#WrestleSofia

Gadzhiev wins U20 World gold; Iran defends team title

By Vinay Siwach

SOFIA, Bulgaria (August 17) -- When Dzhabrail GADZHIEV (AZE) lost the final at the U20 World Championships final, he wished he had attacked more in the final against Erfan ELAHI (IRI). The 6-5 scoreline pinched him for the next few months.

"I’ve been waiting for it for the whole year," Gadzhiev said. "I was expecting the Iran wrestler to reach the final."

Gadzhiev wanted to avenge his loss from Ufa against Elahi. But the U20 Asian champion lost his quarterfinal against Sagar JAGLAN (IND). Later, Ryunosuke KAMIYA (JPN) beat Jaglan in the semifinal.

While he did not get to settle scores with Elahi, Gadzhiev made sure he doesn't leave anything to chance this time.

Kamiya, who was wrestling in his first World Championships, initiated the first attack. After getting a hold of Gadzhiev's leg, Kamiya tried to lift but Gadzhiev managed to put the Japan wrestler's back on the mat and secured a fall.

Though his celebrations were subdued, Gadzhiev went berserk with his celebrations as he walked back to the warm-up hall. So much so that coach Jabrail HASANOV (AZE) had to calm his ward down.

"I am feeling great. This is a joint victory," he said. "Thanks a lot to all the coaches. It’s all about their hard work. Also, I want to send a huge thanks  to all my family, Azerbaijan and to my fellow villagers."

Dzhabrail GADZHIEV (AZE)Dzhabrail GADZHIEV (AZE) controlling Ryunosuke KAMIYA (JPN) to seure the fall in the final. (Photo: UWW / Kadir Caliskan)

The 20-year-old's dream run in Sofia means Azerbaijan has a U20 world champion after four years and Gadzhiev now has two career world titles adding to his 2019 U17 gold which was, incidentally, won in Sofia.

"I was expecting another opponent, but the Japanese wrestler made it to the final," he said. "He is strong and you can see he attacked first.

"Anyways, we [Elahi and Gadzhiev] will wrestle each other in the future."

In the last year, Gadzhiev has won the U23 and U20 European titles and the Dan Kolov over teammate Turan BAYRAMOV (AZE). But he missed a chance to be on the senior team after suffering a loss to Bayramov at the Matteo Pellicone Ranking Series in June.

Gadzhiev reflected on that bout which had turned ugly in the final minute and hoped to be on the team next year.

"I have to work hard and listen to my coaches," he said.

Yuto NISHIUCHI (JPN)Yuto NISHIUCHI (JPN) celebrates after scoring a late takedown to win the 61kg gold medal. (Photo: UWW / Kadir Caliskan)

Despite Kamiya's loss, Japan had something to cheer about as former U17 world bronze medalist Yuto NISHIUCHI (JPN) won the 61kg over Armin HABIBZADEH (IRI), 5-3, in one of most clutch performances.

Nishiuchi, who is still in high school, trailed Habibzadeh 3-0 at the break but was undeterred by the scoreline. More so as he had to beat three college wrestlers out of his four wins at the Japan Junior Olympic Cup just to win the spot on the team.

"I wanted to get more points but the first period was hard," Nichiuchi said. "But my mind was under control and went to the second period and tried attacks and scored."

As the second period began Nishiuchi got the single leg but managed to score only a stepout. Habibzadeh was later called passive and during activity time, Nichiuchi scored another pushout. Habibzadeh led 3-3 on criteria but Nichiuchi got a takedown with just 15 seconds left and managed to keep it to win the gold.

"I practiced these situations during training," Nishiuchi said. "For example, if I fall behind in the first period, I trust the skills that I can score in the last 30 seconds or so."

While the final was a close affair, Nishiuchi's semifinal against Mohit KUMAR (IND) was a high-scoring bout that he won 16-8.

"In the semifinal, I was very tired," he said. "But in the last one minute, my body was moving automatically. I don't remember the exact moment how that happened."

Nishiuchi's gold kept Japan's record of winning at least one gold at U20 Worlds since 2018 when Hayato ISHIGURO (JPN) ended a 36-year drought for a U20 title.

Amirhossein FIROUZPOUR (IRI)Amirhossein FIROUZPOUR (IRI) won his second U20 world title. (Photo: UWW / Kostadin Andonov)

Iran wins team title

Habibzadeh was one of the three finalists for Iran. While he lost, the two others dominated their way to gold medals.

Asian champion Amirhossein FIROUZPOUR (IRI) won the gold medal at 92kg, thus making it two in a row as he won the gold medal at 86kg in Ufa as well.

Andro MARGISHVILI (GEO) initiated all the attacks in the final but such was the defense from Firouzpour that he would end up countering them with exposure. he ultimately secured the gold medal with an 11-0 win.

Firouzpour is also a three-time age-group world champion with his U17 world title coming in Sofia in 2019.

Amirreza MASOUMI (IRI)Amirreza MASOUMI (IRI) won the 125kg gold after beating Mahendra GAIKWAD (IND) 13-2 in the final. (Photo: UWW / Kostadin Andonov)

The second gold for Iran was won by Amirreza MASOUMI (IRI) as he defeated Mahendra GAIKWAD (IND) 13-2 in the 125kg final. For the second straight year, Masoumi has won a world title as he clinched the U17 gold in Budapest last year.

Masoumi, son of 2009 world silver medalist Fardin, unleashed his attacking style in Sofia and won all his bouts via technical superiority.

In the final, he opened with a huge lift before using a gut wrench to lead 6-0. Gaikwad tried a bear hug but managed only a takedown for two points. Masoumi hit a double leg for four before a stepout and takedown gave him the 13-2 win.

The gold medals for Iran helped it defend the team title won in Ufa. It finished with 159 points, 17 ahead of the USA which was the leader after the first day of the competition. India finished at the top for the first time in the history of U20 Worlds, claiming the third position with 112 points. It won seven medals with six bronze and one silver; the haul being the most for the nation in any edition.

Magamadov wins gold

He suffered a humiliating 10-0 loss to Firouzpour in the 86kg final in Ufa last year, but Rakhim MAGAMADOV (FRA) made sure he did not slip up this year. The France wrestler won the gold medal in Sofia after beating Bennett BERGE (USA), 9-5, in a high-paced final.

Magamadov's gold was the first for France since 2014 and only the second ever in U20 Worlds history.

Like others, Magamadov was also a medalist in 2019 in Sofia and the city proved to be lucky for the France wrestler for the second time.

Rakhim MAGAMADOV (FRA)Rakhim MAGAMADOV (FRA) upgraded his 2021 silver to gold in Sofia. (Photo: UWW / Kadir Caliskan)

In the final, it seemed that Berge will stop Magamadov from winning the gold this year as he took a 4-1 lead at the break. But Magamadov hit a double and got the four points. He then scored exposure even though the attacks were initiated by Berge who struggled with his cardio in the second period.

"I love risks," Magamadov said. "I was attacking a lot, risking and it helped me to win the match."

Magamadov accepted that last year he was not at the level to win the gold but believed in himself to win the title this year.

"Last year I failed the final because I didn't have the necessary capabilities," he said. "But this time with continuous training and determination, I reached the final and won."

Umi ITO (JPN)Umi ITO (JPN) will wrestle for the 50kg gold medal. (Photo: UWW / Kostadin Andonov)

Japan sweeps semis

Japan marked its return to the U20 World Championships with total domination of the women's competition, sending all five wrestlers into the finals on day one of women's wrestling.

The first to make the final was 2017 U17 world champion Umi ITO (JPN) at 50kg as she defeated Priyanshi PRAJAPAT (IND) in the semifinal. Using the lethal leg lace, Ito scored a 10-0 win in just 43 seconds.

She will now face Audrey JIMENEZ (USA) in the final. The former U17 world bronze medalist made it past Natalia WALCZAK (POL) with a fall despite Walczak leading 4-0.

At 55kg, Moe KIYOOKA (JPN) used a double leg for four against Roza SZENTTAMASI (HUN) before using a cradle to make it 8-0 and trying a fall. But Szenttamasi got the exposure and two points before giving up one herself. Kiyooki finished the bout 12-2 with 4:07 remaining on the clock.

Albina RILLIA (UKR)Albina RILLIA (UKR) pinned MANJU (IND) despite trailing in the 55kg semifinal. (Photo: UWW / Kadir Caliskan)

Albina RILLIA (UKR) and MANJU (IND) traded stepouts with the latter leading 2-2 on criteria after two minutes. Manju added two more stepouts to lead 4-2 at the break. Another stepout in the second period saw her lead extend to 5-2. Rillia then hit a double leg for four points but gave two points for exposure before using an arm bar to pin Manju.

Ebru DAGBASI (TUR) had Sakura MOTOKI (JPN) in early trouble when she scored a go behind after Motoki let off the grip mistaking the whistle from the other mat as hers. She scored a takedown to lead 2-2 on criteria in the second period. For the final two minutes, Motoki held Dagbasi to that score to win 2-2.

Viktoria BORSOS (HUN)Viktoria BORSOS (HUN) scores the winning takedown against Madina AMAN (KAZ). (Photo: UWW / Kadir Caliskan)

In the other semifinal, Madina AMAN (KAZ) latched on the opportunity to score a takedown when Viktoria BORSOS (HUN) lost her balance. Aman led 2-1 at the break but Borsos began the second period with a takedown to reclaim the lead 3-2 before adding a counter to make it 5-2.

Aman managed to pull one back to cut the lead to 5-4 but both wrestlers were running out of breath as the final minute approached. Aman used that to score her takedown but Borsos used a takedown in the final three seconds to win 7-6.

Ami ISHII (JPN)Ami ISHII (JPN) defeated Nesrin BAS (TUR) to reach the 68kg semifinal. (Photo: UWW / Kostadin Andonov)

Japan's senior world team member Ami ISHII (JPN) was the fourth wrestler to reach the final as she defeated Nesrin BAS (TUR) in a close semifinal. Bas was called passive in the first period which gave Ishii the 1-0 lead at the break.

Bas took the 1-1 criteria lead when Ishii was warned for passivity in the second period. With a minute left, it looked like Bas will manage to keep her lead but Ishii proved too clutch and won 3-1.

Ishii will now have to beat Nurzat NURTAEVA (KGZ) who defeated Sophia SCHAEFLE (GER) 6-3 in the other semifinal. Schaefle led 3-2 with over a minute left but Nurtaeva hit a four and secured the win.

Ayano MORO (JPN)Ayano MORO (JPN) defeated Daniela TKACHUK (POL) in the 76kg semifinal. (Photo: UWW / Kostadin Andonov)

Ayano MORO (JPN) made it a clean sweep for Japan as she won by technical superiority over Daniela TKACHUK (POL). She built a 6-0 lead using a cradle and then used a takedown and lace to win 10-0.

Making the final from the other side of the bracket was two-time U17 world champion Priya MALIK (IND) as she used a late takedown to beat Veronika NYIKOS (HUN) 6-5.

Malik led 3-0 at the break but was called passive in the second period and when she tried to hit a double, Nyikos used a counter to hit a four. Malik finished the sequence with a reversal to make the score 5-4. With two points needed for the win, Malik got on a single and finished it with a takedown to lead 6-5 and defended it till the time expired.

 

df

RESULTS

Freestyle

61kg
GOLD: Yuto NISHIUCHI (JPN) df. Armin HABIBZADEH (IRI), 5-3 

BRONZE: Mohit KUMAR (IND) df. Jeyhun ALLAHVERDIYEV (AZE), 7-0
BRONZE: Khamzat ARSAMERZOUEV (FRA) df. Mykyta ABRAMOV (UKR), 5-3

74kg
GOLD: Dzhabrail GADZHIEV (AZE) df. Ryunosuke KAMIYA (JPN), via fall

BRONZE: Sagar JAGLAN (IND) df. Iliyas YERBOLATOV (KAZ), 10-0
BRONZE: Jafar CHULIBOYEV (UZB) df. Luka CHKHITUNIDZE (GEO), 11-0

86kg
GOLD: Rakhim MAGAMADOV (FRA) df. Bennett BERGE (USA), 9-5

BRONZE: Aref RANJBARI (IRI) df. Sabuhi AMIRASLANOV (AZE), 3-1
BRONZE: Ismail KUCUKSOLAK (TUR) df. Nazar DOD (UKR), 11-1

92kg
GOLD: Amirhossein FIROUZPOUR (IRI) df. Andro MARGISHVILI (GEO), 11-0

BRONZE: Sergey SARGSYAN (ARM) df. Jaxon SMITH (USA), 12-2
BRONZE: Adlan VISKHANOV (FRA) df. Krisztian ANGYAL (HUN), 11-0

125kg
GOLD: Amirreza MASOUMI (IRI) df. Mahendra GAIKWAD (IND), 13-2

BRONZE: Adil MISIRCI (TUR) df. Namoz ABDURASHIDOV (UZB), 4-0
BRONZE: Merab SULEIMANASHVILI (GEO) df. Nicholas FELDMAN (USA), via fall (7-8)

IranIran won the freestyle team title with the USA second and India finishing third. (Photo: UWW / Kostadin Andonov)

WW Semifinals

50kg
GOLD: Umi ITO (JPN) vs. Audrey JIMENEZ (USA)

SF 1: Umi ITO (JPN) df. Priyanshi PRAJAPAT (IND), 10-0
SF 2: Audrey JIMENEZ (USA) df. Natalia WALCZAK (POL), via fall (2-4)

55kg
GOLD: Moe KIYOOKA (JPN) vs. Albina RILLIA (UKR)

SF 1: Moe KIYOOKA (JPN) df. Roza SZENTTAMASI (HUN), 12-2
SF 2: Albina RILLIA (UKR) df. MANJU (IND), via fall (6-7)

59kg
GOLD: Sakura MOTOKI (JPN) vs. Viktoria BORSOS (HUN)

SF 1: Sakura MOTOKI (JPN) df. Ebru DAGBASI (TUR), 2-2 
SF 2: Viktoria BORSOS (HUN) df. Madina AMAN (KAZ), 7-6

68kg
GOLD: Ami ISHII (JPN) vs. Nurzat NURTAEVA (KGZ)

SF 1: Ami ISHII (JPN) df. Nesrin BAS (TUR), 3-1
SF 2: Nurzat NURTAEVA (KGZ) df. Sophia SCHAEFLE (GER), 6-3

76kg
GOLD: Priya MALIK (IND) vs. Ayano MORO (JPN)

SF 1: Priya MALIK (IND) vs. Veronika NYIKOS (HUN), 6-5
SF 2: Ayano MORO (JPN) df. Daniela TKACHUK (POL), 10-0

#WrestleTirana

World Championships: Sadulaev caps golden return with 92kg title

By Ken Marantz

TIRANA, Albania (October 31)--After a long absence from the mat forced by a combination of injuries and extenuating circumstances beyond his control, two-time Olympic champion Abdulrashid SADULAEV (AIN) returned in triumph.

It wasn't at his usual weight class and he has no plans to remain there, but for now the Russian great can be satisfied with adding yet another global gold medal to his formidable collection.

Sadulaev won his sixth world title in a third different weight class when he defeated Miriani MAISURADZE (GEO) 6-0 in the final at freestyle 92kg on Thursday, the final day of the Non-Olympic Weight Categories in Tirana.

"I can’t express what I feel yet," Sadulaev said. "I am very happy to be back on the top place of the podium of the world championships. This time it was a bit more difficult than the previous ones. There were many things that didn’t depend on me. I am glad."

Meanwhile, up-and-coming Masanosuke ONO (JPN), following up on Japan's success in the lightest weights at the Paris Olympics, completed a dominant run to the 61kg gold, while Nurkozha KAIPANOV (KAZ) and Avtandil KENTCHADZE (GEO) ended long waits to return to the medal podium by making it to the top step at 70kg and 79kg, respectively.

Sadulaev, wrestling at 92kg for the first time in his career and down from 97kg for the first time since winning the 86kg gold at the 2016 Rio Olympics, put up his usual granite wall of defense, while also showing the combination of speed, power and agility on the attack that sets him apart from his peers.

"I was about 98kg when I started the preparation," Sadulaev said. "The weight cut was not so difficult. I stopped eating flour and sweets, and the weight started to go down. Only the last two kilograms were a bit difficult to cut.

"The only problem was that I had the weigh-ins at 8 a.m. in the morning, then we arrived at the venue and I started wrestling in 30 minutes, I didn’t even have any time to rest. All the matches were just happening one by one with no rest. That’s why I got a bit tired in the semifinal match."

In the final, Sadulaev was on the activity clock in the first period when he scored a takedown, then added a pair of gut wrenches to build a 6-0 lead. From there, he held off everything that Maisuradze threw at him to add to the five world titles he won starting in 2014.

The last time the world saw Sadulaev, he suffered a serious neck injury and was beaten in the semifinals at the 2023 World Championships in Belgrade by Akhmed TAZHUDINOV (BRN), a former member of Sadulaev's wrestling school in Dagestan now competing for Bahrain who won the gold in Paris.

Sadulaev was declared ineligible to defend his Olympic 97kg title in Paris as part of sanctions on Russia and Belarus, and skipped what would have been his return at this year's European Championships in February due to injury.

"I found out that I will be wrestling at 92kg at the worlds only at the end of September," Sadulaev said. "I talked to the president of the federation. I was preparing to compete at the Olympic Games, but unfortunately, I wasn’t allowed to enter, that’s why I decided to give it a try here...One and a half months was enough for me to prepare."

But as he showed over the two days in Tirana, he could be as competitive as ever. He started by handily defeating fellow superstar David TAYLOR (USA) in a classic matchup in the first round, then showed that his fire for success still burned bright within him when he scraped together a 4-point takedown in the final seconds to edge Kamran GHASEMPOUR (IRI) 5-3 in the semifinals.

"It didn’t really matter if I had to wrestle Taylor in the final match or in the qualification round," Sadulaev said. "It would have been more interesting if it was a final match. It would have been very spectacular if we wrestled in the final.

"In the semifinal match, I missed an attack, and in the end, I had to get a last-second score. I think it made the match even more interesting."

Looking ahead, Sadulaev said he will be heading back up to 97kg. "This was the only one time for me wrestling at 92kg. This is not my weight class, I will be back at 97kg again. I just used this opportunity not to lose another year. I had to make history to win the world championships in three different weight classes."

The dynamic Ono, who won the world U20 gold in September, never let up on the gas in storming to a quick 10-0 victory in the 61kg final over Ahmet DUMAN (TUR).

As he did throughout the tournament, Ono transitioned immediately to a gut wrench from a takedown, scoring six quick points before Duman knew what hit him. Ono then used a snap-down to a low ankle for another takedown, then a gut wrench to finish the rout in 1:22.

Ono, who started his golden run with a 10-2 win over Tokyo Olympic and former two-time world champion Zavur UGUEV (AIN), reeled off 12-0, 11-0 and 12-0 victories to advance to the final.

The senior Asian bronze medalist this year at 65kg, he later revealed that an injury had hampered his preparations. "One month ago, I broke my ankle and I couldn't practice at all," Ono said. "The Uguev match was my first live wrestling after the fracture, and I was very unsure how I would do."

For Ono, currently a student at Yamanashi Gakuin University, the school that produced Tokyo Olympic champion Takuto OTOGURO (JPN), the question is where does he go from here?

Kotaro KIYOOKA (JPN), who followed Otoguro by winning the 65kg gold in Paris, beat Ono in the final at the 2023 All-Japan Championships during the Olympic qualifying process. Going down to 57kg, where Rei HIGUCHI (JPN) won the Paris gold, seems unlikely.

Wherever he ends up, he will go with confidence. "I don't know if I'll go to 65kg and face him [Kiyooka]," Ono said. "If I do, I'm definitely going to win."

As for celebrating his triumph in Tirana, that will have to wait. "In five days, I have the Japan University championships," he said.

In the 70kg final, Kaipanov scored all of his points in the second period to defeat Asian silver medalist Yoshinosuke AOYAGI (JPN) 5-3 and add the gold to the world silver he won in 2019 and become just the second world freestyle champion in Kazakhstan history -- and second in two years.

Kaipanov, a two-time former Asian champion, twice scored 2-point exposures by stopping body-lock throw attempts by Aoyagi, a former teammate of Ono's at Yamanashi Gakuin who was coming off a bronze-medal finish at the World U23 Championships held a week ago in the same venue.

Kaipanov's victory came a year after Rizabek AITMUKHAN (KAZ) captured the 92kg title in Belgrade to become their country's first-ever freestyle gold medalist.

Kentchadze, a four-time European bronze medalist whose only previous world medal was a 74kg silver won in 2015, scored six takedowns in a 13-4 victory over 2023 world U23 champion Magomed MAGOMAEV (AIN) to take the 79kg gold.

Kentchadze, who was fifth at the 74kg at last year's worlds in Belgrade, gave up an opening takedown, but responded by scoring two himself to go ahead. After the second, however, he got stuffed attempting a roll to go behind 4-4, but righted the ship and added two more takedowns before the break to lead 8-4.

In the second period, Kentchadze sandwiched two more takedowns around a stepout to pull away and emerge victorious in the tournament's most crowded weight class with 33 entries.

Taylor claims emotional bronze

Taylor didn't get the gold that he came out of retirement to get in Tirana, but he did show a bit of his old magic in claiming a bronze medal at 92kg with an impressive 6-2 comeback victory over Ghasempour.

"When you're good for so long, you never know when it's time to be done," said an emotional Taylor, the Tokyo Olympic and three-time world champion at 86kg. "I just got an opportunity to go out the way I wanted to."

Ghasempour, the 2021 and 2022 world champion at 92kg, opened the scoring with a takedown while on the activity clock to lead 2-0 at the break. In the second period, Taylor went on the offensive and scored three takedowns against the tough Iranian, the last coming with two seconds left to preserve the victory.

After the match, Taylor remained on the mat for a short while, drinking in the atmosphere and the applause of the crowd. Later, he smile broadly on the medal podium and posed for photo together with Sadulaev.

The 33-year-old had retired after failing to make the U.S. team to the Paris Olympics and took the head coaching job at powerhouse Oklahoma State University. But the chance to face Sadulaev for the first time and possibly add to his gold medal collection was incentive enough to bring him back to the mat. The luck of the draw saw him face Sadulaev in the first round, where he lost 7-0.

"It was a tough decision to wrestle, but I didn't want it to end the way it did in April," Taylor said. "Going into this, I was hyperfocused on wrestling Sadulaev. The game script didn't go as I thought. I should have wrestled [him] like I did [against Ghasempour]. [The bronze-medal match] was a match of redemption. It was a world-final caliber match."

Although they met just that one time, Sadulaev had kind parting words for Taylor. "I want to congratulate Taylor on an amazing career," he said. "He was one of the best wrestlers of the modern time. I wish him good luck. Sooner or later, I will retire as well. But not now."

In the other 92kg bronze-medal match, Batyrbek TSAKULOV (SVK) gave Slovakia a second bronze of the night when he rode a six-point lead to an 8-6 victory over a spirited Benjamin HONIS (ITA), who had been aiming to become Italy's first world medalist not named Frank CHAMIZO (ITA) since 2018.

Vito ARUJAU (USA), denied the chance to defend his world 61kg title by Ono in the semifinals, came away with a bronze medal by taking one of the biggest scalps of his career, beating Ugaev 8-3.

Arujau, shaking off a painful finger injury that caused him to need treatment during the second period, scored four takedowns in toppling the normally 57kg Uguev, who had obvious trouble handling the extra weight.

The other 61kg bronze went to Tsogbadrakh TSEVEENSUREN (MGL), who came up with a big move to defeat Nuraddin NOVRUZOV (AZE) by fall. Tseveensuren started with a 4-point pancake that Norvuzov reversed for 2, then countered a takedown attempt by locking the Azeri in a cradle and securing the fall at 2:30.

Russian-born Abdulmazhid KUDIEV (TJK) ended Tajikistan's 17-wait for a second world medal when he broke open a tight match with a 10-point flurry in the second period to defeat Akaki KEMERTELIDZE (GEO) 13-2 in a 70kg bronze-medal match.

Kudiev, a bronze medalist at this year's Antalya Ranking Series at 65kg, followed in the footsteps of another native Russian, Yusup ABDUSALOMOV (TJK), who won a silver at freestyle 84kg in 2007.

European U23 champion Inalbek SHERIEV (AIN), last year's world U23 gold medalist, claimed his first senior world medal with a 10-0 victory in the other 70kg bronze-medal match over Vasyl SHUPTAR (UKR). Sheriev scored three takedowns in the second period to end the match with :08 left.

At 79kg, Asian champion Mohammad NOKHODI (IRI), who knocked off six-time world champion Jordan BURROUGHS (USA) before losing to Kentchadze in the semifinals, overwhelmed young Kota TAKAHASHI (JPN) 10-0 to take home a world medal for the third consecutive year.

Takahashi, the world U23 champion at 74kg a week ago in Tirana, did a remarkable job of making it to the bronze-medal match, having come back from massive deficits in both of his repechage matches just a few hours earlier.

Akhsarbek GULAEV (SVK), the 2021 European champion, scored a 2-point exposure on a counter in the second period to edge Suldkhuu OLONBAYAR (MGL) 2-1 for the other 79kg bronze.

Freestyle Results

61kg (27 entries)
GOLD: Masanosuke ONO (JPN) df. Ahmet DUMAN (TUR) by TF, 10-0, 1:22

BRONZE: Tsogbadrakh TSEVEENSUREN (MGL) df Nuraddin NOVRUZOV (AZE) by Fall, 2:30 (8-2)
BRONZE: Vito ARUJAU (USA) df. Zavur UGUEV (AIN), 8-3

70kg (25 entries)
GOLD: Nurkozha KAIPANOV (KAZ) df. Yoshinosuke AOYAGI (JPN), 5-3

BRONZE: Inalbek SHERIEV (AIN) df. Vasyl SHUPTAR (UKR) by TF, 10-0, 5:52
BRONZE: Abdulmazhid KUDIEV (TJK) df. Akaki KEMERTELIDZE (GEO) by TF, 13-2, 4:39

79kg (33 entries)
GOLD: Avtandil KENTCHADZE (GEO) df. Magomed MAGOMAEV (AIN), 13-4

BRONZE: Mohammad NOKHODI (IRI) df. Kota TAKAHASHI (JPN) by TF, 10-0, 3:49
BRONZE: Akhsarbek GULAEV (SVK) df. Suldkhuu OLONBAYAR (MGL), 2-1

92kg (29 entries)
GOLD: Abdulrashid SADULAEV (AIN) df. Miriani MAISURADZE (GEO), 6-0

BRONZE: David TAYLOR (USA) df. Kamran GHASEMPOUR (IRI), 6-2
BRONZE: Batyrbek TSAKULOV (SVK) df. Benjamin HONIS (ITA), 8-6