#WrestleZagreb

Ramazanov makes golden debut at Zagreb Open; Nolf, Aman champs

Thursday, January 11, 2024 - 00:17 By Vinay Siwach

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ZAGREB, Croatia (January 10) -- Magomed RAMAZANOV (BUL) has had a busy week. After winning the Bulgarian Championships on Friday, he traveled to Germany for the Bundesliga and won. On Wednesday, he made his way through a tough 86kg bracket to win the Zagreb Open.

"I’ve already wrestled 11 bouts this week and I still have one more left this Saturday," Ramazanov said. "I was out for two years so it’s not a problem for me to wrestle even daily, because I am really hungry and want to participate in more tournaments."

Making his international debut for Bulgaria, Russian transfer Ramazanov won five bouts in Zagreb to clinch the gold medal and put his name in the hat at 86kg seven months before the Paris Olympics.

Ramazanov's run in Zagreb began with a win over Ethan RAMOS (PUR), followed by victories over Maxwell DEAN (USA), Arsenii DZHIOEV (AZE) and Chandler MARSTELLER (USA).

From the other side, two-time world bronze medalist Azamat DAULETBEKOV (KAZ) was dominating proceedings, having opened the day with a 6-2 win over Deepak PUNIA (UWW). He reached the final with three technical superiority wins over Valentyn BABII (UKR), Evsem SHVELIDZE (GEO) and Matthew FINESILVER (ISR).

Dauletbekov looked set to beat Ramazanov as he led 5-0 at the break but the second period saw a different Ramazanov as he scored single-leg takedowns to lead 6-5 with 45 seconds remaining in the final.

This shocked Dauletbekov who was struggling with his conditioning. Once Ramazanov felt that he had broken Dauletbekov, he piled up his attacks, winning 8-5.

"The final match was a little difficult, my opponent was experienced," he said. "That’s why I had to prepare seriously for that match. In the first period, I was behind but in the second period I went all in and turned the tide of the match."

Ramazamov would like to carry this form into his Saturday's Bundesliga bout and the European Championships which begins a month later in Bucharest, Romania.

Jason NOLF (USA)Jason NOLF (USA) pins Georgios KOUGIOUMTSIDIS (GRE) in the 74kg semifinal. (Photo: United World Wrestling / Kostadin Andonov)

Jason NOLF (USA) defended his 74kg gold medal with an impressive show throughout the day. Hossein ABOUZARIPASHKOLAEI (IRI) was the second Iranian wrestler who tried to stop Nolf from winning the gold medal. Yones EMAMI (IRI) was in the final last year but Abouzaripashkolaei defeated him 4-4 in the quarterfinals to advance.

Celebrating his 28th birthday on Wednesday, Nolf was slow to start in the final and allowed Abouzaripashkolaei to get the first activity point at the break. But the second period saw Nolf's ascend as he scored takedowns with ease. A 10-1 scoreline in his favor meant that he added a second Zagreb Open gold.

In the semifinals, Nolf pinned European champion Georgios KOUGIOUMTSIDIS (GRE) in just 35 seconds.

"I am satisfied with my performance," Nolf said. "Whenever I can give 100 percent on the mat, I feel happy."

Vazgen TEVANYAN (ARM)Vazgen TEVANYAN (ARM) scores on Joseph MCKENNA (USA) in the 65kg quarterfinals. (Photo: UWW / Kadir Caliskan)

At 65kg, Vazgen TEVANYAN (ARM) won the gold medal after Rahman AMOUZAD (IRI) pulled out injured. Tevanyan had earlier avenged his World Championships semifinal loss to Sebastian RIVERA (PUR) and was looking to challenge Amouzad.

Amouzad secured his spot on the Iran Olympic team as he defeated Abbas EBRAHIMZADEH (IRI) 12-4 in the semifinals to settle the debate.  

Tevenyan defeated Joseph MC KENNA (USA) 5-2 in the quarterfinals before humbling Riveria 9-1 which included a remarkable four-point throw.

AMAN (IND)AMAN (UWW) improved on his bronze-medal finish from last year and won gold at 57kg. (Photo: UWW / Kostadin Andonov)

Improving on his bronze-medal finish from last year, AMAN (UWW) won the gold at 57kg after four technical superiority wins in as many bouts. In the final, the Asian champion took on Wanhao ZOU (CHN) and never gave the slightest of chances to the Chinese wrestler. Winning 10-0, Aman improved on the previous win over Zou which was 7-4 in the Asian Championships semifinals.

His other wins included 15-4 over Muhammet KARAVUS (TUR), 11-0 over Zane RICHARDS (USA) and 11-0 over Roberti DINGASHVILI (GEO) in the semifinal.

Bekhbayar ERDENEBAT (MGL)Bekhbayar ERDENEBAT (MGL) defeated Andrii DZHELEP (UKR) in the 61kg final. (Photo: UWW / Kostadin Andonov)

At 61kg, Bekhbayar ERDENEBAT (MGL) returned to competition after more than two years and surprised everyone by winning the gold medal over Andrii DZHELEP (UKR), 9-2.

Erdenbat had traveled to Zagreb to help his ward Zane RICHARDS (USA) at 57kg. While he won the gold medal, Richards lost to Aman and failed to win the bronze medal as well.

In an all-Georgia final at 70kg, Akaki KEMERTELIDZE (GEO) managed to hand Giorgi ELBAKIDZE (GEO) a 7-4 defeat.

 

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RESULTS

57kg
GOLD: AMAN (UWW) df. Wanhao ZOU (CHN), 10-0

BRONZE: Muhammet KARAVUS (TUR) df. Roberti DINGASHVILI (GEO), via fall (14-5)
BRONZE: Georgi VANGELOV (BUL) df. Horst LEHR (GER), 3-1. 
by VPO1, 3 - 1

61kg
GOLD: Bekhbayar ERDENEBAT (MGL) df. Andrii DZHELEP (UKR), 9-2

BRONZE: Aliabbas RZAZADE (AZE) df. Joseph SILVA (PUR), 4-2
BRONZE: Nuraddin NOVRUZOV (AZE) df. Daniel POPOV (ISR), 7-3

65kg
GOLD: Vazgen TEVANYAN (ARM) df. Rahman AMOUZAD (IRI), via inj. def. 

BRONZE: Joseph MC KENNA (USA) df. Sebastian C RIVERA (PUR), 10-0
BRONZE: Abbas EBRAHIMZADEH (IRI) df. Abdullah TOPRAK (TUR), 10-0

70kg
GOLD: Akaki KEMERTELIDZE (GEO) df. Giorgi ELBAKIDZE (GEO), 7-4

BRONZE: Douglas ZAPF (USA) df. Marc DIETSCHE (SUI), 13-2

74kg
GOLD: Jason NOLF (USA) df. Hossein ABOUZARIPASHKOLAEI (IRI), 10-1

BRONZE: Murad KURAMAGOMEDOV (HUN) df. Georgios KOUGIOUMTSIDIS (GRE), 4-1
BRONZE: Dzhabrail GADZHIEV (AZE) df. Tobias PORTMANN (SUI), 5-3

86kg
GOLD: Magomed RAMAZANOV (BUL) df. Azamat DAULETBEKOV (KAZ), 8-5

BRONZE: Chandler MARSTELLER (USA) df. Arsenii DZHIOEV (AZE), 5-0
BRONZE: Evsem SHVELIDZE (GEO) df. Matthew FINESILVER (ISR), 7-3

#WrestleZagreb

Masoumi, Snyder win Zagreb Open golds unscathed

Thursday, February 6, 2025 - 17:38 By Vinay Siwach

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ZAGREB, Croatia (February 6) -- Amirreza MASOUMI (IRI) has announced his claim for the 125kg world title.

Soon after win the gold medal at 125kg at the Zagreb Open Ranking Series on Thursday in the Arena Zagreb, Masoumi announced that he 'win the World Championships gold medal at the same hall."

"I hope that this year I can have a good match to become a national champion, and in the same hall, I will also win the gold medal in the 2025 World Championships," he said after winning gold medal at 125kg at the Zagreb Open.

Last year, Masoumi finished with a silver medal after suffering a loss to Amirhossein ZARE (IRI) in the final. But before that he had a close match with Paris Olympian Mason PARRIS (USA).

Thursday was different. He gave no chance to Parris and rolled to a 10-0 win inside first period, a rare phenomenon in the super heavyweight class.

"The match I had last year with Parris and to this year, I was able to have an easy and good match by following a few points that my coaches told me," he said.

Though he is certain of winning the gold medal at the September World Championships, Masoumi has to go through Olympic silver medalist and world champion Amirhossein ZARE (IRI) at 125kg domestically.

"Zare and I are two of the top heavyweights in Iran," he said. "We're scheduled to wrestle each other in two months. I hope that whoever wins that match will represent Iran's heavyweight division at the competition."

Zare defeated Masoumi in the Zagreb Open final last year to confirm his ticket to Paris Olympics. This is was the third meeting between the two and Masoumi is yet to record a win against Zare.

"I chose to come to Zagreb because last year I wrestled Zare in the final, and I came in second place," Masoumi said. "This year, by using the advice I've received, I was able to win gold in this tournament."

Another silver medalist from last year, Kyle SNYDER (USA), returned to the top of the podium. Snyder had lost to Amirali AZARPIRA (IRI) in the 97kg final in 2023 but defeated Abofazl BABALOO (IRI) 12-1 in the final on Thursday to pocket the gold medal.

In his earlier bouts, Snyder blanked Richard VEGH (HUN), 10-0, and Batyrbek TSAKULOV (SVK), 11-0.

In other results, Amirhossein FIROUZPOUR (IRI) must have the memories of the 2021 U23 World Championships semifinals flashing before him as he took on Osman NURMAGOMEDOV (AZE) in the final at 92kg. Firouzpour was caught in a leg lace in that semifinal and trailed 8-0, a deficit he failed to cover and lost 10-7.

But on Thursday, it was Firouzpour who got the better of Nurmagomedov, beating him 11-4 for the gold medal. Firouzpour got an 8-2 lead after launching a gut wrench and despite a few strokes of brilliance from Nurmagomedov, he kept the Azerbaijan wrestler quiet and won his second Ranking Series gold medal and third overall.

Nurmagomedov had earlier defeated Abubakr ABAKAROV (AZE) 6-5 in the semifinal for a come-from-behind win and also grabbed the spot at 92kg for the European Championships.

Veteran Zelimkhan KHADJIEV (FRA) used his experience to beat 18-year-old U20 world champion Mahdi YOUSEFI (IRI) 5-3 in the 79kg final, frustrating Yousefi with his defense.

Khadjiev also became the first male wrestler from France to win gold medal at a Ranking Series. Only Koumba LARROQUE (FRA) has won gold before at a Ranking Series (Zagreb Open 2023 and 2021 Poland Open).

Khadjiev raced to a 4-0 lead at the break with a takedown and gut wrench as Yousefi failed to find an opening in the first period. But he managed to get Khadjiev tired and scored an arm-bar exposure for two points to cut the lead to 4-2. Khadjiev stopped another such attempt and snapped Yousefi on the edge and scored a stepout to extend his lead to 5-2.

A stepout gave one point to Yousefi with 17 seconds left on the clock but he failed to score a takedown needed for a win and settled for the second place.

Women's Wrestling

Three months after winning a bronze medal at the World Championships, 34-year-old Tatiana DEBIEN (FRA) added a Ranking Series gold medal to her name as she defeated another veteran Samantha STEWART (CAN), 6-2, in 55kg final.

At 50kg, Nadezhda SOKOLOVA (AIN) remained unbeaten in the three bouts of the round-robin bracket to emerge as the gold medal. Lithuania's first-ever Olympian in Women's Wrestling Gabija DILYTE (LTU) won silver while Emma LUTTENAUER (FRA) won bronze.

Photo

RESULTS

Freestyle

79kg
GOLD: Zelimkhan KHADJIEV (FRA) df. Mahdi YOUSEFI (IRI), 5-3

BRONZE: Vladimeri GAMKRELIDZE (GEO) df. Akhsarbek GULAEV (SVK), 7-0
BRONZE: Rocco WELSH (USA) df. Otari ADEISHVILI (GEO), 9-3

92kg
GOLD: Amirhossein FIROUZPOUR (IRI) df. Osman NURMAGOMEDOV (AZE), 11-4

BRONZE: Abubakr ABAKAROV (AZE) df. Boris MAKOEV (SVK), 9-2 
BRONZE: Michael MACCHIAVELLO (USA) df. Adlan VISKHANOV (FRA), 9-1

97kg
GOLD: Kyle SNYDER (USA) df. Abolfazl BABALOO (IRI), 12-1

BRONZE: Batyrbek TSAKULOV (SVK) df. Richard VEGH (HUN), 10-0
BRONZE: Jonathan AIELLO (USA) df. Andro MARGISHVILI (GEO), via inj. def.

125kg
GOLD: Amirreza MASOUMI (IRI) df. Mason PARRIS (USA), 10-0
 
BRONZE: Murazi MCHEDLIDZE (UKR) df. Kamil KOSCIOLEK (POL), 6-1
BRONZE: Hayden ZILLMER (USA) df.Trent HILLGER (USA), 10-3

Women's Wrestling

50kg
GOLD: Nadezhda SOKOLOVA (AIN)
SILVER: Gabija DILYTE (LTU)
BRONZE: Emma LUTTENAUER (FRA)

55kg
GOLD: Tatiana DEBIEN (FRA) df. Samantha STEWART (CAN), 6-2

BRONZE: Roza SZENTTAMASI (USA) df. Elnura MAMMADOVA (AZE), via fall
BRONZE: Areana VILLAESCUSA (USA) df. Ekaterina VERBINA (AIN), 13-2