#WrestleRome

European Championship Entries

By Eric Olanowski

*Updated entries are listed in bold.

ROME, Italy (February 3) --- The European Championships kick off February 10-16 in Rome, Italy, and there are seven reigning world champions and 16 returning European champions that highlight the list of 515 entries. 

Here are the returning world and European champions that'll be in action in Italy:

Freestyle 

2019 World Champions
61kg - Beka LOMTADZE (GEO)
97kg - Abdulrashid SADULAEV (RUS)
125kg - Geno PETRIASHVILI (GEO)

2019 European Champions
61kg - Arsen HARUTYUNYAN (ARM)
74kg - Frank CHAMIZO MARQUEZ (ITA)
97kg - Abdulrashid SADULAEV (RUS)

Women’s Wrestling 

2019 World Champions
65kg  - Inna TRAZHUKOVA (RUS)
72kg - Natalia VOROBEVA (RUS)

2019 European Champions
50kg - Oksana LIVACH (UKR)
53kg - Stalvira ORSHUSH (RUS)
53kg - Iryna HUSYAK (UKR)
59kg - Bilyana Zhivkova DUDOVA (BUL)
62kg - Taybe Mustafa YUSEIN (BUL)
65kg - Elis MANOLOVA (AZE)
68kg - Alla CHERKASOVA (UKR)
72kg - Alina BEREZHNA STADNIK MAKHYNIA (UKR)
76kg - Yasemin ADAR (TUR)

Greco-Roman

2019 World Champions
55kg - Nugzari TSURTSUMIA (GEO)
130kg - Riza KAYAALP (TUR)

2019 European Champions
55kg - Vitalii KABALOEV (RUS)
63kg - Victor CIOBANU (MDA)
82kg - Rajbek Alvievich BISULTANOV (DEN)
130kg - Riza KAYAALP (TUR)

Reigning world silver medalist Suleyman ATLI (TUR) is registered at 57kg. (Photo: Gabor Martin)

Freestyle

57kg
Mihran JABURYAN (ARM)
Afgan KHASHALOV (AZE)
Dzimchyk RYNCHYNAU (BLR)
Georgi Valentinov VANGELOV (BUL)
Levan METREVELI VARTANOV (ESP)
Valentin DAMOUR (FRA)
Otari GOGAVA (GEO)
Horst Justin Junior LEHR (GER)
Ioannis MARTIDIS (GRE)
Givi DAVIDOVI (ITA)
Anatolii BURUIAN (MDA)
Andrei DUKOV (ROU)
Azamat TUSKAEV (RUS)
Stevan Andria MICIC (SRB)
Suleyman ATLI (TUR)
Taras MARKOVYCH (UKR)

61kg
Arsen HARUTYUNYAN (ARM)
Intigam VALIZADA (AZE)
Uladzislau KOIKA (BLR)
Vladimir DUBOV (BUL)
Anvar SUVINIITTY (FIN)
Beka LOMTADZE (GEO)
Viktor Viktorowitsch LYZEN (GER)
Georgios PILIDIS (GRE)
Daniel POPOV (ISR)
Simone Vincenzo PIRODDU (ITA)
Leomid COLESNIC (MDA)
Vladimir EGOROV (MKD)
Nikolai OKHLOPKOV (ROU)
Aleksandr BOGOMOEV (RUS)
Randy Adrian VOCK (SUI)
Hamza ALACA (TUR)
Ivan BILEICHUK (UKR)

65kg
Valodya FRANGULYAN (ARM)
Gabriel JANATSCH (AUT)
Ali RAHIMZADE (AZE)
Niurgun SKRIABIN (BLR)
Stefan Ganchev IVANOV (BUL)
Juan Pablo GONZALEZ CRESPO (ESP)
Marwane Ahmed YEZZA (FRA)
George Anthony RAMM (GBR)
Vladimer KHINCHEGASHVILI (GEO)
Niklas Dietmar DORN (GER)
Fotios PAPADAKIS (GRE)
Iszmail MUSZUKAJEV (HUN)
Abdellatif MANSOUR (ITA)
Maxim SACULTAN (MDA)
Nicolai GRAHMEZ (MDA)
Krzysztof BIENKOWSKI (POL)
George BUCUR (ROU)
Kurban SHIRAEV (RUS)
David HABAT (SLO)
Malik Michael AMINE (SMR)
Selahattin KILICSALLAYAN (TUR)
Erik ARUSHANIAN (UKR)

70kg
Eriglent PRIZRENI (ALB)
Gevorg MKHEYAN (ARM)
Aghahuseyn MUSTAFAYEV (AZE)
Viktar SERADA (BLR)
Mihail Iliev GEORGIEV (BUL)
Nicolae COJOCARU (GBR)
Mirza SKHULUKHIA (GEO)
Kevin Christopher HENKEL (GER)
Roman ASHARIN (HUN)
Gianluca TALAMO (ITA)
Alban SOPA (KOS)
Artem AUGA (LTU)
Mihail SAVA (MDA)
Fati VEJSELI (MKD)
Magomedmurad GADZHIEV (POL)
Israil KASUMOV (RUS)
Marc DIETSCHE (SUI)
Haydar YAVUZ (TUR)
Oleksii BORUTA (UKR)

Frank CHAMIZO MARQUEZ (ITA), a two-time world champion, will look to win a European title in his home country of Rome. (Photo: Kadir Caliskan)

74kg
Hrayr ALIKHANYAN (ARM)
Khadzhimurad GADZHIYEV (AZE)
Andrei KARPACH (BLR)
Miroslav Stefanov KIROV (BUL)
Jonatan ALVAREZ DIAZ (ESP)
Aimar ANDRUSE (EST)
Charles André AFA (FRA)
Charlie James BOWLING (GBR)
Avtandil KENTCHADZE (GEO)
Kyrillos BINENMPAOUM (GRE)
Murad KURAMAGOMEDOV (HUN)
Mitchell Louis FINESILVER (ISR)
Frank CHAMIZO MARQUEZ (ITA)
Valentin BORZIN (MDA)
Patryk Krzysztof OLENCZYN (POL)
Zurab KAPRAEV (ROU)
Magomedrasul GAZIMAGOMEDOV (RUS)
Zaur EFENDIEV (SRB)
Jakub SYKORA (SVK)
Soner DEMIRTAS (TUR)
Denys PAVLOV (UKR)

79kg
Arman AVAGYAN (ARM)
Simon MARCHL (AUT)
Jabrayil HASANOV (AZE)
Mahamedkhabib KADZIMAHAMEDAU (BLR)
Dzhemal Rushen ALI (BUL)
Erik REINBOK (EST)
Saifedine ALEKMA (FRA)
Zurabi ERBOTSONASHVILI (GEO)
Alexandros TSANTIKIDIS (GRE)
Hanoc RACHAMIN (ISR)
Salvatore DIANA (ITA)
Andrius MAZEIKA (LTU)
Evgheni NEDEALCO (MDA)
Gheorghi PASCALOV (MDA)
Omaraskhab NAZHMUDINOV (ROU)
Magomed Eldarovitch RAMAZANOV (RUS)
Akhsarbek GULAEV (SVK)
Batuhan DEMIRCIN (TUR)
Vasyl MYKHAILOV (UKR)

86kg
Hovhannes MKHITARYAN (ARM)
Abubakr ABAKAROV (AZE)
Rasul TSIKHAYEU (BLR)
Akhmed Adamovitch MAGAMAEV (BUL)
Taimuraz FRIEV NASKIDAEVA (ESP)
Ville Tapani HEINO (FIN)
Akhmed AIBUEV (FRA)
Dato MARSAGISHVILI (GEO)
Lars SCHAEFLE (GER)
Georgios SAVVOULIDIS (GRE)
Mihaly NAGY (HUN)
Uri KALASHNIKOV (ISR)
Aron CANEVA (ITA)
Ivars SAMUSONOKS (LAT)
Piotr IANULOV (MDA)
Denis BALAUR (MDA)
Radoslaw MARCINKIEWICZ (POL)
Artur NAIFONOV (RUS)
Myles Nazem AMINE (SMR)
Stefan REICHMUTH (SUI)
Boris MAKOEV (SVK)
Fatih ERDIN (TUR)
Illia ARCHAIA (UKR)

92kg
Marzpet GALSTYAN (ARM)
Aslanbek ALBOROV (AZE)
Amarhajy MAHAMEDAU (BLR)
Irakli MTSITURI (GEO)
Angelos KOUKLARIS (GRE)
Bendeguz TOTH (HUN)
Simone IANNATTONI (ITA)
Edon SHALA (KOS)
Georgii RUBAEV (MDA)
Zbigniew Mateusz BARANOWSKI (POL)
Batyrbek TCAKULOV (RUS)
Samuel SCHERRER (SUI)
Suleyman KARADENIZ (TUR)
Roman RYCHKO (UKR)


Wrestling's biggest star Abdulrashid SADULAEV (RUS) will wrestle at 97kg. (Photo: Kadir Caliskan)

97kg
Sargis HOVSEPYAN (ARM)
Nurmagomed GADZHIYEV (AZE)
Dzianis KHRAMIANKOU (BLR)
Georgi Genadiev DIMITROV (BUL)
Alejandro CANADA PANCORBO (ESP)
Elizbar ODIKADZE (GEO)
Gennadij CUDINOVIC (GER)
Christos PETRIDIS (GRE)
Pavel OLEJNYIK (HUN)
Abraham de Jesus CONYEDO RUANO (ITA)
Lukas KRASAUSKAS (LTU)
Nicolai CEBAN (MDA)
Magomedgadji Omardibirovich NUROV (MKD)
Radoslaw BARAN (POL)
Albert SARITOV (ROU)
Abdulrashid SADULAEV (RUS)
Ibrahim BOLUKBASI (TUR)
Murazi MCHEDLIDZE (UKR)

125kg
Paris KAREPI (ALB)
Levan BERIANIDZE (ARM)
Johannes LUDESCHER (AUT)
Jamaladdin MAGOMEDOV (AZE)
Elhad HUKIC (BIH)
Ibragim SAIDOV (BLR)
Jose CUBA VAZQUEZ (ESP)
Geno PETRIASHVILI (GEO)
Nick MATUHIN (GER)
Daniel LIGETI (HUN)
Ryan John MALO (ITA)
Egzon SHALA (KOS)
Alexandr ROMANOV (MDA)
Samhan JABRAILOV (MDA)
Boban DANOV (MKD)
Robert BARAN (POL)
Rares Daniel CHINTOAN (ROU)
Baldan TSYZHIPOV (RUS)
Tanju GEMICI (TUR)
Oleksandr KHOTSIANIVSKYI (UKR)

Riza KAYAALP (TUR) is one of two reigning Greco-Roman world champions that are set to compete in Rome. (Photo: Kadir Caliskan)

Greco-Roman

55kg
Rudik MKRTCHYAN (ARM)
Sargis GEVORGIZYAN (AUT)
Eldaniz AZIZLI (AZE)
Edmond Armen NAZARYAN (BUL)
Nugzari TSURTSUMIA (GEO)
Fabian Bernhard SCHMITT (GER)
Maksym VYSOTSKYI (ISR)
Giovanni FRENI (ITA)
Artium DELEANU (MDA)
Snorre Harsem LUND (NOR)
Florin TITA (ROU)
Vitalii KABALOEV (RUS)
Dogus AYAZCI (TUR)
Koriun SAHRADIAN (UKR)

60kg
Gevorg GHARIBYAN(ARM)
Murad BAZAROV(AZE)
Yahor BELIAK (BLR)
Avgustin Boyanov SPASOV (BUL)
Helary MAEGISALU (EST)
Juuso Aleksi LATVALA (FIN)
Amiran SHAVADZE (GEO)
Krisztian KECSKEMETI (HUN)
Jacopo SANDRON (ITA)
Przemyslaw PIATEKI (POL)
Teodor HORATAU (ROU)
Zhambolat LOKYAEV (RUS)
Dimitar Ivaylov SANDOV (SUI)
Kerem KAMAL (TUR)
Zhora ABOVIAN (UKR)

63kg
Sahak HOVHANNISYAN (ARM)
Taleh MAMMADOV (AZE)
Maksim NEHODA (BLR)
Rumen Boyanov SAVCHEV (BUL)
Levani KAVJARADZE (GEO)
Christos THEODORAKIS (GRE)
Erik TORBA (HUN)
Justas PETRAVICIUS (LTU)
Victor CIOBANU (MDA)
Stig-Andre BERGE (NOR)
Dawid KARECINSKI (POL)
Mihai Radu MIHUT (ROU)
Ibragim LABAZANOV (RUS)
Perica DIMITRIJEVIC (SRB)
Rahman BILICI (TUR)
Lenur TEMIROV (UKR)

67kg
Karen ASLANYAN (ARM)
Islambek DADOV (AZE)
Aliaksandr LIAVONCHYK (BLR)
Deyvid Tihomirov DIMITROV (BUL)
Danijel JANECIC (CRO)
Ott SAAR (EST)
Elmer Joakim MATTILA (FIN)
Yasin OZAY (FRA)
Giorgi SHOTADZE (GEO)
Witalis LAZOVSKI (GER)
Manrikos THEODORIDIS (GRE)
Krisztian Istvan VANCZA (HUN)
Ignazio SANFILIPPO (ITA)
Aleksandrs JURKJANS (LAT)
Kristupas SLEIVA (LTU)
Donior ISLAMOV (MDA)
Morten THORESEN (NOR)
Roman PACURKOWSKI (POL)
Nazir Rachidovitch ABDULLAEV (RUS)
Mate NEMES (SRB)
Andreas VETSCH (SUI)
Oskar Simon ERLANDSSON (SWE)
Enes BASAR (TUR)
Denys DEMYANKOV (UKR)
Aker AL OBAIDI (UWW)

Frank STAEBLER(GER), a three-time world champion, will compete at the non-Olympic weight of 72kg. (Photo: Kadir Caliskan)

72kg
Malkhas AMOYAN (ARM)
Christoph BURGER (AUT)
Ulvu GANIZADE (AZE)
Agron SADIKAJ (BIH)
Yury KANKOU (BLR)
Stoyan Stoychev KUBATOV (BUL)
Dominik ETLINGER (CRO)
Mikko Petteri PELTOKANGAS (FIN)
Ibrahim Mahmoud Hamed Hassan GHANEM (FRA)
Iuri LOMADZE (GEO)
Frank STAEBLER (GER)
Petros MANOUILIDIS (GRE)
Robert Attila FRITSCH (HUN)
Riccardo GLAVE (ITA)
Anatolie POPOV (MDA)
Valentin PETIC (MDA)
Juan Sebastian AAK (NOR)
Mateusz Lucjan BERNATEK (POL)
Adam KURAK (RUS)
Davor STEFANEK (SRB)
Leos DRMOLA (SVK)
Selcuk CAN (TUR)
Andrii KULYK (UKR)

77kg
Karapet CHALYAN (ARM)
Sanan SULEYMANOV (AZE)
Pavel LIAKH (BLR)
Aik MNATSAKANIAN (BUL)
Pavel PUKLAVEC (CRO)
Oldrich VARGA (CZE)
Ranet KALJOLA (EST)
Tero Antero Matias HALMESMAEKI (FIN)
Evrik NIKOGHOSYAN (FRA)
Demuri KAVTARADZE (GEO)
Pascal EISELE (GER)
Georgios PREVOLARAKIS (GRE)
Zotlan LEVAI (HUN)
Roman ZHERNOVETSKI (ISR)
Matteo MAFFEZZOLI (ITA)
Paulius GALKINAS (LTU)
Daniel CATARAGA (MDA)
Alexandrin GUTU (MDA)
Marcel STERKENBURG (NED)
Per Anders KURE (NOR)
Edgar BABAYAN (POL)
Islam OPIEV (RUS)
Viktor NEMES (SRB)
Nicolas Peter CHRISTEN (SUI)
Denis HORVATH (SVK)
Alex Michel BJURBERG KESSIDIS (SWE)
Yunus Emre BASAR (TUR)
Volodymyr YAKOVLIEV (UKR)

82kg
Ruben GHARIBYAN (ARM)
Michael WAGNER (AUT)
Rafig HUSEYNOV (AZE)
Stanislau SHAFARENKA (BLR)
Daniel Tihomirov ALEKSANDROV (BUL)
Filip SACIC (CRO)
Rajbek Alvievich BISULTANOV (DEN)
Lasha GOBADZE (GEO)
Hannes WAGNER (GER)
Ilias PAGKALIDIS (GRE)
Laszlo SZABO (HUN)
Igor PETRISHIN (ISR)
Ciro RUSSO (ITA)
Mihail BRADU (MDA)
Tyrone STERKENBURG (NED)
Mateusz Lukasz WOLNY (POL)
Shamil Letkaevitch OZHAEV (RUS)
Bogdan KOURINNOI (SWE)
Burhan AKBUDAK (TUR)
Andrii ANTONIUK (UKR)

Viktor LORINCZ (HUN), Greco-Roman's "Wrestler of the Year" could gain the No. 1 ranking in the world with a win in Rome. He'll wrestle at 87kg. (Photo: Kadir Caliskan)

87kg
Maksim MANUKYAN (ARM)
Islam ABBASOV (AZE)
Kiryl MASKEVICH (BLR)
Tarek Mohamed ABDELSLAM SHEBLE MOHAMED (BUL)
Vjekoslav LUBURIC (CRO)
Petr NOVAK (CZE)
Jesus GASCA FRESNEDA (ESP)
Erik INT (EST)
Tornike DZAMASHVILI (GEO)
Viktor LORINCZ (HUN)
Mirco MINGUZZI (ITA)
Eividas STANKEVICIUS (LTU)
Arkadiusz Marcin KULYNYCZ (POL)
Aleksandr Andreevitch KOMAROV (RUS)
Nikolaj Georgiev DOBREV (SRB)
Zurabi DATUNASHVILI (SRB)
Ramon Rainer BETSCHART (SUI)
Emil SANDAHL (SWE)
Metehan BASAR (TUR)
Semen NOVIKOV (UKR)

97kg
Artur ALEKSANYAN (ARM)
Markus RAGGINGER (AUT)
Orkhan NURIYEV (AZE)
Dzmitry KAMINSKI (BLR)
Kiril Milenov MILOV (BUL)
Artur OMAROV (CZE)
Matti Elias KUOSMANEN (FIN)
Mélonin NOUMONVI (FRA)
Revazi NADAREISHVILI (GEO)
Anestis ZARIFES (GRE)
Alex Gergo SZOKE (HUN)
Nikoloz KAKHELASHVILI (ITA)
Vilius LAURINAITIS (LTU)
Tadeusz MICHALIK (POL)
Aleksandr GOLOVIN (RUS)
Mihail KAJAIA (SRB)
Damian VON EUW (SUI)
Cenk ILDEM (TUR)
Oleksandr SHYSHMAN (UKR)

130kg
David OVASAPYAN (ARM)
Sabah Saleh SHARIATI (AZE)
Pavel RUDAKOU (BLR)
Radoslav Plamenov GEORGIEV (BUL)
Stepan DAVID (CZE)
Arvi Martin SAVOLAINEN (FIN)
Levan ARABULI (GEO)
Jello KRAHMER (GER)
Adam VARGA (HUN)
El Mahdi ROCCARO (ITA)
Romas FRIDRIKAS (LTU)
Oskar MARVIK (NOR)
Rafal Andrzej KRAJEWSKI (POL)
Alin ALEXUC CIURARIU (ROU)
Zurabi GEDEKHAURI (RUS)
Riza KAYAALP (TUR)
Mykola KUCHMII (UKR)

Mariya STADNIK (AZE), the No.1-ranked wrestler in the world at 50kg, is on a quest to win her tenth European gold medal (European Championships: Seven, European Games: Two). (Photo: Kadir Caliskan)

Women's Wrestling

50kg
Turkan NASIROVA (AZE)
Kseniya STANKEVICH (BLR)
Miglena Georgieva SELISHKA (BUL)
Aintzane GORRIA GONI (ESP)
Julie Martine SABATIE (FRA)
Emanuela LIUZZI (ITA)
Emilia CIRICU BUDEANU (MDA)
Maria LEORDA (MDA)
Ramona ERIKSEN (NOR)
Anna LUKASIAK (POL)
Emilia Alina VUC (ROU)
Milana DADASHEVA (RUS)
Evin DEMIRHAN (TUR)
Oksana LIVACH (UKR)

53kg
Tatyana VARANSOVA (AZE)
Vanesa KALADZINSKAYA (BLR)
Sezen Behchetova BELBEROVA (BUL)
Marina RUEDA FLORES (ESP)
Hilary Ysaline HONORINE (FRA)
Annika WENDLE (GER)
Maria PREVOLARAKI (GRE)
Mercedesz DENES (HUN)
Sara ETTAKI (ITA)
Violeta PONOMARJOVA (LAT)
Iulia LEORDA (MDA)
Jessica Cornelia Francisca BLASZKA (NED)
Silje Knutsen KIPPERNES (NOR)
Katarzyna KRAWCZYK (POL)
Suzanna Georgiana SEICARIU (ROU)
Stalvira ORSHUSH (RUS)
Zeynep YETGIL (TUR)
Iryna HUSYAK (UKR)

55kg
Evelina Georgieva NIKOLOVA (BUL)
Ellen RIESTERER (GER)
Ambra CAMPAGNA (ITA)
Mariana DRAGUTAN (MDA)
Alicja CZYZOWICZ (POL)
Andreea Beatrice ANA (ROU)
Olga KHOROSHAVTSEVA (RUS)
Sofia Magdalena MATTSSON (SWE)
Bediha GUN (TUR)
Solomiia VYNNYK (UKR)

57kg
Alyona KOLESNIK (AZE)
Iryna KURACHKINA (BLR)
Tanya Dobromirova TENEVA (BUL)
Lenka HOCKOVA MARTINAKOVA (CZE)
Maria Victoria BAEZ DILONE (ESP)
Mathilde Hélène RIVIERE (FRA)
Arianna CARIERI (ITA)
Grace Jacob BULLEN (NOR)
Magdalena Urszula GLODEK( POL)
Marina SIMONYAN (RUS)
Sara Johanna LINDBORG (SWE)
Mehlika OZTURK (TUR)
Alina AKOBIIA (UKR)

59kg
Elmira GAMBAROVA (AZE)
Yuliya PISARENKA (BLR)
Bilyana Zhivkova DUDOVA (BUL)
Laura MERTENS (GER)
Ramona GALAMBOS (HUN)
Teresa LUMIA (ITA)
Anastasia NICHITA (MDA)
Dominika Ewa KULWICKA (POL)
Liubov OVCHAROVA (RUS)
Elif YANIK (TUR)
Anhelina LYSAK (UKR)

Taybe YUSEIN (BUL), last year's European champion and world runner-up, will wrestle at 62kg. (Photo: Gabor Martin)

62kg
Tetiana OMELCHENKO (AZE)
Veranika IVANOVA (BLR)
Taybe YUSEIN (BUL)
Lydia PEREZ TOURINO (ESP)
Luisa Helga Gerda NIEMESCH (GER)
Marianna SASTIN (HUN)
Aurora CAMPAGN A(ITA)
Kornelija ZAICEVAITE (LTU)
Mariana CHERDIVARA ESANU (MDA)
Katarzyna MADROWSKA (POL)
Inna TRAZHUKOVA (RUS)
Elif Jale YESILIRMAK (TUR)
Yuliia TKACH OSTAPCHUK (UKR)

65kg
Elis MANOLOVA (AZE)
Yauheniya ANDREICHYKAVA (BLR)
Mimi Nikolova HRISTOVA (BUL)
Petra Maarit OLLI (FIN)
Gabriella SLEISZ (HUN)
Veronica BRASCHI (ITA)
Ramina MAMEDOVA (LAT)
Kriszta Tunde INCZE (ROU)
Mariia KUZNETSOVA (RUS)
Henna Katarina JOHANSSON (SWE)
Asli TUGCU (TUR)
Iryna KOLIADENKO (UKR)

68kg
IrIna  Petrovna NETREBA (AZE)
Hanna SADCHANKA (BLR)
Sofiya Hristova GEORGIEVA (BUL)
Adela HANZLICKOVA (CZE)
Koumba Selene Fanta LARROQUE (FRA)
Anna Carmen SCHELL (GER)
Ilana KRATYSH (ISR)
Dalma CANEVA (ITA)
Danute DOMIKAITYTE (LTU)
Agnieszka Jadwiga WIESZCZEK KORDUS (POL)
Khanum VELIEVA (RUS)
Kadriye AKSOY (TUR)
Alla CHERKASOVA (UKR)

Reigning 72kg world champion Natalia VOROBEVA (RUS) will comete back down at the non-Olympic weight class after bumping up to 76kg for the Matteo Pellicone. (Photo: Tony Rotundo)

72kg
Anastasiya ZIMIANKOVA (BLR)
Kendra Augustine Jocelyne DACHER (FRA)
Maria SELMAIER (GER)
Enrica RINALD I(ITA)
Catalina AXENTE (ROU)
Natalia VOROBEVA (RUS)
Merve PUL (TUR)
Alina BEREZHNA STADNIK MAKHYNIA (UKR)

76kg
Martina KUENZ (AUT)
Sabira ALIYEVA (AZE)
Vasilisa MARZALIUK (BLR)
Mariya Gerginova ORYASHKOVA (BUL)
Pauline Denise LECARPENTIER (FRA)
Georgina Olwen NELTHORPE (GBR)
Aline ROTTER FOCKEN (GER)
Aikaterini Eirini PITSIAVA (GRE)
Zsanett NEMETH (HUN)
Eleni PJOLLAJ (ITA)
Kamile GAUCAITE (LTU)
Svetlana SAENKO (MDA)
Iselin Maria Moen SOLHEIM (NOR)
Kamila Czeslawa KULWICKA (POL)
Ekaterina BUKINA (RUS)
Yasemin ADAR (TUR)
Alla BELINSKA (UKR)

*Please note that entries are subject to change and are not official until 24 hours before the start of competition.

#WrestleRome

Crafty Bullen returns to top of podium in Rome

By Vinay Siwach

ROME, Italy (June 24) -- Grace BULLEN (NOR) won her first senior European title in 2017, and since then, she reached the medal bouts at 16 out of 22 competitions she competed in till 2020. She won another continental gold in Rome that year. A medal at Tokyo Olympics and at the home World Championships in Oslo felt like reality.

But as luck would have it, Bullen failed to qualify for Tokyo. Actually, she did not finish on the podium at five different tournaments including two shocking losses at the Olympic Qualifying tournaments in Budapest and Sofia. She returned empty-handed in Oslo as well.

Just when it seemed that the prodigy from Norway was fading away, Bullen came up with a performance for the ages at the Matteo Pellicone Ranking Series in Rome. Bullen captured the gold at 59kg on Friday, outscoring her opponents 25-2, including a 12-2 win in the final against Jowita WRZESIEN (POL).

Bullen's gold might have come at the right time as she prepares for the World Championships and ultimately for the Paris Olympics. The confidence-boosting win will also serve as a great catalyst to help her return to the top form that she once was known for.

The former U17 world champ displayed high-quality wrestling, not only in the final but throughout the day.

Nikolett SZABO (HUN) was the first to get a taste of Bullen's crafty wrestling, as she got launched for five with a clean pick and throw. That gave Bullen a 13-0 start to the day. Abigail NETTE (USA) kept her quiet for a few moments but Bullen won the semifinal 10-0.

A final against Odunayo ADEKUOROYE (NGR) would have given her a chance to assess herself better but Wrzesien defeated the former world silver medalist 9-3 in the other semifinal.

Against Wrzsien, Bullen launched double leg attacks and transitioned to leg lace on one of them to lead 8-0. She went for a winning takedown but in the sequence, ended up giving up an exposure as well which was two points for each wrestler. But she got that final takedown with 3:43 left in the final.

This was Bullen's first major international gold since that European title which she won, incidentally in Rome.

Tetiana RIZHKOTetiana RIZHKO (UKR) won the gold at 65kg. (Photo: UWW / Martin Gabor)

After winning three gold medals on Thursday, Ukraine added two more through Liliia MALANCHUK (UKR) and European champion Tetiana RIZHKO (UKR) at 53kg and 65kg, respectively.

Rizhko was the star performer of the day as she dismantled her opponents en route to the gold. In the four bouts, she won via fall in two, one by technical superiority and another 6-1.

She faced Emma BRUNTIL (USA) in Round 1 of the Nordic bracket and secured a fall inside the first period. Up against her teammate Kateryna ZELENYKH (UKR) in the next round, Rizhko scored two quick takedowns to open the scoring. Zelenykh kept trying to attack her senior opponent's legs but ended up giving points and eventually a fall.

In Round 4, she faced a familiar opponent in Kriszta INCZE (ROU). The bout was a virtual gold medal bout. Rizhko did not wait much and got an early exposure to lead 2-0. Incze's eyes lit up when she got behind Rizhko in a standing position and tried working a takedown but the Ukrainian tossed her for four. With a 6-1 lead, Rizhko played it safe and does not engage much in the second period.

Liliia MALANCHUK (UKR)Liliia MALANCHUK (UKR) defeated Mariana DRAGUTAN (MDA) twice on Friday at 53kg. (Photo: UWW / Martin Gabor)

At 53kg, Malanchuk scored two wins over U23 European champion Mariana DRAGUTAN (MDA) to win the gold medal. The two first met in Round 2 in the morning session which Malanchuk won 3-2. Dragutan tried avenging that loss but a solid defensive performance from Malanchuk got her the gold with a 6-2 score.

In the final, the score was tied 2-2 when Malanchuk worked on a cradle to secure the fall. Dragutan survived the fall but gave up two exposures in the process and trailed 6-2.

The rest of the bout saw Dragutan trying to find an opening against Malanchuk who would not budge despite several attacks from the Moldova wrestler.

Ukraine could have won a third gold of the day but Mariia VYNNYK (UKR) came up short against Katarzyna KRAWCZYK (POL) at 55kg.

Krawczyk won the gold after finishing second at the Ranking Series event in Istanbul at the beginning of the year. She turned that into gold with a 7-2 win over Vynnyk.

It was Vynnyk who got the first attack going and as she dragged Krawczyk towards the zone, the Poland wrestler used that momentum to hit a well-timed arm throw for four. Vynnyk seemed a little shocked after the throw but composed herself quickly.

She scored a takedown before the break to cut the lead to 4-2 but despite her several attempts to score more, she suffered a 7-2 loss in the final.

At 50kg, Madison PARKS (CAN) and Agata WALERZAK (POL) left everything on the mat in the gold medal bout.

Parks led 4-2 at the break before Walerzak made it 4-4 with a takedown at the restart. The lead went back to Parks with a stepout. But Walerzak scored a takedown and added two more to lead 8-5 with two minutes left. Parks, desperate to get on an attack, managed to score a takedown late in the match.

With the score reading 8-7 with just 20 seconds left, Walerzak kept her distance from Parks but in the final second of the bout, the Canadian used her strength to put down the Poland wrestler.

Walerzak was trying to escape a body lock from behind but Parks kept her hands locked and just before time expired, she managed to bring down Walerzak on her knee for a brief moment. But that was enough for her to get a takedown and the win.

Skylar GROTE (USA)Skylar GROTE (USA) won four bouts on Friday to capture the 72kg gold. (Photo: UWW / Martin Gabor)

A day after Yelena MAKOYED (USA) made a surprising run to the 76kg gold, another USA wrestler capture the gold on her debut in Ranking Series.

Pan-American champion Skylar GROTE (USA) dominated the field at 72kg to capture the gold a month after winning the continental title in Mexico.

After getting past teammate Marilyn GARCIA (USA) 11-0, Grote faced tough competition from former U23 world silver medalist Alexandra ANGHEL (ROU). But a good attack and defense combination gave a 6-3 win.

Two-time world medalist Anna SCHELL (GER) was dominating the field in a similar fashion. She had only conceded only against Anghel in three of her bouts.

Grote won her third bout against Aysegul OZBEGE (TUR) to set up a Round 5 bout against Schell. With the two wrestling being the only ones to remain undefeated at that point, it became a gold-medal match.

Schell tried getting on the scoreboard quickly but it was Grote who took the 2-0 lead. She then added another takedown and make it 4-0 at the break. In the second period, Grote kept her shots going and extended her lead to 6-0 despite Schell's repeated attempt to score from double-leg.

She managed to score one with 41 seconds left but Grote gave no other openings, winning 6-2.

"She [Schell] was the toughest opponent I faced," Grote said. "I don't have much experience internationally so the girls were new to me as I have never wrestled them before. But I began dominantly and then said to myself 'let's go.'"

Grote made her first national team ever after reaching the final at World Team Trials. She lost to U17 and U20 world champ Amir ELOR (USA) but did not let that disappointment come in the way of her future tournaments.

"I was disappointed after the loss but I told myself that I wrestle in two weeks," she said. "I need to be more calculated with my attacks, I could not win the hand fights. But I had spent a lot of time preparing so I came to Italy."

The learnings from that bout held Grote in Rome as she controlled her bouts with precision.

"I changed my mindset this year," she said. "Win or lose I am still Skylar and now I am more progressive in attacks than being a counter wrestler. I try to control the bout rather than wrestling as per my opponent."

Petriashvili wins gold

World and Olympic silver medalist Geno PETRIASHVILI (GEO) added a second Ranking Series title of his career, four years after he won the first with a clinical display of wrestling in Rome.

In the final, he faced his semifinal opponent from European Championships Robert BARAN (POL). While the bout in Budapest ran close, Petriashvili made sure it wasn't the case Friday.

After a slow start for which Petriashvili was awarded two points for Baran's passivity on either side of the break, Petraishvili successfully got one of his attacks to work and score a takedown and lead 4-0.

In the final few moments of the bout, Petriashvili scored another to win 6-0.

In the other freestyle weight that was in action Friday, Batyrbek TCAKULOV (SVK) collected a second straight Ranking Series gold at 97kg.

Earlier this month, he had won the gold at the Bolat Turlykhanov Cup in Almaty and came up with a similar performance in Rome. He defeated Givi MATCHARASHVILI (GEO) 10-4 in a final which he controlled throughout.

The European bronze medalist led the bout 2-1 before adding a takedown late in the first period. He began with another takedown out-of-bounds to extend it to 6-1. Switching to defense, he countered a duck under attempt from Matcharashvili and scored. While the Georgian managed to score one, he lost the bout.

En route to the final, Tcakulov had defeated fellow European bronze medalist Zbigniew BARANOWSKI using a leg lace while Matcharashvili upset the European champion Magomedkhan MAGOMEDOV (AZE) in a minute and 10 seconds. He had earlier defeated silver medalist Vladislav BAITCAEV (HUN) 14-9 despite trailing 7-2 at the start.

Results

Women's wrestling

50kg
GOLD: Madison PARKS (CAN) df. Agata WALERZAK (POL), 10-8

BRONZE: Anna LUKASIAK (POL) df. Zehra DEMIRHAN (TUR), 2-1

53kg
GOLD: Liliia MALANCHUK (UKR) df. Mariana DRAGUTAN (MDA), 6-2

BRONZE: Samantha STEWART (CAN) df. Szimonetta SZEKER (HUN), 10-0

55kg
GOLD: Katarzyna KRAWCZYK (POL) df. Mariia VYNNYK (UKR), 7-2 

BRONZE: Andreea ANA (ROU) df. Nina HEMMER (GER), 4-3

59kg
GOLD: Grace BULLEN (NOR) df. Jowita WRZESIEN (POL), 12-2

BRONZE: Odunayo ADEKUOROYE (NGR) df. Elena BRUGGER (GER), 5-1 
BRONZE: Abigail NETTE (USA) df. Nikolett SZABO (HUN), 13-2

65kg
GOLD: Tetiana RIZHKO (UKR)
SILVER: Emma BRUNTIL (USA)
BRONZE: Kriszta INCZE (ROU)

72kg
GOLD: Skylar GROTE (USA)
SILVER: Anna SCHELL (GER)
BRONZE: Alexandra ANGHEL (ROU)

Freestyle

97kg
GOLD: Batyrbek TCAKULOV (SVK) df. Givi MATCHARASHVILI (GEO), 10-4

BRONZE: Elizbar ODIKADZE (GEO) df. Zbigniew BARANOWSKI (POL), 9-3
BRONZE: Vladislav BAITCAEV (HUN) df. Erik THIELE (GER), 4-0

125kg
GOLD: Geno PETRIASHVILI (GEO) df. Robert BARAN (POL), 6-0

BRONZE: Kamil KOSCIOLEK (POL) df. Anil KILICSALLAYAN (TUR), via inj. def.
BRONZE: KHOTSIANIVSKYI (UKR) df. Gennadij CUDINOVIC (GER), 11-0