Russia Wins Greco-Roman Team Title; Kamal Claims Third Junior World Gold

Sunday, August 18, 2019 - 20:31 By Eric Olanowski

TALLINN, Estonia (August 18) – The Russian Federation joined their fellow freestyle countrymen as junior world team champions, while Kerem KAMAL (TUR) gained ownership of his third consecutive junior world title.

Russia entered the final day of wrestling in Tallinn, Estonia, with the seven-point team lead over Iran, and ended with winning the team title by 37 points. They closed out the Junior World Championships with three additional medals – bringing their overall total to seven junior world medal winners. In total, Russia had four world champs, a pair of silver medalists, and a bronze-medal finisher.

Sergei STEPANOV (RUS) joined Greco-Roman teammates Anvar ALLAKHIAROV (55kg), Abu AMAEV (63kg) and Ilia ERMOLENKO (87kg) as junior world champs.

Stepanov, who said the plan coming into the final “was to be first,” collected two points in the first period and one point in the second period and snatched his first world title with a gritty 3-1 victory over Ulvu GANIZADE (AZE). After his win, Stepanov said, “I can’t say (how I feel), I’m just so emotional.”

In the opening period of the finals, Stepanov scored two points from inactivity point and step-out point and carried the 2-0 lead into the closing period. The second period was scoreless until the 65-second mark when Stepanov was thrown down in par terre after being hit for inactivity. He escaped without surrendering a point and managed to tack on a point of his own after a failed leg-foul challenge from the Azerbaijani corner. Stepanov ultimately held on to win, 3-1 -- giving Russia their fourth Greco-Roman gold medal of the tournament, but more importantly, the team title. “Russia is so strong, and I am so happy to become team champions.”

Kerem KAMAL (TUR) won his third junior world title with a 7-2 win over Sahak HOVHANNISYAN (ARM) in the 60kg finals. (Photo: Kadir Caliskan)

Meanwhile, Kerem Kamal held up three fingers to the crowd, signaling his possession of a third consecutive junior world title after he defeated Sahak HOVHANNISYAN (ARM), 7-2 in the 60kg gold-medal bout. “I’m very happy to win the third gold medal in the junior category. I was before in the cadet finals three times and I lost,” said Kamal.

In his finals match, the Turkish wrestler trailed after the first period, but he expected to be in that position. “The match plan was (to be) safe in the first (period)…Safety first.” The second period was pivotal for Kamal in grasping his third junior world gold. After playing it safe in the first period, Kamal said, “In the second period, I go full power.” And that’s exactly what he did. In the final three minutes, Kamal earned an inactivity point and got to work quickly -- smothering Hovhannisyan with a right-side gut wrench follow by a four-point lift from the right side and commanded the 7-1 lead. He conceded a second-period point but ended up carrying the Turkish flag around the mat at a Junior World Championships for the third consecutive year with a 7-2 victory.

Giorgi SHOTADZE (GEO) defeated Shant KHACHATRYAN (ARM), 6-3 in the 67kg finals and captured his second age-group world title. His first came at the 2016 Cadet World Championships in Tbilisi, Georgia.

Final Trio of Day Seven Champions
In the 67kg finals, Giorgi SHOTADZE (GEO) and Shant KHACHATRYAN (ARM) exchanged one-point sequences, but it was the Georgian who headed into the second period with the lead on criteria. A stepout 15 seconds into the second period, followed by a four-point throw with 25 seconds left gave the reigning European champion his second world title and first since winning the 2016 Cadet World Championship in Tbilisi, Georgia.

Istvan TAKACS (HUN) scored 48 offensive points on his way to the 82kg title. (Photo: Kadir Caliskan)

Istvan TAKACS (HUN) stopped Russia from winning their second gold medal of the night with a 7-1 statement win over Aues GONIBOV (RUS) in the 82kg finals. “I came for the gold, and I got it,” Takacs said after the award ceremony.

In the opening period, the Hungarian traded inactivity points with his Russian opponent but wasn’t too worried because it was all a part of his initial game plan. “The plan was to defend the first par terre position, then pick up my points.” He successfully defended the par terre, and when it was his turn, he capitalized on his opportunity -- scoring six points from a pair of two-point lifts and a leg foul.

Takas closed out the Junior World Championships scoring 48 offensive points. When asked about his offensive efficiency, Takas said, “I thought about it before the matches. I wanted to win by one or two points, but in the matches, I felt good and the points just came... Everything clicked.”

With his win on Sunday night, Takas became Hungary’s first junior world champion since 2012, when Baliant LAM won the 120kg title in Pattaya, Thailand.

Gabriel ROSILLO KINDELAN (CUB) easily handled Patrick NEUMAIER (GER), 8-0 in the 97kg gold-medal bout. (Photo: Kadir Caliskan)

At 97kg, it only took 74 seconds for Cuba’s Gabriel ROSILLO KINDELAN to impose his will on Patrick NEUMAIER (GER) and pick up the technical superiority victory. The Cuban suplexed his way to a four-point lead, then stacked on a takedown and a gut wrench -- giving Cuba their first junior Greco-Roman world title since Yasmany LUGO CABRERA’S (CUB) 2009 world title run in Ankara, Turkey.

RESULTS

Final Greco-Roman Team Scores
GOLD - Russia (157 points)
SILVER - Iran (121 points)
BRONZE - Turkey (117 points)
Fourth - Georgia (91 points)
Fifth - Hungary (62 points)

60kg
GOLD - Kerem KAMAL (TUR) df. Sahak HOVHANNISYAN (ARM), 7-2
BRONZE - Georgii TIBILOV (RUS) df. Diego CHKHIKVADZE (GEO), 5-2
BRONZE - Asgar ALIZADA (AZE) df. Talastan KANZHARBEK UULU (KGZ), 11-2

67kg
GOLD - Giorgi SHOTADZE (GEO) df. Shant KHACHATRYAN (ARM), 6-3
BRONZE - Peyton Louis OMANIA (USA) df. Xin HUANG (CHN), 6-5
BRONZE - Valentin PETIC (MDA) df. Abdul Samet BASAR (TUR), 3-1

72kg
GOLD - Sergei STEPANOV (RUS) df. Ulvu GANIZADE (AZE), 3-1
BRONZE - Ihor BYCHKOV (UKR) df. Rasmus Lilleman AASTROEM (SWE), via fall
BRONZE - Mohammadreza Mahmoud ROSTAMI (IRI) df. Ismail GUN (TUR), 6-5

82kg
GOLD - Istvan TAKACS (HUN) df. Aues GONIBOV (RUS), 7-1
BRONZE - Maksim BANDARENKA (BLR) df. Hosein FOROUZANDEH GHOJEHBEIGLOU (IRI), 5-4
BRONZE - Dogan KAYA (TUR) df. Lucas Alexandros LAZOGIANIS (GER), 8-6

97kg
GOLD - Gabriel Alejandro ROSILLO KINDELAN (CUB) df. Patrick NEUMAIER (GER), 8-0
BRONZE - Uladzislau PUSTASHYLAU (BLR) df. Gerard Cyprian KURNICZAK (POL), 3-1
BRONZE - Beytullah KAYISDAG (TUR) df. Alex Gergo SZOKE (HUN), 1-1

#WrestleUlaanbaatar

On return, Dzhuzupbekov secures gold at Ulaanbaatar Open 2025

Thursday, May 29, 2025 - 18:08 By Vinay Siwach

ULAANBAATAR, Mongolia (May 29) -- Paris Olympic bronze medalist Uzur DZHUZUPBEKOV (KGZ) looked rusty on his return to competition since winning the medal in August 2024. But he had enough experience to win gold medal at the Ulaanbaatar Open 2025, his first competition since.

"This was my first start after the Olympics," Dzhuzupekov said. "It was very difficult, to be honest. It was quite tough to wrestle here, especially since the climate is different."

In his three bouts at 97kg, Dzhuzupbekov struggled for conditioning. He opened the day with a 10-6 win over Gankhuyag GANBAATAR (MGL) before beating Bat-Erdene BYAMBASUREN (MGL) 9-1. But it was his last match against Asian bronze medalist NITESH (IND) which troubled him the most.

Dzhuzupekov began the match with an arm-throw for four but Nitesh scored a reversal to make it 5-1 and the Indian the scored a turn to close the gap to 5-3 at the break. On resumption, Dzhuzupbekov held his position and was only called passive with just over a minute left.

Nitesh, now trailing 5-4, needed a turn to turn the match in his favor but he failed to score any and Dzhuzupbekov defended the one-point lead to win the gold medal at 97kg.

"It's dry here, and we're at an altitude of about 1,400 meters," he said. "That made it really challenging. It was hard for the whole team to compete. But overall, I’m happy with the result. Starting with the very first match it was really tough, I couldn't breathe properly here. We’ll analyze things and keep preparing."

Dzhuzupbekov has been off since winning bronze in Paris and got married after the Olympics. But as one of three medalists for Kyrgyzstan's Greco team, Dzhuzupbekov is now hoping to build on that result.

"I’ll be preparing for the World Championships," he said. "But I think there will be another tournament after this one — probably in Hungary or Poland. And we’ll likely prepare differently for that. Overall, I think the team spirit is good right now. I don’t focus too much on any one opponent, because the competition is very strong. Especially with all the Europeans — they’re all big and strong. I think I just have to be ready, be in good shape. I try not to overthink who I’ll wrestle or how the match will go. I just believe that if I’m in good form, I’ll win."

Dzhuzupbekov's gold was one of the three Kyrgyzstan won on day one of the tournament which doesn't award team title as it is not a championships.

Asian Championships silver medalist and Muhamet Malo Ranking Series gold medalist Razzak BEISHEKEEV (KGZ) defeated Murat FIRAT (TUR) in Round 2 bout and won the gold medal at 67kg.

Firat got the first par terre advantage in the first period but he failed to score and just before the break, Beishekeev surprised him with a headlock throw for four to lead 4-1. In the second period, Beishekeev got the par terre but he did not score and was happy to defend his 5-1 lead and win.

World U23 champion Asan ZHANYSHOV (KGZ) won the gold medal at 87kg after won his bouts with dominance. He defeated Batbayar TSOGTBAATAR (MGL), 8-0, and Karan KAMBOJ (IND), 9-0, to finish at the top.

Alperen BERBER (TUR) was also entered but he pulled out injured after suffering a hamstring injury in his first bout against Karan KAMBOJ (IND).

Another Turkiye wrestler who pulled out injured was Burhan AKBUDAK (TUR). He suffered an infection in his elbow day before coming to Mongolia and did not wrestle a single bout. Since only three wrestlers were entered at 82kg, Akbudak still managed to win gold.

But the gold medal was historic. Shahin BADAGHI (QAT) became the first wrestler from Qatar to win gold medal at any international event in Greco-Roman.

Badaghi, an Iranian transfer to Qatar, defeated PRINCE (IND) 9-0 in the only bout the two wrestled in the day. Badaghi scored a takedown and then a suplex for a 6-0 lead. India lost a challenge to make it 7-0 before Badaghi scored a takedown to finish the bout via technical superiority.

Ahmet YILMAZ (TUR) gave Turkiye its lone gold medal after beating Yryskeldi MAKSATBEK UULU (KGZ) in the 77kg final, 5-1. In the earlier Nelson bracket bout, Yilmaz defeated the Kyrgyzstan wrestler 11-3.

Iran and India also won gold medals as Asian champion Danial SOHRABI (IRI) put on a show to win four of his bouts and the gold medal at 72kg.

For India, Anil MOR (IND) won the gold medal at 55kg after he pinned Ulan MURATBEK UULU (KGZ) in the evening session. In his four bouts, Mor gave only two points, against Muratbek Uulu, but pinned him to remain one of the most dominant wrestler of the day.

The 19-year-old was wrestling his first senior international tournament and hails from Bass village, Hisar district in Haryana. He trains at the Guru Mehar Singh Akhada in Rohtak which has always given wrestlers to the Indian team.

For his Round 5 bout against Muratbek Uuku, Mor decided to defend more than attack.

"I had watched his bouts and he was trying to do the underhook and then throw you for the fall," Mor said. "I never gave my arm to him for the drag to underhook."

Though he was given passive in the first period, Mor knew that he has to get out of the par terre position quickly. He did so by sneaking out of Muratbek Uulu's gold and then scoring a takedown.

Instead of going for the turns, Mor held Muratbek Uulu to the mat and then secured the fall to get his first-ever senior medal internationally.

RESULTS

55kg
GOLD: Anil MOR (IND)
SILVER: Ulan MURATBEK UULU (KGZ)
BRONZE: Davaabandi MUNKH ERDENE (MGL)

67kg
GOLD: Razzak BEISHEKEEV (KGZ)
SILVER: Murat FIRAT (TUR)
BRONZE: NEERAJ (IND)

72kg
GOLD: Danial SOHRABI (IRI)
SILVER: Mustafa SAHIN (TUR)
BRONZE: Yryskeldi KHAMZAEV (KGZ)

77kg
GOLD: Ahmet YILMAZ (TUR) df. Yryskeldi MAKSATBEK UULU (KGZ), 5-1

BRONZE: Nishant PHOGAT (IND) df. Sumiyabazar ZANDANBUD (MGL), 11-0

82kg
GOLD: Shahin BADAGHI (QAT)
SILVER: PRINCE (IND)
BRONZE: Burhan AKBUDAK (TUR)

87kg
GOLD: Asan ZHANYSHOV (KGZ)
SILVER: Batbayar TSOGTBAATAR (MGL)
BRONZE: Karan KAMBOJ (IND)

97kg
GOLD: Uzur DZHUZUPBEKOV (KGZ)
SILVER: NITESH (IND)
BRONZE: Gankhuyag GANBAATAR (MGL)

Russia Wins Greco-Roman Team Title; Kamal Claims Third Junior World Gold

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On return, Dzhuzupbekov secures gold at Ulaanbaatar Open 2025