#Zagreb2019

Starcevic Stuns Olympic Champion Kim, Makes Fifth Zagreb Open Finals Appearance

Saturday, February 9, 2019 - 18:48 By Eric Olanowski

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ZAGREB, Croatia (February 9) -  Bozo STARCEVIC, the Zagreb, Croatia native, stunned Olympic champion KIM Hyeonwoo (KOR), 8-2 in the quarterfinals and ultimately moved into the Zagreb Open finals for the fifth consecutive year. 

On Saturday, Starcevic avenged his 6-4 2016 Olympic bronze-medal bout loss to Kim, where the Korean wrestler claimed his second overall Olympic medal.

In their quarterfinals meeting on Saturday, Starcevic built a commanding 6-0 lead before Kim used an arm-spin to pick up his lone takedown, closing the deficit to 6-2. Starcevic somehow came away from Kim's arm-spin attempt with an exposure of his own and ultimately moved into the semifinals win an 8-2 victory.

In the semifinals, the hometown wrestler defeated Russia's Rafael IUNUSOV, 5-1 and locked up his fifth consecutive trip to the Zagreb Open finals. He's walked away victorious in each of his previous four trips to the Zagreb Open finals. 

Starcevic will wrestle Yunus BASAR (TUR) in tomorrow's 77kg gold-medal bout. Basar is one of four Turkish wrestlers who made it to Sunday night's Zagreb Open finals. Ekrem OZTURK, Kerem KAMAL, and Emrah KUS round out the other Turkish finalists. 

Ozturk went undefeated in the round-robin competition and will wrestle Iran's 2017 junior world champion Poya Soulat DAD MARZ for the 55kg gold medal. Both wrestlers were 2-0 on the day. 


Turkey's two-time junior world champion Kerem KAMAL made his first senior finals. He'll wrestle Iran's Milad Ali REZANEZHAD in the 60kg finals. (Photo: Kadir Caliskan) 

Turkey's two-time junior world champion Kerem Kamal outscored his three opponents 26-3 and made it to his first career senior finals. His best finish prior to making Sunday's Zagreb Open finals came at the 2018 Dan Kolov - Nikola Petrov Tournament when he finished with a bronze medal.

Kamal will wrestle Iran's Milad Ali REZANEZHAD in the 60kg finals. Sunday's gold-medal bout will be Rezanezhad's first senior finals appearance. 

Emrah Kus, the reigning 2018 world runner-up, rounds out the four Turkish finalists. Kus bulldozed his three opponents on the opening day of competition in Zagreb and snagged three straight technical superiority victories, outscoring his trio of opponents 25-0. 

He'll lace up against Bulgari's three-time European bronze medalist Daniel ALEKSANDROV for the 82kg gold medal. 


Reigning world runner-up Elmurat TASMURADOV (UZB) will wrestle defending Zagreb Open champion Mihai MIHUT (ROU)  in the 67kg finals. (Photo: Kadir Caliskan ) 

Meanwhile, Uzbekistan tallied the second most finalists with three.

They're led by reigning world runner-up and Rio Olympic bronze medalists Elmurat TASMURADOV (UZB). Tasmuradov will take on one of the sports brightest rising stars and defending Zagreb Open champion Mihai MIHUT (ROU) in the 67kg gold-medal bout.

Though he didn't place at last year's world championships, Mihut did win last year's U23 and senior European championships, and also claimed titles at the Thor Masters, the Kristjan Palusalu Memorial, and the Ion Corneanu & Ladislau Simon Memorial. 

Islomjon BAKHRAMOV and Muminjon ABDULLAEV are Uzbekistan's remaining pair of finalists. 

Bakhramon will see America's Xavier JOHNSON (USA) in the 63kg finals. 

At 130kg, Abdullaev scored huge back-to-back wins, giving Uzbekistan their third finalist. In the quarterfinals, Abdullaev scored a match-winning takedown with one minute left and knocked off 2017 world bronze medalist Yasmani ACOSTA FERNANDEZ (CHI), 2-2. He followed his quarterfinals win up by blasting U23 world silver medalist Osman YILDIRIM (TUR), 9-0 in the semifinals, setting up a finals date with Norway's Oskar MARVIK. 


Viktor LORINCZ (HUN) was one of two Hungarian finalists. He'll wrestle Sweden's Kristoffer BERG in tomorrow's 87kg finals. (Photo: Martin Gabor) 

Meanwhile, Hungary and Bulgaria each had two finalists. 

Bulgaria's pair of finalists were Daniel Aleksandrov (previously mentioned) and reigning world runner-up Kiril MILOV, who will take on Russia's lone finalist, Ilia BORISOV (RUS), for the 97kg gold medal. 

Hungary's pair of finalists were Robert FRITSCH (HUN) and Viktor LORINCZ (HUN). 

Fritsch picked up back-to-back wins over world bronze medalists to put himself in the Zagreb Open finals for the first time. In the quarterfinals, Fritsch edged reigning world bronze medalists Aik MNATSAKANIAN (BUL), 3-3 on criteria. Then, he beat U23 world bronze medalist Cengiz ARSLAN (TUR), 6-3 and locked up his spot in the 72kg finals with Ramaz ZOIDZE (GEO).

Hungary's second Zagreb finalist is Viktor Lorincz. Lorincz scored an extremely important 3-0 semifinals win over fellow Hungarian Erik SZILVASSY (HUN). Lorincz and Szilvassy, the 2017 U23 world champion, were in a tight battle for Hungary's 2019 Astana World Championship spot. Lorincz' semifinals win gives him a leg up on Szilvassy and some breathing room heading into the second Greco-Roman Ranking Series event, the Hungarian Grand Prix.  

Lorincz will meet Sweden's Kristoffer BERG in tomorrow's 87kg finals. 

The final day of wrestling at the Zagreb Open, United World Wrestling first Greco-Roman Ranking Series Event, beings on Sunday at 10:30, with the finals beginning at 17:30 (local time).

For news, interviews, highlights and behind-the-scenes clips, you can following United World Wrestling on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and Youtube. 

SCHEDULE

Sunday (February 10)
8:00 - 2nd-day weigh-in, all weight categories (No weight tolerance!) Sport Hall
10:30 - Repechage bouts and bronze medal matches (all categories)
17:30 - Opening ceremony and Final matches (all categories)

RESULTS

55kg (Round-Robin) 
GOLD -  Ekrem OZTURK (TUR) vs. Poya Soulat DAD MARZ (IRI) 

60kg 
GOLD - Kerem KAMAL (TUR) vs. Milad Ali REZANEZHAD (IRI) 

Semifinals - Kerem KAMAL (TUR) df. Ivan LIZATOVIC (CRO), 11-1 
Semifinals - Milad Ali REZANEZHAD (IRI) df. Erik TORBA (HUN)  , 6-3 

63kg 
GOLD - Islomjon BAKHRAMOV (UZB) vs. Xavier Tramain JOHNSON (USA) 

Semifinals - Islomjon BAKHRAMOV (UZB) df. Firuz TUKHTAEV (UZB) , 5-0
Semifinals -  Xavier JOHNSON (USA) df. Dawid ERSETIC (POL), 9-0

67kg
GOLD -  Mihai Radu MIHUT (ROU) vs. Elmurat TASMURADOV (UZB) 

Semifinals  -  Mihai Radu MIHUT (ROU) df. Danijel JANECIC (CRO)  , 5-1
Semifinals -  Elmurat TASMURADOV (UZB) df. Enes BASAR (TUR), 13-1 

72kg
GOLD - Ramaz ZOIDZE (GEO) vs. Robert Attila FRITSCH (HUN) 

Semifinals - Ramaz ZOIDZE (GEO) df. Mateusz BERNATEK (POL), 11-2 
Semifinals - Robert Attila FRITSCH (HUN) df. Cengiz ARSLAN (TUR), 6-3 

77kg
GOLD -  Bozo STARCEVIC (CRO) vs. Yunus BASAR (TUR) 

Semifinals -  Yunus Emre BASAR (TUR) df. Mohammad NAGHOUSI (IRI) , 10-0  
Semifinals -  Bozo STARCEVIC (CRO) df. Rafael IUNUSOV (RUS), 5-1  

82kg
GOLD - Daniel ALEKSANDROV (BUL) vs. Emrah KUS (TUR) 

Semifinals - Emrah KUS (TUR) df. Burhan AKBUDAK (TUR), 8-0 
Semifinals -  Daniel Tihomirov ALEKSANDROV (BUL) df. Aivengo RIKADZE (GEO), via injury default 

87kg
GOLD -  Viktor LORINCZ (HUN) vs. Kristoffer Zakarias BERG (SWE) 

Semifinals - Kristoffer Zakarias BERG (SWE) df. Yoan Danielov DIMITROV (BUL), 6-3 
Semifinals -  Viktor LORINCZ (HUN) df. Erik SZILVASSY (HUN), 3-0 

97kg
GOLD - Ilia BORISOV (RUS) vs. Kiril Milenov MILOV (BUL) 

Semifinals - Ilia BORISOV (RUS) df. Tracy Gangelo HANCOCK (USA), 3-1 
Semifinals - Kiril Milenov MILOV (BUL) df. Jahongir TURDIEV (UZB), 3-1  

130kg 
GOLD -  Oskar MARVIK (NOR) vs. Muminjon ABDULLAEV (UZB) 

Semifinals -  Oskar MARVIK (NOR) df. Marko KOSCEVIC (CRO), 4-1 
Semifinals - Muminjon ABDULLAEV (UZB) df. Osman YILDIRIM (TUR), 9-0  

#WrestleZagreb

Zagreb Open 2026 Day 2 Highlights: Yazdani in 97kg final

Thursday, February 5, 2026 - 09:21 By Vinay Siwach

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ZAGREB, Croatia (February 5) -- The Ranking Series event, Zagreb Open, enters day two and it will be Hassan YAZDANI (IRI) making his 97kg debut for Iran. The Olympic champion at 74kg in 2016, and two-time Olympic silver medalist at 86kg, is chasing that second gold, this time at 97kg.

WATCH LIVE | LIVE MATCH ORDER | DAY 1 RESULTS

13:45: 55kg WW semifinals - World silver medalist Verbina EKATERINA (UWW) with a 1-1 victory over Nagisa HARADA (JPN) in the semifinals. She got an activity point in the second period to keep the criteria lead. Ekaterina will face Karla GODINEZ (CAN) in the final after the Canadian defeated Areana VILLAESCUSA (USA), 2-1, in another low scoring semifinal.

13:30: 50kg WW semifinals - Haruna MORIKAWA (JPN) with a controlled 8-2 win over Elizaveta SMIRNOVA (UWW) at 50kg. She will wrestle NEELAM (IND) for the gold medal. Neelam defeated MUSKAN (IND), 7-4, in an all-Indian semifinal

13:20: 125kg semifinals - A fall for Shamil SHARIPOV (BRN) over Kamil KOSCIOLEK (POL) in just over two minutes as he reaches the final at 125kg. He will face Wyatt HENDRICKSON (USA) in the final after the U.S. wrestler scored an 11-1 win over Robert BARAN (POL).

13:10: 97kg semifinals - Stephen BUCHANAN (USA) with a quick fall over Adlan VISKHANOV (FRA) in the first semifinal. Now he earns himself a chance to wrestle against Hassan YAZDANI (IRI) after Iranian managed another technical superiority win. While it's rare on Yazdani, Andro MARGISHVILI (GEO) scored two takedowns on Yazdani but failed to keep the pressure before losing 14-4

12:55: 92kg semifinals - Mobin AZIMI (IRI) gets a dominant 11-0 win over Dustin PLOTT (USA) as he used a double-leg for four to finish. He earns a chance to avenge his 5-5 loss to Trent HIDLAY (USA) in the final after the American scored another come-from-behind victory. He defeated Michael MACCHIAVELLO (USA), 3-3, to setup the gold medal bout against Azimi

12:40: 79kg semifinals - Zelimkhan KHADJIEV (FRA) is back in the Ranking Series final with a 10-1 victory over Otari ADEISHVILI (GEO). He looked in complete control of the bout. Khadjiev will face Dean HAMITI (USA) for the gold medal after he defeated Evan WICK (USA), 6-5, in a thrilling semifinal

12:15: Trent HIDLAY (USA) once again shows how to come back and win a bout. Down 6-0 against Abofazl RAHMANI (IRI), he scores a four-pointer and keeps the pressure on the Iranian to win 11-9 and make his spot in the semifinal at 92kg.

11:45: Hassan YAZDANI (IRI) gives up a takedown against Richard VEGH (HUN) but that is the only slip in an otherwise dominant bout at 97kg. Two four point throws for Yazdani as he advances to the semifinals.

11:35: Ekaterina VERBINA (UWW) with a big four-pointer in her 5-0 win against Beatrice FERENT (ROU) at 55kg. The world silver medalist is the favorite to win gold here.

11:25: Mobin AZIMI (IRI) bounces back from his loss to Trent HIDLAY (USA) and beats Abolfazl RAHMANI (IRI) in his second bout at 92kg round robin. Azimi managed to score a takedown with less than 30 second left to beat Rahmani 4-3.

11:10: Two quick results at women's 50kg. Haruna MORIKAWA (JPN) beats Kendra RYAN (USA) 12-1 at 50kg before NEELAM (IND) also wins via technical superiority, 10-0, against Agata GOLUCHOWSKA (POL). 

11:00: 92kg world champion Trent HIDLAY (USA) makes a comeback from 5-0 down to beat Mobin AZIMI (IRI) 5-5 in the group stage bout. Hidlay scored a takedown in the second period before adding two stepouts. Iran challenged the second one but lost which gave the criteria lead to Hidlay

10:50: Hassan YAZDANI (IRI) doesn't the trademark jump before entering the mat but his bout against Merab SULEIMANISHVILI (GEO) is a typical Yazdani bout. He uses the underhook to start scoring and then rallies to score takedowns at will before turning Suleimanishvili and winning his bout 11-0

10:45: Magomed SHARIPOV (BRN) wrestled well but it is Yaraslau SLAVIKOUSKI (UWW) who manages to win 6-4 at 97kg and win the opening bout.

10:30: Hassan YAZDANI (IRI) will be on Mat B but before that, a few big results in Zagreb. Richard VEGH (HUN) manages to hang on for a 3-0 victory over Kamil KURUGLIYEV (KAZ) at 97kg.