Iran's Foroutanrami Defends Junior World Title; Russia Leads After Day Two

Tuesday, August 13, 2019 - 19:31 By Eric Olanowski

TALLINN, Estonia (August 13) – Iran’s Abbas Ali FOROUTANRAMI successfully defended his junior world title from last year’s Trnava Junior World Championships, while the Russian Federation medaled in four of the five weights on Tuesday night and have control of the team race heading into the final day of freestyle wrestling at the Junior World Championships.

Foroutanrami, backed by the defining Iranian chants pouring through the Tondiraba Hall, won his second consecutive junior world title with a punishing 10-0 win over Yonger BASTIDA POMARES (CUB).

Foroutanrami was clearly on another level than Bastida Pomares, and it was apparent from the opening whistle of the 97kg finals. The Iranian showed his power early and often, as he drove the Cuban wrestler to the out of bounds line and scored a one-point step out. Shortly after putting his first point on the board, Foroutanrami halted a high crotch attempt and capitalized on a counteroffensive opportunity -- giving him the 3-0 lead. He continued to push the pace and tacked on an inactivity point before using an underhook throw-by to score his second takedown of the opening period.

Foroutanrami’s smothering pace came back into display in the second period as Bastida Pomares back-peddled and tried to slow the match down but got hit for a caution-and-one. With the eight-point advantage, another counteroffensive takedown gave Foroutanrami the 10-0 victory, but also his second consecutive junior world title.

Amirhossein MAGHSOUDI (IRI) improved on his silver-medal finish from last year's World Championships with an 8-4 win over Kurban SHIRAEV (RUS) in the 61kg finals. (Photo: Kadir Caliskan)

Amirhossein MAGHSOUDI (IRI) was the second Iranian who carried his nation's flag around the mat after an 8-4 win over Kurban SHIRAEV (RUS) in the 61kg finals.

Maghsoudi was in front 4-0 after a takedown and right-sided gut wrench but nearly gave up the fall after he surrendered a four-point fireman’s carry to his Russian opponenet. Once the Iranian fought off his back, the challenge cube came in from the Russian corner, who was looking for more than four points from Shiraev's fireman’s carry. Russia didn’t get what they wanted and the failed challenge handed Maghsoudi the outright lead, 5-4.

Maghsoudi wrestled a tactical second period -- scoring on three one-point exchanges and improving on his second-place finish from a year ago with the 8-4 victory.

Amkhad TASHUKHADZHIEV (RUS) was the lone Russian to win a world title on Tuesday. He defeated Bagrati GAGNIDZE (GEO), 7-1 in the 79kg finals. (Photo: Kadir Caliskan)

Meanwhile, the Russian Federation, who are cornered by 2014 world champion Abdusalam GADISOV (RUS), lead Iran by 16 points heading into the final day of freestyle wrestling at the Junior World Championships.

Russia’s lone 25-point gold-medal winner was Amkhad TASHUKHADZHIEV (RUS), who tallied a rock-solid six-point victory over Bagrati GAGNIDZE (GEO) in the 79kg finals.

Tashukhadzhiev scored a takedown and a step out in the opening period and carried the 3-1 lead into the second period. Early in the closing three minutes, the Russian launched a series of attacks and scored his second takedown of the bout. While holding onto the four-point lead, Tashukhadzhiev scored his third takedown with a snap down spin behind and reached the top of the world podium for the first time in his career with a 7-1 victory.

Russia also collected 20 points from Kurban Shiraev's 65kg second-place finish, and 30 combined points from Akhmed IDRISOV and Alan KUDZOEV bronze-medal finishes at 57kg and 70kg, respectively.

The other pair of Day 2 gold medals were claimed by Toshiya ABE (JPN) and Erik ARUSHANIAN (UKR), who won titles at 57kg and 70kg, respectively. In the relatively slow-paced 57kg finals, Abe capitalized on a matches’ lone takedown with 15 seconds left to move past Vitali ARUJAU (USA), 2-2 on criteria, while Arushanian scored six unanswered points and edged last year's junior world bronze medalist Vasile DIACON (MDA), 6-5.

Wrestling resumes tomorrow morning with the women's wrestling portion of the tournament kicking off at 10:30 (local time).

RESULTS
57kg
GOLD - Toshiya ABE (JPN) df. Vitali ARUJAU (USA), 2-2
BRONZE - Vrezh GEVORGYAN (ARM) df. Adlan ASKAROV (KAZ), 9-7
BRONZE - Akhmed IDRISOV (RUS) df. Vijay Bajirao PATIL (IND), 10-0

65kg
GOLD - Amirhossein Azim MAGHSOUDI (IRI) df. Kurban SHIRAEV (RUS), 8-4
BRONZE - Turan BAYRAMOV (AZE) df. Ahmet Salim YIGIT (TUR), 8-0
BRONZE - Syrbaz TALGAT (KAZ) df. Vazgen TEVANYAN (ARM), 4-3

70kg
GOLD - Erik ARUSHANIAN (UKR) df. Vasile DIACON (MDA), 6-5
BRONZE - Mohmmadsadegh FIROUZPOURBANDPEI (IRI) df. Ashraf ASHIROV (AZE), 5-4
BRONZE - Alan KUDZOEV (RUS) df. Omer Faruk CAYIR (TUR), 10-7

79kg
GOLD - Amkhad TASHUKHADZHIEV (RUS) df. Bagrati GAGNIDZE (GEO), 7-1
BRONZE - Abubakr ABAKAROV (AZE) df. Arman AVAGYAN (ARM), 6-4
BRONZE - Milan MESTER (HUN) df. Max KASPEROVICH (ISR), 2-0

97kg
GOLD - Abbas Ali FOROUTANRAMI (IRI) df. Yonger Pauli BASTIDA POMARES (CUB), 10-0
BRONZE - Makhsud VEYSALOV (UZB) df. Akash ANTIL (IND), 9-3
BRONZE - Feyzullah AKTURK (TUR) df. Reheman RUSIDANMU (CHN), 11-1

Austria Develops Wrestling Future at UWW Performance Centre A.C. Wals

Wednesday, June 17, 2026 - 08:50 By Jörg Richter

WALS-SIEZENHEIM, Austria (June 16) -- Anyone in Wals-Siezenheim, Austria, looking for the local wrestling centre is directed towards the fire station. Standing in front of it, you look up at the tall tower where the hoses are hung up to dry after call-outs, and at the garages housing the emergency vehicles. But the floor above the firefighters belongs to the wrestlers.

The training centre of wrestling champions A.C. Wals was inaugurated in 1994, completely renovated in 2022 and, a year later, declared the sixth United World Wrestling training centre worldwide by UWW President Nenad LALOVIC.

The former mayor of Wals-Siezenheim, Ludwig BIERINGER, visits the training centre almost daily and can recount stories about the development of the wrestling venue, as well as the sporting stronghold of Wals-Siezenheim, home to the Red Bull family.

His words, "if, by building the wrestling centre, we manage to keep even one young person away from drugs, then this investment will have been worth it,” are likely to hold just as much significance today as they did 32 years ago, when the training hall was completed.

h In Austria, wrestlers are battling against the dominance of winter sports; whilst every child knows the ski jumpers, downhill and slalom skiers, wrestlers have to work incredibly hard to also make it into the spotlight of the mainstream media.

In Toni MARCHL, the Austrian Wrestling Federation has a dedicated and passionate leader who has given himself fully to the growth of the sport. His extensive network spans business, politics, and the highest levels of international sport, including UWW European Council President Karl Martin Dittmann and UWW President Lalovic, with whom he has built a strong and trusted relationship.

AC Wals Fitness centre at A.C. Wals. (Photo: Austrian National Wrestling Centre)

Back to the training centre in Wals, which was designated a UWW higperformance centre in 2022, wrestlers from all over the world now come together to train. This naturally also benefits the ORSV wrestlers, who can now train alongside the world’s best on a selective basis – and do so at home, on their own mats. What’s more, thanks to the efforts of ORSV wrestlers can now be found in positions supported by the sports programme within the army, as well as in the police, judiciary and customs services.

A small boarding school accommodates male and female athletes from all over Austria who combine school, vocational training or work with the demands of competitive sport in Wals-Siezenheim, whilst also travelling there on an ad hoc basis for centralised training sessions.

A large team of coaches has also been established to pass on their experience to the wrestlers. Georg MARCHL (Freestyle), Jeno BODI and Amer HRUSTANOVIC (Greco-Roman), and Elena PITTL (Women's Wrestling) lead a well-trained and dedicated team of coaches, supported and supervised by sports director Benedikt ERNST, and trained in collaboration with former German heavyweight wrestler Sven THIELE. The medical sector is also well-equipped in Wals-Siezenheim, with physiotherapy and sports medicine staff.

AC Wals A.C. Wals

The UWW Performance Centre is having an impact on the larger Austrian clubs and federations, which are following its example in developing talent under ever-improving conditions, so that an ever-stronger elite is emerging from the existing base. But no champion falls from the sky, no talent becomes a world champion overnight; everything takes time.

The ORSV is firmly committed to the long-term development of its athletes, investing in homegrown talent and building a sustainable future for Austrian wrestling. This philosophy is reflected in the growth of wrestlers such as Markus RAGGINER, Daniel GASTL, Simon MARCHL, Benjamin GREIL, Johannes LUDESCHER, Aker ACHMIDT and, last but not least, 10-time international medallist Martina KUENZ.

Projects like the UWW Performance Centre in Wals-Siezenheim represent exactly the kind of investment that nurtures the next generation, creates lasting foundations for the sport, and ensures that Austria's wrestling future is built from within.

- by Jorg RITCHER, Ringsport Magazine

Iran's Foroutanrami Defends Junior World Title; Russia Leads After Day Two

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Austria Develops Wrestling Future at UWW Performance Centre A.C. Wals