2026 U17 World Championships

Russia, Kazakhstan, Ukraine Lead the Way into U17 World Championships Finals

Monday, July 27, 2026 - 19:24 By Vinay Siwach

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BAKU, Azerbaijan (July 27) -- Russia, Kazakhstan, and Ukraine were the best performing countries on day one of the U17 World Championships that kicked off with Greco-Roman in Baku, Azerbaijan on Monday.

In the five weight classes that were in action on Monday, the three nations put a two finalists each while Hungary, hosts Azerbaijan, Iran, and the United States had one each.

U17 World Championships 2026

Ali ALMAS (KAZ) was the first wrestler to enter the final when he defeated Ararat AVETISYAN (ARM), 4-1, in the 48kg semifinals. Avetisyan, who finished 13th last year, was hoping to enter his first final at the world level but Almas gave no chance to the Armenian and secured the victory by scoring a turn from par terre.

Almas will now face Soltan IUSUPOV (RUS), who ended the hopes of Omar SALMANOV (AZE) of making the final in front of the home crowd with a 3-1 victory in the semifinal. Iusupov managed to lift Salmanov from par terre in the second period and scored a correct throw on the edge to complete the victory.

Diyar AMANALI (KAZ)Diyar AMANALI (KAZ), blue, reached the 55kg final at the U17 World Championships. (Photo: United World Wrestling / Kadir Caliskan)

Kazakhstan's second finalist came at 55kg after Diyar AMANALI (KAZ) handed Danimir YORDANOV (BUL) a solid 8-1 defeat in the semifinal. Amanali changed the bout in the second period when he scored a takedown and two turns using a trap-arm gut.

Keve KOVACS (HUN) will try to stop Amanali in the final on Tuesday after he defeated Tsimafei SEMIANENKA (BLR), 2-1, in the other 55kg semifinal.

In a one-sided 65kg semifinal, Shamil LABAZANOV (RUS) took only 29 seconds to defeat Vazgen MNATSAKANYAN (ARM), 8-0. He scored a takedown to get the first two points before using the front headlock throw for four points to lead 6-0. He continued the action with another headlock roll and ended the bout with a technical superiority.

Ibrahim NASIBOV (UKR)Ibrahim NASIBOV (UKR), blue, defeated Orkhan HABIBLI (AZE), 4-3, in the 65kg semifinal. (Photo: United World Wrestling / Amirreza Aliasgari)

Taking on Labazanov for the gold medal at 65kg will be Ibrahim NASIBOV (UKR) who ended the hope of yet another home wrestler, Orkhan HABIBLI (AZE), with a close 4-3 win in the semifinals. Habibli took a 3-1 lead after scoring from par terre but when Nasibov got the position in the second period, he lifted Habibli and transitioned into a gut-wrench to lead 3-3 on last-point criteria. Habibli challenged at the end of the bout but it was lost, adding one more point to Nasibov's score.

 

Iran had a rather humbling first day with just one final. But the one finalist, Alireza REZAEI (IRI), took out the best at 80kg to reach the final. Rezaei denied defending world champion Abdulaziz KHOLMIRZAEV (UZB) a repeat after a 5-1 victory in the semifinals.

Kholmirzaev got the par terre first but did not score and then gave up a throw when Rezaei got par terre in the second period. Down 3-1, Kholmirzaev tried some desperate attacks and was close to scoring a takedown in the final 20 seconds but Rezaei defended his cartwheeling attempt and scored exposure points late in the match to win.

Rezaei will now face Isfahan HASANOV (AZE), who made sure Azerbaijan had at least one finalist at home on the opening day. Hasanov used a correct throw from par terre to get two points on Benediktas BUBELEVICIUS (LTU) and lead 3-0 before the Lithuanian scored a stepout in the same sequence to cut it to 3-1.

Bubelevicius, who got par terre in the second period, could not change the 3-2 score and as the match neared the end, he challenged for finger blocking from Hasanov which was denied, adding one more point to the Azerbaijan wrestler's score.

Bruno PALLONE (USA)Bruno PALLONE (USA) counters Andrej SIMIC (SRB) for four points during the 110kg semifinals. (Photo: United World Wrestling / Amirreza Aliasgari)

A U.S. vs Ukraine final is set at 110kg after two contrasting semifinals. Bruno PALLONE (USA) took on Andrej SIMIC (SRB) in the semifinal and scored a counter four-point throw to lead 6-2. Simic and Pallone went back-and-forth in second period but the latter always had control of the lead. He used a half-nelson to secure the fall while leading 12-5.

Tymofii PRYKHODKO (UKR) denied U17 European champion Fedor SUKHAREV (RUS) a chance to win a world title after winning 1-1 in the other semifinal, thanks to the first-point criteria when the match ends 1-1 and both points are scored for passivity.

Photo

RESULTS

48kg
SF 1: Soltan IUSUPOV (RUS) df. Omar SALMANOV (AZE), 3-1
SF 2: Ali ALMAS (KAZ) df. Ararat AVETISYAN (ARM), 4-1

55kg
SF 1: Diyar AMANALI (KAZ) df. Danimir YORDANOV (BUL), 8-1
SF 2: Keve KOVACS (HUN) df. Tsimafei SEMIANENKA (BLR), 2-1

65kg
SF 1: Shamil LABAZANOV (RUS) df. Vazgen MNATSAKANYAN (ARM), 8-0
SF 2: Ibrahim NASIBOV (UKR) df. Orkhan HABIBLI (AZE), 4-3

80kg
SF 1: Alireza REZAEI (IRI) df. Abdulaziz KHOLMIRZAEV (UZB), 5-1
SF 2: Isfahan HASANOV (AZE) df. Benediktas BUBELEVICIUS (LTU), 4-2

110kg
SF 1: Bruno PALLONE (USA) df. Andrej SIMIC (SRB), via fall (12-5)
SF 2: Tymofii PRYKHODKO (UKR) df. Fedor SUKHAREV (RUS), 1-1

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Susaki 2.0 Ready to Rumble at Asian Championships

Saturday, March 28, 2026 - 07:14 By Vinay Siwach

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Yui SUSAKI (JPN) at the 2024 Paris Olympics.

BISHKEK, Kyrgyzstan (March 27) -- In what has become a lasting photo of wrestling from the 2024 Paris Olympics, a wide-eyed Yui SUSAKI (JPN) is seen staring blankly into nothing.

The photo was taken after Susaki suffered her first-ever international loss. Vinesh PHOGAT (IND) had just defeated her in the opening round of the Paris Games. It was not a familiar feeling for Susaki. Not in international wrestling at least.

Yui SUSAKI (JPN)Yui SUSAKI (JPN) lost her first bout at the Paris Olympics. (Photo: United World Wrestling)

It was only after she walked off the mat and faced the cameras waiting for her in the field of play mixed zone that Susaki realized what had happened. She burst into tears.

Almost two years after that after that loss, a 'new' Susaki is returning to action at next week's Asian Championships in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan in a bid to re-establish herself as the dominant force she was before Paris.

"The defeat at the Paris Olympics and the year-and-a-half that followed were an incredibly difficult and painful time," Susaki says.

Susaki went on to win a bronze medal at the Paris Olympics, a downgrade from the gold medal she won in Tokyo where she outscored her opponents 41-0. The loss shocked the world as Susaki was considered unbeatable. She was a three-time world champion boasting of a 96-0 winning streak, never lost an international bout and was the first wrestler to win the Golden Grand Slam, winning the Olympic gold and all age-group world titles including senior.

A second Olympic title seemed inevitable. There was no stopping.

While the loss was on the mat, Susaki believes that things off the mat may have contributed to her loss as well.

"In recent years, my desire to give back and do things for those around me had grown stronger," she says. "My focus had shifted toward others. When my focus is on others, I feel pressure, my mind gets cluttered with distractions, and doubts arise, leading me to overthink things."

Yui SUSAKI (JPN)Yui SUSAKI (JPN) celebrates after winning the world title in 2023. (Photo: United World Wrestling / Kadir Caliskan)

She is relieved that she did not overthink the loss in Paris after she returned to Japan.

"There were moments when I lost faith in myself [after that Paris loss]," she says. "But since then, I’ve focused more than ever on self-reflection and self-dialogue in my personal life, as well as on developing my character as a person. I’ve gained a deeper understanding of myself, and I feel I’ve developed a firm sense of self."

The version that Susaki has been working on over the last year did not begin just after the Olympics. There was one more bump before she made an important career decision.

Susaki was finding it incredibly difficult to reduce weight to continue wrestling at 50kg. So in September 2025, she decided to wrestle at 53kg at the National Sports Festival in Japan. It did not go as planned.

She suffered her first domestic loss in six years when world champion Moe KIYOOKA (JPN) defeated her at the festival. What was more alarming was that Susaki failed to finish a takedown in the final minute despite getting control over Kiyooka.

The 26-year-old returned to the drawing board with a sense of urgency as the Emperor's Cup was looming. The 2025 December tournament was the first step towards making the Japan team for the 2026 Asian Championships, World Championships and the Asian Games.

"The answer I arrived at after overcoming it all was simple: I wrestle because I love it and because I want to become an Olympic champion," she said. "I wrestle not for anyone else, but for myself -- to make my dream come true."

Susaki, along with her team, devised a better plan to reduce weight and remain at 50kg. She ate precise and molded her training in a way in which she managed to contain the weight.

In December, she won the Emperor's Cup at 50kg without much trouble and earn a spot on the Japan team for the Asian Championships which only be her third in her 12-year international career.

Yui SUSAKI (JPN)Yui SUSAKI (JPN) defeated Ziqi FENG (CHN) in the 50kg final at the Asian Championships in 2024. (Photo: United World Wrestling / Kadir Caliskan)

Incidentally, her last Asian Championships was also in Bishkek in 2024, and she won gold after beating Ziqi FENG (CHN) in the final. She is likely to face Feng again as the Paris Olympic bronze medalist is among a strong field at 50kg this year.

One of the challenges that Susaki will be keen on taking on is a bout against Son Hyang KIM (PRK), a wrestler Susaki has beaten before. The two met in the 48kg final of the 2017 Asian Championships, Susaki's first, and the Japanese wrestler won 10-0.

Then in the same year, the two met at the World Championships and Kim managed to keep it tighter but failed to stop Susaki from winning, 5-2. Susaki went on to win her first senior world title.

While the matches against formidable opponents are something she is looking forward to, Susaki is more excited to return to an international tournament after a break and kick start her new Olympic cycle.

"I’m incredibly excited to be competing in a UWW international tournament for the first time in a year and eight months," she said. "I want to win this tournament to get off to a strong start, so that I can compete in the Los Angeles Olympics and reclaim the gold medal. I also want wrestling fans to see how much stronger Yui Susaki has become.

"I think you’ll get to see a whole new Yui Susaki!"