#Grappling

Kazakhstan dominates U17 World Grappling Championships 2024

By United World Wrestling Press

ASTANA, Kazakhstan (October 10) -- Kazakhstan captured all four team titles at the U17 World Grappling Championships held in Astana.

The hosts won the men's and women's U17 Grappling Gi team titles in dominant style with no other country challenging it. However, Ukraine managed to push Kazakhstan in Grappling. Kazakhstan still managed to win the team titles in Grappling.

RESULTS

U17 Men's Grappling Gi

42kg
GOLD: Shapagat SERGAZYULY (KAZ)
SILVER: Sagyndyk AITBAYEV (KAZ)
BRONZE: Denis MURZABAEV (AIN)

46kg
GOLD: Dzhabrail TAVSULTANOV (AIN)
SILVER: Ali AKIMZHAN (KAZ)
BRONZE: Mirkhat IKHLASSOV (KAZ)

50kg
GOLD: Yernar YERALY (KAZ) df. Akhmad KANATULY (KAZ), 6-0

BRONZE: Erasyl MAKHMEDOV (KGZ) df. Julen TRUJILLO (ESP), via submission (2-2)
BRONZE: Zakhar DREMLIUHA (UKR) df. Ilia GRISHENKO (AIN), 2-0

54kg
GOLD: Abdusomad TYNCHTYKBEKOV (KGZ) df. Islam MUSKHANOV (AIN), 4-2

BRONZE: Vladimir YERMOSHKIN (KAZ) df. Radmir AN (KAZ), via submission (8-0)

58kg
GOLD: Jose MARTIN SANCHEZ (ESP) df. Mykhailo KAZYMERCHUK (UKR), via submission (3-2)

BRONZE: Andrei LIASHCHENKO (AIN) df. Vanik SARGSYAN (ARM), 12-1
BRONZE: Akhmet IBRASHEV (KAZ) df. Arsen MURATBEKOV (KGZ), via submission (2-2)

63kg
GOLD: Ramazan TIANGUBER (KGZ) df. Imranali KARIMZHANOV (KAZ), via submission (9-4)

BRONZE: Hrachya GHAZAKHYAN (ARM) df. Adil MAIRAMBEK UULU (KGZ), via cautions
BRONZE: Eduard ASATRYAN (ARM) df. Viktor MENEILIUK (UKR), via submission (2-0)

69kg
GOLD:  Aleksei SKOREV (AIN) df. Sultan RUSLANBEKOV (KGZ), 2-2 (overtime)

BRONZE: Oleksii BOLBOCHAN (UKR) df. Bator FARKAS (HUN), 2-1
BRONZE: Oliwier PRZERWA (POL) df. Ivan STANEV (AIN), 6-0

76kg
GOLD: Shamil GUSEINOV (AIN) df. Alinur BEISEN (KAZ), via submission (2-0)

BRONZE: Dmitrii MULIAK (AIN) df. Aidarkhan BURIBAYEV (KAZ), via submission (5-4)
BRONZE: Artem SAVRANSKYI (UKR) df. Heorhi HLAZKO (AIN), 4-1

85kg
GOLD: Georgii GUTIUM (AIN) df. Ivan NARKEVICH (AIN), 5-2

BRONZE: Alberto MENA CRUZ (ESP) df. Yermek OSPANOV (KAZ), 0-0

110kg
GOLD: Kamil DZIKOWSKI (POL) df. Arsenii ERMAKOV (AIN), 2-0

BRONZE: Nursultan NURGALIYEV (KAZ) df. Timur CHAHOVETS (UKR), 6-2

U17 Women's Grappling Gi

40kg
GOLD: Kateryna SERBOVA (UKR)
SILVER: Khadisha NURTAYEVA (KAZ)
BRONZE: Aysu ALIYEVA (AZE)

43kg
GOLD: Iuliia KHOROSHEVA (AIN) df. Symbat IBRAKHIM (KAZ), via submission (9-0)

46kg
GOLD: Nuray ALTYNBEK (KAZ)
SILVER: Daria SERAZETDINOVA (AIN)
BRONZE: Umit YSKAK (KAZ)

49kg
GOLD: Alsu GALIEVA (AIN)
SILVER: Veronika MARUSHCHAK (AIN)
BRONZE: Aizhan YERKOSSAY (BRONZE)

52kg
GOLD: Sana NDIAYE (FRA) df. Daria KHAMETOVA (AIN), 5-2

BRONZE: Helena ALEKSANDROWICZ (POL) df. Anhelina OTROSHCHENKO (UKR), via submission (7-0)

56kg
GOLD: Ekaterina KONSTANTINOVA (AIN) df. Varvara SHKUROPAT (KAZ), via submission (2-2)

BRONZE: Sara CICIO (ROU) df. Carmina GUILLEN (ESP), via submission (6-0)
BRONZE: Iris GARCIA (ESP) df. Kseniia POLIAK (UKR), via walkover

60kg
GOLD: Malgorzata SALAMON (POL) df. Milana MURGUZOVA (KAZ), 8-2

BRONZE: Sofiia FYLYPCHUK (UKR) df. Aitana LOOR (ESP), 10-1
BRONZE: Daiana HOTIU (ROU) df. Alisa GOLUB (AIN), 13-2

65kg
GOLD: Anastasiia SHAROVA (AIN) df. Olesia ILKINA (AIN), 7-4

BRONZE: Miruna BABAN (ROU) df. Yana MELNYCHUK (UKR), 6-2

90kg
GOLD: Nargiz YAKHYP (KAZ)
SILVER: Tetiana TKACHYK (UKR)
BRONZE: Nuray ARYSTANOVA (KAZ)

U17 Men's Grappling

42kg
GOLD: Adam MISRIEV (AIN)
SILVER: Nurislam KUATBAIULY (KAZ)
BRONZE: Sagyndyk AITBAYEV (KAZ) 

46kg
GOLD: Dzhabrail TAVSULTANOV (AIN) df. Jakub BARDEN (POL), 5-4

BRONZE: Osman SHAKHBANOV (AIN) df. Ualikhan ABDRAZAK (KAZ), via submission

50kg
GOLD: Yerkebulan ISLAMGALI (KAZ) df. Eldar ELDAROV (AIN), via submission (6-2)

BRONZE: Zakhar DREMLIUHA (UKR) df. Daniz HASANOV (AZE), 7-0
BRONZE: Erasyl MAKHMEDOV (KGZ) df. Julen TRUJILLO (ESP), via submission

54kg
GOLD: Islam MUSKHANOV (AIN) df. Yehor TARASENKO (UKR), via submission

BRONZE: Vladimir YERMOSHKIN (KAZ) df. Saulo HERNANDEZ (ESP), 5-2
BRONZE: Aleksandr MAKAROV (AIN) df. Lohan DURANDET (FRA), 5-1

58kg
GOLD: Jose MARTIN SANCHEZ (ESP) df. Artem SHALAEV (AIN), via submission (4-2)

BRONZE: Andrei LIASHCHENKO (AIN) df. Maxim POTAPOV (GER), 12-1
BRONZE: Mykhailo KAZYMERCHUK (UKR) df. Abai DOOLOTOV (KGZ), via submission

63kg
GOLD: Nazir KHAPSIROKOV (AIN) df. Nurdaulet ESSENULY (KAZ), via submission

BRONZE: Ramazan TIANGUBER (KGZ) df. Dorian ALEKSANDROWICZ (POL), 7-0
BRONZE: Viktor MENEILIUK (UKR) df. Hrachya GHAZAKHYAN (ARM), 3-3

69kg
GOLD: Davlet FIZIKOV (AIN) df. Zhalgas TURALIYEV (KAZ), via submission (9-1)

BRONZE: Marcin CHMIELEWSKI (POL) df. Bator FARKAS (HUN), 4-4
BRONZE: Aleksandr KARPENKOV (AIN) df. Oliwier PRZERWA (POL), 7-3

76kg
GOLD: Mukhammad EMINOV (AIN) df. Artem SAVRANSKYI (UKR), 6-0

BRONZE: Shamil GUSEINOV (AIN) df. Mateusz KUCA (POL), 5-1
BRONZE: Csaba SZABO (HUN) df. Heorhi HLAZKO (AIN), 3-2

85kg
GOLD: Georgii GUTIUM (AIN) df. Ivan NARKEVICH (AIN), via submission (2-0)

BRONZE: Oleh STRATIICHUK (UKR) df. Benjamin HENCZI (HUN), 12-0

110kg
GOLD: Kiliaskhan DZHAMALUTDINOV (AIN) df. Mukhammad KHAIRUEV (AIN), 10-0

BRONZE: Kamil Konrad DZIKOWSKI (POL) df. Dias YESPAYEV (KAZ), via submission

U17 Women's Grappling

40kg
GOLD: Kateryna SERBOVA (UKR)
SILVER: Aysu ALIYEVA (AZE)
BRONZE: Khadisha NURTAYEVA (KAZ)

46kg
GOLD: Nuray ALTYNBEK (KAZ)
SILVER: Umit YSKAK (KAZ)
BRONZE: Nikol BATHORI (ROU)

49kg
GOLD: Alsu GALIEVA (AIN)
SILVER: Aikunim RUSLANKYZY (KAZ)
BRONZE: Aizhan YERKOSSAY (KAZ)

52kg
GOLD: Daria KHAMETOVA (AIN) df. Sana NDIAYE (FRA), 5-2

BRONZE: Helena ALEKSANDROWICZ (POL) df. Sylwia WELC (POL), 6-0

56kg
GOLD: Sara CICIO (ROU) df. Ekaterina KONSTANTINOVA (AIN), 9-4

BRONZE: Varvara SHKUROPAT (KAZ) df. Kseniia POLIAK (UKR), via submission (0-2)
 
60kg
GOLD: Alisa GOLUB (AIN) df. Malgorzata SALAMON (POL), via submission (0-2)

BRONZE: Yuliia MELNYCHUK (UKR) df. Aitana LOOR (ESP), 15-3
BRONZE: Olena RYBALCHENKO (UKR) df. Milana MURGUZOVA (KAZ), 5-2

65kg
GOLD: Olesia ILKINA (AIN) df. Angelica NIETO (ESP), via submission (2-2)

BRONZE: Karina GARIFULLINA (KAZ) df. Yana MELNYCHUK (UKR), 6-2

90kg
GOLD: Mercedes GARCIA (ESP)
SILVER: Tetiana TKACHYK (UKR)
BRONZE: Nargiz YAKHYP (KAZ)

#UWWAwards

UWW Most Dominant Wrestlers 2025: Amouzad, Motoki, Esmaeili

By Eric Olanowski

CORSIER-SUR-VEVEY, Switzerland (December 24) -- There were several dominant performances in 2025 on the wrestling mat. But it was three wrestlers who remained at the top of their weight classes and racked up dominant wins one after another. Two were Olympic champions while one was an Olympic silver medalist. All three became world champions in Zagreb.

Freestyle Most Dominant Wrester: Rahman AMOUZAD (IRI)

- 14–0
- Rank 1 at 65kg 
- 58,000 RS points 
- Outscored world and Olympic medalists 42–4
- World Championships, Tirana RS and ISG golds

Rahman AMOUZAD (IRI) was about as perfect as you could be in a season, returning to prominence with title-winning efforts at the World Championships, Islamic Solidarity Games and Muhamet Malo Ranking Series event and finishing the season as the No.1 ranked wrestler in the world at 65kg with 58,000 Ranking Series points.

The Paris silver medalist, collected an unblemished 14-0 record in 2025 -- with five of those wins coming against top-level opponents who have world or Olympic medals on their resumes in Olympic champion Kotaro KIYOOKA (JPN), Umidjon JALALOV (UZB), Taiyrbek ZHUMASHBEK UULU (KGZ) and Real WOODS (USA). The craziest part about those five matches against the world’s best, Amouzad outscored 42-4.

But without a doubt, the highlight of Amouzad’s season came in Zagreb when he finally got his long awaited rematch, beating Kotaro KIYOOKA in a revenge match from the Paris 2024 Olympic finals.

The scariest part about Amouzad’s dominance -- he’s only 23 years old and he’s still getting better.

Women's Wrestling Dominant Wrestler: Sakura MOTOKI (JPN)

- 9-0
- Five pins, two technical superiorities
- 45,000 RS points 
- 8/9 bouts finished before regulation
- Completed Golden Grand Slam (U17, U20, U23, Senior World and Olympic gold)

Coming into the 2025 season, Motoki made her goals crystal clear -- become the third wrestler in history of the sport to win wrestling’s Golden Grand Slam -- and for those who don’t know, that is gold medals at the U17, U20, U23, Senior World Championships and the Olympic Games.

The only two missing from the Olympic champ's resume were the U23 and Senior World golds.

At the 2025 U23 and senior World Championships, Motoki showed that she’s in a league of her own, as she went 9-0, with eight  matches finishing before time expired. She scored five falls and two technical superiority wins.

Her win in the final of the World Championships will be one that will be talked about for ages as the most dramatic win of the season. Motoki scored a buzzer-beating takedown against Ok Ju KIM (PRK) with a 10-second flurry that consisted of a head outside single, arm throw, over-under knee pick, before head locking Kim with four tenths of a second left to keep her history making hopes alive.

In the end, Motoki’s heart and courage under fire helped her close out the year as the third wrestler to complete the Golden Grand Slam and she did it with a level of dominance we may not see again for a very long time.

Greco-Roman Dominant Wrestler: Saeid ESMAEILI (IRI)

- Rank 1 at 67kg 
- 58,000 RS points  
- 11–0 Record
- World Championships, Asian Championships and  ISG golds

In a 2025 campaign that saw him become a world champion, Esmaeili's season was immaculate, as he cemented his place among the sport’s top pound-for-pound wrestler with a season full of titles, stacking gold-medals at the World Championships, Asian Championships and Islamic Solidarity Games, rounding out the season ranked No. 1 in the world at 67kg.

The Paris Olympic champion remained unbeaten in 2025, winning all 11 bouts of his bouts in dominant fashion -- scoring eight shutout wins, with seven technical falls -- including a pair of 9-0 win against world champions Aytjan KHALMAKHANOV (UZB) and Sebastian NAD (SRB). The reigning Olympic gold medalist also collected two victories over Paris 2024 Olympic bronze medalist Hasrat JAFAROV (AZE), one in the world final and one in the Islamic Game gold-medal match, where he tossed his Azeri opponent for four as time expired to rob his rival of the title.

His opponents should not ease up because at just 22 years old, Esmaeili is still sharpening his tool set and leveling up his skills.