#WrestlePontevedra

U23 World Championships Day 2 semis set

Tuesday, October 18, 2022 - 08:38 By Vinay Siwach

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PONTEVEDRA, Spain (October 18) -- The second day of the U23 World Championships in Pontevedra will see the action in five Greco-Roman weight classes -- 60kg, 67kg, 72kg, 82kg and 97kg. The day will go on with the qualification and semifinals of these weight classes before the evening session has the gold medal bouts of the previous day.

WATCH LIVE | MATCH ORDER

The semifinals for the evening session

60kg
Nihat MAMMADLI (AZE) vs. Nurmukhammet ABDULLAEV (KGZ)
Kerem KAMAL (TUR) vs. Irakli DZIMISTARISHVILI (GEO)

67kg
Diego CHKHIKVADZE (GEO) vs. Seyed SOHRABI (IRI)
Gagik SNJOYAN (FRA) vs. Kyotaro SOGABE (JPN)

72kg​​​​​​​
VIKAS (IND) vs. Pavel PUKLAVEC (CRO)
Irfan MIRZOIEV (UKR) vs. Gurban GURBANOV (AZE)

82kg
Mats AHLGREN (SWE) vs. Exauce MUKUBU (NOR)
Karlo KODRIC (CRO) vs. Beka GURULI (GEO)

97kg
Markus RAGGINGER (AUT) vs. Giorgi KATSANASHVILI (GEO)
Alex SZOKE (HUN) vs. Igor ALVES (BRA) 

15:30: At 97kg, Markus RAGGINGER (AUT) and Mustafa OLGUN (TUR) put on a show. Ragginger got the early advantage. But Olgun got a stepout to level it. Ragginger got one for himself which was neutralized by Olgun before he added another to lead 3-2. But Ragginger scored a takedown and a turn to win 6-3 and move into the semifinals.

15:15: Seyed SHORABI (IRI), the U20 world champion, is into the semifinals at 67kg. He pins Amanat SAMAT UULU (KGZ) after developing a 7-0 lead.

15:05: Gurban GURBANOV (AZE) takes out Amir ABDI (IRI). Both wrestlers got the passivity calls but Gurbanov got the advantage as Abdi was called passive in the second period. Gurbanov moves into the 72kg semifinals

14:45: Alex SZOKE (HUN) looks unstoppable here in Pontevedra. He moves into the 97kg semifinals with another technical superiority win. He beats NITESH (IND) in the quarterfinals 

14:10: Kerem KAMAL (TUR) moves closer to the final of 60kg in Pontevedra. Melkamu FETENE (ISR) got the early lead with a takedown but Kamal answered with a stepout and four to lead 5-2. Fetene scored a takedown with 30 seconds left but Kamal hung on for a 5-4 win.

13:35: U23 European champion Diego CHKHIKVADZE (GEO) was in all sorts of trouble trailing 2-0 with a minute left in the bout. But Haavard JOERGENSEN (NOR) was called passive which allowed Chkhikvadze to return in the bout. He scores via a throw out of bounds. It was called clean but Georgia challenged and get the two extra points for a defensive foul from Joergensen. Chkhikvadze also got another stepout which Norway challenged but lost. A final attempt from Joergensen saw him jump over Chkhikvadze to get a four he lands on his to give up four. Chkhikvadze wins 10-2

13:20: Amir ABDI (IRI) is keeping the Iran juggernaut rolling today. He beats  Shant KHACHATRYAN (ARM) 6-0 and advances to the quarterfinal at 72kg.

13:00: Kaito INABA (JPN) brought out the front suplex and got five for that. It is undoubtedly the move of the tournament. He pins Aser EBRO (ESP) at 60kg,

12:30: Kerem KAMAL (TUR) and his streak of pinning Iran wrestlers. After Belgrade, he now pins Omid ARAMI (IRI) in the 60kg bout in Pontevedra. Arami got the passivity call and was trying to score a head pinch but Kamal held him for the fall. 

12:20: Alex SZOKE (HUN), the silver medalist at 97kg from Oslo World Championships, gets the par terre advantage against Nicholas BOYKIN (USA) and then gets the turns to win 9-0 at 97kg.

12:00: Iran has not had the best of the tournaments so far but day two looks promising. At 67kg, Seyed SOHRABI (IRI) with a fall over Julian HORTA (COL).

11:45: Another U23 European champion Diego CHKHIKVADZE (GEO) has a very different start. He wins 8-0 against Ashu BAZARD (IND) at 67kg.

11:30: Returning bronze medalist Shant KHACHATRYAN (ARM) is up against U23 European champion Giorgi CHKHIKVADZE (GEO). A takedown and turn for Khachatryan. But Chkhikvadze stops in the middle of the second period to get exposure. After an exchange, Khachatryan led 6-5 and that will remain the final scoreline for this 72kg bout.

11:00: Nihat MAMMADLI (AZE) will be a strong contender at 60kg in the coming years. A strong wrestler with some clean techniques and an understanding of the mat. He begins his U23 Worlds campaign with a technical superiority win over Olzhas SULTAN (KAZ).

10:30: Welcome to the second day of the U23 World Championships. It's a pleasant day here in Pontevedra with the sun out. Let the wrestlers shine!

#WrestleIstanbul

Spencer Lee one step closer to Olympic dream

Friday, May 3, 2024 - 12:37 By Vinay Siwach

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ISTANBUL, Turkiye (May 3) -- The world will finally see the return of Spencer LEE (USA) on a big stage. The one-time phenom is coming to Istanbul in a bid to qualify the United States for the Paris Olympics at 57kg.

Lee is a former U17 and U20 world champion and was primed to be the next superstar from the U.S. However, he could never get going at the international stage and only participated in an international tournament in 2024, eight years after his U20 world title. At the Pan-Am Championships this year, Lee won the gold medal at 57kg.

Despite his three NCAA titles and a college record a few can dream of, Lee hasn't returned to the international scene partly due to injuries and partly due to his college commitments. After two surgeries, battles with health, a heartbreaking loss in NCAAs, a long return and wins over former Iowa teammate Thomas GILMAN (USA) at the U.S. Olympic Team Trials, Lee is finally here.

"I’ve had such a tough time trying to stay healthy and trying to compete to the best of my ability,” Lee said after winning the trials. "I’m still not healthy but I’m healthy enough to wrestle hard against really, really good opponent.”

That's what he will have to do in Istanbul. In the 57kg bracket, Lee will be unseeded and can be drawn against any of the big names in the first round. Tokyo Olympian Georgi VANGELOV (BUL), former U23 world champion AMAN (IND), world silver medalist Alireza SARLAK (IRI) and local star Muhammet KARAVUS (TUR) are a few names he will have to keep an eye on.

The field also includes world bronze medalists Zanabazar ZANDANBUD (MGL) and Horst LEHR (GER) along with former European champion Vladimir EGOROV (MGL), Asian Games silver medalist Chong Song HAN (PRK) and Andrii YATSENKO (UKR).

If his opponents need a form check, Lee won four bouts at the trials, outscoring his opponents 35-11 with wins over Tokyo bronze medalist Gilman and Zane RICHARDS (USA). And his attacks are solid as ever as Gilman found out in the best-of-three series.

Three wrestlers in each Olympic weight class will receive Paris 2024 quotas in Istanbul, two being the winners of the semifinals and the third will be decided with a playoff between the two bronze medal winners. Lee would hope to secure it as the winner of the semifinal and avoid going, if fortunate, through repechage.

Apart from qualifying the U.S. in Istanbul, there is extra motivation for Lee to win in Istanbul. Lee's mother, Carry, is from France where she met Lee's father, Larry, both judokas. And, he can become the first Olympic champion for the U.S. in the lowest weight class since 2008.

Lee is aware that the road to Paris is still 'long and hard'. But the 25-year-old is ready.

"I have work to do."