2026 U17 World Championships

U17 World Championships 2026 Women's Wrestling Day 3 Results

By Vinay Siwach

BAKU, Azerbaijan (July 29) -- The U17 World Wrestling Championships 2026 enters day three with five Women's Wrestling weight classes - 43kg, 49kg, 57kg, 65kg and 73kg.

Use code BUNDLE20 to get 20 percent off when subscribing to UWW+. Click here.

WATCH LIVE | LIVE MATCH ORDER | WOMEN'S WRESTLING WATCH | DAY 2 RESULTS

14:27: U17 Asian champion GARIMA (IND) was a little surprised when Karina MUZALEVSKAIA  (RUS) managed a takedown on her but she manages to dominate her quarterfinals and win 9-2. She will face Kaili MANUEL (USA) for a spot in the final.

14:25: Bianka BARANY (HUN) gave no chance to Lyra LEDERER (GER) and wins the quarterfinal at 73kg. She sets up a rematch of U17 European Championships against Solomiia PETRIV (UKR) which the Ukrainian won.

14:11: Solomiia PETRIV (UKR), the returning bronze medalist from 69kg, is bullying her opponents. She beats Aisha WILLIAMS (PAN), 11-0, in the quarterfinals at 73kg. She attacks with lot of force which unsettles her opponents. Into the semis now 

14:08: Saika UCHIDA (JPN), trying to match her sister world bronze medalist Sowaka, is into the semifinals at 49kg after yet another 10-0 win. She beats Irina TSYDEEVA (RUS) in 3:19

Wrestling Epenesa ELISON (USA)Epenesa ELISON (USA) is chasing the world title at 57kg after finishing with a silver medal at 53kg last year. (Photo: United World Wrestling / Kostadin Andonov)

14:00: Epenesa ELISON (USA) uses the lace to beat Mia KOVAC (CRO), 10-0, in the 57kg quarterfinals and she moves into the semifinals, where she will face Gurleen DHILLON (CAN). The other semifinals will see Nikita SEHRAWAT (IND) and Mariia POLTORAK (UKR) clash

13:55: U17 European champion at 57kg Janka SILLEI (HUN) falls in the quarterfinals against Gurleen DHILLON (CAN). The match began with Dhillon hitting a four but Sillei worked her way to 4-4 but criteria remained with Dhillon for her bigger move. Dhillon once again took a clear 6-4 lead with a takedown. Sillei managed to pancake Dhillon for two points and tried pinning her. For 20 seconds she continued to work on it but Dhillon survived, making her a 6-6 criteria winner. 

13:40: Solomiia PETRIV (UKR), the U17 European champion, uses a mix of takedowns and stepouts to beat Kaillany MELO (BRA) and advances to the qaurterfinals at 73kg.  

13:30: Sera FURUICHI (JPN) thought she nailed a 1-1 win but Mukhlisa MASHARIPOVA (UZB) with a big throw to win 5-1 barely seconds before the match finished. Masharipova moves into the semifinals.

13:15: Bianka BARANY (HUN), the U17 European silver medalist, gets a fall over Chamangul MUKHAMMATSALIEVA (UZB) and moves into the quarterfinals at 73kg. 

13:08: U17 Asian champion GARIMA (IND) has no trouble seeing off Rodina SOLIMAN (EGY), 11-0, at 73kg and she moves into the quarterfinals.

12:55: Saika UCHIDA (JPN), sister of Asian champion Sowaka, finishes her opening bout at 49kg against Isabelle CHEN (CAN), 11-0. Uchida won the U17 Asian gold last year.

12:45: Janka SILLEI (HUN) clearly has a better gameplan against European style wrestlers. She beats Sofiia BELOVA (RUS), 9-5, in her second bout at 57kg and enter the quarterfinals

We had an internet interruption but everything seems to be back on track. The matches were stopped.

12:15: Epenesa ELISON (USA) was off to work straight off the whistle in her 57kg bout against Nadiia ZHOLTIKOVA (ESP). She scored five different takedowns and one turn to beat Zholtikova 12-2 in the first period

12:05: Sera FURUICHI (JPN) with a final-second front headlock exposure to beat DIKSHA (IND), 7-7, on last-point criteria at 43kg. Furuichi was the one dictating the match but Diksha scored two cradle exposure to lead 6-3 at one point before Furuichi made a comeback in the second period

11:27: U17 Asian champion GARIMA (IND) with her relentless forward wrestling and Diana TURGUNBEKOVA (KGZ) has no answers to it. Garima sweeps the 73kg bout 10-0 and advances to the 1/8 finals

11:15: Another battle at 57kg as Epenesa ELISON (USA), who won silver at 53kg last  year, was up against Rion SUZUKI (JPN) in opening bout. She races to a 4-0 lead before Suzuki cuts it to 4-2 with a takedown. That was all Suzuki would score in the bout as Elison managed two assertive takedowns to win 8-2 and advance

11:00: Returning silver medalist from 49kg, Janka SILLEI (HUN), who won U17 European gold, has a tough time against Arina KUANYSHOVA (KAZ) in the opening bout at 57kg. Kuanyshova takes a 2-2 criteria lead before scoring another takedown to double it. Sillei manages a reversal to make it 4-3 before hitting a leg attack to score the match-winning takedown and win 5-4. But her conditioning doesn't seem par here

10:30: Women's Wrestling day in Baku with five weight classes and keep an eye on 57kg and 73kg, among the best.

#JapanWrestling

World Champs Morikawa, Ishii Set Up Clash in 68kg Final

By Ken Marantz

TOKYO (May 22) -- The first of what could be several clashes of Japanese women titans was set up when reigning world champions Miwa MORIKAWA and Ami ISHII advanced to the 68kg final at the Meiji Cup All-Japan Championships in Tokyo on Friday.

Morikawa, the world champion at 65kg, had her hands full in grinding out a 3-2 win over world U20 champion Rey HOSHINO in their semifinal, scoring the decisive takedown off a counter in the final minute.

Ishii, the current 68kg world champ, had little trouble piling up the takedowns in a 10-0 victory over former world champion Masako FURUICHI.

Morikawa got the best of Ishii at the Emperor's Cup All-Japan Championships last December, winning 5-3 to earn a trip to the Asian Championships, where she had to settle for the silver medal.

This time there is more at stake in the final on Saturday, as the Meiji Cup is serving as the final qualifier for this year's Asian Games, to be hosted by Japan, and the World Championships.

Winners of both the Emperor's Cup and Meiji Cup automatically earn places on the national team; if they are different, a playoff is held between the two at the end of the day.

Given the stakes, Morikawa knows Ishii will be coming at her with all guns blazing, knowing she need to beat Morikawa twice to earn a national team berth.

"That [Emperor's Cup win] doesn't matter," Morikawa said. "In that match, I went all out to the end and came up with the victory. I think that tomorrow, she will really be coming after me. I have to show the willpower and guts to not give in. I will do my utmost to secure the national team place in one fell swoop."

Morikawa naturally would not reveal what strategy she has for Ishii, but says she will rely on what her coach, four-time Olympic champion Kaori ICHO, comes up with.

"She's really good with her attacks, and my strong point is defense," Morikawa said. "Kaori will devise a plan, and I'll just go along with that."

Yuka KAGAMI (JPN)Yuka KAGAMI (JPN) reached the 76kg final at the Meiji Cup. (Photo: wrestling-spirits.jp / Takeo Yabuki)

In other semifinals on the second day of the four-day tournament at Tokyo's Komazawa Gym, Paris Olympic champion Yuka KAGAMI moved a step closer to returning to the global stage by making the 76kg final.

Kagami posted a slim 2-1 victory over Ayana MORO, with all of the points scored on the activity clock, to set up a meeting with Yasuha MATSUYUKI, who dealt her a stunning loss in the final of the Emperor's Cup, which was her first competition since Paris.

"I came to realize that last time, the fighting spirit that I had at the Olympics was taking a nap," Kagami said. "For these five months, I have prepared to come here and definitely win the title, then the playoff."

At 53kg, world champion Haruna MURAYAMA outlasted longtime rival and former Olympic champion Mayu SHIDOCHI 2-1 -- with all points scored on the activity clock -- to set up a final against Moe KIYOOKA for the second straight year.

Murayama defeated Kiyooka, the world 55kg champion in 2024, twice last year -- 3-1 in the final, then again 4-1 in the playoff -- to make the team to the World Championships in Zagreb, where she claimed her fourth career gold.

Kiyooka came back to win the Emperor's Cup title in Murayama's absence, and will be looking to avenge last year's losses as she attempts to fill the void left when Olympic champion Akari FUJINAMI moved up to 57kg.

In a tragic incident, Taishi NARIKUNI's bid to repeat the Freestyle-Greco double that he accomplished at the Emperor's Cup ended when he suffered a serious eye injury in his Greco 70kg quarterfinal -- which he won nonetheless, but then was easily beaten in the semifinals.

Facing Takara FUKUZAWA in the last eight, Narikuni took a hard shoulder to the eye, which knocked him woozy for awhile. He managed to continue on, finishing up a 5-0 victory. But, wearing a patch over his right eye in the semifinals against Hajime KIKUTA, he went down 8-0 in 28 seconds.

Narikuni was scheduled to also take the mat later in the day in the Freestyle 72kg final, but would end up defaulting that match. Family members said he was taken to the hospital and was diagnosed with a broke cheek bone below his eye and would undergo surgery on Saturday.

As defending Freestyle 97kg champion Arash YOSHIDA awaited his final, it was a tough day for rest of his family, whose Iranian father runs the kids wrestling club where the siblings got their start in the sport.

Keivan YOSHIDA, Arash's older brother who preceded him as 97kg champion in 2024, was ousted in the semifinals at 125kg, losing 11-1 to Hosei FUJITA.

Just moments later on an adjacent mat, younger brother Ariya YOSHIDA was dealt a tough 10-9 loss at 79kg to Kanata YAMAGUCHI.

In the final, Yamaguchi will face another wrestler with Iranian heritage, newly crowned Asian champion Keyvan GHAREHDAGHI, a 10-0 winner over Kohei KITAMURA in the other semifinal.