#WrestleBelgrade

Individual World Cup Entries

By Eric Olanowski

CORSIER-SUR-VEVEY, Switzerland (December 9) -- Abdulrashid "The Tank" SADULAEV (RUS), the four-time world champion and Rio Olympic gold medalist, headlines the entry list for the Individual World Cup (December 12-18) that will feature 505 wrestlers from 51 different countries.

Sadulaev is one of 31 returning world medalists -- including five world champions from 2019 -- who will take the mat in Serbia next week. Freestyle and Greco-Roman each include 11 medal winners from Nur-Sultan, while women's wrestling welcomes 9 from the last world championships.

World Medalist By Style
Freestyle: 3 gold, 2 silver and 6 bronze = 11
Greco-Roman: 1 gold, 3 silver and 7 bronze = 11
Women's Wrestling: 1 gold, 3 silver and 5 bronze = 9

Freestyle ('19 world champions listed in BOLD)

57kg
Abdelhak KHERBACHE (ALG)
Arsen HARUTYUNYAN (ARM)
Islam BAZARGANOV (AZE)
Uladzislau ANDREYEU (BLR)
Mikyay Salim NAIM (BUL)
Levan METREVELI VARTANOV (ESP)
Adam Visrailovitch BIBOULATOV (FRA)
Diamantino IUNA FAFE (GBS)
Niklas STECHELE (GER)
Gamzatgadzsi HALIDOV (HUN)
Kumar RAVI (IND)
Rahman Mousa AMOUZADKHALILI (IRI)
Givi DAVIDOVI (ITA)
Bekbolot MYRZANAZAR UULU (KGZ)
Chakir ANSARI (MAR)
Anatolii BURUIAN (MDA)
Petru CRACIUN (MDA)
Minir REDJEPI (MKD)
Richard Antonio GARCIA ANDRADE (PAN)
Razvan Marian KOVACS (ROU)
Zavur UGUEV (RUS)
Stevan Andria MICIC (SRB)
Saban KIZILTAS (TUR)
Andrii YATSENKO (UKR)
Gamal Mohammed Yahya ALSABRI (YEM)

61kg
Abdelghani BENATALLAH (ALG)
Agustin Alejandro DESTRIBATS (ARG)
Razmik PAPIKYAN (ARM)
Akhmednabi GVARZATILOV (AZE)
Ayub Muratovitch MUSAEV (BEL)
Georgi Valentinov VANGELOV (BUL)
Arman ELOYAN (FRA)
Nico MEGERLE (GER)
Georgios PILIDIS (GRE)
Richard VILHELM (HUN)
Rahul Balasaheb AWARE (IND)
Ulukbek ZHOLDOSHBEKOV (KGZ)
Leomid COLESNIC (MDA)
Vladimir EGOROV (MKD)
Eduard GRIGOREV (POL)
Ivan GUIDEA (ROU)
Abasgadzhi MAGOMEDOV (RUS)
Nino LEUTERT (SUI)
Muhamad IKROMOV (TJK)
Recep TOPAL (TUR)
Volodymyr BURUKOV (UKR)

65kg
Isa MERKJA (ALB)
Vazgen TEVANYAN (ARM)
Haji ALIYEV (AZE)
Niurgun SKRIABIN (BLR)
Haji Mohamad ALI( BRN)
Vladimir Vladimirov DUBOV (BUL)
Juan Pablo GONZALEZ CRESPO (ESP)
Ilman MUKHTAROV (FRA)
Mbunde CUMBA MBALI (GBS)
Iszmail MUSZUKAJEV (HUN)
Amirmohammad Babak YAZDANICHERATI (IRI)
Abdellatif MANSOUR (ITA)
Ernazar AKMATALIEV (KGZ)
Andrei PERPELITA (MDA)
Nicolai GRAHMEZ (MDA)
Elmedin SEJFULAU (MKD)
Sixto Miguel AUCCAPINA PEDRAGAS (PER)
Krzysztof BIENKOWSKI (POL)
Nikolai OKHLOPKOV (ROU)
Gadzhimurad RASHIDOV (RUS)
Ahmet DUMAN(TUR)
Gor OGANNESYAN(UKR)
Hussein Abdullah Hussein Abdullah AL AZZANI(YEM)

70kg
Eriglent PRIZRENI (ALB)
Arman ANDREASYAN (ARM)
Gitinomagomed GADZHIYEV (AZE)
Dzianis SALAVEI (BLR)
Nicolae COJOCARU (GBR)
Shamil USTAEV (GER)
Daniel ANTAL (HUN)
Naveen NAVEEN (IND)
Islambek OROZBEKOV (KGZ)
Mihail SAVA (MDA)
Valentin BORZIN (MDA)
Fati VEJSELI(MKD)
Magomedmurad GADZHIEV (POL)
George BUCUR (ROU)
Chermen VALIEV (RUS)
Daniel CHOMANIC (SVK)
Mustafo AKHMEDOV (TJK)
Haithem DAKHLAOUI (TUN)
Haydar YAVUZ (TUR)
Ihor NYKYFORUK (UKR)

74kg
Orges LILA (ALB)
Hrayr ALIKHANYAN (ARM)
Khadzhimurad GADZHIYEV (AZE)
Azamat NURYKAU (BLR)
Ali Pasha Ruslanovich UMARPASHAEV (BUL)
Leon Juan Carlos PERALTA LANAS (CHI)
Jonatan ALVAREZ DIAZ (ESP)
Aimar ANDRUSE (EST)
Charles André AFA (FRA)
Augusto MIDANA (GBS)
Osman Kubilay CAKICI (GER)
Murad KURAMAGOMEDOV (HUN)
Narsingh Pancham YADAV (IND)
Mitchell Louis FINESILVER (ISR)
Frank CHAMIZO MARQUEZ (ITA)
Saiakbai USUPOV (KGZ)
Mohammed J M Th A ABDULKAREEM (KUW)
Vasile DIACON (MDA)
Evgheni NEDEALCO (MDA)
Riad REDJEPI (MKD)
Andrzej Piotr SOKALSKI (POL)
Maxim VASILIOGLO (ROU)
Razambek ZHAMALOV (RUS)
Malik Michael AMINE (SMR)
Zaur EFENDIEV (SRB)
Marc DIETSCHE (SUI)
Tajmuraz Mairbekovic SALKAZANOV (SVK)
Fazli ERYILMAZ (TUR)
Denys PAVLOV (UKR)

79kg
Arman AVAGYAN (ARM)
Rashad YUSIFLI (AZE)
Mahamedkhabib KADZIMAHAMEDAU (BLR)
Dzhemal Rushen ALI (BUL)
Erik REINBOK (EST)
Saifedine ALEKMA (FRA)
Eduard TATARINOV (GER)
Csaba VIDA (HUN)
Baliyan GOURAV (IND)
Aron CANEVA (ITA)
Arsalan BUDAZHAPOV (KGZ)
Alans AMIROVS (LAT)
Stanislav NOVAC (MDA)
Astrit ISMAILI (MKD)
Vasile Madalin MINZALA (ROU)
Akhmed USMANOV (RUS)
Akhsarbek GULAEV (SVK)
Ayoub BARRAJ (TUN)
Muhammet Nuri KOTANOGLU (TUR)
Vasyl MYKHAILOV (UKR)
Rashid KURBANOV (UZB)
86kg
Hovhannes MKHITARYAN (ARM)
Abubakr ABAKAROV (AZE)
Rasul TSIKHAYEU (BLR)
Akhmed Adamovitch MAGAMAEV (BUL)
Taimuraz FRIEV NASKIDAEVA (ESP)
Akhmed AIBUEV (FRA)
Bedopassa BUASSAT DJONDE (GBS)
Ahmed Ruslanovic DUDAROV (GER)
Deepak PUNIA (IND)
Uri KALASHNIKOV (ISR)
Ivars SAMUSONOKS (LAT)
Roman MANITRA RAHARISON (MAD)
Rachid OURIBI (MAR)
Piotr IANULOV (MDA)
Stole EFTIMOV (MKD)
Pool Edinson AMBROCIO GREIFO (PER)
Zbigniew Mateusz BARANOWSKI (POL)
Dauren KURUGLIEV (RUS)
Myles Nazem AMINE (SMR)
Boris MAKOEV (SVK)
Osman GOCEN (TUR)
Mraz DZHAFARIAN (UKR)

92kg
Gadzhimurad MAGOMEDSAIDOV(AZE)
Arkadzi PAHASIAN(BLR)
Alejandro CANADA PANCORBO(ESP)
Ilja MATUHIN(GER)
Georgii RUBAEV(MDA)
Redjep HAJDARI(MKD)
Mihai Nicolae PALAGHIA(ROU)
Alikhan ZHABRAILOV(RUS)
Strahinja DESPIC(SRB)
Samuel SCHERRER(SUI)
Erhan YAYLACI(TUR)
Vasyl SOVA(UKR)

97kg
Shamil ZUBAIROV (AZE)
Aliaksandr HUSHTYN (BLR)
Ahmed Sultanovich BATAEV (BUL)
Ertugrul AGCA (GER)
Satywart KADIAN (IND)
Abraham de Jesus CONYEDO RUANO (ITA)
Edon SHALA (KOS)
Nicolai CEBAN (MDA)
Samhan JABRAILOV (MDA)
Magomedgadji Omardibirovich NUROV (MKD)
Radoslaw BARAN (POL)
Michael MANEA (ROU)
Abdulrashid SADULAE V(RUS)
Suleyman KARADENIZ (TUR)
Valerii ANDRIITSEV (UKR)

125kg
Paris KAREPI (ALB)
Catriel Pehuen MURIEL (ARG)
Hovhannes MAGHAKYAN (ARM)
Jamaladdin MAGOMEDOV (AZE)
Dzianis KHRAMIANKOU (BLR)
Islam Timurovich ADIZOV (BUL)
Amarveer DHESI (CAN)
Daniel LIGETI (HUN)
Sumit SUMIT (IND)
Aiaal LAZAREV (KGZ)
Radu LEFTER (MDA)
Egor OLAR (MDA)
Boban DANOV (MKD)
Robert BARAN (POL)
Shamil SHARIPOV (RUS)
Oktay GUNGOR (TUR)
Oleksandr KHOTSIANIVSKYI (UKR)


Roman VLASOV (RUS), a two-time Olympic champion, will wrestle at 77kg. (Photo: Gabor Martin)

Greco-Roman ('19 world champion listed in BOLD)

55kg
Abdelkarim FERGAT (ALG)
Rudik MKRTCHYAN (ARM)
Eldaniz AZIZLI (AZE)
Nedyalko Petrov PETROV (BUL)
Fabian Bernhard SCHMITT (GER)
Arjun HALAKURKI (IND)
Balbai DORDOKOV (KGZ)
Artiom DELEANU (MDA)
Leonid MOROZ (MDA)
Andre Ricardo CARDOSO OLIVEIRA SILVA (POR)
Cristian Vasile VAGIUNIC (ROU)
Emin Narimanovitch SEFERSHAEV (RUS)
Sebastian KOLOMPAR(SRB)
Serif KILIC (TUR)
Vladyslav KUZKO (UKR)

60kg
Abdennour LAOUNI (ALG)
Armen MELIKYAN (ARM)
Nihat Zahid MAMMADLI (AZE)
Maksim KAZHARSKI (BLR)
Tsvetan Metodiev SIRASHKI (BUL)
Helary MAEGISALU (EST)
Etienne KINSINGER (GER)
Krisztian KECSKEMETI (HUN)
Gyanender GYANENDER (IND)
Abere FETENE (ISR)
Jacopo SANDRON (ITA)
Zholaman SHARSHENBEKOV (KGZ)
Fouad FAJAR I(MAR)
Victor CIOBANU (MDA)
Joao Marco BENAVIDES ROCHABRUN (PER)
Razvan ARNAUT(ROU)
Stepan MARYANYAN (RUS)
Kristian FRIS (SRB)
Ahmet UYAR (TUR)
Viktor PETRYK (UKR)

63kg
Abdeldjebar DJEBBARI (ALG)
Gevorg GHARIBYAN (ARM)
Taleh MAMMADOV (AZE)
Soslan DAUROV (BLR)
Nikalas Petrov SULEV (BUL)
Erik TORBA (HUN)
Sachin RANA (IND)
Kaly SULAIMANOV (KGZ)
Mohammad F Kh M J ALAJMI (KUW)
Mateusz Radoslaw SZEWCZUK (POL)
Julinho Benjamim CORREIA DJU (POR)
Mihai Radu MIHUT (ROU)
Zhambolat LOKYAEV (RUS)
Perica DIMITRIJEVIC (SRB)
Abdurrahman ALTAN (TUR)
Oleksii MASYK (UKR)

67kg
Slavik GALSTYAN (ARM)
Islambek DADOV (AZE)
Konstantin Ivanovich STAS (BUL)
Cristobal Alonso TORRES NUNEZ (CHI)
Gagik Mishai SNJOYAN (FRA)
Witalis LAZOVSKI (GER)
Krisztian Istvan VANCZA (HUN)
Ashu ASHU (IND)
Ruben MARVICE (ITA)
Khalmurat IBRAGIMOV (KGZ)
Donior ISLAMOV (MDA)
Alex Salomon PINEDA MARIN (PAN)
Nilton Gonzalo Marcos SOTO GARCIA (PER)
Roman PACURKOWSKI (POL)
Nazir Rachidovitch ABDULLAEV (RUS)
Davor STEFANEK (SRB)
Atakan YUKSEL (TUR)
Artur POLITAIEV (UKR)

72kg
Malkhas AMOYAN (ARM)
Ulvu GANIZADE (AZE)
Aik MNATSAKANIAN (BUL)
Luka MALOBABIC (CRO)
Ibrahim Mahmoud Hamed Hassan GHANEM (FRA)
Idris IBAEV (GER)
Balint KORPAS I(HUN)
Aditya KUNDU (IND)
Ruslan TSAREV (KGZ)
Valentin PETI C(MDA)
Mihai PETIC (MDA)
Narek OGANIAN (RUS)
Mate NEMES (SRB)
Aleksandar MAKSIMOVIC (SRB)
Andreas VETSCH (SUI)
Leos DRMOLA (SVK)
Cengiz ARSLAN (TUR)
Maksym YEVTUSHENKO (UKR)

77kg
Abd Elkrim OUAKALI (ALG)
Karapet CHALYAN (ARM)
Sanan SULEYMANOV (AZE)
Pavel LIAKH (BLR)
Rosian Ognyanov DERMANSKI (BUL)
Antonio KAMENJASEVIC (CRO)
Jakub BIELESZ (CZE)
Evrik NIKOGHOSYAN (FRA)
Pascal EISELE (GER)
Georgios PREVOLARAKIS (GRE)
Zoltan LEVAI (HUN)
Sajan SAJAN (IND)
Roman ZHERNOVETSKI (ISR)
Matteo MAFFEZZOLI (ITA)
Akzhol MAKHMUDOV (KGZ)
Daniel CATARAGA (MDA)
Igor BESLEAGA (MDA)
Alexandrin GUTU (MDA)
Iwan NYLYPIUK (POL)
Ilie COJOCARI (ROU)
Roman VLASOV (RUS)
Viktor NEMES (SRB)
Denis HORVATH (SVK)
Furkan BAYRAK (TUR)
Yasaf ZEINALOV (UKR)

82kg
Chawki DOULACHE (ALG)
Maksim MANUKYAN (ARM)
Rafig HUSEYNOV (AZE)
Radzik KULIYEU (BLR)
Daniel Tihomirov ALEKSANDROV (BUL)
Filip SACIC (CRO)
Oldrich VARGA (CZE)
Ranet KALJOLA (EST)
Roland SCHWARZ (GER)
Tamas LEVAI (HUN)
Igor PETRISHIN (ISR)
Kairatbek TUGOLBAEV (KGZ)
Zied AIT OUAGRAM (MAR)
Mihail BRADU (MDA)
Gabriel LUPASCO (MDA)
Alvis Albino ALMENDRA JIMENEZ (PAN)
George Vlad MARIEA (ROU)
Milad Valerikovitch ALIRZAEV (RUS)
Branko KOVACEVIC (SRB)
Salih AYDIN (TUR)
Yaroslav FILCHAKOV (UKR)

87kg
Bachir SID AZARA (ALG)
Artur SHAHINYAN (ARM)
Islam ABBASOV (AZE)
Kiryl MASKEVICH (BLR)
Yoan Danielov DIMITROV (BUL)
Vjekoslav LUBURIC (CRO)
Ilias PAGKALIDIS (GRE)
Istvan TAKACS (HUN)
Kumar SUNIL (IND)
Hossein Ahmad NOURI (IRI)
Fabio PARISI (ITA)
Atabek AZISBEKOV (KGZ)
Szymon SZYMONOWICZ (POL)
Davit CHAKVETADZE (RUS)
Zurabi DATUNASHVILI (SRB)
Dogan GOKTAS (TUR)
Semen NOVIKOV (UKR)
Luis Eduardo AVENDANO ROJAS (VEN)

97kg
Adem BOUDJEMLINE (ALG)
Artur ALEKSANYAN (ARM)
Aliaksandr HRABOVIK (BLR)
Kiril Milenov MILOV (BUL)
Artur OMAROV (CZE)
Melonin NOUMONVI (FRA)
Michail IOSIFIDIS (GRE)
Alex Gergo SZOKE (HUN)
Hardeep HARDEEP (IND)
Mohammadhadi Abdollah SARAVI (IRI)
Nikoloz KAKHELASHVILI (ITA)
Uzur DZHUZUPBEKOV (KGZ)
Choucri ATAFI(MAR)
Musa EVLOEV (RUS)
Mihail KAJAIA (SRB)
Damian VON EUW (SUI)
Suleyman DEMIRCI (TUR)
Vladlen KOZLIUK (UKR)
Luillys Jose PEREZ MORA (VEN)

130kg
Hemza HALOUI (ALG)
David OVASAPYAN (ARM)
Beka KANDELAKI (AZE)
Radoslav Plamenov GEORGIEV (BUL)
Yasmani ACOSTA FERNANDEZ (CHI)
Stepan DAVID (CZE)
Eduard POPP (GER)
Nikolaos NTOUNIAS (GRE)
Naveen NAVEEN (IND)
Rafal Andrzej KRAJEWSKI (POL)
Alin ALEXUC CIURARIU (ROU)
Sergey SEMENOV (RUS)
Boban ZIVANOVIC (SRB)
Osman YILDIRIM (TUR)
Mykola KUCHMII (UKR)


Aisuulu TYNYBEKOVA (KGZ) is the lone returning world champion entered in women's wrestling. (Photo: Gabor Martin)

Women's Wrestling ('19 world champion listed in BOLD)

50kg
Turkan NASIROVA (AZE)
Miglena Georgieva SELISHKA (BUL)
Julie Martine SABATIE (FRA)
Debora Valeria TURE (GBS)
Lisa ERSEL (GER)
Devi NIRMALA (IND)
Maria LEORDA (MDA)
Emilia CIRICU BUDEANU (MDA)
Gloria Estefanny ASCA VILCAPOMA (PER)
Anna LUKASIAK (POL)
Emilia Alina VUC (ROU)
Ekaterina POLESHCHUK (RUS)
Evin DEMIRHAN (TUR)
Liliia MALANCHUK (UKR)

53kg
Tatyana VARANSOVA (AZE)
Zalina SIDAKOVA (BLR)
Sezen Behchetova BELBEROVA (BUL)
Marina RUEDA FLORES (ESP)
Hilary Ysaline HONORINE (FRA)
Nina HEMMER (GER)
Maria PREVOLARAKI (GRE)
Emanuela LIUZZI (ITA)
Iulia LEORDA (MDA)
Thalia Jihann MALLQUI PECHE (PER)
Roksana Marta ZASINA (POL)
Andreea Beatrice ANA (ROU)
Anzhelika VETOSHKINA (RUS)
Zeynep YETGIL (TUR)
Khrystyna Zoryana DEMKO (UKR)

55kg
Iryna KURACHKINA (BLR)
Annika WENDLE (GER)
Pinki PINKI (IND)
Mariana DRAGUTAN (MDA)
Katarzyna KRAWCZYK (POL)
Olga KHOROSHAVTSEVA (RUS)
Bediha GUN (TUR)
Tetyana KIT (UKR)

57kg
Alyona KOLESNIK (AZE)
Evelina Georgieva NIKOLOVA (BUL)
Maria Victoria BAEZ DILONE (ESP)
Mathilde Hélène RIVIERE (FRA)
Laura MERTENS (GER)
Emese BARKA (HUN)
Anshu ANSHU (IND)
Arianna CARIERI (ITA)
Nuraida ANARKULOVA (KGZ)
Anastasia NICHITA (MDA)
Patrycja GIL (POL)
Veronika CHUMIKOVA (RUS)
Mehlika OZTURK (TUR)
Antonyna KULAHINA (UKR)

59kg
Bilyana Zhivkova DUDOVA (BUL)
Sandra PARUSZEWSKI (GER)
Sarita SARITA (IND)
Mariana CHERDIVARA ESANU (MDA)
Magdalena Urszula GLODEK (POL)
Svetlana LIPATOVA (RUS)
Anna FABIAN (SRB)
Elif YANIK (TUR)
Kateryna ZELENYKH (UKR)

62kg
Tetiana OMELCHENKO (AZE)
Lydia PEREZ TOURINO (ESP)
Ameline DOUARRE (FRA)
Luisa Helga Gerda NIEMESCH (GER)
Anna Hella SZEL (HUN)
Sonam SONAM (IND)
Aurora CAMPAGNA (ITA)
Aisuluu TYNYBEKOVA (KGZ)
Kriszta Tunde INCZE (ROU)
Liubov OVCHAROVA(RUS)
Cansu AKSOY (TUR)
Ilona PROKOPEVNIUK (UKR)

65kg
Elis MANOLOVA (AZE)
Mimi Nikolova HRISTOVA (BUL)
Debora LAWNITZAK (GER)
Sakshi MALIK (IND)
Anastasija GRIGORJEVA (LAT)
Irina RINGACI (MDA)
Mariia KUZNETSOVA (RUS)
Asli DEMIR (TUR)
Tetiana RIZHKO (UKR)

68kg
IrIna  Petrovna NETREBA (AZE)
Hanna SADCHANKA (BLR)
Sofiya Hristova GEORGIEVA (BUL)
Adela HANZLICKOVA (CZE)
Dalma CANEVA (ITA)
Meerim ZHUMANAZAROVA (KGZ)
Khanum VELIEVA (RUS)
Nesrin BAS (TUR)
Alina BEREZHNA STADNIK MAKHYNIA (UKR)

72kg
Gozal ZUTOVA (AZE)
Yuliana Vasileva YANEVA (BUL)
Koumba Selene Fanta LARROQUE (FRA)
Maria SELMAIER (GER)
Preet Kaur GURSHARAN (IND)
Yanet Ursula SOVERO NINO (PER)
Alexandra Nicoleta ANGHEL (ROU)
Evgeniia ZAKHARCHENKO (RUS)
Zsuzsanna MOLNAR (SVK)
Buse TOSUN (TUR)
Alla BELINSKA (UKR)

76kg
Sabira ALIYEVA (AZE)
Vasilisa MARZALIUK (BLR)
Mariya Gerginova ORYASHKOVA (BUL)
Erica Elizabeth WIEBE (CAN)
Pauline Denise LECARPENTIER (FRA)
Aline ROTTER FOCKEN (GER)
Zsanett NEMETH (HUN)
Kiran KIRAN (IND)
Aiperi MEDET KYZY (KGZ)
Catalina AXENTE (ROU)
Ekaterina BUKINA (RUS)
Yasemin ADAR (TUR)
Anastasiia OSNIACH SHUSTOVA (UKR)

*Please note that this list is an unoffical list and is subject to change.

#WrestleBelgrade

In World Championships of upsets, Cuba's Rosillo stuns Aleksanyan

By Ken Marantz

BELGRADE, Serbia (September 23) -- One night after seeing one of the sport's living legends suffer a shocking last-second defeat, it was deja vu all over again as unheralded Gabriel ROSILLO (CUB) took down the titan Artur ALEKSANYAN (ARM).

Rosillo stunned Aleksanyan and the wrestling world by scoring a takedown with 21 seconds left to deny the Armenian superstar a fifth world title, beating him 3-3 on last-point criteria in the 97kg final of Greco-Roman at the World Championships in Belgrade on Saturday.

"I trained well for these World Championships," Rosillo said. "I was thinking of winning the gold medal and trained so hard to get it."

The crowd at Stark Arena was earlier treated to a freewheeling display of big-throw wrestling in the 60kg final, in which Zholaman SHARSHENBEKOV (KGZ) defended his title with a wild 11-6 win over Tokyo Olympic silver medalist and two-time former champion Kenichiro FUMITA (JPN).

Meanwhile, Ibrahim GHANEM (FRA) won the gold in the non-Olympic weight class of 72kg, making him the fourth Greco world champion in French history and the first since 2014.

All medalists and the winners of a special fifth-place playoff in the Olympic weight classes secured qualifying spots at the 2024 Paris Olympics. The remaining quotas will be filled at the continental qualifiers and last-chance world qualifiers.

Gabriel ROSILLO (CUB)Gabriel ROSILLO (CUB) scores the match-winning arm drag against Artur ALEKSANYAN (ARM). (Photo: UWW / Kostadin Andonov)

There could hardly have been more of a contrast between the competitors in the 97kg final. The 24-year-old Rosillo came into Belgrade with a 2019 world U20 title at the top of his resume, while Aleksanyan could boast an Olympic medal of every color to go with seven world medals.

The Cuban had lost in the first round of the Tokyo Olympics, where Aleksanyan had taken the silver medal, and in his only other appearance at a World Championships in 2019, he lost in the second round. Aleksanyan finished second in that tournament, too.

And Rosillo missed a year and a half in 2020 when he contracted both COVID and dengue fever and was burned in a fire at his home in Santiago.

"I had to make up for lost time," he said."I could do it with the help of the Cuban people and my coaches."

On Saturday night, Rosillo ignored the past and beat the odds, just as Amir MIRZAZADEH (IRI) did the night before. The Iranian scored a late stepout to stun the great Riza KAYAALP (TUR) for the 130kg gold.

But at least Mirzazadeh had been a past world champion himself; Rosillo had to punch well above his weight to pull this miracle off.

Rosillo received the first passivity point but could hardly budge Aleksanyan in par terre, and the outcome appeared inevitable when Aleksanyan scored a gut wrench from the top position in the second period to go ahead 3-1.

In his previous three matches, the 31-year-old Aleksanyan had immediately finished off a technical fall from par terre with four straight rolls. By only getting one off Rosillo, it kept the match going. Few would have ever foreseen what transpired.

With a half-minute to go, the two were jostling for wrist control when Rosillo suddenly hit an arm drag and took Aleksanyan to the mat for a takedown. When the whistle stopped the action with :08 on the clock, the stunned Aleksanyan was slow to get up, and Rosillo held on as time ran out on his historic victory.

Rosillo said his defeat in Tokyo provided a wake-up call. "I understood that I have to have a stronger heart and get better in each phase of the battle, and to never give up even when I feel tired," he said.

Regarding the ticket to Paris that comes with his remarkable run to the gold, he said, "My coach is expecting a lot from me. I know I still have to work hard on my stamina."

Zholaman SHARSHENBEKOV (KGZ)Zholaman SHARSHENBEKOV (KGZ), blue, won his second world title and denied Kenichiro FUMITA (JPN) his third. (Photo: UWW / Kadir Caliskan)

In the 60kg final, Sharshenbekov chalked up two 4-point moves in fending off the energetic Fumita in a match that saw 15 points put on the board in the first 90 seconds.

Fumita, who had to settle for a bronze medal in Belgrade last year after winning world titles in 2017 and 2019, had told the Japanese press after the semifinals that he was content with a "boring" style of wrestling.

But he reverted back to his big-throw ways when he attempted an arm throw in the opening seconds, only to see Sharshenbekov stuff it for 4. Fumita responded with a stepout, then connected on a 2-point throw.

Sharshenbekov, who won his second straight Asian title in April, got the picture and when the two locked up, he slammed Fumita to the mat for another 4-pointer, adding a gut wrench for 2. Fumita reversed to the back for 2, leaving him down 10-5. The two each had a stepout to make it 11-6 as the first period ended.

The fireworks of the first period were never reignited in the second as the two parried each other in a never-ending flurry of action. Fumita hit a couple of sweet arm throws, but Sharshenbekov was able to land on his feet to avoid giving up points.

"In recent years, my opponents have tightened their defense and been on their guard against me," Fumita said. "He was really like that. I made the attacks and he absorbed the blows. I thought that I had to keep attacking, even if it was all-or-nothing or not a very good attack. It made me realize that I have to have confidence in my style."

Sharshenbekov increased his stash of world medals to four, having finished second in both 2018 and 2021 before striking gold last year.

"It is wrong to say that I won the gold medal only by myself," he said. "The whole team worked hard for me to win this. I was ready. I saw the draw but didn’t care about my opponents. I was ready for everyone."

A year ago, Fumita was dealt a heartbreaking 5-5 loss in the semifinals by Edmond NAZARYAN (BUL), who Sharshenbekov then proceeded to beat 11-2 to take the gold.

The two had met once previously, with the Japanese coming out on top 4-0 in the final of the 2020 Asian Championships. In that match, Fumita had scored off a counter for the decisive points.

Five months later they both advanced to the gold-medal match at the Wladyslaw Pytlasinski Cup in Warsaw, but the rematch never happened as Sharshenbekov defaulted due to injury.

"I wrestled Fumita in New Delhi and lost," Sharshenbekov said. "But three years have passed since then and I prepared for this. I have worked hard for this and I was able to win because of that."

Ibrahim GHANEM (FRA)Ibrahim GHANEM (FRA) became the first world champion from France in nine years. (Photo: UWW / Kadir Caliskan)

At 72kg, Ghanem finished second in Europe this year but now is on top of the world after posting a solid 3-0 victory in the final over 2022 European champion Robert FRITSCH (HUN). 

Ghanem, who lost in a bronze-medal match last year, moved straight to the top of the podium by gaining a passivity point in the first period and adding a snap-down-go-behind takedown in the second.

Fritsch tried to come back by securing a front headlock several times, but Ghanem squirmed out of the predicament and held on to become France's first Greco champion since Melonin NOUMONVI (FRA) triumphed at 85kg in 2014 in Tashkent.

Mohammadhadi SARAVI (IRI)Mohammadhadi SARAVI (IRI) took the bronze medal and a Paris Olympic quota for Iran at 97kg. (Photo: UWW / Amirreza Aliasgari)

Saravi takes 2nd straight bronze

In the bronze-medal matches, Mohammadhadi SARAVI (IRI) found a place on the third-highest step of the podium for the second straight year by defeating teenager Abubakar KHASLAKHANAU (AIN) 4-2 at 97kg.

Saravi, the 2021 world champion, scored a roll-off par terre to take a 3-0 lead in the first period, then added a stepout in the second to clinch a Paris quota for Iran.

Artur OMAROV (CZE) continued a run of third-place finishes this year, getting a gut wrench from par terre in the second period of a 3-1 victory over Mindaugas VENCKAITIS (LTU) in the other 97kg bronze-medal match.

Omarov came to Belgrade have placed third at the European Championships, the Ranking Series events in Bishkek and Alexandria, and at the Wladyslaw Pytlasinski Cup. It was the Czech Republic's first Greco-Roman medal at a World Championships since 2007.

Liguo CAO (CHN)Liguo CAO (CHN) defeated Gevorg GHARIBYAN (ARM) 5-3 to earn a bronze medal and Paris 2024 quota for China at 60kg. (Photo: UWW / Amirreza Aliasgari)

At 60kg, Liguo CAO (CHN) finished off the winning takedown with two seconds left on the clock to stun Gevorg GHARIBYAN (ARM) 5-3 at 60kg and add the world bronze to the Asian one he won earlier this year, plus an Olympic berth for China.

Gharibyan, the 2020 European champion, matched Cao with a passivity point and a roll from par terre to lead 3-3 on criteria. With time running out, Cao used an underhook to slip behind, then battled to get Gharibyan to the mat. The knee came down at the :02 mark.

Former Asian champion Islomjon BAKHRAMOV (UZB) won the other 60kg bronze with a hard-fought 3-3 victory over Mehdi MOHSEN NEJAD (IRI).

The result and score were an exact repeat of the outcome of their semifinal encounter at the Bishkek Ranking Series event in June, in which Bakhramov went on to win the gold.

At 72kg, dethroned defending champion Ali ARSALAN (SRB) came out charging from the opening whistle and young Shingo HARADA (JPN) never knew what hit him, falling to a 9-0 technical fall in just 32 seconds.

Arsalan, looking a lot more energetic than he did at the end of his exhausting semifinal loss to Fritsch, blasted to a stepout just 10 seconds into the match, then on the restart, pancaked Harada onto his back for 4.

Scrambling onto the top, Arsalan never took his foot off the gas, reeling off two quick gut wrenches to end the match to the thrill of the home crowd and give the host nation its first Greco medal of the tournament and third overall. Arsalan competed for his native Iran up to 2021 before moving to Serbia.

Harada made his mark in his senior world debut, having rallied to beat 2022 silver medalist Ulvi GANIZADE (AZE) in the quarterfinals.

Selcuk CAN (TUR) picked up his second straight bronze medal at 72kg, getting the second passivity point in a 1-1 victory over Stoyan KUBATOV (BUL) on last-point criteria.

Mehdi MOHSEN NEJAD (IRI)Mehdi MOHSEN NEJAD (IRI) grapped the Paris Olympic quota for Iran at 60kg by winning the playoff. (Photo: UWW / Amirreza Aliasgari)

Mohsen Nejad grabs Paris spot for Iran

Mohsen Nejad returned to the mat to give Iran its third berth in Paris of the four Olympic weight classes competed so far, defeating Gharibyan 7-0 in the fifth-place match at 60kg.

Mohsen Nejad, with the right shoulder that appeared to bother him during the bronze-medal match heavily taped, scored all of his points in the first period, gaining a stepout off a whizzer, shrugging Gharibyan by for takedown and adding a pair of gut wrenches.

There was little action from the exhausted pair in the second period and Gharibyan all but gave up the fight with plenty of time still on the clock.

Khaslakhanau claimed the other Paris quota up for grabs, uncorking a mighty 4-point throw in the second period that knocked the fight out of Venckaitis, who conceded the fall at 97kg.

g

Greco-Roman

60kg (40 entries)
GOLD: Zholaman SHARSHENBEKOV (KGZ) df. Kenichiro FUMITA (JPN), 11-6

BRONZE: Liguo CAO (CHN) df. Gevorg GHARIBYAN (ARM), 5-3
BRONZE: Islomjon BAKHRAMOV (UZB) df. Mehdi MOHSEN NEJAD (IRI), 3-3

5th-Place Playoff: Mehdi MOHSEN NEJAD (IRI) df. Gevorg GHARIBYAN (ARM), 7-0

63kg (24 entries)
GOLD: Leri ABULADZE (GEO) vs. Murad MAMMADOV (AZE)

Semifinal: Leri ABULADZE (GEO) df. Stefan CLEMENT (FRA), 3-1
Semifinal: Murad MAMMADOV (AZE) df. Georgij TIBILOV (SRB), 4-1

67kg (41 entries)
GOLD: Luis ORTA (CUB) vs. Hasrat JAFAROV (AZE)
 
Semifinal: Luis ORTA (CUB) df. Amantur ISMAILOV (KGZ) by TF, 9-1, 3:19
Semifinal: Hasrat JAFAROV (AZE) df. Slavik GALSTYAN (ARM), 4-3

72kg (24 entries)
GOLD: Ibrahim GHANEM (FRA) df. Robert FRITSCH (HUN), 3-0

BRONZE: Selcuk CAN (TUR) df. Stoyan KUBATOV (BUL), 1-1
BRONZE: Ali ARSALAN (SRB) df. Shingo HARADA (JPN) by TF, 9-0, :32

87kg (42 entries)
GOLD: Ali CENGIZ (TUR) vs. David LOSONCZI (HUN)

Semifinal: Ali CENGIZ (TUR) df. Nursultan TURSYNOV (KAZ) by Fall, 2:18 (5-3)
Semifinal: David LOSONCZI (HUN) df. Semen NOVIKOV (BUL) by TF, 10-0, 2:13

97kg (37 entries)
GOLD: Gabriel ROSILLO (CUB) df. Artur ALEKSANYAN (ARM), 3-1

BRONZE: Artur OMAROV (CZE) df. Mindaugas VENCKAITIS (LTU), 3-1
BRONZE: Mohammadhadi SARAVI (IRI) df. Abubakar KHASLAKHANAU (AIN), 4-1

5th-Place Playoff: Abubakar KHASLAKHANAU (AIN) df. Mindaugas VENCKAITIS (LTU) by
Fall, (5-1)