Ibrahim Moustafa Ranking Series day two finals set

Friday, February 24, 2023 - 06:46 By Vinay Siwach

ALEXANDRIA, Egypt (February 24) -- The second of the Ibrahim Moustafa Ranking Series in Alexandria will see three Greco-Roman and four women's wrestling weight classes in action. After an enthralling first day, expect nothing less.

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The finals for the evening session are set

72kg
Otar ABULADZE (GEO) vs. Ramaz ZOIDZE (GEO)

77kg
Demeu ZHADRAYEV (KAZ) vs. Aik MNATSAKANIAN (BUL)

82kg
Akylbek TALANTBEKOV (KGZ) vs. Gela BOLKVADZE (GEO)

57kg
Alina AKOBIIA (UKR) vs. Alexandria TOWN (CAN)

62kg
Aisuluu TYNYBEKOVA (KGZ) vs. Xiaojuan LUO (CHN)

68kg
Koumba LARROQUE (FRA) vs. Forrest MOLINARI (USA)

76kg
Juan WANG (CHN) vs. Kennedy BLADES (USA)

15:10: Kennedy BLADES (USA) is having a dream run here! She takes on Aiperi MEDET KYZY (KGZ) 12-1. She will wrestle for gold at 76kg against Juan WANG (CHN).

15:00: Koumba LARROQUE (FRA) controls the bout through and through to win 6-1 against Adela HANZLICKOVA (CZE) to book her place in the 68kg final. She will now face Forrest MOLINARI (USA) who defeated Alexandria GLAUDE (USA) via fall in the other semifinal.

14:55: Mohammedreza GERAEI (IRI) cannot catch a break. He now suffers an 8-0 loss to Otar ABULADZE (GEO) in the 72kg semifinal. Abuladze with a throw to start which was challenged by Geraei but he lost that. From 3-0, Abuladze countered Geraei's bodylock for four and added another correct throw for one point to win 8-0.

14:50: Aisuluu TYNYBEKOVA (KGZ) and Iryna KOLIADENKO (UKR) on Mat A. Koliadenko is called passive and Tynybekova takes the lead. In the second period, Koliadenko tries to force Tynybekova out of bounds but she fails. However, she challenges that she did score a stepout. A lost challenge. Tynybekova holds on for a 2-0 win.

14:40: Forrest MOLINARI (USA) wins 5-3 over Meerim ZHUMANAZAROVA (KGZ) at 68kg. Molinari never stopped her attacks and Zhumanazarova never got going. Big win for Molinari at this weight.

14:15: Alina AKOBIIA (UKR) continues her run at 57kg. She beats Qi ZHANG (CHN) 7-0 in the semifinals and will take on Alex TOWN (CAN) in the final. Town, surprisingly, has beaten Evelina NIKOLOVA (BUL) via fall.

14:10: They never disappoint! Aiperi MEDET KYZY (KGZ) and Samar HAMZA (EGY) once again put on a show at 76kg. Hamza led 5-0 against Medet Kyzy. But the Kyrgz wrestler was never giving up and scored a fall over Hamza. She will face Kennedy BLADES (USA) in the semifinals.

13:50: Johanna LINDBORG (SWE) moves into the semifinal at 62kg after a close 3-3 win over Mimi HRISTOVA (BUL). Some great defense from Lindborg at the end of that bout.

13:40: Kayla MIRACLE (USA) fails to trouble Aisuluu TYNYBEKOVA (KGZ) who scores a 10-0 win over Miracle. Tynybekova, despite struggling for sometime now, keeps posting these big wins perhaps telling everyone to never count her out.

13:35: Sheroz OCHILOV (TJK) could have caused a big upset had he pinned Mohammadreza GERAEI (IRI). Ochikov got the headlock for two and held Geraei to his back but could not finish the job. Geraei rarely gives a second chance. He scores a four and two takedowns after reversals to win 11-3.

13:30: Grace BULLEN (NOR) up against Iryna KOLIADENKO (UKR) on Mat B. She begins with a double leg for two. Koliadenko counters an attempt from Bullen to score a takedown. As Koliadenko tries a lace, Bullen holds her to her back for two but gives up a lace. Koliadenko leads 5-4 after that exchange. Huge throw from Bullen with locked arms! She gets the lead 8-5. The second period begins with Koliadenko scoring a takedown and transitioning to a lace. She manages two of them and takes the lead 11-8. A takedown from Bullen with under a minute remaining. Another double-leg blast to regain the lead 12-11. A shot from Bullen but Koliadenko exposes her for two. Bullen challenges the call but loses. Koliadenko wins 14-12

13:15: Evelina NIKOLOVA (BUL) always finds a way to win! Yongxin FENG (CHN) got exposure late in the bout to win 4-3 but Nikolova was sure there was no score in the exchange. She challenges and wins the call. A 3-2 win for Nikolova.

13:00: Aik MNATSAKANIAN (BUL) gets a correct throw in the second period to beat Yunus BASAR (TUR) 3-1 at 77kg. Basar would be ruing the chance he got in par terre but failed to get anything out of it.

12:45: Alina AKOBIIA (UKR) continues to control her opponents with great command. She worked up a 6-0 lead before finishing the bout 10-0 against Giullia OLIVEIRA (BRA) to move into the semifinals at 57kg.

12:15: Meerim ZHUMANAZAROVA (KGZ) has eked out a 2-0 win over Yuliana YANEVA (BUL) at 68kg. On Mat C, Koumba LARROQUE (FRA) and Buse TOSUN (TUR) were involved in a fierce battle. Larroque scored a takedown to lead 3-1 but Tosun pushed for a stepout. However, Larroque held on for a 4-2 win.

12:10: Tokyo Olympic silver bronze medalist Iryna KOLIADENKO (UKR), wrestling for the first time since the Tokyo Olympics, using a lethal leg lace to win against Esther KOLAWOLE (NGR) at 62kg. She faces Grace BULLEN (NOR) next.

12:00: Kayla MIRACLE (USA) with a final second takedown to beat Ilona PROKOPEVNIUK (UKR) 5-4 at 62kg. That was ridiculous from Miracle, circling around and forcing Prokopevniuk to give up. On Mat B, Aisuluu TYNYBEKOVA (KGZ) beats Ameline DOUARRE (FRA). Both Miracle and Tynybekova will face each other in the quarterfinal.

11:50: Grace BULLEN (NOR) is becoming a force at 62kg. She gets the better of Bilyana DUDOVA (BUL) in the quarterfinals. Dudova was leading 3-2 but Bullen scored two takedowns in the second period to win 6-3.

11:40: A lot of action at 76kg. Anastasiia OSNIACH (UKR) has pinned Skylar GROTE (USA) on Mat C while Samar HAMZA (EGY) starts with a 5-0 win over Maria ACOSTA ((VEN).

11:30: World bronze medalist Epp MAE (EST), wrestling for the first time since the World Championships, looking in trouble on Mat B against KIRAN (IND). She did get the first point for Kiran's passivity but gave up a takedown and passivity point to trail 3-1. Kiran scores a takedown to make it 5-1. A desperate throw attempt lands Mae on her back as Kiran wins 9-1.

11:15: Former U20 world champion Kennedy BLADES (USA) makes her senior debut in Alexandria. She begins with a solid 11-2 win over Qian ZHOU (CHN) at 76kg.

11:10: Mohammadreza GERAEI (IRI) wrestling at 72kg in Alexandria. He faces Omar OKIL (EGY) in the first bout. Geraei gets the parterre and scores two. Underhook from Okil but Geraei with a slam for four! Okil can't stop Geraei from another exposure but scores a reversal as well. Okil is asking for a takedown. He challenges but there is no takedown. Geraei wins 10-1

10:55: Alina HRUSHYNA (UKR) is one of those wrestlers who will keep you busy throughout the bout and will capitalize on each opening she gets. Sandra PARUSZEWSKI (GER) gave her one and Hrushyna used an arm-bar to pin her German opponent. She moves on at 57kg.

10:40: Yunus BASAR (TUR) and Zoltan LEVAI (HUN) on Mat B for their 77kg bout. Basar gets the first par terre advantage. He manages to roll Levai using a chest wrap but was himself in danger of giving up danger position. Basar returns on top and throws Levai for four. Referees call for a foul from Levai which means a 9-0 win for Basar. Levai challenges the call but there is a leg foul. Basar wins 10-0

10:35: Alexandrin GUTU (MDA) has challenged the call after he gave up a series of gut wrenches against Demeu ZHADRAYEV (KAZ). Gutu got the par terre advantage and tried to front headlock but failed Zhadrayev scored a 10-1 win but Gutu challenged. No illegal move by Zhadtayev and Gutu goes down 11-1.

10:30: Forrest MOLINARI (USA) and Alla BELINSKA (UKR) win with falls at 68kg. Dominant start for both the wrestlers who can meet later in the session.

10:20: Nathali GRIMAN (VEN) gave Ilona PROKOPEVNIUK (UKR) a scare in the opening match at 62kg. Griman at one point led the bout 6-4 but Prokopevniuk manages to roll to a 9-6 win.

10:15: Early big match here in Alexandria. Grace BULLEN (NOR) is up against Jennifer PAGE (USA) at 62kg. She was put on the clock but scores a double leg for four over Page. A reversal and gut wrench for Page to make it 4-3 before adding a stepout. Bullen holds 4-4 criteria at the break. Bullen starts the second period with a takedown and another double leg for four. Page manages to reverse once again and score from the gut wrench. Bullen leads 10-7 with just over a minute left in the bout. Page with a slipby takedown to make it 10-9. Great comeback from Page. Bullen adds a stepout to make it 11-9. Page needs three points to win this. She scores a takedown but the time runs out. Bullen wins 11-11.

10:00: The wrestlers enjoyed their time going around Egypt and seeing the pyramids. But now serious business. Day two of the tournament is here. Greco-Roman 72kg, 77kg and 82kg will be in action along with 57kg, 62kg, 72kg and 76kg in women's wrestling.

#WrestleParis

Paris 2024 Wrestling Day 3 Preview: GR 67kg and 87kg; WW 53kg

Wednesday, July 24, 2024 - 09:49 By Eric Olanowski

PARIS, France (July 24) --- Two-thirds of the returning Greco-Roman Olympic champions -- Zhan BELENIUK (UKR) and Luis ORTA (CUB) -- along with the wrestler holding the world's longest win streak among active wrestlers, will compete on the third day in Paris 2024 when GR 67kg and 87kg and WW 53kg takes center stage at Champ de Mars Arena.

Beleniuk is a two-time Olympic medalist, having won gold in Tokyo and silver in Rio. The 33-year-old is on a mission to make history in Paris and become Ukraine's first-ever two-time Olympic champ. Before Beleniuk's win at the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games, Ukraine was 0-3 in Olympic finals and were still searching for someone to accompany the 1996 Atlanta Games 90kg gold medalist Vyatsheslav OLEYNIK (UKR) in the history books.

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Orta moved up from his Tokyo Olympic weight of 60kg to 67kg and is on a quest to join Filiberto ASCUY and Mijain LOPEZ as Cuba's only multiple-time Olympic champs.

In women's wrestling, Akari FUJINAMI (JPN) will look to extend her world-best 130-match win streak against the 53kg field.

Zhan BELENIUK (UKR) won the gold medal at 87kg in Tokyo. (Photo: United World Wrestling / Martin Gabor)

GR 87kg: Beleniuk up against packed field

It's not often that the reigning Olympic champion heads into a competition as an underdog, but that's the case when five world champs are in one bracket. Besides Ukraine's reigning Olympic champion Beleniuk, the other world title holders in 87kg include David LOSONCZI (HUN), Ali CENGIZ (TUR), Lasha GOBADZE (GEO) and Rafig HUSEYNOV (AZE).

Beleniuk will have to overcome dark horses Aleksandr KOMAROV (SRB), Semen NOVIKOV (BUL) and Turpal BISULTANOV (DEN) to become Ukraine's first-ever two-time Olympic gold medalist.

Cengiz won the outright world title in Belgrade, beating Beleniuk and Losonczi. However, he's since taken a step back to reality, going 5-3 in his last two competitions. Out of the three losses he's taken this season, two came against wrestlers he could face in Paris -- Komarov and Losonczi.

Cengiz lost to Komarov in the European finals before falling to Losonczi at the Hungarian Ranking Series event. Losonczi, the other half of the 2023 87kg world champions, followed a similar path as Cengiz during the first few months of the 2024 season.

After ending 2023 on a 14-match win streak, Losonczi lost his first match of the season to Alan OSTAEV (AIN) at the Zagreb Open Ranking Series event. The 23-year-old Hungarian rebounded at the Hungarian Ranking Series event, beating Olympians Cengiz and Nursultan TURSYNOV (KAZ) before dropping out his of his finals match against Semen NOVIKOV (BUL).

Rafig HUSEYNOV (AZE) will be hoping to add a second Olympic medal to his resume. (Photo: United World Wrestling / Amirreza Aliasgari)

Huseynov, a world champion in 2021 and '23, saved Azerbaijan's Paris hopes at the last moment, replacing No. 6 Islam ABBASOV (AZE) at 87kg for the final Olympic Qualifier.

The Tokyo Olympic bronze medalist at 77kg, bumped up to 82kg, where he remained for the last three seasons, winning two world titles and a European gold. But at 36, Huseynov will return to Azerbaijan's lineup for one final run at an Olympic title.

With Huseynov being new to the category, he remains the question mark of the weight. Alireza MOHMADIPIANI (IRI) and Gobadze have wrestled the Azeri before with Huseynov beating Mohamadipiani in last year's World Championships final and he defeated Gobadze to qualify Azerbaijan for Paris 2024.

Lasha GOBADZE (GEO) will be one of the darkhorses at 87kg in Paris. (Photo: United World Wrestling / Kadir Caliskan)

Gobadze, the 2019 world champion, was a late addition to the entry list. He missed out on punching Georgia's ticket through the qualification competitions but earned an allocation after the Neutral Athletes dropped out. Gobadze has the talent to beat anyone in the world. In the last few years, since leaping 82kg to 87kg, the Georgian has beaten many top-tier guys who will also be at the Games. His previous wins include Cengiz and Bisultanov. On the other hand, he recently lost to Huseynov and Cengiz.

Komarov won the European Championships this year with wins over Beleniuk, Abbasov and Cengiz. He will be the biggest threat to make a run for the gold medal.

GR 67kg: New weight, old habits for Orta

Luis Orta has been a man on a mission since his disappointing seventh-place finish at the 2022 World Championships. He's turned his fortunes around, positioning himself to become Cuba's third-ever two-time Olympic champ. Since that blunder in Belgrade, Orta has gone 29-2, winning gold medals at the World Championships, Pan-Am Championships, Pan-Am Games, Central American and Caribbean Games and Hungarian Ranking Series. More importantly, his last two losses came at the hands of HUSIYUETU (CHN), who missed out on making the Olympic Games.

Of the 16 wrestlers in the field, Orta has at least one win over half of the entries. He's already beaten Hasrat JAFAROV (AZE), Andres MONTANO (ECU), Amantur ISMAILOV (KGZ), Mate NEMES (SRB), Souleymen NASR (TUN), Nestor ALMANZA (CHI), Kyotaro SOGABE (JPN) and Saeid ESMAEILI (IRI).

Orta has already bested Nemes and Jafarov, his most credentialed challengers. He defeated Jafarov twice last season and beat 2022 world champion Nemes in the quarterfinal of the 2023 World Championships.

Parviz NASIBOV (UKR) is the returning silver medalist at 67kg.(Photo: United World Wrestling / Dogukan Karadag)

He is yet to face two major threats: Olympic medalists Parviz NASIBOV (UKR) and Mohamed ELSAYED (EGY). After seeing what the Ukrainian has been able to do over the last few years, Orta will be more threatened by Nasibov than Elsayed.

Nasibov, the Tokyo runner-up, has victories over Olympian Jafarov, Nemes, Slavik GALSTYAN (ARM), and Mamadassa SYLLA (FRA) this season alone. Meanwhile, Elsayed has struggled since his impressive Tokyo bronze-medal run, going 7-4 in non-African competitions.

Iran's Esmaeili is replacing Tokyo Olympic champion Mohammedreza GERAEI (IRI) after winning the playoff. He almost beat Orta in Budapest and has a win over Sogabe. Iran will hope that the youngster can make a surprise run to gold as Geraei did in Tokyo.

WW 53kg: Fujinami vs the rest

When it comes to betting favorites in the 53kg Paris field, oddsmakers have singled out Akari Fujinami as the safest wrestler to put money on.

Fujinami, a 20-year-old phenom, has been unstoppable up to this point in her career. She's won 130 consecutive matches heading into Paris -- including two golds at the World Championships, golds at the Asian Championships and Asian Games, and international and domestic competitions.

Akari FUJINAMI (JPN), blue, pinned Lucia YEPEZ (ECU) at the 2023 World Championships. (Photo: United World Wrestling / Kadir Caliskan)

To fully understand Fujinami's dominance, just look at her 2023 season. In her 21 matches last season at the World Championships, Asian Championships, Asian Games, Zagreb Open Ranking Series and Dan Kolov, Fujinami outscored her opponents 206-7 and finished 21/21 matches by technical superiority or via fall. Furthermore, 10 of those technical superiority wins came against wrestlers with at least one world medal to their name.

The only wrestler to score a point on Fujinami last season was Lucia YEPEZ (ECU). Fujinami gave up an early 5-0 lead but scored 14 consecutive points before securing a second-period fall.

Other threats to Fujinami include Qianyu PANG (CHN), Dominique PARRISH (USA), ANTIM (IND), and Jonna MALMGREN (SWE). Pang, Malmgren, and Antim have already faced Fujinami, while a matchup between Parrish and Fujinami would be a first.

Qianyu PANG (CHN) is the returning silver medalist at 53kg. (Photo: United World Wrestling / Kadir Caliskan)

Pang, an Olympic finalist in Tokyo, last faced Fujinami at the Asian Games, where the Japanese star won 10-0. Antim lost to Fujinami at the Asian Championships (10-0) and was pinned at the Asian Games. Malmgren and Fujinami met at the 2018 U17 World Championships, where Fujinami won 14-4.

Parrish was the 53kg world champion the year Fujinami withdrew from the World Championships. Fans and critics have long debated Parrish's world title without Fujinami's presence, leaving the American eager to face the young Japanese star.

The third day of wrestling at Paris 2024 starts on August 7. Follow @unitedworldwrestling on all social channels to stay updated on what's happening in Paris.

Ibrahim Moustafa Ranking Series day two finals set

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Paris 2024 Wrestling Day 3 Preview: GR 67kg and 87kg; WW 53kg