#WrestleXian

Icho Dealt Stunning Loss in Asian 57kg Semis; Lone Japanese Woman to Fail to Make Finals

Friday, April 26, 2019 - 09:02 By Ken Marantz

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XI’AN, China (April 26)—The notion that four-time Olympic champion Kaori ICHO (JPN) would be the lone Japanese woman to fail to make the finals at the Asian Championships might have defied credulity.

But fact can sometimes be stranger than fiction, and a fearless opponent with a lightning-quick takedown made the incredible happen during the morning session on Day 4 of the six-day tournament in Xi’an.

Asian Games champion JONG Myong Suk (PRK) dominated Icho from the beginning of their 57kg semifinal bout, scoring all of her points in the first period before holding on for a 7-4 victory.

“Her takedown from tying up was really good,” Icho told about a dozen members of the Japanese press, who came specifically to see the national star in her first international tournament since the Rio 2016 Olympics. 

“She’s a young athlete, and I figured she would be on the attack from the first period, so I had that in mind. But my reactions were dull.”


Mayu MUKAIDA (JPN) is one of four Japanese women who'll compete in the Day 4 finals. (Photo: Sachiko Hotaka)

Mayu MUKAIDA (JPN), the world champion at 55kg who has dropped to the Olympic weight of 53kg, was one of four Japanese who advanced to the finals in the five divisions.

That followed a strong showing on the previous day, when the Japanese women sent all five wrestlers into the finals and came away with three golds and two silvers. 

The possibility of a clash between Icho and RONG Ningning (CHN) was one of the featured aspects heading into the tournament at Xidian University’s Invengo Gymnasium, but instead it will be Jong who will face the Chinese world champion for the gold medal.

Icho has relied heavily on her defense to accumulate an extensive gold collection, but Jong, a world bronze medalist at 55kg, used her speed to breakthrough and secure leg holds. She scored two takedowns, following the first with a roll and then a stepout to lead 7-1 after the first period.

Icho got a takedown with a minute to go, then received a penalty point for fleeing with :17 left to account for the final score. 

“In this match, she was not competing fully,” DPR Korea coach YUN Tong Gon said of Jong through a translator. “If she went fully 100 percent, she would have won by fall or 10 points.”


Icho, who will be wrestling for a bronze medal in the night session, got her day off to an ominous start when she had a tooth broken during her 10-0 technical fall victory in the quarterfinals over UM Jieun (KOR).

 Icho, a 10-time world champion who turns 35 in June, won the last of her five Asian titles in 2015. She accepted the loss with dignity and looks at it as part of the process in her bid to win an unprecedented fifth gold at the Tokyo 2020 Olympics.

“I couldn’t finish off my attack and my defense was weak,” she said. “This time, this was all about experience. I have to make use of that.”  

At 53kg, Mukaida fell behind early in her semifinal with world bronze medalist PANG Qianyu, but scored eight unanswered points in the second period to win 10-4. 

Earlier, Mukaida overwhelmed Asian Games champion Vinesh VINESH (IND) with a one-sided 10-0 technical fall in the quarterfinals. Vinesh had won the 50kg gold a year ago in Bishkek. 

In the final, Mukaida will try to avoid the same fate as Icho as she takes on another highly touted DPR Korean, defending champion and Asian Games gold medalist PAK Yongmi (PRK). 

Yukako KAWAI (JPN) edged MUN Hyon Gyong (PRK), 5-4 in the semifinals and will wrestle in the 62kg gold-medal bout against Aisuluu TYNYBEKOVA (KGZ). (Photo: Gabor Martin)

World silver medalist Yukako KAWAI (JPN) survived a scare of her own in the 62kg semifinals, scoring a takedown with :10 left to defeat MUN Hyon Gyong (PRK), 5-4. 

In the quarterfinals, Mun knocked off PEI Xingru (CHN), a world bronze medalist and the 2018 Asian champion at 57kg. 

“As you see, we also won matches with the Chinese,” DPR Korea coach Tong said. “We have confidence of winning at the Tokyo Olympic Games.”

Kawai, the world U23 champion, will go for the gold against Aisuluu TYNYBEKOVA (KGZ), a 2017 world bronze medalist who won the silver at the Asian Games. 

Naomi RUIKE (JPN) gets her hand raised after her semifinal win over Mongolia's Bolortungalag ZORIG. (Photo: Sachiko Hotaka)

The two other finals will each see a Japanese teenager, with college freshman Naomi RUIKE (JPN) making it at 65kg and high schooler Yuzuka KAGAMI (JPN) advancing at 72kg.

Ruike, who posted 10-0 technical fall victories in both of her matches, will take on LUO Xiaojuan (CHN), who will aim to improve on her silver-medal finish at 62kg in 2018. 

Two-time world cadet champion Kagami will look to add the Asian gold to the Klippan Lady bronze she won earlier this year when she faces JEONG Seoyeon (KOR).

Kagami twice showed the poise of a veteran as she had to rally in both of her preliminary matches to make the final. She got a stepout with :17 to beat 76kg Klippan champion WANG Juan 2-1, then scored an equally late takedown for a 2-2 win over Zhamila BAKBERGENOVA (KAZ) in the semifinals. 

Day 4 results

Women’s wrestling

53kg (11 entries)
Gold – PAK Yongmi (PRK) v Mayu MUKAIDA (JPN)
Bronze – Akienge KEUNIMJAEVA (UZB) v KIM Hyungjoo (KOR)
Bronze – Vinesh VINESH (IND) v PANG Qianyu (CHN)

Semifinals
PAK Yongmi (PRK) df. KIM Hyungjoo (KOR) by Fall, 2:58 (6-0)
Mayu MUKAIDA (JPN) df. PANG Qianyu (CHN), 10-4

57kg (10 entries)
Gold – JONG Myong Suk (PRK) v RONG Ningning (CHN)
Bronze – Thi My Trang NGUYEN (VIE) v Kaori ICHO (JPN)
Bronze – Tserenchimed SUKHEE (MGL) v Pooja DHANDA (IND)

Semifinals
JONG Myong Suk (PRK) df. Kaori ICHO (JPN), 7-4
RONG Ningning (CHN) df. Pooja DHANDA (IND), 8-4

62kg (12 entries)
Gold – Aisuluu TYNYBEKOVA (KGZ) v Yukako KAWAI (JPN)
Bronze – Nabira ESENBAEVA (UZB) v Salinee SRISOMBAT (THA)
Bronze – Sakshi MALIK (IND) v MUN Hyon Gyong (PRK) 

Semifinals
Aisuluu TYNYBEKOVA (KGZ) df. Salinee SRISOMBAT (THA) by Fall, 1:52 (8-0)
Yukako KAWAI (JPN) df. MUN Hyon Gyong (PRK), 5-4 

65kg (8 entries)
Gold – LUO Xiaojuan (CHN) v Naomi RUIKE (JPN)
Bronze – Kaur NAVJOT (IND) v Aina TEMIRTASSOVA (KAZ)
Bronze – Sakhipjamal ALEUATDINOVA (UZB) v Bolortungalag ZORIGT (MGL)

Semifinals
LUO Xiaojuan (CHN) df. Aina TEMIRTASSOVA (KAZ) by Fall, 3:49 (10-1)
Naomi RUIKE (JPN) df. Bolortungalag ZORIGT (MGL) by TF, 11-0, 4:41

72kg (8 entries)
Gold – JEONG Seoyeon (KOR) v Yuka KAGAMI (JPN)
Bronze – Li Chia-Hsin (TPE) v Nilufar GADAEVA (UZB)
Bronze – WANG Juan (CHN) v Zhamila BAKBERGENOVA (KAZ)

Semifinals
JEONG Seoyeon (KOR) df. Nilufar GADAEVA (UZB) by TF, 12-2 
Yuka KAGAMI (JPN) df. Zhamila BAKBERGENOVA (KAZ), 2-2

#WrestleZagreb

Saravi returns to final; Ganizade, Ghanem rematch for 72kg gold

Friday, September 19, 2025 - 16:52 By Ken Marantz

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ZAGREB, Croatia (September 19) -- Paris Olympic champion Mohammadhadi SARAVI (IRI) safely negotiated the minefield that was the draw of the stacked 97kg division, advancing to the final to earn a shot at capturing a second world title.

Saravi defeated Kiryl MASKEVICH (UWW) 3-1 in the semifinals Friday at the World Championships in Zagreb, putting him in Saturday's gold-medal match against Artur SARGSIAN (UWW) as the finals were set in three Greco weight classes.

In other finals, Aidos SULTANGALI (KAZ) and Alisher GANIEV (UZB) will battle it out at 60kg, while the 72kg match will be a rematch of last year's final between defending champion Ulvu GANIZADE (AZE) and Ibrahim GHANEM (FRA).

Saravi, who avoided the upset bug that hit the legendary Artur ALEKSANYAN (AZE) and 2023 world champion Gabriel ROSILLO (CUB) earlier in the day, executed a gut wrench from par terre against Maskevich, then hardly budged when he was put on the bottom in the second period.

The victory gives Saravi, who won his third straight Asian title and fourth overall this year, a shot at regaining the world title he won in 2021. He also has an Olympic bronze and world silver and bronze medals to his credit.

Sargsian, a 2021 bronze medalist, earned his place in the final with a 1-1 victory over Murad AHMADIYEV (AZE), prevailing on the criteria of receiving the first of two passivity points.

Following an opening victory by technical superiority, it was Sargsian's third straight victory by a 1-1 scoreline, an aspect that is totally irrelevant to him.

"I don’t care about the score, the important thing is that they raised my hand," Sargsian said. "All my life I tried to win ahead of time, to get 8-0 in every match -- and for what? It didn’t lead to anything good. I’m 27 years old and I still have only world championship medal. So for me, three times 1-1 is the same as three times 8-0."

For Sargsian, the final gives him a chance to avenge a loss to Saravi from the 2021 World Championships, when the Iranian defeated him 6-4 in the first round in Oslo.

"I’m very glad that tomorrow I’ll finally have my long-awaited rematch with Saravi," Sargsian said. "It adds extra excitement that now he is not only a world champion, but also an Olympic champion."

At 60kg, Asian silver medalist Ganiev will get a chance to become just the second Uzbekistan wrestler to win a world Greco title after holding on to win a 5-5 thriller
over European silver medalist Georgij TIBILOV (SRB).

Ganiev was on top in par terre, trailing on criteria because he received the second passivity point, when he lifted Tibilov and executed a nifty cartwheel for a 4-pointer and a 5-4 lead.

But Tibilov, a world bronze medalist at 63kg in 2023, was not going down easily, and he pressured Ganiev at the edge for a takedown, then added a second one. But
that was all he could get, and Ganiev won on big-point criteria.

The victory avenged a 6-4 loss to Tibilov in the final of the Zagreb Open in the same arena back in February.

Uzbekistan's lone title in Greco came back in 2001, when Dilshod ARIPOV (UZB) won the 58kg gold in Patras, Greece.

Sultangali, who has world bronze medals from 2018 and 2022, will get a shot at his first gold after putting on a late surge and defeating Amiran SHAVADZE (GEO)
10-2 in the other semifinal.

Sultangali trailed 2-1 when he bulled Shavadze over for a 4-point takedown with :30 left, then added a gut wrench. An unsuccessful challenge made it 8-2 before Shavadze gave up the fight and allowed a stepout with fleeing penalty point with :03 left.

Kazakhstan has won five Greco world golds through three wrestlers, but hasn't had put one on the top of the medal podium since 1999, when Mkhtar MANUKYAN
(KAZ) won the second of his back-to-back titles at 63kg in Athens.

At 72kg, a second potential Uzbekistan-Kazakhstan match-up failed to come to fruition when both countries' wrestlers lost in the semifinals. Instead, it will be
Ganizade and Ghanem going at it for the second consecutive year.

Ganizade scored all of his points in the first period in a 5-0 victory over Asian silver medalist Abdullo ALIEV (UZB). He slipped behind for a takedown, then added a gut wrench before getting the lone passivity point to cap the first period.

In the other semifinal, Ghanem was leading a close match 3-2 as it was winding down when he countered Merey MAULITKANOV (KAZ) for 4-point throw.

Maulitkanov just remained lying on the mat, officially giving Ghanem a victory by fall in 5:49.

RESULTS

Greco-Roman

60kg (25 entries)
SF 1: Aidos SULTANGALI (KAZ) df. Amiran SHAVADZE (GEO) by TF, 10-2, 5:57
SF 2: Alisher GANIEV (UZB) df. Georgij TIBILOV (SRB), 5-5

72kg (30 entries)
SF 1: Ulvu GANIZADE (AZE) df. Abdullo ALIEV (UZB), 5-0
SF 2: Ibrahim GHANEM (FRA) df. Merey MAULITKANOV (KAZ) by Fall, 5:49 (7-2)

97kg (29 entries)
SF 1: Mohammadhadi SARAVI (IRI) df. Kiryl MASKEVICH (UWW), 3-1
SF 2: Artur SARGSIAN (UWW) df. Murad AHMADIYEV (AZE), 1-1