#Yariguin2019

Russia Captures Five of Seven Golds on Day Two of Ivan Yariguin

By Eric Olanowski

KRASNOYARSK, Russia (January 25) - Russia, riding on the coattail of their two-time world champion Magomedrasul GAZIMAGOMEDOV, claimed a combined five gold medals across freestyle and women’s wrestling on the second day of competition at the 30th Annual Ivan Yariguin. 

Magomedrasul Gazimagomedov stuck two-time world bronze medalist GANZORIG Mandakhnaran (MGL) in the 70kg finals to claim his first Yariguin title. Gazimagomedov scored three takedowns and then caught Ganzorig on his back during a failed Mongolian roll-through attempt, which was meant to stop the Russian from grabbing his fourth takedown. Either way, Gazimagomedov picked up the fall after leading 10-0. 

Muslim SADULAEV (RUS) scored four points on a first-period feet-to-back double leg and outlasted Abasgadzhi MAGOMEDOV (RUS), 4-4 in the 57kg gold medal bout. 

Magomedrasul IDRISOV (RUS) gave the Russian Federation their third freestyle gold medal of the day when he made easy work of Romania’s Nikolai OKHLOPKOV, shutting him out, 7-0, in the 61kg gold-medal bout. 

Viktoriia VAULINA and Mariia KUZNETSOVA stopped Japan from sweeping the Day 2 women’s wrestling finals and provided the host nation with their final two gold medals of the day. 

Vaulina stuck Nao TANIYAMA (JPN) in the 55kg finals after commanding a lead 7-0 lead, and Kuznetsova rode a nine-point first period to grab the 9-4 win over Misuzu ENOMOTO (JPN) in the 65kg gold-medal bout. 

Kika KAGATA and Yuzuka INAGAKI handed Japan the pair of remaining women’s wrestling gold medals. 

Kagata controlled the 50kg gold-medal bout from the first whistle and capped off her Yariguin rookie trip with a 10-0 victory over Anzhelika VETOSHKINA (RUS). 

The game plan for Kagata, the four-time age-level world champion, was apparent and worked like a charm. The Japanese plan was to overemphasize the fake to the left leg and come back to the right with a high crotch. Kagata scored a pair of early first period takedowns with her heavy fake, then tacked on an exposure and commanded for the 6-0 lead before ending the match with a defensive stop that transitioned to a leg lace, giving her the 10-0 technical superiority victory. 

Yuzuka Inagaki survived a scare and narrowly edged Svetlana LIPATOVA (RUS), 4-3, to win the 59kg gold medal. 

Inagaki, the 2017 cadet world champion, scored the first takedown of the match, using an overhook to a high crotch and ended the opening period with a two-point advantage. 

In the final period, Inagaki went back to what worked in the first period and scored her second takedown of the match with an overhook to a high crotch,  extending her lead to 4-0. 

Things got interesting from this point of the match. 

A Lipatova exposure and reversal cut Inagaki’s lead to 4-3. With under 10 seconds remaining in the match, the Russian went for and was awarded the match-winning takedown as the clock hit zero. Lipatova gained the 5-4 advantage as time expired, but a successful Japanese challenge that lasted nearly four minutes reversed the call and helped Inagaki narrowly escape with the 4-3 victory. 

Day three action from the Ivan Yariguin resumes tomorrow morning at 11:00 a.m. local time. 

RESULTS

Freestyle 

57kg 
GOLD - Muslim SADULAEV (RUS) vs. Abasgadzhi MAGOMEDOV (RUS)
BRONZE - NARMANDAKH Lkhangarmaa (MGL) df. ZOU Wanhao (CHN),  4-4 
BRONZE -  Thomas Patrick GILMAN (USA) df. Bekhbayar ERDENEBAT (MGL), 14-8

61kg 
GOLD - Magomedrasul IDRISOV (RUS) df. Nikolai OKHLOPKOV (ROU), 7-0 
BRONZE - Ramazan FERZALIEV (RUS) df. Otgonbaatar GANSUKH (MGL), 10-0 
BRONZE - Eduard GRIGORIEV (RUS) df. TSERMAA Chinzorig (MGL), 4-0 

70kg
GOLD - Magomedrasul GAZIMAGOMEDOV (RUS) df. Mandakhnaran GANZORIG (MGL), via fall
BRONZE -  ENKHBAYAR Byambadorj (MGL) df. Askhat SLYAMKHANOV (KAZ), 8-0 
BRONZE - Razambek ZHAMALOV (RUS) df. David BAEV (RUS), 8-4

Women’s Wrestling 

50kg 
GOLD - Kika KAGATA (JPN) df. Anzhelika VETOSHKINA (RUS), 10-0 
BRONZE - Dauletbike YAKHSHIMURATOVA (UZB) df. Anudari NANDINTSETSEG (MGL), 3-2
BRONZE - Victoria Lacey ANTHONY (USA) df. Elena VOSTRIKOVA (RUS), 6-1

55kg
GOLD - Viktoriia VAULINA (RUS) df. Nao TANIYAMA (JPN), via fall. 
BRONZE - BAT OCHIR Bolortuya (MGL) df. Ekaterina VERBINA (RUS), 7-5

59kg 
GOLD - Yuzuka INAGAKI (JPN) df. Svetlana LIPATOVA (RUS), 4-3 
BRONZE - ALTANTSETSEG Battsetseg (MGL) df. Zelfira SADRADDINOVA  (RUS), 7-4 

65kg
GOLD - Mariia KUZNETSOVA (RUS) df.  Misuzu ENOMOTO (JPN), 9-4 
BRONZE - Bolortungalag ZORIGT (MGL) df. SALIKHOVA Dinara (RUS), via fall 
BRONZE - Yulia PRONTSEVITCH (RUS) df. Forrest Ann MOLINARI (USA), 4-1 

#BeachWrestling

Youth Olympic quotas in focus as Katerini hosts U17, U20 BW Worlds

By United World Wrestling Press

KATERINI, Greece (September 23) -- Thirty countries, close to 300 wrestlers, a global glory and a Youth Olympic dream.

Over two days this week, on September 25 and 26, the world’s best age-group beach wrestlers descend upon the scenic Katerini Beach, where the sun sets behind the imposing Mount Olympus. In this postcard-perfect surroundings, they will hope to write their scripts at the U17 and U20 World Championships.

The tournament will be live on the YouTube channel of United World Wrestling's Beach Wrestling channel.

The championships will be taken into consideration for quotas for the 2026 Youth Olympic Games qualifier, adding another layer of significance to the U17 event.

United World Wrestling has received a request for quotas from more than 100 National Olympic Committees with a total of 300 male and 269 female wrestlers. Currently, there are 48 quotas per gender. In this context, the World Championships in Katerini will add excitement to the race for the Youth Olympic Games, scheduled to be held in Dakar.

The U17 and U20 World Championships will be held across eight weight classes each in men’s and women’s categories. Last year, Ukraine and the United States reigned supreme in the men’s and women’s events, respectively, of the U17 World Championships. This year, too, they will be among the favorites to lift the team titles.

Once again, this year, Ukraine has entered a jumbo team with eight wrestlers in the U17 men’s competition. Only hosts Greece (12), Georgia (11), and Moldova (9) have a contingent bigger than theirs. On the women’s side, the USA has fielded the largest delegation among the 24 teams, with 9 wrestlers. In Beach Wrestling, a country can register a maximum of 3 athletes per weight category.

It won’t be so straightforward for both teams to retain their titles, with challengers emerging from other nations, particularly hosts Greece, who would hope to put on a good show in front of their home crowd. Romania, Moldova, Georgia and Iran will remain strong contenders despite Ukraine's legacy in the competition, especially the women's.

Earlier this month, the U15, U17 and U20 African Beach Wrestling Championships were held in Casablanca, where Algeria bagged the U17 men’s and women’s titles. The serene Ain Diab beach in the Moroccan capital hosted the age-group tournaments before the Beach Wrestling World Series, marking the first time the event was held in an African city.

Soon after the U17 and U20 Beach World Championships, the Katerini Beach will host the World Series on September 27 and 28. The penultimate stop of the event is set to be the biggest of the 2025 season so far in terms of participation. There have been a record number of entries, underlining the sport’s continued global growth.

The World Series will return to Africa in October for its final instalment of this season, when the tournament will be held in Alexandria, Egypt, on October 18 and 19.