#WrestleAcapulco

Saturday Night's Pan-American Finals Set

Saturday, May 7, 2022 - 15:07 By Eric Olanowski

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ACAPULCO, Mexico (May 7) --- The third day of action at the Pan-American Championships is underway in Mexico. Today, fans will see wrestling at FS 79kg and 92kg, and WW 50kg, 53kg, 57kg, 62kg, 68kg and 76kg. 

ICYMI:  Day Two photos | Godinez stuns two world champs for Pan-Am title

Saturday's final matchups:

Women's Wrestling 
50kg: Sarah Ann HILDEBRANDT (USA) vs. Madison Bianca PARKS (CAN) 
53kg:  Luisa Elizabeth VALVERDE MELENDRES (ECU) vs. Dominique Olivia PARRISH (USA) 
57kg: Yaynelis SANZ VERDECIA (CUB) vs. Alma Jane VALENCIA ESCOTO (MEX) 
62kg: Kayla Colleen Kiyoko MIRACLE (USA) vs. Ana Paula GODINEZ GONZALEZ (CAN) 
68kg: Hangelen LLANES ECHEVARRIA (CUB) vs. Soleymi Antonieta CARABALLO HERNANDEZ (VEN) 
76kg: Dymond Precious GUILFORD (USA) vs. Genesis Rosangela REASCO VALDEZ (ECU) 

Freestyle
79kg: Nordic-style bracket 
92kg: Nordic-style bracket 

1:45: That'll do it for our morning session coverage. We'll see you back here at 17:00 for the Day Three finals.

1:32: Parrish trailed 4-0 but scored five unanswered points and upset world bronze medalist Stewart, 5-4. She'll wrestle Luisa Elizabeth VALVERDE MELENDRES (ECU) in the 53kg finals. 

1:21: Quick note: Gilberto Segundo AYALA RODRIGUEZ (VEN), who is wrestling on Mat A, is 41-years-old.

1:18: Valencia cruised to an 18-7 win over on Mat A. That'll bring up two-time world champion J'den Cox of the United States. 

1:15: JB does it again. He quickly finished Rivera, 10-0. His three wins have been 12-1, pin (up 10-0 at the time) and 10-0. 

1:13: I feel like he's wrestled seven times today already, but Burroughs is back on Mat B. He's wrestling Colombia's Juan Sebastian RIVERA GARCIA (COL).

1:09: Alma Jane VALENCIA ESCOTO (MEX), Mexico's first-ever women's wrestling Olympian, is up now on Mat A. She's wrestling Camila Agustina AMARILLA (ARG) for a spot in the 57kg semifinals. 

1:08: U23 world champ Alexandria Rebekkah TOWN (CAN) started her day with an easy 10-0 tech over Tatiana HURTADO LERMA (COL). She scored a takedown and transitioned into a trapped-arm gut wrench.

12:51: With so many stars in action today, I forgot that Kayla MIRACLE (USA) was wrestling. The reigning world silver medalist just demolished Yolanda Mercedes CORDERO VARGAS (CUB), 10-0, in 63 seconds and reached the 62kg semifinals.

12:44: There's the upset of the day! Reasco closed out the match with a third takedown, ending Di Stasio's hopes of becoming a five-time Pan-Am champion. The Ecuadorian won the match, 10-4.

12:32: What an opening two minutes for Genesis Rosangela REASCO VALDEZ (ECU). She's leading Canada's world champion and four-time Pan-Am gold medalist Justina Di Stasio 7-2 heading into the break.

12:15: World bronze medalist Sam Stewart just suffered a cut on her forehead but is continuing to wrestle. They taped her up and she's back in on a single while holding the 5-0 lead. It looks like she'll hang on and will wrestle Parrish for a spot in the 53kg finals. 

12:04: Dom Parrish just said, "Not today, Karla." The Mexican corning won the challenge, making the score 3-1 with seven ticks left. When the action resumed, the American picked up a takedown and stole the match as time expired. She'll await the winner of Sandy Yalixa PARRA PARRA (COL) and Samantha Leigh STEWART (CAN).

11:57: Things are heating up over on Mat B between Karla Abigail ACOSTA MARTINEZ (MEX) and Dominique Olivia PARRISH (USA), The Mexcian wrestler had the 3-1 lead but there's an exposure under review right now which pushed the American in front on criteria.

11:38: No surprise here. Hildebrandt picked up an early takedown and........four laces to win the match, 10-0.

11:35: We'll go from one Olympic bronze medalist to another. The "Lace Queen" Sarah Ann HILDEBRANDT (USA) is wrestling Shammilka Alondra MIRANDA DIAZ (PUR) on Mat A.

11:32: Cox looks like he's in top shape. He scored three takedowns -- two of which were from counter offense -- a pair of exposures and a stepout to win the bout, 11-0.

11:26: You know there's a star coming up when you see all the photographers scramble to one mat. That star is J'den Michael Tbory COX (USA) and he's wrestling Jeremy Adam POIRIER (CAN) on Mat A.

11:16: That was quick. Burroughs blasts through Victor J SANTOS ACOSTA (PUR) 10-0 in 69 seconds. Classic Burroughs with some solid transition offense. He's moving his feet well today and picking his shots with purpose.

11:05: Justina Renay DI STASIO (CAN) kicked off her quest for a fifth Pan-Am title with a quick 12-0 win over Luz Maria HERNANDEZ HERNANDEZ (MEX). She'll wrestle Genesis Rosangela REASCO VALDEZ (ECU) in her next bout.

10:56: In our premier match of the morning, U23 world runner-up Tatiana RENTERIA RENTERIA (COL) edged junior world champion Milaimys de la Caridad MARIN POTRILLE (CUB), 4-3. The Colombian will take on Emelyn Anyelina BAUTISTA CORCINO (DOM) next.

10:42: Yes, Mat B will house a lot of the stars, but I'll show Mat A some love. Here are a few wrestlers to pay attention to that'll wrestle on Mat A:

Bout 144 - J'den COX (USA) - World champion and Rio Olympic bronze medalist
Bout 146 - Sarah Ann HILDEBRANDT (USA) - Tokyo Olympic bronze medalist 

10:36: It seems that Mat B is going to be the mat to watch. Here are the upcoming stars that'll be wrestling on the mat:

Bout 181 - Justina Renay DI STASIO (CAN) - '18 world champion
Bout 182 - Milaimys de la Caridad MARIN POTRILLE (CUB) - '19 junior world champ
Bout 185 - Jordan Ernest BURROUGHS (USA) - World and Olympic champion
Bout 190 - Samantha Leigh STEWART (CAN) - '21 world bronze 
Bout 195 - Kayla Colleen Kiyoko MIRACLE (USA) - '21 world silver 
Bout 197 - Ana Paula GODINEZ GONZALEZ (CAN) - '21 U23 world champ

10:29: I'm back to my perch after shooting some rapid-fire question videos with Zahid VALENCIA (USA) and Forrest MOLINARI (USA), so be on the lookout for those on all of our social media channels! 

10:10: Burroughs picks up a quick 10-1 win over Barmish. The 79kg bracket is a Nordic-style chart, so the American will have next round off but will jump back to action in the third round against Juan Sebastian RIVERA GARCIA (COL).

10:00: World and Olympic champion  Jordan Ernest BURROUGHS (USA) will kick off the day against Samuel Jacob BARMISH (CAN) on Mat A.

 

#BeachWrestling

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

Wednesday, September 24, 2025 - 08:47 By United World Wrestling Press

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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.