Otoguro repeats as 65kg champ without a fight as Punia injury aborts anticipated clash

Saturday, April 17, 2021 - 16:45 By United World Wrestling Press

The highly anticipated third clash of the Asian 65kg titans never made it to the mat, and after receiving an injury default from rival Bajrang PUNIA (IND), Takuto OTOGURO (JPN) said he would love for the match to happen this summer in Tokyo.

Former world champion Otoguro repeated as 65kg champion at the Asian Championships when Punia pulled out of the final due to an elbow injury suffered during his semifinal match earlier Saturday in Almaty.

"It feels weird to not wrestle," said Punia, for whom the silver becomes the sixth Asian medal of his career. "This is the first time ever I have said no to a bout internationally against a person from another country. It feels bad."

Ravi KUMAR (IND) also retained his Asian crown when he defeated Alireza SARLAK (IRI) 9-4 in the 57kg final, as the five golds up for grabs went to wrestlers from five different nations on Day 5 of the six-day tournament in the empty Baluan Sholak Palace of Culture and Sports.

Otoguro, who was competing for the first time since his victory over Punia in the final at last year's Asian Championships in New Delhi, was disappointed that the match with the Indian star was aborted, but accepted that injuries are part and parcel to the sport.

"A final with Bajrang is always an interesting match, and I was really looking forward to it," Otoguro said. "He also wrestles hard and has his share of injuries. It can't be helped.

"I look forward to having a match at the Tokyo Olympics."

The two had first met in the final at the 2018 World Championships in Budapest, where a then-19-year-old Otoguro came out on top in a wild 16-9 victory that made him the youngest freestyle world champion in Japan history.

Otoguro, who graduated from Yamanashi Gakuin University in March, said he was able to continue training for the most part, as Yamanashi Prefecture, north of Tokyo, was not hard-hit by the coronavirus. "At the very least, I could run in the mountains," he said.

He participated in sporadically scheduled national team training camps, and then prepared for Almaty as a new member of the sports division of the Japan Self-Defense Forces, into which he was inducted in March. His older brother Keisuke, who will compete tomorrow at 74kg, is also a member.

Asked about being in what is regarded as the most competitive weight class, Otoguro responded, "I'm happy that I can fight in the weight class with the highest level. I welcome the challenge of beating them."

In the 57kg final, Kumar outlasted Sarlak for a victory that left the Iranian in tears after they kept trading scoring moves, but Kumar's were for bigger points.

"The feeling to be a champion again is unexplainable," Kumar said. "It has been long. I lost one tournament last year so it’s great to be back on top position," he said, referring to a loss by fall at the World Cup in Serbia.

In the first period, Kumar interspersed a takedown and 2-point barrel roll with three stepouts by Sarlak for a 4-3 lead. The two exchanged stepouts to start the second period, before the 2019 world bronze medalist pulled away with two takedowns in the last 1:15.

"The Iran wrestler was really good, but this was my first bout with him so I was keeping it normal," he said. "I wasn’t trying to do too much."

The surprise of the finals came at 79kg, where Byungmin GONG (KOR) edged 2020 bronze medalist Ali SAVADKOUHI (IRI) 5-3, scoring a takedown with 11 seconds left for his third straight close win of the competition.

"Korean freestyle wrestling has not been so good in the past couple of years and I am happy to change that to a certain extent with this gold medal," said Gong, a 2018 Asian Games bronze medalist at 74kg. "I am happy to be part of this tradition."

In the final, Savadkouhi was going behind when Gong clamped down on his arm and turned him over for 2, after which the Iranian finished off his move for a 1-point reversal.

In the second period, Savadkouhi looked to have clinched the victory when he came out of a flurry in control for 2 with :16 left, only to be caught in a double-leg tackle that allowed Gong to snatch victory from the jaws of defeat.

"Regardless of who the opponent is, I always go into the bout to beat them," said Gong, whose combined margin of victory in his three matches was three points (he won his semifinal 5-5).

"[My coaches and I] developed a strategy that whatever happens, keep calm," he said. "Play it safe but don't back down. Play cool, calm and collective."

Gong already has his next challenge lined up -- dropping to 74kg to enter the final Olympic qualifying tournament in Sofia next month.

"I am not going to lie, it is going to be hard in 74kg at Sofia. But I just want to wrestle hard and adapt to the situation whenever it arises. I think that is the best I can do."

For Savadkouhi, the 2019 Asian U-23 champion, all that is left is to reflect on what might have been. "I can't believe the mistakes I made in the final," he said. "I was not able to win the gold and it pains me."

In contrast to Gong's tight path to gold, Ali SHABANIBENGAR (IRI) was totally dominant at 97kg, steamrolling 2020 bronze medalist Alisher YERGALI (KAZ) 12-2 in the final for his third technical fall in three matches.

Shabanigengar got a stepout late in the first period to take a 3-2 lead into the second, but opened the floodgates with a 4-point ankle pick that he followed with a 2-point gut wrench.

An unsuccessful challenge added a point, which provided the necessary margin of difference when he dumped Yergali during a single-leg takedown to end the match at 3:44.

"Thank God that I got a gold medal at the Asian Championships, and I thank God that I could defeat my opponent so dominantly," said Shabanibengar, a 2018 world U-23 bronze medalist.

The host nation earned the other gold of the night, when two-time world junior medalist Syrbaz TALGAT (KAZ) scored four points in the second period of an 6-2 victory over Sirojiddin KHASANOV (UZB) in an at-times tempestuous 70kg final.

Khasanov had a 2-2 lead on criteria after the first period, but got a takedown and two stepouts -- after the second one, Khasanov gave him a little shove to the head -- to add the Asian senior title to the junior one he won in 2019.

"I am really happy to win the competition since we are hosting at home," Talgat said. "I felt the responsibility to win at home.

"All of my opponents were prepared and were tough, so to win gold against them was a good thing. Most of my opponents had already competed at the senior level, but for me it was the first time."

In the bronze-medal matches, Narsingh YADAV (IND) picked up his first major medal since returning last year from a four-year doping ban, defeating Ahmed AL GBURI (IRQ) 8-2 at 79kg.

Yadav last brought home hardware in 2015, when he won world and Asian bronze medals at 74kg. Yadav, who placed 13th at the London 2012 Olympics, won the Asian title back in 2010.

Saiakbai USUPOV (KGZ) returned to the medal podium for the first time since 2016, again to receive a bronze, when he rolled to a 10-0 technical fall over Galymzhan USSERBAYEV (KAZ) in the other third-place match at 79kg.

Yuto TAKESHITA (JPN) extended Japan's run of bronze medalists at 57kg to four straight years, posting a solid 7-0 victory over Muhammad BILAL (PAK). Takeshita followed in the footsteps of 2017 world and Asian champion Yuki TAKAHASHI (JPN), who had back-to-back third-place finishes in 2019 and 2020, and Tomohiro HASEGAWA (JPN), a bronze medalist in 2018.

Morteza GHIASI CHEKA (IRI), one of the group of up-and-coming wrestlers dispatched by Iran for international seasoning, added a bronze medal to the Middle East powerhouse's tally with victory by fall over Nodir RAKHIMOV (UZB).

Ghiasi Cheka had levered Rakhimov to his back to go up 7-0 when the Uzbek called it a day with 10 seconds left.

Satywart KADIAN (IND), a silver medalist at 97kg a year ago, captured his third career Asian bronze, and he couldn't have cut any closer. He scored the winning takedown at the buzzer, and with an unsuccessful challenge point added, came away with a 5-2 win over Minwon SEO (KOR).

The other bronzes went to: Nodirjon SAFAROV (UZB) at 57kg, Yongseok JEONG (KOR) at 65kg, Islambek OROZBEKOV (KGZ) and Karan MOR (IND) at 70kg, and Takashi ISHIGURO (JPN) at 97kg.

The tournament wraps up Sunday with competition in the other five weight classes in freestyle, 61g, 74kg, 86kg, 92kg and 125kg.

Featured is the return of world and Olympic champion Hassan YAZDANI (IRI) to the Asian Championships at 86kg for the first time since 2018, when he won the gold in his lone appearance.

Yazdani, the 2019 world champion, has lost only once since 2016, a first-round loss to David TAYLOR (USA) at the 2018 worlds, where he went on to win a bronze medal.

Day 5 Results Freestyle

Finals

57kg (12 entries)
GOLD - Ravi KUMAR (IND) df. Alireza SARLAK (IRI), 9-4
BRONZE - Nodirjon SAFAROV (UZB) df. Ali ABURUMAILA (PLE) by TF, 12-2, 3:55
BRONZE - Yuto TAKESHITA (JPN) df. Muhammad BILAL (PAK), 7-0

65kg (11 entries)
GOLD - Takuto OTOGURO (JPN) df. Bajrang PUNIA (IND) by Default
BRONZE - Yongseok JEONG (KOR) df. Bilguun SARMANDAKH (MGL), 4-4
BRONZE - Morteza GHIASI CHEKA (IRI) df Nodir RAKHIMOV (UZB) by Fall, 5:50 (7-0)

70kg (10 entries)
GOLD - Syrbaz TALGAT (KAZ) df. Sirojiddin KHASANOV (UZB), 6-2
BRONZE - Islambek OROZBEKOV (KGZ) df. Perman HOMMADOV (TKM), 6-1
BRONZE - Karan MOR (IND) df. Seungbong LEE (KOR), 3-1

79kg (11 entries)
GOLD - Byungmin GONG (KOR) d. Ali SAVADKOUHI (IRI), 5-3
BRONZE - Narsingh YADAV (IND) df. Ahmed AL GBURI (IRQ), 8-2
BRONZE - Saiakbai USUPOV (KGZ) df. Galymzhan USSERBAYEV (KAZ) by TF, 10-0, 6:00

97kg (11 entries)
GOLD - Ali SHABANIBENGAR (IRI) df. Alisher YERGALI (KAZ) by TF, 12-2, 3:44
BRONZE - Takashi ISHIGURO (JPN) df. Altangerel CHINBAT (MGL), 1-1
BRONZE - Satywart KADIAN (IND) df. Minwon SEO (KOR), 5-2

Japan Wrestling

High schooler Yoshida completes historic Japan national title double

Thursday, December 19, 2024 - 15:00 By Ken Marantz

Taizo YOSHIDA, left, battles Yuya OKAJIMA in the Greco 82kg final. (photo by Takeo YABUKI / JWF)

TOKYO (December 19) -- As the wrestling world still buzzes about those four gold medals won by Japanese men at the Paris Olympics, a rising star is emerging who looks capable of showing that there will more of that ahead.

Teenager Taizo YOSHIDA, already a senior Asian champion, became just the fourth high schooler in history to win a men's title at the Emperor's Cup All-Japan Championships when he triumphed at Greco 82kg on Thursday in Tokyo.

Meanwhile, Ami ISHII and Miwa MORIKAWA, who both medaled at the Non-Olympic Weight Category World Championships after failing to qualify for the Paris Olympics, regained the women's 68kg and 65kg titles, respectively.

The 18-year-old Yoshida recorded three straight technical falls before defeating veteran Yuya OKAJIMA 5-0 in the final on the opening day of the four-day tournament at Tokyo's Yoyogi No. 2 Gym that is serving as the first of two domestic qualifiers for next year's World Championships.

The other world qualifier is the Meiji Cup All-Japan Invitational Championships, which will be held in June next year. Having won that tournament this year, Yoshida's victory on Thursday made him the only male high schooler to achieve the Emperor's-Meiji double.

"To win both the Meiji Cup and Emperor's Cup as a high schooler is quite a feat, and I achieved it," said Yoshida, who lost a close match in the final at last year's Emperor's Cup. "To be able to say I was the first makes me really happy."

Yoshida made his first mark on the global stage by winning the world U17 gold at 80kg in 2023. That was just a prelude for what was to come in 2024, as he won the gold at the Asian Championships, then took a bronze at the world U20 and finished fifth at the senior worlds.

He said that working on his par terre wrestling has made a difference. "Up to the Meiji Cup, I was at a level where I couldn't get a roll even once. But I worked on improving my ground wrestling, and I think this was the payoff."

Yoshida is from the same rural high school in western Japan that produced Paris Olympic champion Nao KUSAKA, and he will follow in Kusaka's footsteps and enroll at powerhouse Nippon Sports Science University (known informally as Nittaidai) in the spring as he begins his quest for the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics.

"Takamatsu Kita High School is really out in the country, and we had few members on the [wrestling] team and not a good practice environment," Yoshida said. "But out of that an Olympic champion emerged, and that makes me believe that it is possible for me.

"I will be in my senior year of college at the time of the Los Angeles Olympics. The training situation will be at a much higher level at Nittaidai, and as a culmination of my four years, I want to win an Olympic title along with Nao."

While victory laps are not standard procedure at the Emperor's Cup, Yoshida made an exception by taking one that was more a tribute to Kusaka -- instead of a Japanese flag, he ran a quick lap with one of the towels that Kusaka's supporters brandished in Paris.

"It wasn't very exciting, but it made him happy. Maybe he'll buy me something," Yoshida joked.

JPN1 Ami ISHII scores a takedown on Mahiro YOSHITAKE in the women's 68kg final. (photo by Takeo YABUKI / JWF)

Ishii captures 7th straight major tournament title

Ishii, coming off winning her first world title with a victory at 72kg in Tirana -- which she preceded the week before by capturing the world U23 gold at 68kg -- easily plowed through a thin field to regain the 68kg Emperor's Cup crown that she won in 2023.

Ishii, who still feels the sting of a crushing, last-second loss to Nonoka OZAKI in a playoff for the Paris Olympic 68kg berth, won both of her round-robin group matches 10-0, then repeated that score in routing Asian 65kg champion Mahiro YOSHITAKE in the final.

"I lost in the qualifying for Paris, and I have set a goal of going to the Los Angeles Olympics and winning the gold," Ishii said. "My main objective is getting to Los Angeles and it started by winning today at the Emperor's Cup by focusing on each and every match."

The pain of missing out on Paris was so sharp that Ishii revealed that she did not even watch the wrestling competition, with the exception of her Ikuei University teammates Tsugumi SAKURAI and Sakura MOTOKI, who both went on to win gold medals.

"Half of me didn't want to, but I had worked so hard with Sakura and Tsugumi to make us all better, so of course I had to support them. But I didn't watch anyone else," she said, adding that she did watch other Olympic sports.

Since the playoff in January, Ishii has been among the busiest of Japan's top wrestlers. While the Olympic medalists have been barely seen outside of television appearances and hometown events -- only Ozaki is entered in this year's Emperor's Cup -- Ishii entered seven high-level tournaments, as well as a few small regional events, and won them all.

"There was no pressure that if I lost, I wouldn't qualify for something else. I was really happy to take part. And it was half-joking, half-serious, but after my first win after the playoff, I would say I was on my way to beating Akari FUJINAMI's winning streak, which was 127 at the time. Right now I am at 27 in a row."

JPN2 Miwa MORIKAWA, right, holds off Momoko KITADE in the women's 65kg final. (photo by Takeo YABUKI / JWF)

Morikawa, the 2022 world champion at 65kg, had also tried to make the Olympic team at 68kg, a quest that ended with a loss in last year's Emperor's Cup final to Ozaki. She then won a playoff to get to the non-Olympic worlds at 65kg, where she took a bronze home from Tirana.

On Thursday, Morikawa was not overly dominating. In the final, she scored four stepouts -- one with a fleeing point tacked on -- in a 5-0 victory over Momoko KITADE.

"I had aimed for winning by technical superiority, but this whole tournament, nothing went right for me," Morikawa said. "But I think I have some clear issues to work on in the future."

Morikawa has twice been foiled in a bid to make it to the Olympics, and is determined to not have to endure a third time. The domestic qualifying for Los Angeles will start with the 2026 Emperor's Cup, so for now, she will stay at 65kg and work on sharpening her game and rebuilding confidence.

"To be honest, there are strong wrestlers in every weight class. I want to dominate this weight class and, with the qualifying for Los Angeles starting [in two years], I am only thinking about improving."

jpg Yoshinosuke AOYAGI works to turn Toki OGAWA in the freestyle 70kg final. (photo by Takeo YABUKI / JWF)

Aoyagi cruises to 3rd straight freestyle 70kg crown

Another medalist from the non-Olympic worlds who made it to the top of the podium was Yoshinosuke AOYAGI, who won a third straight crown at 70kg by defeating Toki OGAWA by 10-0 technical fall in the final.

For Aoyagi, it capped a productive year in which he won a silver medal at the Asian Championships, won the title at the Meiji Cup, finished third at the world U23 (a year after placing second), then took a silver at the non-Olympic worlds in Tirana.

"I feel like I won because the flow of my matches went really well," Aoyagi said.

Acknowledging that his overseas success this year has boosted his confidence, he added that he feels pressure from within the training group at Yamanashi Gakuin University, from which he graduated last spring. That includes Kaito MORITA, who he faced and defeated 5-0 in the semifinals.

"There are guys coming up from within my own team that are steadily turning up the heat," Aoyagi said. "The semifinal was tough; to be honest, it scared me. In the final, you never know what will happen."

At freestyle 65kg, Kaisei TANABE, whose father Chikara was a bronze medalist at the 2004 Athens Olympics, defeated world U23 silver medalist Kaiji OGINO 2-0 in the final to add that title to the one he won last year at 61kg.

In the semifinals, Tanabe scored a 7-2 victory over two-time world U20 champion Yuto NISHIUCHI, who had beaten him at the collegiate championships in August.

The 61kg title went to Takara SUDA in the absence of world champion and Yamanashi Gakuin teammate Masanosuke ONO, who is still recovering from a broken foot suffered en route to winning the gold in Tirana.

Day 1 Results

Freestyle

61kg (16 entries)
GOLD -- Takara SUDA df. Hiroyuki ISHIHARA, 5-2
BRONZE -- Akito MUKAIDA df. Toshihiro HASEGAWA, 6-3
BRONZE -- Takeru OIKAWA df. Haruto OURA, 4-0

65kg (17 entries)
GOLD -- Kaisei TANABE df. Kaiji OGINO, 2-0
BRONZE -- Yuto NISHIUCHI df. Reiji UCHIDA by TF, 10-0, 3:15
BRONZE -- Ryuto SAKAKI df. Yuta MIYAZAKI, 7-0

70kg (20 entries)
GOLD -- Yoshinosuke AOYAGI df. Toki OGAWA by TF, 10-0, 1:14
BRONZE -- Kanata YAMAGUCHI df. Kaito MORITA by TF, 11-0, 2:21
BRONZE -- Yuma TOMIYAMA df. Yuto MIWA, 9-6

Greco-Roman

82kg (17 entries)
GOLD -- Taizo YOSHIDA df. Yuya OKAJIMA, 5-0
BRONZE -- Konosuke TANIZAKI df. Yuto SAWADA by TF, 8-0, 1:35
BRONZE -- Reon KAKEGAWA df. Yudai KOBORI by TF, 9-0, 1:46

87kg (9 entries)
GOLD -- So SAKABE df. Daisei ISOE by TF, 8-0, 1:27
BRONZE -- Isshin ONITSUKA df. Kou FUKUSHIMA by TF, 9-1, 4:13
BRONZE -- Akira YOSHIZAWA df. Sora SATO by TF, 8-0, 3:50

97kg (12 entries)
GOLD -- Yuri NAKAZATO df. Takahiro TSURUTA, 2-1
BRONZE -- Kanta SHIOKAWA df. Hikaru ISOTANI by TF, 9-0, 1:11
BRONZE -- Riku NAKAHARA df. Sorato KANAZAWA, 11-5

Women's Wrestling

65kg (9 entries)
GOLD -- Miwa MORIKAWA df. Momoko KITADE, 5-0
BRONZE -- Nana IKEHATA df. Miyu YOSHIKAWA, 4-4
BRONZE -- Rin TERAMOTO df. Horu SATO by TF, 11-0, 4:41

68kg (6 entries)
GOLD -- Ami ISHII df. Mahiro YOSHITAKE by TF, 10-0, 2:24
BRONZE -- Seia MOCHINAGA df. Kaede MATSUYAMA, 3-1

Otoguro repeats as 65kg champ without a fight as Punia injury aborts anticipated clash

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High schooler Yoshida completes historic Japan national title double