Greco-Roman rankings see drastic changes

Friday, March 24, 2023 - 12:04 By Vinay Siwach

CORSIER-SUR-VEVEY, Switzerland (March 24) -- Wrestlers from nine different countries highlight the Greco-Roman rankings after the two Ranking Series events that were held in February. The only country with two wrestlers at the top spot is Serbia which had four world champions at the World Championships in Belgrade last year. But with Zagreb Open and Ibrahim Moustafa events, a few of the world champions were displaced from their top ranks.

The rankings will now determine the seeds for the continental championships, which also give rankings points. With two more Ranking Series events scheduled before the World Championships, wrestlers will have more chances to get points and improve their seeds for the World Championships.

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55kg
Eldaniz AZIZLI (AZE) continues to lead the 55kg rankings with the world title he won last year. A few wrestlers have improved their ranks but no new wrestler has been able to break into the top 10 even after two events.

Azizli has 45000 points, 4000 points more than Nugzari TSURTSUMIA (GEO) who won a silver in Belgrade for 37000 points. He then finished fifth at the Zagreb Open to earn 4000 points.

Amangali BEKBOLATOV (KAZ) was sixth at the start of the year but has improved his rank to third with a gold medal in Alexandria which was worth 8000 points and took his total to 33000 points. He overtook the two world bronze medalists, Yu SHIOTANI (JPN) and Jasurbek ORTIKBOEV (UZB), as both have 31000 points. Max NOWRY (USA) has also slipped one rank to sixth.

Poya DAD MARZ (IRI) has moved one place up to seventh with 25000 points. He was seventh at the start of the year but won the Zagreb Open for 8000 points. Rudik MKRTCHYAN (ARM) is now eighth while Fabian SCHMITT (GER) and Ekrem OZTURK (TUR) remain ninth and 10th respectively.

Zholaman SHARSHENBEKOV (KGZ) remains the leader at 60kg. (Photo: UWW / Kadir Caliskan)

60kg
While world champion Zholaman SHARSHENBEKOV (KGZ) leads the rankings with 45000 points and silver medalist Edmond NAZARYAN (BUL) remains second with 37000 points, the 60kg rankings have seen a lot of changes in the lower half.

Krisztian KECSKEMETI (HUN) has moved from fifth to third with 34000 points as he finished fifth at the Zagreb Open which was worth 9000 points. That has pushed Aidos SULTANGALI (KAZ) and Kenichiro FUMITA (JPN) to the fourth and fifth spots respectively.

Murad MAMMADOV (AZE) increased his points from 25000 points to 30075 points but still got pushed to the seventh spot as Liguo CAO (CHN) gathered 14000 points over two tournaments. Mammadov finished 13th in Zagreb but Cao finished ninth and then went to Alexandria and finished eighth. He won 7800 points for Zagreb and 6200 points in Alexandria to go past Mammadov. Kerem KAMAL (TUR), who was seventh at the start of the year with 18200 points, slipped to eighth despite winning gold in Alexandria and increasing his points to 29200 points due to Cao-inflicted damage.

Haithem MAHMOUD (EGY) remains ninth with 23700 points, an improvement from 15500 points he had at the start of the year. Mehdi MOHSEN NEJAD (IRI) was 11th at the start of the year with 9000 points, moved to eighth after winning the Zagreb Open for 13000 points but has slipped to 10th with 22000 points as others continue to collect more points.

Leri ABULADZE (GEO) is the new top ranked wrestler at 63kg. (Photo: UWW / Kadir Caliskan)

63kg
An ensuing battle for the top place was on at 63kg as Sebastian NAD (SRB) skipped the two events in February. That gave second-placed Leri ABULADZE (GEO) a chance to take that spot. However, it was Taleh MAMMADOV (AZE) who came in touching distance of going to the top.

After winning the Zagreb Open, Mammadov had 42000 points to be placed second, two places up from his original rank -- fourth. But he skipped the Ibrahim Moustafa event which allowed Leri ABULADZE (GEO) to jump to the top spot, thanks to his silver medal in Alexandria. Abuladze got 9400 points in Alexandria which were enough to help him overtake Nad and Mammadov. World bronze medalist Erbatu TUO (CHN) is now fourth with 31000 points while Hrachya POGHOSYAN (ARM) and Ali Reza NEJATI (IRI) are fifth and sixth respectively with 25000 points.

Luis ORTA (CUB) was seventh with 18200 points at the start of the year but has not contested in this weight class since and lost that place to Victor CIOBANU (MDA) who has 23520 points as he got 6520 points for his sixth place finish in Alexandria.

Aleksandrs JURKJANS (LAT) broke into the top 10 after Zagreb and has now improved to eighth with 21400 points. Aker SCHMID (AUT) has 19080 points to be placed ninth and Orta is 10th with 18200 points.

World champion Mate NEMES (SRB) is the top ranked wrestler at 67kg. (Photo: UWW / Kadir Caliskan)

67kg
World champion Mate NEMES (SRB) and silver medalist Mohammadreza GERAEI (IRI) continue to occupy the number one and two spots at 67kg with 45000 points and 37000 points respectively.

After Zagreb Open, the top four were the same but after the Ibrahim Moustafa event, HUSIYUETU (CHN) occupied the third spot with 36700 points. He was ninth at the start of the year but won the gold medal in Zagreb for 13000 points to jump to fifth and is now third with 8200 points more as he finished third in Alexandria.

The fourth spot is taken by Joni KHETSURIANI (GEO) who was fifth at the start of the year and slipped to seventh after Zagreb as he did not participate in it but improved as he won a silver medal in Alexandria worth 9400 points.

Hasrat JAFAROV (AZE) has slipped from third to fifth with 31000 points. He did participate in Zagreb Open but finished out of the top 16 to not receive any points. Amantur ISMAILOV (KAZ) is sixth, also with 31000 points.

Murat FIRAT (TUR) is now seventh with 25000 points while Mihai MIHUT (ROU), who was not in the top 10 at the start is now eighth with 20360 points. He was 13th in the first rankings, improved to 10th with 14880 points as he finished 10th in Zagreb and finished 10th in Alexandria to move to eighth.

Mateusz BERNATEK (POL) has slipped to ninth from seventh with 18200 points while ASHU (IND) is the new entrant in the top 10 with the 17200 points he collected over the two tournaments. He got 10200 points for his bronze in Zagreb and 7000 points for finishing fifth in Alexandria.

Ali ARSALAN (SRB) is the number one ranked wrestler at 72kg. (Photo: UWW / Kadir Caliskan)

72kg
In yet another weight class, the world champion continues to take the top spot. Ali ARSALAN (SRB) is number one at 72kg with 45000 points. The second spot is occupied by Selcuk CAN (TUR) who won the gold medal in Zagreb for 13000 points. He replaced Ulvi GANIZADE (AZE) who has 37000 points and is now third. Ibrahim GHANEM (FRA) was fifth at the start of the year but has now moved to fourth, thanks to his bronze medal in Zagreb which gave him 10200 points.

The fifth spot is taken by Andrii KULYK (UKR) who has 31000 points followed by Robert FRITSCH (HUN) who finished fifth in Zagreb for 9000 points. He moved from 17000 points to 26000 points and remains undisturbed after Alexandria.

Ibragim MAGOMADOV (KAZ) is seventh with 25000 points and Valentin PETIC (MDA) is eighth with 20100 points, an improvement from his 10th at the start of the year. The ninth spot goes to Samuel BELLSCHEIDT (GER) with 18200 points Jose VARELA (GUA) finishes the list at 10th with 15500 points.

Zoltan LEVAI (HUN) has replaced world champion Akzhol MAKHMUDOV (KGZ), blue, as the top ranked wrestler at 77kg. (Photo: UWW / Kostadin Andonov)

77kg
It took two tournaments for world silver medalist Zoltan LEVAI (HUN) to replace world champion Akzhol MAKHMUDOV (KGZ) from the top at 77kg with 46175 points. He finished 12th in Zagreb to get 5100 points and then collected 3075 points for his 13th rank in Alexandria. Makhmudov is now second with 45000 points.

Yunus BASAR (TUR) is third with 39200 points as he won a bronze medal in Alexandria. Malkhas AMOYAN (ARM) is fourth with 31000 points. Rui LIU (CHN) has jumped from the ninth spot at the start of the year to fifth with 29980 points. He won 7480 points for his 10th-place finish in Zagreb and 7000 points for his fifth-place finish in Alexandria.

Aram VARDANYAN (UZB) is sixth with 26000 points which he collected for finishing ninth in Zagreb. Viktor NEMES (SRB) sits seventh with 25000 points followed by Hyeonwoo KIM (KOR) who also has 25000 points.

Aik MNATSAKANIAN (BUL) has broken into the top 10 with 21200 points. He began the rankings at 13th with 10200 points for his bronze in Zagreb and added 11000 points more by winning the gold in Alexandria. Alexandrin GUTU (MDA) is 10th with 19600 points as he won silver in Zagreb for 11400 points and bronze in Alexandria for 8200 points.

Burhan AKBUDAK (TUR), red, is the number one wrestler at 82kg while Jalgasbay BERDIMURATOV (UZB) is number two. (Photo: UWW / Dogukan Karadag)

82kg
Gela BOLKVADZE (GEO) has jumped from sixth to third at 82kg with 33000 points, thanks to his gold in Alexandria. Barring that, the 82kg top half remains the same with world champion Burhan AKBUDAK (TUR) leading the rankings with 45000 points and silver medalist Jalgasbay BERDIMURATOV (UZB) in second spot with 37000 points.

Tamas LEVAI (HUN) is fourth with 31000 points and Yaroslav FILCHAKOV (UKR) is fifth with the same points. Rafig HUSEYNOV (AZE) is sixth with 25000 points followed by Roland SCHWARZ (GER) with 21000 points, 4000 points more than at the start of the year as he finished fifth in Alexandria.

Dias KALEN (KAZ) is eighth with 18700 points while Chengwu WANG (CHN) is ninth with 18200 points. Yuya OKAJIMA (JPN) remains 10th with 14300 points.

Turpan BISULTANOV (DEN) Turpal BISULTANOV (DEN), 22, is the top ranked wrestler at 87kg. (Photo: UWW / Bayrem ben Mrad)

87kg
Turpal BISULTANOV (DEN) overtook world champion Zurabi DATUNASHVILI (SRB) for the top spot after winning the bronze medal in Zagreb. He got 10200 points for the bronze which took his total to 47200 points, 2200 points more than Datunashvili's.

Ali CENGIZ (TUR) sits third with 40400 points, 400 points more than fourth-placed David LOSONCZI (HUN). Cengiz had slipped to fifth after Zagreb but won a silver medal in Alexandria to move to third. Losonczi was fifth in Zagreb to get 9000 points.

Naser ALIZADEH (IRI) is fifth with 36400 points while Alex KESSIDIS (SWE) is sixth with 33200 points. The former had moved to the fourth spot after Zagreb but has slipped again as he did not participate in Alexandria.

Damian VON EUW (SUI) has slipped to ninth spot with 18200 points as Nursultan TURSYNOV (KAZ) with 23520 points and A. AZISBEKOV (KGZ) with 22500 points move up to seventh and eighth spot respectively. Barthelemy TSHOSHA (COD) remains 10th with 14300 points.

Kiril MILOV (BUL) replaced world champion Artur ALEKSANYAN (ARM) at the top at 97kg. (Photo: UWW / Kadir Caliskan)

97kg
Kiril MILOV (BUL) won the gold medal in Zagreb to replace world champion Artur ALEKSANYAN (ARM) from the top spot at 97kg. With 13000 points from Zagreb, Milov moved his tally from 37000 points to 50000 points, 5000 points more than Aleksanyan.

World bronze medalists Arif NIFTULLAYEV (AZE) and Mohammadhadi SARAVI (IRI) were third and fourth respectively at the start of the year and even after Zagreb but Saravi exchanged spots by winning the gold in Alexandria for 13000 points. He now has 44000 points compared to 38800 points of Niftullayev.

Nikoloz KAKHELASHVILI (ITA) is fifth with 30800 points as he finished 11th in Zagreb for 5800 points. He is followed by Rustam ASSAKALOV (UZB) who has 26720 points, up from the 18200 points he had at the beginning of the year. He increased the points by finishing seventh in Zagreb. Giorgi MELIA (GEO) is seventh with 26000 points.

The three have overtaken Metehan BASAR (TUR) who is now eighth with 25000 points followed by a surprise entrant Tamas LEVAI (HUN) who has 19920 points. He got his first points in Zagreb, 11400 points for winning silver, and added 8520 for finishing seventh in Alexandria. Mihail KAJAIA (SRB) is 10th with 16400 points as he got 9000 points for finishing fifth in Zagreb.

Alin ALEXUC (ROU) rose to the top at 130kg. (Photo: UWW / Kostadin Andonov)

130kg
Since both Riza KAYAALP (TUR) and Amin MIRZAZADEH (IRI) have not competed since the World Championships, Alin ALEXUC CIURARIU (ROU) has overtaken them and occupied the top spot at 130kg with 46400 points. Alexuc has 1400 points more than Kayaalp and 9400 points more than Mirzazadeh. Alexuc's rise included a fifth-place finish in Zagreb for 9000 points and a silver medal in Alexandria which got him 6400 points.

Mantas KNYSTAUTAS (LTU) is fourth with 36075 points followed by Iakobi KAJAIA (GEO) with 25000 points and Muminjon ABDULLAEV (UZB) is sixth with the same points. Danila SOTNIKOV (ITA) and Dariusz VITEK (HUN) have moved to seventh and eighth place respectively.

Oskar MARVIK (NOR) is the new name in the top 10 with 19600 points while Sabah SHARIATI (AZE) is 10th with 18200 points.

Trailblazer Epp Mae retires as Estonia's top wrestler

Tuesday, January 28, 2025 - 13:16 By Vinay Siwach

ESTONIA (January 28) -- European champion and two-time World Championships medalist Epp MAE (EST) announced her retirement earlier in January at an emotional press conference in Tallinn. She left her shoes on the mat, symbolizing retirement from wrestling.

The 32-year-old is Estonia's most successful wrestler in Women's Wrestling, winning gold at the European Championships in 2021 and silver medals in the 2017 and 2022 editions. She also has a bronze medal from 2019.

At the World Championships, Mae became the first Estonian wrestler to win a medal, enter the final, and even have two medals. She won silver in the 76kg in 2021, plus three bronze medals in 2015, 2019, and 2022.

"The day I announced my retirement was very emotional and hard because something so big in your life came to an end," Mae told UWW. "I knew that I was about to retire because I was expecting a baby. But it was difficult to stand in front of the people and say that this part of my life has ended, so announcing was harder than deciding it inside myself."

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Mae is a two-time Olympian for Estonia. She made her Olympic debut at the 2016 Rio Games and finished 13th. She improved to eighth at the 2020 Tokyo Games. For the 2024 Paris Olympics, Mae tried qualifying in the 76kg weight class but failed to achieve that. Her last international competition was the World Olympic Qualifier in May in Istanbul.

"To be honest, I did not expect my career to be this long, as it is," she said. "I did not have any role models in female wrestling in Estonia when I was growing up. So I had no idea whether it was possible to earn money or live from wrestling and how far it was possible to go from my country. I dedicated my life and my career to wrestling as much as I could. An athlete should know it's time to step down. It aligned for me with a wish to start a family."

An emotional Epp MAE (EST) announcing her retirement in a wrestling club in Tallinn on January 9. (Photo: ERR / Siim Lõvi)

Mae took up wrestling after her father, a former wrestler, pushed her into the sport. However, there were no partners to train with and Mae did not have any national competitions. She even trained in judo and sumo just to get training.

When Estonia did start a national championship in women's wrestling, Mae dominated, winning it 12 times in her career. For other sports, she is a four-time Estonian sumo champion, a four-time Estonian beach wrestling champion, and has also been an Estonian judo champion on one occasion.

"I have always laughed that the population of Estonia is 1.3 million and I am one in a million to choose to do something like this and be successful," she said. "Coming from a small nation, it is not easy to break through to the top. Most likely you don't have training partners at home. you have to travel a lot away from your country and get to train at a level that you need to succeed."

Epp MAE (EST), red, wrestling at the 2014 World Championships in Tashkent. (Photo: United World Wrestling / Martin Gabor)

Internationally, Mae made her debut in 2007 at the U17 European Championships, winning a bronze medal in the 70kg weight class. She began her senior career at the Yasar Dogu in 2011 and won a silver medal at 72kg at the age of 18.

In 2012, Mae clinched the U20 European Championships and remains the only Estonian wrestler to win gold at the continental event at any age group. A decade later, she reached the final of the World Championships at 76kg, marking another historic landmark in Estonian wrestling.

"As I said there was no one in front of me to lead the way, I am happy that I went through everything to get to places and results that I managed to and kind of make a path for all the girls from Estonia who will ever wish or have this doubt whether it is possible to get that far," she said. "I am happy that they have a path already in front of them. I wish that they would want to go bigger and further than I did. I will be more than excited and happy if someone did do that."

Epp MAE (EST) wrestling in the 2021 World Championships final at 76kg in Oslo. (Photo: United World Wrestling / Tony Rotundo)

Reflecting on her career two-decade-long career, Mae did share her disappointment of not winning a medal at the Olympics but was happy to have achieved what she has for Estonia.

"My father recently told a journalist that what I did [in wrestling] was against the odds because we did not have all the possibilities and facilities a bigger team would have," she said. "So I think I did good in my career by achieving the results that I did. Little sad that I did not win a medal at the Olympics. But I can leave wrestling knowing that I gave everything. There is never going to be any doubt that what if I could have done this or that."

Now off the mat, Mae will concentrate on her family and follow the sport from afar.

"I will keep following wrestling and the wrestling friends I have made during the years. I will keep following them," she said. "For Estonia wrestling, I wish all the girls in different age groups we have right now will be motivated just to go as far as possible and always try to achieve the best for you. I will try to help Estonian wrestling as I can and I hope they will not stop developing Estonian female wrestling."

Greco-Roman rankings see drastic changes

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Trailblazer Epp Mae retires as Estonia's top wrestler