLR) – World champion
WW 55kg - Sofia MATTSSON (SWE) – World champion
GR 77kg - Tamas LORINCZ (HUN) – World runner-up 
FS 74kg - Khetik TSABALOV (RUS) - World runner-up 
FS 65kg - Gadzhimurad RASHIDOV (RUS) – Two-time world silver 
GR 87kg -Erik SZILVASSY (HUN) – U23 World champion 
WW 57kg - Grace Jacob BULLEN (NOR) – U23 World champion
FS 57kg - Suleyman ATLI (TUR) – Ranked No. 1 at 57kg 
FS 68kg - Fatih ERDIN (TUR) – Ranked No. 1 at 86kg

Freestyle
57kg 

Mikyay Salim NAIM (BUL)
Darthe CAPELLAN (CAN)
Kumar RAVI (IND)
Nader Ahmad HAJIAGHANIASAMAKOUSHI (IRI)
Alireza Nosratolah SARLAK (IRI)
Givi DAVIDOVI (ITA)
Zhandos ISMAILOV (KAZ)
Changjun PARK (KOR)
Azamat TUSKAEV (RUS)
Suleyman ATLI (TUR)
Adam KATES (USA)
Patrick  HEBREARD (USA)

61kg 
Rahul AWARE (IND)
Sonba GONGANE (IND)
Mohammadbagher YAKHKESHI (IRI)
Rassul KALIYEV (KAZ)
Kerim HOJAKOV (TKM)
Recep TOPAL (TUR)
Alec HOOVER (USA)

65kg
Niurhun SKRABIN (BLR)
Dimitar IVANOV (BUL)
Joshua BODNARCHUK (CAN)
Vincent DE MARINIS (CAN)
Connor MCNEICE (CAN)
Mauricio SANCHEZ SALTOS (ECU)
Roman ASHARIN (HUN)
Harphool HARPHOOL (IND)
Amirmohammad YAZDANICHERATI (IRI)
Abdellatif MANSOUR (ITA)
Sayatbek OKASSOV (KAZ)
Junsik YUN (KOR)
Masoud NIAZI (NED)
Gadzhimurad RASHIDOV (RUS)
Perman HOMMADOV (TKM)
Mehmet OGUT (TUR)
Selahattin KILICSALLAYAN (TUR)
Brandon CALLOW (USA)
Andrew HOOVER (USA)
Spencer DUSI (USA)

70kg
George KOLIEV (BLR)
Mihail Iliev GEORGIEV (BUL)
Dillon Emmanuel WILLIAMS (CAN)
Pablo DIEZ PARDO (ESP)
Farhad Jafar NOURI KHORJESTAN (IRI)
Yones Aliakbar EMAMICHOGHAEI (IRI)
Nurdaulet AZHIKUL (KAZ)
Nurkozha KAIPANOV (KAZ)
Soslan RAMONOV (RUS)
Batyr BORJAKOV (TKM)
Mustafa KAYA (TUR)
Austin Alexander VICTOR (USA)
Jarrad Keith LASKO (USA)
Brandon Alexander BARTON (USA)

74kg
Andrei KARPACH (BLR)
Miroslav Stefanov KIROV (BUL)
Ty Stuart BRIDGWATER (CAN)
Jasmit Singh PHULKA (CAN)
Daniel ANTAL (HUN)
Amit Kumar DHANKHAR (IND)
Mohammad Ashghar NOKHODILARIMI (IRI)
Frank CHAMIZO MARQUEZ (ITA)
Tommaso FERRARI (ITA)
Daniyar KAISANOV (KAZ)
Seungchul LEE (KOR)
Jie Woon SHIN (KOR)
Razambek ZHAMALOV (RUS)
Khetik TSABOLOV (RUS)
Suleyman OMAROV (TKM)
Soner DEMIRTAS (TUR)
Yakup GOR (TUR)
Isaac John COLLIER (USA)
John Delmas CHIPPS (USA)
Shane Michael GING (USA)

79kg
Parveen RANA (IND)
Kautuk Shamarao DAPHALE (IND)
Zhiger ZAKIROV (KAZ)
Shamil MURTAZOV (KAZ)
Galymzhan USSERBAYEV (KAZ)
Khalil AMINOV (RUS)
Sahergeldi SAPARMYRADOV (TKM)
Muhammet Nuri KOTANOGLU (TUR)
Dmytrii TKACHENKO (UKR)
Seth Matthew WINKLE (USA)
Daniel Joseph NOVAK (USA)
Kyle Dylan ROBERTS (USA)

The top-ranked wrestler in the world at 86kg Fatih ERDIN (TUR) (84 points) is set to compete next week in Sardinia. (Photo: Sachiko Hotaka)

86kg
Svetoslav Zhivkov DIMITROV (BUL)
Alexander Robert MOORE (CAN)
Hunter Jeffery LEE (CAN)
Damian IGLESIAS VILELA (ESP)
Richard Ferenc LIGETI (HUN)
Deepak PUNIA (IND)
Ahmad Yousef BAZRIGHALEH (IRI)
William RAFFI (ITA)
Azamat DAULETBEKOV (KAZ)
Hyeokbeom GWON (KOR)
Vladislav VALIEV (RUS)
Dovletmyrat ORAZGYLYJOV (TKM)
Fatih ERDIN (TUR)
Selim YASAR (TUR)
Matthew Christopher FERRARO (USA)
Christian Brian HIPSHER (USA)

92kg
Istvan VEREB(HUN)
Viky VIKY(IND)
Arashk Mohammadkazem MOHEBI (IRI)
Alireza Mohammad KARIMIMACHIANI (IRI)
Batyrbek TCAKULOV (RUS)
Azat GAJYYEV (TKM)

97kg
Ivan YANKOUSKI (BLR)
Nikolay Simeonov CHTEREV (BUL)
Nishan Preet Singh RANDHAWA (CAN)
Mihaly SZABO (HUN)
Satywart KADIAN (IND)
Hamed Delavar TALEBIZARRINKAMAR (IRI)
Abbas Ali FOROUTANRAMI (IRI)
Abraham de Jesus CONYEDO RUANO (ITA)
Bakdaulet ALMENTAY (KAZ)
Batzul ULZIISAIKHAN (MGL)
Igor Alekseevitch OVSIANNIKOV (RUS)
Selimmuhammet MUHADYYEV (TKM)
Ibrahim CIFTCI (TUR)

125kg
Aly Medhat Abde BARGHOUT (CAN)
Frédérick CHOQUETTE (CAN)
Daniel LIGETI (HUN)
Sumit SUMIT (IND)
Amir Hossein Abbas ZARE (IRI)
Parviz Khodavirdi HADIBASMANJ (IRI)
Oleg BOLTIN (KAZ)
Yusup BATIRMURZAEV (KAZ)
Donghwan KIM (KOR)
Zolboo NATSAGSUREN (MGL)
Pavel KRIVTSOV (RUS)
Sohbet BELLIYEV (TKM)
Grant Michael ROBINSON (USA)

Greco-Roman 

55kg
Enrick Jean Flavien BATAILLE (FRA)
Gyanender GYANENDER (IND)
Giovanni FRENI (ITA)
Ekrem OZTURK (TUR)
Dogus AYAZCI (TUR)
Hakan Murat CANKAYA (TUR)

60kg 
Marat GARIPOV (BRA)
Andres Roberto MONTANO ARROYO (ECU)
Daniel BOBILLO VIGIL (ESP)
Latuf MADI (FRA)
Jacopo SANDRON (ITA)
Jungbaik LEE (KOR)
Seunghak KIM (KOR)
Florin TITA (ROU)
Andrei IVANOV (RUS)
Sadyk LALAEV (RUS)
Ruben MINASIAN (RUS)
Dimitar Ivaylov SANDOV (SUI)
Ahmet UYAR (TUR)

63kg 
Haithem Mahmoud Ahmed Fahmy MAHMOUD (EGY)
Leo Alexandre Sylvain TUDEZCA (FRA)
Erik TORBA (HUN)
Fabio CARBONE (ITA)
Kyunghoon KIM (KOR)
Eunbin KIM (KOR)
Razvan ARNAUT (ROU)
Mehmet CEKER (TUR)
Kadir KAMAL (TUR)

67kg 
Mohamed Ibrahim Elsayed Ibrahi ELSAYED (EGY)
Yasin OZAY (FRA)
Mamadassa SYLLA (FRA)
Stefan Roger CLEMENT (FRA)
Mate KRASZNAI (HUN)
Otto LOSONCZI (HUN)
Ignazio SANFILIPPO (ITA)
Ruben MARVICE (ITA)
Hansu RYU (KOR)
Mihai Radu MIHUT (ROU)
Azamat Gadjimuradovitch AKHMEDOV (RUS)
Andreas VETSCH (SUI)
Enes BASAR (TUR)
Haci KARAKUS (TUR)

72kg
Jakub BIELESZ (CZE)
Hassan Hassan Ahmed MOHAMED (EGY)
Anthony TANTINI (FRA)
Robert Attila FRITSCH (HUN)
Balint KORPASI (HUN)
Jeonggeun LEE (KOR)
Adam KURAK (RUS)
Evgenii VYSOTIN (RUS)
Aleksandr PAIVIN (RUS)
Selcuk CAN (TUR)
Ahmet YILMAZ (TUR)

77kg
Brayden William AMBO (CAN)
Oldrich VARGA (CZE)
Gil NUGUES (FRA)
Evrik NIKOGHOSYAN (FRA)
Georgios PREVOLARAKIS (GRE)
Zotlan LEVAI (HUN)
Laszlo SZABO (HUN)
Tamas LORINCZ (HUN)
Singh GURPREET (IND)
Riccardo Vito ABBRESCIA (ITA)
Luca DARIOZZI (ITA)
Ciro RUSSO (ITA)
Hyeonwoo KIM (KOR)
Dmitrii DZHIOEV (RUS)
Nicolas Peter CHRISTEN (SUI)
Aslan ATEM (TUR)
Serkan AKKOYUN (TUR)

82kg
Singh HARPREET (IND)
Matteo MAFFEZZOLI (ITA)
Antonio MALANGONE (ITA)
George Vlad MARIEA (ROU)
Adel SADYKOV (RUS)
Fabio DIETSCHE (SUI)
Burhan AKBUDAK (TUR)

87kg
Ondrej DADAK (CZE)
Rami Antero HIETANIEMI (FIN)
Ariel Andres ALFONSO RODRIGUEZ (HON)
Viktor LORINCZ (HUN)
Erik SZILVASSY (HUN)
Kumar SUNIL (IND)
Fabio PARISI (ITA)
Mirco MINGUZZI (ITA)
Heageun PARK (KOR)
Gadzhimurad DZHALALOV (RUS)
Ramon Rainer BETSCHART (SUI)
Ali CENGIZ (TUR)
Dogan GOKTAS (TUR)
Josef Patrick RAU (USA)

97kg
Artur OMAROV (CZE)
Spyridon KOUNTOURATZIS (GRE)
Kevin MEJIA CASTILLO (HON)
Balazs KISS (HUN)
Nikoloz KAKHELASHVILI (ITA)
Daigoro TIMONCINI (ITA)
Armen GRIGORYAN (RUS)
Damian VON EUW (SUI)
Cenk ILDEM (TUR)
Ibrahim TIGCI (TUR)
Tracy Gangelo HANCOCK (USA)

130kg 
Stepan DAVID (CZE)
Alexandros Marios ZORATLY (GRE)
Balint LAM (HUN)
Minseok KIM (KOR)
Yongmin KIM (KOR)
Constantin HUTULEAC (ROU)
Lenard Istvan BEREI (ROU)
Osman YILDIRIM (TUR)

Erica WIEBE (CAN) is one of three Olympic champions who will be competing next week at the Sassari City Matteo Pellicone Memorial. She'll wrestle at 76kg. (Photo: Max Rose-Fyne) 

Women's Wrestling 

50kg
Kamila BARBOSA VITO DA SILVA (BRA)
Jade Marie DUFOUR (CAN)
Natasha Irene Vera KRAMBLE (CAN)
Madison Bianca PARKS (CAN)
Jacqueline Del Rocio MOLLOCANA ELENO (ECU)
Tabatha Helene Laurence GRUNEWALD (FRA)
Julie Martine SABATIE (FRA)
Valentina Ivanovna ISLAMOVA BRIK (KAZ)
YeoJin KIM (KOR)
Anzhelika VETOSHKINA (RUS)
Fredrika Ida PETERSSON(SWE)

53kg
Samantha Leigh STEWART (CAN)
Diana Mary Helen WEICKER (CAN)
Luisa Elizabeth VALVERDE MELENDRES (ECU)
Marina RUEDA FLORES (ESP)
Tatiana DEBIEN (FRA)
Mercedesz DENES (HUN)
Zhuldyz ESHIMOVA (KAZ)
Tatyana AKHMETOVA AMANZHOL (KAZ)
Hyungjoo KIM (KOR)
Jessica Cornelia Francisca BLASZKA (NED)
Silje Knutsen KIPPERNES (NOR)
Ekaterina POLESHCHUK (RUS)

55kg
Emily Suzanne SCHAEFER (CAN)
Jayd alexandria DAVIS (CAN)
Marina SEDNEVA (KAZ)
Viktoriia VAULINA (RUS)
Sofia Magdalena MATTSSON (SWE)

57kg
Alyona KOLESNIK (AZE)
Katsiaryna HANCHAR YANUSHKEVICH (BLR)
Hannah Fay TAYLOR (CAN)
Tianna Grace KENNETT (CAN)
Alexandria Rebekkah TOWN (CAN)
Lissette Alexandra ANTES CASTILLO (ECU)
Graciela SANCHEZ DIAZ (ESP)
Mathilde Hélène RIVIERE (FRA)
Emese BARKA (HUN)
Pooja DHANDA (IND)
Sarita SARITA (IND)
Arianna CARIERI (ITA)
Francesca INDELICATO (ITA)
Carola RAINERO (ITA)
Altynay SATYLGAN (KAZ)
Emma TISSINA (KAZ)
Odunayo Folasade ADEKUOROYE (NGR)
Grace Jacob BULLEN (NOR)
Olga KHOROSHAVTSEVA (RUS)
Sara Johanna LINDBORG (SWE)
Kelsey Rene CAMPBELL (USA)

57kg
Alyona KOLESNIK (AZE)
Katsiaryna HANCHAR YANUSHKEVICH (BLR)
Hannah Fay TAYLOR (CAN)
Tianna Grace KENNETT (CAN)
Alexandria Rebekkah TOWN (CAN)
Lissette Alexandra ANTES CASTILLO (ECU)
Graciela SANCHEZ DIAZ (ESP)
Mathilde Hélène RIVIERE (FRA)
Emese BARKA (HUN)
Pooja DHANDA (IND)
Sarita SARITA (IND)
Arianna CARIERI (ITA)
Francesca INDELICATO (ITA)
Carola RAINERO (ITA)
Altynay SATYLGAN (KAZ)
Emma TISSINA (KAZ)
Odunayo Folasade ADEKUOROYE (NGR)
Grace Jacob BULLEN (NOR)
Olga KHOROSHAVTSEVA (RUS)
Sara Johanna LINDBORG (SWE)
Kelsey Rene CAMPBELL (USA)

59kg
Linda MORAIS (CAN)
Laurence BEAUREGARD (CAN)
Maria Victoria BAEZ DILONE (ESP)
Ramona GALAMBOS (HUN)
Kumari MANJU (IND)
Madina BAKBERGENOVA (KAZ)
Nazira AMANZHOLOVA (KAZ)
Svetlana LIPATOVA (RUS)

62kg
Elis MANOLOVA (AZE)
Tetiana OMELCHENKO (AZE)
Elmira GAMBAROVA (AZE)
Veranika IVANOVA (BLR)
Lais NUNES DE OLIVEIRA (BRA)
Braxton Rei STONE (CAN)
Lydia PEREZ TOURINO (ESP)
Sakshi MALIK (IND)
Aurora CAMPAGNA (ITA)
Annalisa MARZULLI (ITA)
Ayaulym KASSYMOVA (KAZ)
Aisuluu TYNYBEKOVA (KGZ)
Jiae CHOI (KOR)
Aminat Oluwafunmilayo ADENIYI (NGR)
Henna Katarina JOHANSSON (SWE)
Moa Lena Maria NYGREN (SWE)
Malin Johanna MATTSSON (SWE)
Marwa AMRI (TUN)
Mallory Maxine VELTE (USA)

65kg
Amanda SAVARD (CAN)
Pauline Denise LECARPENTIER (FRA)
Saidy Lorena CHAVEZ FIGUEROA (HON)
Gabriella SLEISZ (HUN)
Aina TEMIRTASSOVA (KAZ)
Mariia KUZNETSOVA (RUS)

68kg
Maryia MAMASHUK (BLR)
Danielle Suzanne LAPPAGE (CAN)
Olivia Grace DI BACCO (CAN)
Alexia Rose SHERLAND (CAN)
Divya KAKRAN (IND)
Dalma CANEVA (ITA)
Sara DA COL (ITA)
Irina KAZYULINA (KAZ)
Meerim ZHUMANAZAROVA (KGZ)
Blessing OBORUDUDU (NGR)
Anastasiia BRATCHIKOVA (RUS)
Tamyra Mariama MENSAH (USA)

72kg
Dejah Aniela SLATER(CAN)
Samar Amer Ibrahim HAMZA(EGY)
Koumba Selene Fanta LARROQUE(FRA)
Zhamila BAKBERGENOVA(KAZ)
Anna Jenny Eva Maria FRANSSON(SWE)

76kg
Sabira ALIYEVA (AZE)
Vasilisa MARZALIUK (BLR)
Natallia LANKO (BLR)
Aline DA SILVA FERREIRA (BRA)
Gracelynn DOOGAN (CAN)
Erica Elizabeth WIEBE (CAN)
Genesis Rosangela REASCO VALDEZ (ECU)
Epp MAE (EST)
Cynthia Vanessa VESCAN (FRA)
Aline ROTTER FOCKEN (GER)
Zsanett NEMETH (HUN)
Enrica RINALDI (ITA)
Gulmaral YERKEBAYEVA (KAZ)
Elmira SYZDYKOVA (KAZ)
Aiperi MEDET KYZY (KGZ)
Eunju HWANG (KOR)
Iselin Maria Moen SOLHEIM (NOR)
Natalia VOROBEVA (RUS)
Ekaterina BUKINA (RUS)

#WrestlePontevedra

U20 Worlds: Zakriev dominates to gold; Abdevali repeats

By Vinay Siwach

PONTEVEDRA, Spain (September 3) -- Erzu ZAKRIEV (AIN) was unsure if he would be participating in the U20 World Championships. Zakriev began preparing only two days before the start of the tournament in Spain.

"We were told that we wouldn’t come here," Zakriev said. "I went into relaxed mode. It was only three days before we were told that we could go. The way was really long and difficult, we were cutting weight at the airport. We had to change four flights on our way. We arrived at midnight and early next day I had my first match in the morning. I didn’t even have time to rest."

Zakriev did not show any signs of distress as he began the competition with a technical superiority win and reached the final with two more wins. On Tuesday, the 19-year-old won the gold medal at 63kg in Pontevedra, Spain, being the final against Otto BLACK (USA) 8-0.

A minute into the final and Zakriev had Black on the backfoot with a stepout and takedown. Black never got a chance to come back into the final as Zakriev finished it in two minutes and 40 seconds.

Erzu ZAKRIEV (AIN)Erzu ZAKRIEV (AIN) tries to complete a throw against Otto BLACK (USA) in the 63kg final. (Photo: United World Wrestling / Kadir Caliskan)

"I was very confident," he said. "Last year I was third at the national championships, and this year I finished first. I haven’t lost any single match for a year now."

The dominance of Zakriev was evident in the U20 European Championships as well as he outscored his opponents 29-0 in four bouts, winning the gold medal over Anri KHOZREVANIDZE (GEO), an opponent he defeated 16-4 in the semifinals on Monday.

Hailing from Chechnya, Zakriev grew up in Goyty village and began training after his parents took him to the academy when he was eight years old.

"I will be moving to the Olympic weight class of 67kg from next year," he said.

The United States suffered another heartbreak in the final as Isaiah CORTEZ (USA) lost the 55kg final against Ali AHMADI VAFA (IRI).

Unlike Black, Cortez had his chances to take the lead against Ahmadi Vafa in the final. He even had the Iranian in a fall position but failed to finish it. Ahmadi Vafa eventually won the final 11-3 in a match that was closer than the scoreline shows.

Ahmadi Vafa got the first par terre advantage and he used a high gut-wrench to take a 5-0 lead over Cortez. He used an arm spin to score two more points to make the lead 7-0. Cortez cut it to 7-2 just before the break with exposure.

Cortez, however, failed to score from par terre and Ahmadi Vafa led 7-3 with 1:25 left on the clock. Two desperate bodylock throws ended up in Cortez giving up points.

Ali AHMADI VAFA (IRI)Ali AHMADI VAFA (IRI) scores two points over Isaiah CORTEZ (USA) in the 55kg final. (Photo: United World Wrestling / Kadir Caliskan)

"I wrestled really well to reach the final. I had analyzed my American opponent’s wrestling style, and thank God, I was able to wrestle with the best results and win the gold medal," Ahmadi Vafa said.

A former U17 world champion, Ahmadi Vafa finished without a medal last year at the U20 Worlds. A gold medal in Pontevedra gave him some relief from his medalless campaign from last year.

"Last year, I couldn’t win a good medal and lost in the world championships," he said. "This year, I managed to win gold. Next year, I have the junior competitions again, but my main goal is to be selected for the senior competitions."

This was the first time since 2017 that the U.S. had two finalists in Greco-Roman at the U20 World Championships. Kamal BEY (USA) won the title in 2017. However, the wait for a new U20 world champion just grew for the U.S.

Alireza ABDEVALI (IRI)Alireza ABDEVALI (IRI) won his second U20 world gold medal at 77kg. (Photo: United World Wrestling / Kadir Caliskan)

Defending U20 world champion Alireza ABDEVALI (IRI) added the second gold medal, winning the 77kg weight class. Wrestling Magomed IARBILOV (AIN) in the final, Abdevali got the par terre advantage but failed to score and Iarbilov scored a reversal to lead 1-1 on criteria.

Abdevali scored an arm-drag takedown in the second period to lead 3-1 and defended it till the end of the time to win his second gold medal at this level.

"I feel great that I was able to win my second world championship medal," he said. "It felt even better than when I won the first time. I’m just at the beginning of my journey, and there’s a long way to go until the Olympics."

Alireza is the fourth of the five Abdevali brothers but said that he felt no pressure to win because of his family name.

"I didn’t feel any pressure. My older brother, Saeid, is a great wrestler, and he gives me motivation and spirit to be a fighter."

Laszlo DARABOS (HUN) Laszlo DARABOS (HUN) scores on Abolfazl FATHITAZANGI (IRI) in the 130kg final. (Photo: United World Wrestling / Jake Kirkman)

Iran could have won three gold medals on Tuesday but former U20 European champion Laszlo DARABOS (HUN) denied Abolfazl FATHITAZANGI (IRI), 5-3, in the 130kg final.

Darabos trailed 3-0 at the break after giving up a turn from par terre. However, when he got the par terre in the second period, he turned Fathitazangi twice and took a 5-3 lead and defended it.

This is the first U20 world champion for Hungary since 2019 and the first since 2012 in the highest weight class.

Asan ZHANYSHOV (KGZ)Asan ZHANYSHOV (KGZ) won the 87kg gold medal after beating Joju SAMADOV (AZE) in the final. (Photo: United World Wrestling / Jake Kirkman)

Zhanyshov upgrades

Returning bronze medalist Asan ZHANYSHOV (KGZ) upgraded to gold after he defeated Joju SAMADOV (AZE), 8-0, in the 87kg final to win Kyrgyzstan's first U20 world title in Greco-Roman since 2019. Incidentally, the last U20 world champion -- Erbol BAKIROV (KGZ) -- also hails from the same village, Taygaray, as Zhanyshov.

In the final, Samadov found it difficult to match the pace of Zhanyshov and failed to stop any of his attacks. He gave up five stepouts in the final.

"I had a great training camp with the senior team," Zhanyshov said. "I already have experience wrestling at the senior level. The difference is that on age-group levels you have to be prepared technically, performing throws and moves, while at the senior level that won’t be enough. You have to be physically and functionally very well prepared. So, my level is now senior."

Having trained with world champions Akzhol MAKHMUDOV (KGZ) and Zholaman SHARSHENBEKOV (KGZ), Zhanyshov felt motivated by his seniors and was determined to win the gold medal.

"Makhmudov and Sharshenbekov are my wrestling role models," he said.

sd

RESULTS

55kg
GOLD: Ali AHMADI VAFA (IRI) df. Isaiah CORTEZ (USA), 11-3

BRONZE: Alibek AMIROV (11) df. Rahim HASANOV (AZE), 10-0
BRONZE: Aibek AITBEKOV (KAZ) df. Maxim SARMANOV (MDA), 10-1

63kg
GOLD: Erzu ZAKRIEV (AIN) df. Otto BLACK (USA), 8-0

BRONZE: Erfan JARKANI (IRI) df. Anri KHOZREVANIDZE (GEO), 6-2
BRONZE: Yurik HOVEYAN (ARM) df. Enes ULKU (TUR), 2-1

77kg
GOLD: Alireza ABDEVALI (IRI) df. Magomed IARBILOV (AIN), 3-1

BRONZE: Levente LEVAI (HUN) df. Irfan MIRZOIEV (UKR), 3-2
BRONZE: Tornike MIKELADZE (GEO) df. Karl BAFF (SWE), 5-3 

87kg
GOLD: Asan ZHANYSHOV (KGZ) df. Joju SAMADOV (AZE), 8-0

BRONZE: Achiko BOLKVADZE (GEO) df. Patrik GORDAN (ROU), 10-0
BRONZE: Ruben GEVORGYAN (ARM) df. Temirlan TURDAKYN (KAZ), 3-1

130kg
GOLD: Laszlo DARABOS (HUN) df. Abolfazl FATHITAZANGI (IRI), 5-3

BRONZE: Aden ATTAO (USA) df. Aleksandr MELEKHOV (AIN), via fall
BRONZE: Samagan ORMONOV (KGZ) df. Aramayis HARUTYUNYAN (ARM), via fall

Semifinals 

60kg
GOLD: Servet ANGI (TUR) vs. Mohammadmehdi GHOLAMPOUR (IRI)

SF 1: Servet ANGI (TUR) df. Ongdassyn KHAMITOV (KAZ), 9-8
SF 2: Mohammadmehdi GHOLAMPOUR (IRI) df. Papik DZHAVADIAN (AIN), 9-8

67kg
GOLD: Ahmadreza MOHSEN NEZHAD (IRI) vs. Yussuf ASHRAPOV (KAZ)

SF 1: Ahmadreza MOHSEN NEZHAD (IRI) df. Kojiro HASEGAWA (JPN), 10-0
SF 2: Yussuf ASHRAPOV (KAZ) df. Grair OGANESIAN (AIN), 7-5

72kg
GOLD: Zaur BESLEKOEV (AIN) vs. Ashot KHACHATRYAN (ARM)

SF 1: Zaur BESLEKOEV (AIN) df. Muhammed GOCMEN (TUR), 1-1
SF 2: Ashot KHACHATRYAN (ARM) df. Ruslan NURULLAYEV (AZE), 4-1

82kg
GOLD: Islam YEVLOYEV (KAZ) vs. Alperen BERBER (TUR)

SF 1: Islam YEVLOYEV (KAZ) df. Abdurakhman ABDULKADYROV (AIN), via inj. def.
SF 2: Alperen BERBER (TUR) df. Taizo YOSHIDA (JPN), 12-0

97kg
GOLD: Yehor YAKUSHENKO (UKR) vs. Darius KIEFER (GER)

SF 1: Yehor YAKUSHENKO (UKR) df. Anatolii AVERIN (AIN), 7-4
SF 2: Darius KIEFER (GER) df. Ahmet EREMEKTER (TUR), via fall