#BudaWrestle2018

Hungarians Korpasi, Bacsi Electrify Crowd with Semifinal Victories

Thursday, October 25, 2018 - 19:26 By Andrew Hipps

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BUDAPEST, Hungary (October 25) -- Balint KORPASI and Peter BACSI electrified the crowd in Budapest and gave Hungary two finalists on the opening day of the Greco-Roman competition at the World Championships. 

Korpasi, a 2016 world champion, punched his ticket to the gold-medal match with a 3-1 win over Aik MNATSAKANIAN (BUL) in the semifinals at 72kg. The 31-year-old Hungarian scored with a gut wrench in the first period, which proved to the difference in the match. He will face two-time world champion Frank STAEBLER (GER) in the gold-medal match at 72kg.

Staebler broke open a close semifinal match against 2015 world champion Rasul CHUNAYEV (AZE) late in the match with a takedown and two throws to claim a 9-1 technical fall.

Bacsi found himself in an early 4-0 hole after giving up a takedown and turn to Atabek AZISBEKOV (KGZ) in the semifinals at 82kg. But Bacsi chipped away and cut the deficit to 4-2 in the second period before getting on top and scoring with a gut wrench and four-point throw to go up by four points. He would close out a technical fall victory a short time later with a gut wrench. His finals opponent will be Emrah KUS (TUR), who came back to defeat Saeid ABDVALI (IRI) 6-4 in the semifinals. 

Abdvali raced out to a 4-0 lead on the strength of a body lock twenty seconds into the match. But Kus would come back in the second period, using a four-point throw to take the lead. He would add a point off a failed challenge to win by two.  

Nineteen-year-old Zholaman SHARSHENBEKOV (KGZ) dominated world university champion Ekrem OZTURK (TUR) to reach the gold-medal match at 55kg, earning a 9-0 technical fall.  Sharshenbekov has not surrounded a point in three matches, picking up three technical falls and outscoring his opposition 29-0. He now meets two-time junior world champion Eldaniz AZIZLI (AZE) in the gold-medal match at 55kg.

Azizli topped Nugzari TSURTSUMIA (GEO) 6-3, scoring all six of his points in the first period, getting a takedown before locking up a gut wrench for two turns. Tsurtsumia scored a takedown with a minute remaining to cut the deficit to three but could not complete the comeback. 

Olympic bronze medalist Elmurat TASMURADOV (UZB) used a four-point throw in the first period on his way to a 4-3 win over Lenur TEMIROV (UKR) in the semifinals at 63kg. Temirov scored a takedown with a minute and twenty seconds left, but Tasmuradov held on for the narrow victory. 

Stepan MARYANYAN (RUS), a world bronze medalist in 2017, knocked off 19-year-old Hassan MOHAMED (EGY) 7-1 to reach the gold-medal match at 63kg. The two traded passivity points until the second period when Maryanyan was able to get on top and lock up his gut wrench for three turns to break the match open. 

Semifinal Results

Greco-Roman

55kg
Zholaman SHARSHENBEKOV (KGZ) df. Ekrem OZTURK (TUR) by VSU, 9-0
Eldaniz AZIZLI (AZE) df. Nugzari TSURTSUMIA (GEO) by VPO1, 6-3

63kg
Elmurat TASMURADOV (UZB) df. Lenur TEMIROV (UKR) by VPO1, 4-3
Stepan MARYANYAN (RUS) df. Hassan MOHAMED (EGY) by VPO1, 7-1

72kg
Balint KORPASI (HUN) df. Aik MNATSAKANIAN (BUL) by VPO1, 3-1
Frank STAEBLER (GER) df. Rasul CHUNAYEV (AZE) by VSU1, 9-1

82kg
Emrah KUS (TUR) df. Saeid Morad ABDVALI (IRI) by VPO1, 6-4
Peter BACSI (HUN) df. Atabek AZISBEKOV (KGZ) by VSU1, 12-4
 

#WrestleNoviSad

U23 Worlds: Fujinami ready for first international test at 57kg

Friday, October 10, 2025 - 10:32 By Ken Marantz

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TOKYO, Japan (October 9) -- She already has an Olympic gold and two senior world titles, not to mention a 141-match winning streak that dates back to her junior high school days. And there is that undefeated record against non-Japanese opponents.

So what has compelled Akari FUJINAMI (JPN) to even bother entering the U23 World Championships, a tournament that, on paper at least, she should have no problem winning?

Rest assured there is method to what she would not regard as madness. It is all part of a grand plan, centered on the 21-year-old's much-publicized move from 53kg directly up to the next Olympic weight of 57kg with eyes firmly on the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics.

"This will by my first world tournament since I moved up in weight class," Fujinami said in an interview via social media. "I want to try out what I have been practicing, and get an idea of where I stand in terms of my current ability. I also want to identify areas to work on ahead of the All-Japan Championships in December."

Fujinami tops the marquee as she makes her debut at the U23 World Championships, to be held October 20-27 in Novi Sad, Serbia. Currently in her senior year at Nippon Sports Science University, it will be just her third competition since she cruised to the 53kg gold at the Paris Olympics, where she won all four matches by either fall or technical superiority.

The two other outings -- one a collegiate team event in November 2024 and the other the Japan Queen's Cup in April at which she qualified for the U23 Worlds -- did not provide much of a workout. She won a total of four matches in a combined time of 7:11 without giving up a point.

Fujinami expressed no concerns about her extended absence from top-level competition. "This will be my first tournament in six months," she said. "I'm not worried about regaining my match feeling. For the Olympics, I had about a seven-month blank."

Fujinami had at first planned to try for the senior worlds, but decided she would not be ready as she makes the physical adjustment to 57kg. So will we see a bulked-up Fujinami in Novi Sad?

"Compared with the time when I was in the 53kg class, my natural weight is more than then," Fujinami said. "I am also going to have cut weight before the tournament at 57kg. I'm also working hard on weight training, and I'll try to show the effects of that in the matches."

Despite her exalted status, Fujinami knows not to take any opponent lightly – a lesson she learned fully well when she won her second senior world title in 2023. In the quarterfinals, she was stunned when Lucia YEPEZ (ECU) tagged her for five points early in the match and seven overall, marking the most points ever scored upon her by a non-Japanese.

Although Fujinami came back to take the lead and win by fall, it showed any lapse can lead to disaster – which, ironically, makes the sport more appealing for her.

“You never know what will happen in a match,” Fujinami said. “But I think that’s what makes it interesting. For me, a match is like a presentation of yourself, so I will go into it aiming to win while having fun.”

In Novi Sad, Fujinami may have to share some of the spotlight with compatriot, fellow Paris Olympic gold medalist and recently crowned senior world champion Sakura MOTOKI (JPN).

A victory by Motoki at 62kg would make her the third member of the “Golden Grand Slam” club -- those who have combined an Olympic gold with titles on the senior and all three age-group levels. The two current members are Yui SUSAKI (JPN) and Amit ELOR (USA).

Ironically, circumstances beyond her control worked against Fujinami ever having a chance to also gain entry into the club.

A world U17 champion in 2018, she was deprived twice of chances to win a U20 world title – first in 2021 when Japan opted to not send a team during the pandemic, and again in 2022 when an injury forced her to withdraw. Those same years she qualified for the U23 worlds, but missed out for the same reasons.

This time, her preparations have gone without a hitch. "I've been able to continue to train and practice without any major injuries," she said.

Prior to securing a second Olympic gold in Los Angeles, Fujinami has a more immediate goal — winning her first at the Asian Games, to be held next October in Nagoya / Aichi Prefecture, which borders her native Mie Prefecture. Because of the early deadline for entries, she needs a victory at the All-Japan Championships in December to make the Japanese squad.

“My goals are to win gold at the Asian Games in Nagoya and at the Los Angeles Olympics,” she said. “To achieve those goals, I’ve dedicated myself to strengthening myself during this period. It’s been a time for me to look inside myself and explore my wrestling. Now the time has come to show the results.”