World Champion Spotlight

Meet Yui Susaki, Japan's 20-Year-Old Six-Time World Champion

Friday, January 4, 2019 - 15:52 By Eric Olanowski

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CORSIER-SUR-VEVEY, Switzerland (January 4) - At just 20 years of age, Yui SUSAKI (JPN) has reached the top of the world stage six times across all age-levels. Her international resume remains unblemished and includes a trio of cadet world titles, a junior world championship and a pair of senior-level world gold medals. 

Susaki’s international debut came at the 2014 Cadet World Championships in Snina, Slovakia, where she went undefeated and claimed the 43kg world title. She ultimately went on to win back-to-back-to-back cadet world titles, claiming the 46kg and 49kg world titles in 2015 and 2016, respectively.

Surprisingly, in 2017, the Waseda University freshman (who's studying Sports Science) bypassed the junior-circuit and made her senior-level debut at the “Toughest Wrestling Tournament in the World,” the Ivan Yarygin, where she outscored her five opponents 48-0 and grabbed her first-ever senior-level gold medal. 

Susaki continued her dominance through 2017, winning the Klippan Lady Open and the Asian Championships before heading to Paris, France to make her World Championship debut. In her rookie debut, Susaki went 5-0, finished four of those five matches early with technical superiority victories and outscored her opponents 53-8. 

In 2018, Susaki failed to make Japan’s Asian Games and Asian Championship teams and decided to circle back and compete at the 2018 Junior World Championships in Trnava, Slovakia. The Japanese superstar won her first junior world title and fifth overall world championship with a quartet of 10-0 wins before booking her trip to Budapest, Hungary, to defend her senior-level world title. 

Susaki proved that she belongs in the discussion as one of the most dominant wrestlers across all styles, in all divisions after successfully defending her world title in Budapest. To win back-to-back senior-level world titles, Susaki shutout reigning world finalist Emilia VUC (ROU), world bronze medalist Oksana LIVACH (UKR), and the eight-time world and Olympic medalist Mariya STADNIK (AZE). 

After winning her second straight world title, Susaki was forced to withdraw from Japan's Emperor's Cup due to a dislocated elbow suffered at the national team training camp last month. This means that Susaki will have to win the All-Japan Invitational Championships, also known as the Meiji Cup, next spring, then defeat the winner of this tournament (known as the Emperor’s Cup) in a playoff. 

Click here to follow Yui on Instagram! 

#UWWAwards

Ono, Bondar, Hedayati named UWW's Rising Stars for 2024

Thursday, December 12, 2024 - 15:56 By Vinay Siwach

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United World Wrestling has named Masanosuke ONO (JPN), Iryna BONDAR (UKR) and Fardin HEDAYATI (IRI) as the Emerging Stars of the Year in Freestyle, Women's Wrestling and Greco-Roman for 2024.

Masanosuke ONO (JPN)

A storm hit the wrestling world late in the season. 20-year-old Masanosuke ONO (JPN) went on a rampage at the U20 and senior World Championships, winning both titles.

He first competed internationally at the Yasar Dogu tournament in March this year, winning the gold medal in a 28-wrestler 61kg bracket. Then he moved up to 65kg for the Asian Championships in Bishkek. However, he suffered a fall against Tulga TUMUR OCHIR (MGL) in his first bout. He returned to win the bronze medal.

That loss against Tumur Ochir would be a distant memory as Ono went on to win gold at the U20 World Championships, winning three out of four bouts via technical superiority. Then came the World Championships Tirana with Ono being a dark horse.

He quickly changed that to the favorite to win the gold medal as he opened with a huge 10-2 win over Tokyo Olympic champion Zavur UGUEV (AIN). He went on to add four more wins for the gold medal with scores reading 12-0, 11-0, 12-0 and 10-0.

Ono, currently a student at Yamanashi Gakuin University, earned new fans in Tirana with his dynamic style of wrestling and his celebrations. Most fans are glued to their seats when Ono is on the mat as in Tirana as he showed his range of attacks, from leg attacks to par terre and from upper body throws to leg laces.

Iryna BONDAR (UKR)Iryna BONDAR (UKR) won six gold medals, including two at world championships, this year. (Photo: United World Wrestling / Kadir Caliskan)

Iryna BONDAR (UKR)

Among one of the most active wrestlers this year, Iryna BONDAR (UKR) clearly emerges as the future star in the making.

Bondar has competed at a staggering eight tournaments this year and won gold medals at six. Bondar began the year with an eighth-place finish at the Zagreb Open, her first senior competition, but then began a prolific run of winning gold medals at all age-group tournaments.

Bondar began with the U23 European Championships, added the second at the Budapest Ranking Series before adding the gold at the U20 European Championships. Then came the World Championships season. She won the U20 World Championships gold medal at 62kg, a month later she added the U23 World Championships gold medal at 62kg.

She could have capped off her season on a high but she participated in her first senior World Championships days after the U23 event. Wrestling at 65kg, she suffered a close loss to Miwa MORIKAWA (JPN).

In the four championships this year, Bodnar has outscored her opponents 155-25 in 18 bouts. Before that loss in Tirana, she was on a 24-0 winning run this year.

Bondar has been an active wrestler on the tour and won medals at the U20, U23 World Championships before, finishing with silvers and bronzes. However, the gold rush came this year.

Her form at 62kg makes her the heir apparent to two-time Olympic medalist Iryna KOLIADENKO (UKR) who recently won a silver medal at the Paris Olympics.

Fardin HEDAYATI (IRI)Fardin HEDAYATI (IRI) won the 130kg gold at the U23 World Championships. (Photo: United World Wrestling / Amirreza Aliasgari)

Fardin HEDAYATI (IRI)

While a lot can be said about Fardin HEDAYATI (IRI) and his age-group world titles, his stunned the wrestling world in Budapest this year.

At the Budapest Ranking Series in July, a tune-up tournament for the Paris Olympics, Hedayati shocked world and Olympic champion Riza KAYAALP (TUR) at Greco-Roman 130kg with a 4-0 win. Hedayati broke the Turkish legend in the six-minute bout and claimed the most famous win of his career so far.

Hedayati has been knocking on the 130kg door of the Iran team for long but Olympic bronze medalist Amin MIRZAZADEH (IRI) is still holding the spot. But the 2024 year has further Hedayati's claim over it.

Beginning the year with the Zagreb Open Ranking Series, Hedayati won he gold medal at 130kg with victories over Laszlo DARABOS (HUN), Wenhao JIANG (CHN), Oscar PINO HINDS (CUB), Mantas KNYSTAUTAS (LTU) and Lingzhe MENG (CHN).

Then came the 2024 Vehbi Emre tournament in which he challenged Mirzazadeh for the spot on Iran team but suffered a loss, his only of the season. He bounced back quickly from that and won the Budapest Ranking Series gold medal. Hedayati's style an be gauged with the fact that he did no give up a single point in three bouts in Budapest, making him a highly active wrestler.

He capped off the year with his first U23 World Championships gold medal at 130kg in Tirana. Hedayati's golden run included victories over some of the biggest names in age-group wrestling like Pavel HLINCHUK (AIN), Mykhailo VYSHNYVETSKYI (UKR), Hamza BAKIR (TUR).

Only Vyshnyvetskyi, who defeated Hedayati for the gold at the U20 World Championships in 2022, was able to score points on Hedayati when he hit an arm-throw. However, even in that bout, the Iranian never looked in any trouble.

Hedayati's active wrestler makes it difficult for his opponents to get him in forced par terre, making it difficult for them to score.