#WrestleBaku

European OG Qualifier: Greco-Roman Paris 2024 qualification bouts set

Friday, April 5, 2024 - 06:00 By United World Wrestling Press

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BAKU, Azerbaijan (April 5) -- European OG Qualifier kicks off in Baku, Azerbaijan with Greco-Roman. Six Olympic weight classes will run through on day one with 12 Olympic spots on offer. The six weight classes are -- 60kg, 67kg, 77kg, 87kg, 97kg and 130kg.

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Here are the Paris 2024 qualification bouts for the evening session

60kg
Victor CIOBANU (MDA) vs. Hleb MAKARANKA (AIN)
Anvar ALLAKHIAROV (AIN) vs. Enes BASAR (TUR)

67kg
Krisztian VANCZA (HUN) vs Parviz NASIBOV (UKR)
Gevorg SAHAKYAN (POL) vs. Mamadassa SYLLA (FRA)

77kg
Alexandrin GUTU (MDA) vs. Burhan AKBUDAK (TUR)
Zoltán LÉVAI (HUN) vs. Jonni SARKKINEN (FIN)

87kg
Turpal BISULTANOV (DEN) vs. Aleksandr KOMAROV (SRB)
Milad ALIRZAEV (AIN) vs. Kiryl MASKEVICH (AIN)

97kg
Roberti KOBLIASHVILI (GEO) vs. Lucas LAZOGIANIS (GER)
Mihail KAJAIA (SRB) vs. Mindaugas VENCKAITIS (LTU)

130kg
Jello KRAHMER (GER) vs. Alin ALEXUC CIURARIU (ROU)
Beka KANDELAKI (AZE) vs Sergei SEMENOV (AIN)

15:05: Milad ALIRZAEV (AIN) ends Exauce MUKUBU (NOR) entertaining campaign with a 10-2 win at 87kg. He will wrestle in the semifinals later tonight 

14:50: Anvar ALLAKHIAROV (AIN) beats Leri ABULADZE (GEO) 4-0 and will move into the semifinals at 60kg. Abuladze was called passive in both periods and Allakhiarov scored a turn as well, winning 4-0.

14:40: Alexandru GUTU (MDA) will wrestle in the 77kg as he beats Adlet TIULIUBAEV (AIN) 5-3 in the quarterfinals. Tiuliubaev scored only one turn from par terre in the second period and failed to get the lead.

14:35: Enes BASAR (TUR) dashes the hopes of local fans as he beats European champion Nihat MAMMADLI (AZE) 3-1 in the 60kg quarterfinals. He will be wrestling in the semifinals later today

14:30: Turpal BISULTANOV (DEN) doesn't leave anything to chance this time. He gets a chest wrap and rolls to a 9-0 win over Mihail BRADU (MDA) and moves into the semifinal at 87kg against European champion Aleksandr KOMAROV (SRB).

14:20: Victor CIOBANU (MDA) with another quick win at 60kg. He beats Justas PETRAVICIUS (LTU) 14-0 and moves into the semifinal for the evening session.

14:10: Burhan AKBUDAK (TUR) hits a front five-pointer over Antonio KAMENJASEVIC (CRO) before finishing the bout 11-0. He reaches the 77kg semifinals.

14:00: European champion Sergei SEMENOV (AIN) with a 1-1 win over Heiki NABI (EST) at 130kg. He moves into the semifinals for the evening session. One more win to earn a Paris 2024 quota

13:45: Is that the upset of the tournament so far? Lucas LAZOGIANIS (GER) beats European silver medalist Magomed MURTAZALIEV (AIN) 1-1 in the 97kg 1/8 finals. The result means that Murtazaliev will not be able to win a Paris 2024 quota from Baku

13:30: Victor CIOBANU (MDA) wastes no time beating Melkamu FETENE (ISR) 11-0 and advancing to the quarterfinals at 60kg. Typical Ciobanu big throws.

13:25: Two Norway wrestlers advance to the quarterfinals. Felix BALDAUF (NOR) beats Arvi SAVOLAINEN (FIN) 7-1 at 97kg and Exauce MUKUBU (NOR) wins 9-0 against Martynas NEMSEVICIUS (LTU) at 87kg

13:20: Local star and European champion Nihat MAMMADLI (AZE) on the mat for his first bout at 60kg. He is taking on Oleksii MASYK (UKR).  The first par terre advantage goes to Mammadli and he scores four. But Masyk manages to block the second attempt and gets a point for stepout. Mammadli leads 5-1 at the break. Maysk with a par terre advantage in the second period but no points were scored. Mammadli leads 5-2 and will win with that score.

13:15: Leri ABULADZE (GEO) with an effortless 9-1 win over Razvan ARNAUT (ROU). He scores all his points in the second period from par terre to win.

12:55: Ivan HUKLEK (CRO) would be kicking himself as he let go of a 5-0 lead against Aleksandr KOMAROV (SRB) and lost 7-5. Huklek got the first par terre advantage and two for caution as Komarov blocked his attack. He scored a turn to lead 5-0. But in the second period, Komarov brought out his gut wrench and won 7-5.

12:45: Selcuk CAN (TUR) cannot catch a break from come-from-behind victories. From the brink of defeat, he wins 10-7 against Ruslan BICHURIN (AIN) at 67kg. Bichurin scored three turns from par terre to lead 7-0 but as he was going for a fourth, Can blocked him and tried a pin. Bichurin fouled and was cautioned. Can, from par terre, scored a throw to make the score 7-6. In the second period, Can hit a four-pointer to win 10-7

12:30: Two wrestlers returning from shoulder surgeries, Turpal BISULTANOV (DEN) and Islam ABBASOV (AZE) at 87kg. Bisultanov gets blocked in par terre and Abbasov gets a 2-1 lead. Bisultanov gets close to scoring a takedown twice in the second period but he gets called passive. Abbasov leads 3-1 and scores three turns from par terre to win 9-1. Denmark challenges the call and on review, Abbasov is seen grabbing the singlet. Abbasov's lead back to 3-1. Bisultanov with a takedown to take a 3-3 criteria lead. He scores another takedown and extends the lead to 5-3 and will finish the bout with a win.

12:20: Parviz NASIBOV (UKR) is up against Abu AMAEV (BUL) and gets the first par terre advantage. He scores two turns to lead 5-0. Amaev gets the advantage in the second period but fails to score. Nasibov leads 5-1. He wins with the same score to advance at 67kg.

12:00: Burhan AKBUDAK (TUR) is now in the quarterfinals at 77kg. He beats Oldrich VARGA (CZE) 4-1 and is now two wins away from a Paris 2024 spot. On Mat C, the European champion at 130kg Sergei SEMENOV (AIN) beats Dzmitry ZARUBSKI (AIN) 4-0.

11:50: Alexandru GUTU (MDA) is on Mat B against Patryk BEDNARZ (POL) and he gets his trademark front headlock four-pointer to lead 5-0 at the break. He gets another point for offense in the second period and wins 6-0.

11:35: A 5-1 victory for Leri ABULADZE (GEO) at 60kg. The 63kg world champion is hoping to qualify Georgia for the Paris Games at the new weight class.

11:30: Nikoloz KAKHELASHVILI (ITA) takes out Alex SZOKE (HUN) with a 1-1 win. The wrestlers exchanged passivity points and Kakhelashvili got the advantage in the second period to claim the win

11:19: Two friends Exauce MUKUBU (NOR) and Marcel STERKENBURG (NED) up against each other at 87kg. Sterkenburg leads 1-1 at the break but Mukubu takes a 2-1 lead before adding a takedown and roll for a 6-1 victory.

10:55: Selcuk CAN (TUR) and Kristupas SLEIVA (LTU) are coming on Mat C. Sleiva with a four-pointer to begin the match but Can answers with one of his own. Can with a lift but Sleiva blocks his second action and gets two points. Can scores a takedown to take a 6-6 lead at the break. Can scores a takedown but Sleiva asks for a break. Sleiva challenges but the takedown is confirmed and he takes a 9-6 lead with 23 seconds left. Can will advance to the next round.

10:42: Burhan AKBUDAK (TUR) gets his campaign going with a 7-4 win over Riccardo ABBRESCIA (ITA) at 77kg. On Mat C, Deni NAKAEV (GER) drops his first bout to Ilie COJOCARI (ROU) and France's 72kg world champion Ibrahim GHANEM (FRA) fails to advance after a 5-1 loss to Adlet TIULIUBAEV (AIN).

10:30: Welcome to the European OG Qualifier in Baku. The competition will run on three mats with the winners of the semifinals qualifying their nations for the Paris Olympic Games. There will be no repechage, bronze or gold-medal bouts.

#WrestleAthens

Turner back on top with second U17 title; India wins 2 golds

Thursday, July 31, 2025 - 20:30 By Vinay Siwach

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ATHENS, Greece (July 31) -- There have been dominant runs in Women's Wrestling at the World U17 Championships history and now Morgan TURNER (USA) has joined that list as well.

After winning the world title in 2023, Turner had to be satisfied with a bronze medal in 2024. However, that bronze made Turner more determined to end her U17 age-group career on high.

Wrestling at the U17 Worlds for the third time, Turner won her second world title at this age-group. She won the 49kg gold medal in Athens, Greece on Thursday, giving United States the first gold of the tournament.

"I definitely wanted to come back harder coming from bronze last year," Turner said. So my goal was to win it. I just preparing eventually, physically and emotionally. The bronze shadowed over the gold. So I had to come back and I had to get gold. I love it."

Turner, facing Yu KATAOKA (JPN) in the 49kg final, showed how to counter those Japanese low-single attacks. Every time Kataoka tried to go for them, Tuner would sit low and block with counterattacks.

Kataoka even tried getting behind but Turner held such good positions that she was able to counter and score, eventually winning 6-1. In four bouts, the final was the only one in which did not finish with technical superiority.

Now with two golds, Turner said that Thursday's gold proved that she has evolved as a wrestler and could perform moves other than the double-legs that she has been famous for.

"Two years ago was a lot a lot more nerves. I was on cloud nine. I was 14. I was super nervous," she said. "I feel like I need to grow as a wrestler. I left the double. I don't need to do a double all the time. I can shoot sweeps. I can do little singles. I can do cradles, I can do throws, I can do different things."

With her U17 career finished, Turner will now be focused on U20 and perhaps the senior level as well.

RACHANA (IND)RACHANA (IND) won the gold medal at 43kg. (Photo: United World Wrestling / Amirreza Aliasgari)

Mixed day for India

India, the defending team champions, had a mixed day in the field. It had four wrestlers in the finals but only two came back with gold medals.

Former world U17 silver medalist RACHNA (IND) held her own lead against Xin HUANG (CHN) and secured the gold medal at 43kg. She scored a takedown in the first period to lead 2-0 and Huang was called passive in the second to give one more point to Rachna.

Huang did get a couple of attacks going but was not able to finish. Rachana's gold was the first for India of the night.

Ashvini VISHNOI (IND)Two-time Asian U17 champion Ashvini VISHNOI (IND) is now a world U17 champion at 65kg. (Photo: United World Wrestling / Kostadin Andonov)

Two-time Asian U17 champion Ashvini VISHNOI (IND) added the second as she defeated Mukhayyo RAKHIMJONOVA (UZB) at 65kg with a similar score and scoring actions. With the win, Vishnoi also denied Rakhimjonova a chance of history as she could have become the first-ever world champion for Uzbekistan in Women's Wrestling at any level.

Wenjin QIU (CHN)Wenjin QIU (CHN) defeated KAJAL (IND) in the 73kg final. (Photo: United World Wrestling / Kostadin Andonov)

Returning world U17 champion from 69kg KAJAL (IND), now at 73kg, suffered a loss to Wenjin QIU (CHN) in the final. This was Kajal's second loss in two months to Qiu who had defeated the Indian 10-0 in the Asian U17 Championships final in Vietnam.

Kajal began on an attacking note and raced to a 4-0 lead with two takedowns. However, in the second period, Qiu was able to counter better. Qiu scored a four-pointer and then exposure as she was looking to pin Kajal. After the sequence, Qiu led 6-5. 

Still, Kajal got Qiu locked from behind and was about to throw her for four points but the Chinese managed to block that and land Kajal in danger for two points, extending her lead to 8-5, which became the winning score for her.

The second loss for India came in the 57kg final after a bizarre sequence of events. MONI (IND), who won the Asian U17 gold over Madkhiya USMANOVA (KAZ), faced her again in the finals in Athens.

Moni scored the first takedown of the bout but Usmanova hit a headlock for four to lead 4-2. The scramble continued and Moni got a point for reversal. However, Usmanov got another exposure for two more points and led 6-3 as the referee asked the wrestlers to return to center.

Moni does a double arm lock throw for two points to cut the lead to 6-5 with just over a minute left in the bout. Moni, who perhaps thought that she was leading the bout, did not engage with Usmanova for the next 50 seconds. Even Usmanova, who was leading, did not bother to get into a tangle.

Ultimately, Moni went for the attack with only 10 seconds left but Usmanova was not letting her score with gold on line. With her 6-5 win, Usmanova became the first Women's Wrestling world champion for Kazakhstan in 13 years and avenged her loss to Moni from the Asian U17 Championships final.

RESULTS

43kg
GOLD: RACHANA (IND) df. Xin HUANG (CHN), 3-0

BRONZE: Madison HEALEY (USA) df. Mareim ABDELAAL (EGY), via fall
BRONZE: Inzhu BAKKOZHA (KAZ) df. Raniia RAKHMANOVA (UWW), via fall

49kg
GOLD: Morgan TURNER (USA) df. Yu KATAOKA (JPN), 6-1

BRONZE: Polina BOCHKAREVA (UWW) df. Azema KALIDINOVA (KGZ), 6-6
BRONZE: Komal VERMA (IND) df. Anhelina BURKINA (UWW), 8-3

57kg
GOLD: Madkhiya USMANOVA (KAZ) df. MONI (IND), 6-5

BRONZE: Sayuki TANADA (JPN) df. Sophie RITTER (ITA), 4-4
BRONZE: Alina BAROEVA (UWW) df. Marta MANKOWSKA (POL), 6-1

65kg
GOLD: Ashvini VISHNOI (IND) df. Mukhayyo RAKHIMJONOVA (UZB), 3-0

BRONZE: Feenja HERMANN (GER) df. Alexandra MOISEI (MDA), 4-2
BRONZE: Lilia ERMOKHINA (UWW) df. Anujin ERKHEMBAATAR (MGL), 9-2

73kg
GOLD: Wenjin QIU (CHN) df. KAJAL (IND), 8-5

BRONZE: Ella Jo POALILLO (USA) df. Anna GODELASHVILI (GEO), via fall
BRONZE: Eylem ENGIN (TUR) df. Deborah GARCIA (MEX), 9-1