#WrestleTirana

U23 World Championships entries released

By Eric Olanowski

TIRANA, Albania (October 9) — The final World Championship of the season is set to kick off October 23-29 in Albania's capital city, Tirana, featuring 587 wrestlers from 58 countries.

The entry field is highlighted by ten wrestlers aiming to defend their 2022 U23 world crowns. Freestyle and Greco-Roman will both feature four reigning gold medalists, while women's wrestling will have a pair of 2022 title holders.

The four biggest freestyle stars in action are Vladimeri GAMKRELIDZE (GEO), Tatsuya SHIRAI (JPN), Amirali AZARPIRA (IRI) and Amirreza MASOUMI (IRI).

At 79kg, Gamkrelidze is the unquestionable favorite to win gold. The young Georgian is fresh off a runner-up finish at the Belgrade World Championships, where he went 4-1, falling to Akhmed USMANOV (AIN) in the final.

The crown holder at 86kg, Shirai will be chased by 2022 U23 world bronze-medal winners Ivan ICHIZLI (MDA) and Aaron BROOKS (USA).

Azarpira, who represented Iran at 92kg in Belgrade, will move up to 97kg for the U23 World Championships. He went 1-1 after stepping in for the injured Kamran GHASEMPOUR (IRI) on short notice. His biggest challenger in Tirana will be Azerbaijan's U23 world bronze medalist Islam ILYASOV (AZE).

For Iran to maintain its stronghold on the super freestyle heavyweight class, Valadi will have to get past Solomon MANASHVILI (GEO) for a second consecutive year.

On the Greco-Roman side of the competition, the four headliners are Iman MOHAMMADI (IRI), Danial SOHRABI (IRI), Istvan TAKACS (HUN), and Alex SZOKE (HUN).

At 63kg, Mohammadi will share the bracket with the man he defeated to win the 2022 U23 world gold, Giorgi SHOTADZE (GEO).

Sohrabi won bronze at the Asian Games at 67kg after bumping up to 72kg for the World Championships. In Belgrade, Sohrabi won his first bout against Artur POLITAIEV (UKR) before falling on criteria against returning world champion Ali ARSALAN (SRB).

Sohrabi will be at 67kg in Tirana with his most notable opponents being Gagik SNJOYAN (FRA) and Diego CHKHIKVADZE (GEO), the silver and bronze medalists, respectively, at the 2022 U23 World Championships.

Hungarian hammers Takacs and Szoke will try to defend their 87kg and 97kg titles, respectively.

Takacs' biggest threat will be Szymon SZYMONOWICZ (POL), a bronze medalist at last year's U23 World Championships.

For Szoke to win a second straight U23 world title, he'll likely have to defeat U23 world bronze medalist NITESH (UWW).

In women's wrestling, Nesrin BAS (TUR) and Amit ELOR (USA) will be looking to add another U23 world title to their resumes.

Bas, who represented Turkiye at 72kg at the World Championships, will return to 68kg for the U23 World Championships. Bas was eliminated from the Belgrade competition after falling to '22 senior world champions Elor and Miwa MORIKAWA (JPN).

In Albania, Bas will have a shot at becoming the first Turkish woman to win a pair of U23 world titles. She'll have to get through Manola SKOBELSKA (UKR), a bronze medalist a year ago.

Elor, who just won her second senior world title, is on a quest to win her ninth overall world title since 2019. Thus far, she has two U17, three U20, two senior and a U23 world title.

Elor will share the 72kg bracket with Wiktoria CHOLUJ (POL), the woman she defeated to win gold a year ago. 

Outside of the ten returning champions, here are the other 578 wrestlers who will be participating in the 2023 U23 World Championships:

GEOSenior world silver medalist Vladimeri GAMKRELIDZE (GEO) will compete at 79kg, with hopes of repeating as U23 world champion. (Photo: Kadir Caliskan)

Freestyle

57kg
Nachyn MONGUSH (AIN)
Dzmitry SHAMELA (AIN)
Manvel KHNDZRTSYAN (ARM)
Rahman IMANOV (AZE)
Diamantino IUNA FAFE (GBS)
Luka GVINJILIA (GEO)
Niklas STECHELE (GER)
Milad VALIZADEH (IRI)
Tatsuya TSUKAOKA (JPN)
Yerassyl MUKHTARULY (KAZ)
Bekzat ALMAZ UULU (KGZ)
Ben TARIK (MAR)
Anton VLAS (MDA)
Munkh Erdene BATKHUYAG (MGL)
Vasyl ILNYTSKYI (POL)
Jacob MORAN (PUR)
Thomas EPP (SUI)
Khalil BARKOUTI (TUN)
Yusuf DEMIR (TUR)
Heorhii KAZANZHY (UKR)
Cooper FLYNN (USA)
SHUBHAM (UWW)

61kg
Bashir MAGOMEDOV (AIN)
Ivan HRAMYKA (AIN)
Endrio AVDYLI (ALB)
Mezhlum MEZHLUMYAN (ARM)
Jeyhun ALLAHVERDIYEV (AZE)
Kostadin GUTSEV (BUL)
Garette SAUNDERS (CAN)
Nika ZAKASHVILI (GEO)
Shahdad KHOSRAVI (IRI)
Kaito MORITA (JPN)
Assylzhan YESSENGELDI (KAZ)
Taiyrbek ZHUMASHBEK UULU (KGZ)
Vasile MARCU (MDA)
Besir ALILI (MKD)
Antonio MARGIOTTA (PHI)
Dylan SHAWVER (PUR)
Emre KURAL (TUR)
Andrii DZHELEP (UKR)
Julian CHLEBOVE (USA)
Akash DAHIYA (UWW)

65kg
Islam GUSEINOV (AIN)
Ibragim IBRAGIMOV (AIN)
Klevisi PRECI (ALB)
Andranik AVETISYAN (ARM)
Ziraddin BAYRAMOV (AZE)
Ayub MUSAEV (BEL)
Jason LUNEAU (CAN)
Omar MOURAD (EGY)
Khamzat ARSAMERZOUEV (FRA)
Goga OTINASHVILI (GEO)
Nico MEGERLE (GER)
Mohammadali AMOUZAD (IRI)
Kotaro KIYOOKA (JPN)
Adlan ASKAROV (KAZ)
Aden SAKYBAEV (KGZ)
Pavel GRAUR (MDA)
Samuel ALVAREZ (PUR)
Frederik NORTJE (RSA)
Abdullah TOPRAK (TUR)
Artem KRYVENKO (UKR)
Brock HARDY (USA)
Mohit KUMAR (UWW)

70kg
Inalbek SHERIEV (AIN)
Daniil AMELYANCHYK (AIN)
Tigran GHAZARYAN (ARM)
Benedikt HUBER (AUT)
Kanan HEYBATOV (AZE)
Ibragim VELIEV (BEL)
Stone LEWIS (CAN)
Matias MUNOZ (CHI)
Moukhammad SANGARIEV (FRA)
Giorgi ELBAKIDZE (GEO)
Theocharis KOUGIOUMTSIDIS (GRE)
Mohammad BAKHSHISHIRKOLAEI (IRI)
Yoshinosuke AOYAGI (JPN)
Rodion ANCHUGIN (KAZ)
Orozobek TOKTOMAMBETOV (KGZ)
Egzon XHONI (KOS)
Ion MARCU (MDA)
Mateusz LUSZCZYNSKI (POL)
Noah CASTILLO (PUR)
Mustafo AKHMEDOV (TJK)
Farouk JELASSI (TUN)
Burak SININ (TUR)
Narek POHOSIAN (UKR)
Douglas ZAPF (USA)
Abhimanyou ABHIMANYOU (UWW)

74kg
Imam GANISHOV (AIN)
Nikita DMITRIJEVS MAYEUSKI (AIN)
Hayk PAPIKYAN (ARM)
Dzhabrail GADZHIEV (AZE)
Muhammad ABDURACHMANOV (BEL)
Nikolay DIMITROV (BUL)
Patrik LEDER (CAN)
Nasser SAYED (EGY)
Giorgi GOGRITCHIANI (GEO)
Stas WOLF (GER)
Christos CHRISTOFORIDIS (GRE)
Mohmmadsadegh FIROUZPOUR (IRI)
Hikaru TAKATA (JPN)
Yerbarys SATYBALDY (KAZ)
Vasile DIACON (MDA)
Diego SANDOVAL (MEX)
Szymon WOJTKOWSKI (POL)
Sonny SANTIAGO (PUR)
Krisztian BIRO (ROU)
Mohamed Ali ZORGUI (TUN)
Ibrahim YAPRAK (TUR)
Vadym KURYLENKO (UKR)
Keegan OTOOLE (USA)
NAVEEN (UWW)
Harry DUNO (VEN)

79kg
Magomed MAGOMAEV (AIN)
Dzmitry DZENISENIA (AIN)
Menua YARIBEKYAN (ARM)
Ashraf ASHIROV (AZE)
Connor CHURCH (CAN)
Gabriel IGLESIAS (ESP)
Joona VUOTI (FIN)
Vladimeri GAMKRELIDZE (GEO)
Lucas KAHNT (GER)
Shoban YARI (IRI)
Raffaele MATRULLO (ITA)
Masaki SATO (JPN)
Shamsat TAIR (KAZ)
Mukhammad ABDULLAEV (KGZ)
Daniels BENDIKS (LAT)
Eugeniu MIHALCEAN (MDA)
Mateusz PEDZICKI (POL)
Jose SANCHEZ (PUR)
Somonjon IKROMOV (TJK)
Okan TAHTACI (TUR)
Vladyslav BODORIAK (UKR)
Dustin PLOTT (USA)
Sagar JAGLAN (UWW)

86kg
Arslan BAGAEV (AIN)
Ilya KHAMTSOU (AIN)
Altin GANCI (ALB)
Mushegh MKRTCHYAN (ARM)
Benjamin GREIL (AUT)
Arsenii DZHIOEV (AZE)
Owen MARTIN (CAN)
Charalampos CHOIRAS (CYP)
Miko ELKALA (FIN)
Daviti KOGUASHVILI (GEO)
Joshua MORODION (GER)
Angelos KOUKLARIS (GRE)
Ali MANSOURI (IRI)
Erzo ISAKOV (JOR)
Tatsuya SHIRAI (JPN)
Nurdaulet KUANYSHBAY (KAZ)
Sofiane PADIOU BELMIR (MAR)
Ivan ICHIZLI (MDA)
Adam MODOSJAN (MKD)
Igor SZUCKI (POL)
Edward LESSING (RSA)
Ismail KUCUKSOLAK (TUR)
Oleksandr MAMROSH (UKR)
Aaron BROOKS (USA)
DEEPAK (UWW)

92kg
Alan BAGAEV (AIN)
Yaraslau IADKOUSKI (AIN)
Arjan DANAJ (ALB)
Knyaz IBOYAN (ARM)
Abduljalil SHABANOV (AZE)
Samuel PEREIRA (CAN)
Adlan VISKHANOV (FRA)
Andro MARGISHVILI (GEO)
Gkivi BLIATZE (GRE)
Mohammadmobin AZIMI (IRI)
Abdul ABUIDAIJ (JOR)
Satoshi MIURA (JPN)
Nurdaulet BEKENOV (KAZ)
Kanybek ABDULKHAIROV (KGZ)
Ion DEMIAN (MDA)
Redjep HAJDARI (MKD)
Jairo RIVERA VAZQUEZ (PUR)
Muhammed GIMRI (TUR)
Denys SAHALIUK (UKR)
Jacob CARDENAS (USA)
Pruthviraj PATIL (UWW)

97kg
Sergei KOZYREV (AIN)
Uladzislau KAZLOU (AIN)
Sergey SARGSYAN (ARM)
Thomas BARNS (AUS)
Aiden STEVENSON (CAN)
Merab SULEIMANISHVILI (GEO)
Ertugrul AGCA (GER)
Richard VEGH (HUN)
Amirali AZARPIRA (IRI)
Hibiki ITO (JPN)
Yunus GAFUROV (KAZ)
Radu LEFTER (MDA)
Nicolaas DE LANGE (RSA)
Adam JAKSIK (SVK)
Oktay CIFTCI (TUR)
David MCHEDLIDZE (UKR)
Isaac TRUMBLE (USA)
SAHIL (UWW)

125kg
Abdulla KURBANOV (AIN)
Aliaksei PARKHOMENKA (AIN)
Khachatur KHACHATRYAN (ARM)
Vakhit GALAYEV (AZE)
Georgi VELEV (BUL)
Karanveer MAHIL (CAN)
Solomon MANASHVILI (GEO)
Azamat KHOSONOV (GRE)
Amirreza MASOUMI (IRI)
Kai SHUTTO (JPN)
Omarkhan NADIROV (KAZ)
Nicolae STRATULAT (MDA)
Adil MISIRCI (TUR)
Volodymyr KOCHANOV (UKR)
Wyatt HENDRICKSON (USA)
Anirudh KUMAR (UWW)

IRISeyed SOHRABI (IRI) will look to win a second straight 67kg U23 world title. (Photo: Kadir Caliskan)

Greco-Roman

55kg
Vladimir ZABEIVOROTA (AIN)
Andi MUCA (ALB)
Manvel KHACHATRYAN (ARM)
Farid SADIKHLI (AZE)
Denis DEMIROV (BUL)
Giorgi TOKHADZE (GEO)
Mahdi AHADI (IRI)
Shoya ITO (JPN)
Yerbol KAMALIYEV (KAZ)
Ulan MURATBEK UULU (KGZ)
Hassan ALHARTHI (KSA)
Leonid MOROZ (MDA)
Denis MIHAI (ROU)
Adem UZUN (TUR)
Yevhen POKOVBA (UKR)
Camden RUSSELL (USA)
Laishram MEITEI (UWW)

60kg
Anvar ALLAKHIAROV (AIN)
Ergi UKU (ALB)
Suren AGHAJANYAN (ARM)
Nihad GULUZADE (AZE)
Romeo BERIDZE (GEO)
Georgios SCARPELLO (GER)
Ilias ZAIRAKIS (GRE)
Omid ARAMI (IRI)
Melkamu FETENE (ISR)
Kosei TAKESHITA (JPN)
Aibek SABYRBEKOV (KAZ)
Nurmukhammet ABDULLAEV (KGZ)
Munthir JANDU (KSA)
Angel SEGURA (MEX)
Grzegorz KUNKEL (POL)
Adrian ANTON (ROU)
Mert ILBARS (TUR)
Vladyslav KUZKO (UKR)
Phillip MOOMEY (USA)
SUMIT (UWW)
Yonaiker MARTINEZ (VEN)

63kg
Rakhman TAVMURZAEV (AIN)
Hleb MAKARANKA (AIN)
Andi DYSHNIKU (ALB)
Yurik HOVEYAN (ARM)
Ziya BABASHOV (AZE)
Tino OJALA (FIN)
Giorgi SHOTADZE (GEO)
Iman MOHAMMADI (IRI)
Abere FETENE (ISR)
Chiezo MARUYAMA (JPN)
Yerzhet ZHARLYKASSYN (KAZ)
Baiaman KARIMOV (KGZ)
Rayan HAWSAWI (KSA)
Vitalie ERIOMENCO (MDA)
Mairbek SALIMOV (POL)
Jonas Urs MUELLER (SUI)
Ismail CULFA (TUR)
Andrii SEMENCHUK (UKR)
Jordan HAMDAN (USA)
PRAVESH (UWW)

67kg
Muslim IMADAEV (AIN)
Illia VALEUSKI (AIN)
Ardit ZENELI (ALB)
Sahak HOVHANNISYAN (ARM)
Hasan MAMMADLI (AZE)
Ivo ILIEV (BUL)
Moustafa ALAMELDIN (EGY)
Artur JEREMEJEV (EST)
Gagik SNJOYAN (FRA)
Diego CHKHIKVADZE (GEO)
Danial SOHRABI (IRI)
Shon NADORGIN (ISR)
Steve MOMILIA (ITA)
HARUTO YABE (JPN)
Sultan ASSETULY (KAZ)
Ermek KANYBEK UULU (KGZ)
Ahmed BARAHMAH (KSA)
Adomas GRIGALIUNAS (LTU)
Alexandr GURALI (MDA)
Irving SALAZAR (MEX)
Aleksander MIELEWCZYK (POL)
Mustafa YILDIRIM (TUR)
Oleh KHALILOV (UKR)
Robert PEREZ (USA)
UMESH (UWW)

72kg
Dmitrii ADAMOV (AIN)
Klodjan SHEHU (ALB)
Shant KHACHATRYAN (ARM)
Ruslan NURULLAYEV (AZE)
Luka MALOBABIC (CRO)
Junior BENITEZ (ESP)
Joni KOMPPA (FIN)
Yanis GUENDEZ NIFRI (FRA)
Otar ABULADZE (GEO)
Georgios SOTIRIADIS (GRE)
Krisztofer KLANYI (HUN)
Amir Ali ABDI (IRI)
Giovanni ALESSIO (ITA)
Tetsuto KANUKA (JPN)
Yeldos KAMELOV (KAZ)
Adilkhan NURLANBEKOV (KGZ)
Mesfer ALSUBAIE (KSA)
Eimantas VILIMAS (LTU)
Alexis VARGAS (MEX)
Piotr STOLARCZYK (POL)
Michael PORTMANN (SUI)
Miru Jerry OLSSON (SWE)
Muhammed GOCMEN (TUR)
Irfan MIRZOIEV (UKR)
Justus SCOTT (USA)
ANIL (UWW)

77kg
Ismail BARAKHOEV (AIN)
Dzmitry NAVITSKI (AIN)
Ardit NDOJ (ALB)
Henrik GEVORGYAN (ARM)
Khasay HASANLI (AZE)
Ibrahim TABAEV (BEL)
Edvin KIN (EST)
Khvicha ANANIDZE (GEO)
Samuel BELLSCHEIDT (GER)
Attila TOESMAGI (HUN)
Mohammad NAGHOUSI (IRI)
Shu YAMADA (JPN)
Omar SATAYEV (KAZ)
Yryskeldi MAKSATBEK UULU (KGZ)
Hassan BARNAWI (KSA)
Aistis LIAUGMINAS (LTU)
Alexandrin GUTU (MDA)
Konrad KOZLOWSKI (POL)
Jose SANCHEZ (PUR)
Aleksa ILIC (SRB)
Simon BORKENHAGEN (SWE)
Omer DOGAN (TUR)
Mykyta POLITAIEV (UKR)
Payton JACOBSON (USA)
Deepak PUNIA (UWW)

82kg
Aues GONIBOV (AIN)
Uladzislau SLABADZINSKI (AIN)
Kelsi NELAJ (ALB)
Karen KHACHATRYAN (ARM)
Eljan MAMMADOV (AZE)
Karlo KODRIC (CRO)
Emad ABOUELATTA (EGY)
Otto KETONEN (FIN)
Saba MAMALADZE (GEO)
Ilias PAGKALIDIS (GRE)
Peter DOEMOEK (HUN)
Yasin YAZDI (IRI)
Daizo TANIZAKI (JPN)
Islam YEVLOYEV (KAZ)
Alexandru SOLOVEI (MDA)
Adam GARDZIOLA (POL)
Vasile COJOC (ROU)
Branko KOVACEVIC (SRB)
Alexander JOHANSSON (SWE)
Alperen BERBER (TUR)
Ruslan ABDIIEV (UKR)
Tyler EISCHENS (USA)
RAHUL (UWW)
Daniel BELLO (VEN)

87kg
Magomed MURTAZALIEV (AIN)
Vasili BUHLAK (AIN)
Julijan SHEHU (ALB)
Samvel SARGSYAN (ARM)
Mahammad AHMADIYEV (AZE)
Ivan MANOV (BUL)
Matej MANDIC (CRO)
Waltteri LATVALA (FIN)
Achiko BOLKVADZE (GEO)
Evangelos BOUKIS (GRE)
Istvan TAKACS (HUN)
Alireza MOHAMMADIPIANI (IRI)
Kaito MIYAMOTO (JPN)
Maksat SAILAU (KAZ)
Asan ZHANYSHOV (KGZ)
Exauce MUKUBU (NOR)
Szymon SZYMONOWICZ (POL)
Christian ZEMP (SUI)
Hamza SERTCANLI (SWE)
Muhittin SARICICEK (TUR)
Mykyta ALIEKSIEIEV (UKR)
Michael ALTOMER (USA)
Manoj KUMAR (UWW)

97kg
Artur ARZUMANIAN (AIN)
Pavel HLINCHUK (AIN)
Hayk KHLOYAN (ARM)
Murad AHMADIYEV (AZE)
Kristian LUKAC (CRO)
Richard KARELSON (EST)
Lasha TVILDIANI (GEO)
Lucas LAZOGIANIS (GER)
Alex SZOKE (HUN)
Vahid DADKHAH GHASEM (IRI)
Yuri NAKAZATO (JPN)
Islam UMAYEV (KAZ)
Arkyt OROZBEKOV (KGZ)
Ibrahim FALLATAH (KSA)
Roman BALCHIVSCHII (MDA)
Marcus WORREN (NOR)
Jakub ANTOSZEWSKI (POL)
Luka KATIC (SRB)
Mustafa OLGUN (TUR)
Valentyn SHKLIARENKO (UKR)
Cade LAUTT (USA)
NITESH (UWW)
Juan DIAZ (VEN)

130kg
Mikhail LAPTEV (AIN)
Mikita KAVALSKI (AIN)
Razmik KURDYAN (ARM)
Sarkhan MAMMADOV (AZE)
Marcel ALBINI (CZE)
Fekry EISSA (EGY)
Giorgi TSOPURASHVILI (GEO)
Patrick NEUMAIER (GER)
Apostolos TSIOVOLOS (GRE)
Fardin HEDAYATI (IRI)
Sota OKUMURA (JPN)
Jokhar UZAROV (KAZ)
Muhammet BAKIR (TUR)
Mykhailo VYSHNYVETSKYI (UKR)
Kaleb REEVES (USA)
PARVESH (UWW)

TURNesrin BAS (TUR) is one of two returning champions in women's wrestling. (Photo: Kadir Caliskan)

Women’s Wrestling

50kg
Mariia TIUMEREKOVA (AIN)
Anastasiya YANOTAVA (AIN)
Elnura MAMMADOVA (AZE)
Kelyn YOUNG (CAN)
Nada MOHAMED (EGY)
Ana TORRES (ESP)
Emma LUTTENAUER (FRA)
Szimonetta SZEKER (HUN)
Emanuela LIUZZI (ITA)
Umi ITO (JPN)
Laura GANIKYZY (KAZ)
Gabija DILYTE (LTU)
Maria LEORDA (MDA)
Amanda TOMCZYK (POL)
Ana PIRVU (ROU)
Khrystyna BASYCH (SVK)
Zehra DEMIRHAN (TUR)
Aida KERYMOVA (UKR)
Audrey JIMENEZ (USA)
NEELAM (UWW)

53kg
Ekaterina VERBINA (AIN)
Viktoryia VOLK (AIN)
Esmeralda NELA (ALB)
Gultakin SHIRINOVA (AZE)
Serena DI BENEDETTO (CAN)
Tetiana PROFATILOVA (FRA)
Mako OONO (JPN)
Altyn SHAGAYEVA (KAZ)
Mariana DRAGUTAN (MDA)
Beatrice FERENT (ROU)
Lobna ICHAOUI (TUN)
Tuba DEMIR (TUR)
Liliia MALANCHUK (UKR)
Katie GOMEZ (USA)
ISHIKA (UWW)

55kg
Venera NAFIKOVA (AIN)
Aryna MARTYNAVA (AIN)
Nazife TAIR (BUL)
Virginie KAZE GASCON (CAN)
Erika BOGNAR (HUN)
Immacolata DANISE (ITA)
Umi IMAI (JPN)
Zeinep BAYANOVA (KAZ)
Aruuke KADYRBEK KYZY (KGZ)
Mihaela SAMOIL (MDA)
Andreea ANA (ROU)
Nova BERGMAN (SWE)
Melda DERNEKCI (TUR)
Mariia VYNNYK (UKR)
Alisha HOWK (USA)
Neha SHARMA (UWW)

57kg
Mariia BUZAROVA (AIN)
Alesia HETMANAVA (AIN)
Zhala ALIYEVA (AZE)
Mia FRIESEN (CAN)
Anna MICHALCOVA (CZE)
Sara NATAMI (JPN)
Shugyla OMIRBEK (KAZ)
Bermet NURIDIN KYZY (KGZ)
Angelika MYTKOWSKA (POL)
Karoline ORTIZ (PUR)
Elvira KAMALOGLU (TUR)
Alina FILIPOVYCH (UKR)
Xochitl MOTA PETTIS (USA)
REENA (UWW)

59kg
Anastasiia SIDELNIKOVA (AIN)
Nadzeya BULANAYA (AIN)
Michaela RANKIN (CAN)
Amel REBIHA (FRA)
Kelsey BARNES (GBR)
Sena NAGAMOTO (JPN)
Guldana BEKESH (KAZ)
Kalmira BILIMBEKOVA (KGZ)
Ramina MAMEDOVA (LAT)
Othelie HOEIE (NOR)
Wiktoria KARWOWSKA (POL)
Ana PUIU (ROU)
Ebru DAGBASI (TUR)
Solomiia VYNNYK (UKR)
Nichole MOORE (USA)
NITIKA (UWW)

62kg
Alina KASABIEVA (AIN)
Yana TRETSIAK (AIN)
Kleona SHABANI (ALB)
Birgul SOLTANOVA (AZE)
Aleah Noelle NICKEL (CAN)
Viktoria VESSO (EST)
Ameline DOUARRE (FRA)
Morena VITA (ITA)
Yuzuka INAGAKI (JPN)
Irina KUZNETSOVA (KAZ)
Ameyali JESSEL (MEX)
Esther KOLAWOLE (NGR)
Selvi ILYASOGLU (TUR)
Iryna BONDAR (UKR)
Adaugo NWACHUKWU (USA)
Bhagyashree FAND (UWW)
Astrid MONTERO (VEN)

65kg
Amina TANDELOVA (AIN)
Kseniya TSIARENIA (AIN)
Nigar MIRZAZADA (AZE)
Samantha ADAMS (CAN)
Iva GERIC (CRO)
Marta OJEDA NAVARRO (ESP)
Iris THIEBAUX (FRA)
Karolina POK (HUN)
Rin TERAMOTO (JPN)
Albina KAIRGELDINOVA (KAZ)
Elma ZEIDLERE (LAT)
Irina RINGACI (MDA)
Amina CAPEZAN (ROU)
Khadija JLASSI (TUN)
Busra EFE (TUR)
Yuliia LESKOVETS (UKR)
Macey KILTY (USA)
MONIKA (UWW)
Gilbery GARCIA (VEN)

68kg
Vusala PARFIANOVICH (AIN)
Alina SHAUCHUK (AIN)
Vanessa KEEFE (CAN)
Noémi SZABADOS (HUN)
Beibit SEIDUALY (KAZ)
Gulnura TASHTANBEKOVA (KGZ)
Luciana BEDA (MDA)
Paulina DANISZ (POL)
Tindra SJOEBERG (SWE)
Nour JELJELI (TUN)
Nesrin BAS (TUR)
Manola SKOBELSKA (UKR)
Katerina LANGE (USA)
VARSHA (UWW)

72kg
Marina SUROVTSEVA (AIN)
Viktoryia RADZKOVA (AIN)
Marziya SADIGOVA (AZE)
Nyla Raeleen BURGESS (CAN)
Milla ANDELIC (CRO)
Misaki WACHI (JPN)
Anastassiya PANASSOVICH (KAZ)
Emilia CRECIUN (MDA)
Wiktoria CHOLUJ (POL)
Fanni NAGY NAD (SRB)
Zaineb SGHAIER (TUN)
Bukrenaz SERT (TUR)
Iryna ZABLOTSKA (UKR)
Amit ELOR (USA)
Jyoti BERWAL (UWW)

76kg
Rita TALISMANOVA (AIN)
Vianne ROULEAU (CAN)
Nodoka YAMAMOTO (JPN)
Inkara ZHANATAYEVA (KAZ)
Kamile GAUCAITE (LTU)
Patrycja SLOMSKA (POL)
Fanni NAGY NAD (SRB)
Anna BRAUN (SWE)
Mehtap GULTEKIN (TUR)
Anastasiya ALPYEYEVA (UKR)
Kennedy BLADES (USA)
REETIKA (UWW)

#WrestlePontevedra

U20 Worlds: Zakriev dominates to gold; Abdevali repeats

By Vinay Siwach

PONTEVEDRA, Spain (September 3) -- Erzu ZAKRIEV (AIN) was unsure if he would be participating in the U20 World Championships. Zakriev began preparing only two days before the start of the tournament in Spain.

"We were told that we wouldn’t come here," Zakriev said. "I went into relaxed mode. It was only three days before we were told that we could go. The way was really long and difficult, we were cutting weight at the airport. We had to change four flights on our way. We arrived at midnight and early next day I had my first match in the morning. I didn’t even have time to rest."

Zakriev did not show any signs of distress as he began the competition with a technical superiority win and reached the final with two more wins. On Tuesday, the 19-year-old won the gold medal at 63kg in Pontevedra, Spain, being the final against Otto BLACK (USA) 8-0.

A minute into the final and Zakriev had Black on the backfoot with a stepout and takedown. Black never got a chance to come back into the final as Zakriev finished it in two minutes and 40 seconds.

Erzu ZAKRIEV (AIN)Erzu ZAKRIEV (AIN) tries to complete a throw against Otto BLACK (USA) in the 63kg final. (Photo: United World Wrestling / Kadir Caliskan)

"I was very confident," he said. "Last year I was third at the national championships, and this year I finished first. I haven’t lost any single match for a year now."

The dominance of Zakriev was evident in the U20 European Championships as well as he outscored his opponents 29-0 in four bouts, winning the gold medal over Anri KHOZREVANIDZE (GEO), an opponent he defeated 16-4 in the semifinals on Monday.

Hailing from Chechnya, Zakriev grew up in Goyty village and began training after his parents took him to the academy when he was eight years old.

"I will be moving to the Olympic weight class of 67kg from next year," he said.

The United States suffered another heartbreak in the final as Isaiah CORTEZ (USA) lost the 55kg final against Ali AHMADI VAFA (IRI).

Unlike Black, Cortez had his chances to take the lead against Ahmadi Vafa in the final. He even had the Iranian in a fall position but failed to finish it. Ahmadi Vafa eventually won the final 11-3 in a match that was closer than the scoreline shows.

Ahmadi Vafa got the first par terre advantage and he used a high gut-wrench to take a 5-0 lead over Cortez. He used an arm spin to score two more points to make the lead 7-0. Cortez cut it to 7-2 just before the break with exposure.

Cortez, however, failed to score from par terre and Ahmadi Vafa led 7-3 with 1:25 left on the clock. Two desperate bodylock throws ended up in Cortez giving up points.

Ali AHMADI VAFA (IRI)Ali AHMADI VAFA (IRI) scores two points over Isaiah CORTEZ (USA) in the 55kg final. (Photo: United World Wrestling / Kadir Caliskan)

"I wrestled really well to reach the final. I had analyzed my American opponent’s wrestling style, and thank God, I was able to wrestle with the best results and win the gold medal," Ahmadi Vafa said.

A former U17 world champion, Ahmadi Vafa finished without a medal last year at the U20 Worlds. A gold medal in Pontevedra gave him some relief from his medalless campaign from last year.

"Last year, I couldn’t win a good medal and lost in the world championships," he said. "This year, I managed to win gold. Next year, I have the junior competitions again, but my main goal is to be selected for the senior competitions."

This was the first time since 2017 that the U.S. had two finalists in Greco-Roman at the U20 World Championships. Kamal BEY (USA) won the title in 2017. However, the wait for a new U20 world champion just grew for the U.S.

Alireza ABDEVALI (IRI)Alireza ABDEVALI (IRI) won his second U20 world gold medal at 77kg. (Photo: United World Wrestling / Kadir Caliskan)

Defending U20 world champion Alireza ABDEVALI (IRI) added the second gold medal, winning the 77kg weight class. Wrestling Magomed IARBILOV (AIN) in the final, Abdevali got the par terre advantage but failed to score and Iarbilov scored a reversal to lead 1-1 on criteria.

Abdevali scored an arm-drag takedown in the second period to lead 3-1 and defended it till the end of the time to win his second gold medal at this level.

"I feel great that I was able to win my second world championship medal," he said. "It felt even better than when I won the first time. I’m just at the beginning of my journey, and there’s a long way to go until the Olympics."

Alireza is the fourth of the five Abdevali brothers but said that he felt no pressure to win because of his family name.

"I didn’t feel any pressure. My older brother, Saeid, is a great wrestler, and he gives me motivation and spirit to be a fighter."

Laszlo DARABOS (HUN) Laszlo DARABOS (HUN) scores on Abolfazl FATHITAZANGI (IRI) in the 130kg final. (Photo: United World Wrestling / Jake Kirkman)

Iran could have won three gold medals on Tuesday but former U20 European champion Laszlo DARABOS (HUN) denied Abolfazl FATHITAZANGI (IRI), 5-3, in the 130kg final.

Darabos trailed 3-0 at the break after giving up a turn from par terre. However, when he got the par terre in the second period, he turned Fathitazangi twice and took a 5-3 lead and defended it.

This is the first U20 world champion for Hungary since 2019 and the first since 2012 in the highest weight class.

Asan ZHANYSHOV (KGZ)Asan ZHANYSHOV (KGZ) won the 87kg gold medal after beating Joju SAMADOV (AZE) in the final. (Photo: United World Wrestling / Jake Kirkman)

Zhanyshov upgrades

Returning bronze medalist Asan ZHANYSHOV (KGZ) upgraded to gold after he defeated Joju SAMADOV (AZE), 8-0, in the 87kg final to win Kyrgyzstan's first U20 world title in Greco-Roman since 2019. Incidentally, the last U20 world champion -- Erbol BAKIROV (KGZ) -- also hails from the same village, Taygaray, as Zhanyshov.

In the final, Samadov found it difficult to match the pace of Zhanyshov and failed to stop any of his attacks. He gave up five stepouts in the final.

"I had a great training camp with the senior team," Zhanyshov said. "I already have experience wrestling at the senior level. The difference is that on age-group levels you have to be prepared technically, performing throws and moves, while at the senior level that won’t be enough. You have to be physically and functionally very well prepared. So, my level is now senior."

Having trained with world champions Akzhol MAKHMUDOV (KGZ) and Zholaman SHARSHENBEKOV (KGZ), Zhanyshov felt motivated by his seniors and was determined to win the gold medal.

"Makhmudov and Sharshenbekov are my wrestling role models," he said.

sd

RESULTS

55kg
GOLD: Ali AHMADI VAFA (IRI) df. Isaiah CORTEZ (USA), 11-3

BRONZE: Alibek AMIROV (11) df. Rahim HASANOV (AZE), 10-0
BRONZE: Aibek AITBEKOV (KAZ) df. Maxim SARMANOV (MDA), 10-1

63kg
GOLD: Erzu ZAKRIEV (AIN) df. Otto BLACK (USA), 8-0

BRONZE: Erfan JARKANI (IRI) df. Anri KHOZREVANIDZE (GEO), 6-2
BRONZE: Yurik HOVEYAN (ARM) df. Enes ULKU (TUR), 2-1

77kg
GOLD: Alireza ABDEVALI (IRI) df. Magomed IARBILOV (AIN), 3-1

BRONZE: Levente LEVAI (HUN) df. Irfan MIRZOIEV (UKR), 3-2
BRONZE: Tornike MIKELADZE (GEO) df. Karl BAFF (SWE), 5-3 

87kg
GOLD: Asan ZHANYSHOV (KGZ) df. Joju SAMADOV (AZE), 8-0

BRONZE: Achiko BOLKVADZE (GEO) df. Patrik GORDAN (ROU), 10-0
BRONZE: Ruben GEVORGYAN (ARM) df. Temirlan TURDAKYN (KAZ), 3-1

130kg
GOLD: Laszlo DARABOS (HUN) df. Abolfazl FATHITAZANGI (IRI), 5-3

BRONZE: Aden ATTAO (USA) df. Aleksandr MELEKHOV (AIN), via fall
BRONZE: Samagan ORMONOV (KGZ) df. Aramayis HARUTYUNYAN (ARM), via fall

Semifinals 

60kg
GOLD: Servet ANGI (TUR) vs. Mohammadmehdi GHOLAMPOUR (IRI)

SF 1: Servet ANGI (TUR) df. Ongdassyn KHAMITOV (KAZ), 9-8
SF 2: Mohammadmehdi GHOLAMPOUR (IRI) df. Papik DZHAVADIAN (AIN), 9-8

67kg
GOLD: Ahmadreza MOHSEN NEZHAD (IRI) vs. Yussuf ASHRAPOV (KAZ)

SF 1: Ahmadreza MOHSEN NEZHAD (IRI) df. Kojiro HASEGAWA (JPN), 10-0
SF 2: Yussuf ASHRAPOV (KAZ) df. Grair OGANESIAN (AIN), 7-5

72kg
GOLD: Zaur BESLEKOEV (AIN) vs. Ashot KHACHATRYAN (ARM)

SF 1: Zaur BESLEKOEV (AIN) df. Muhammed GOCMEN (TUR), 1-1
SF 2: Ashot KHACHATRYAN (ARM) df. Ruslan NURULLAYEV (AZE), 4-1

82kg
GOLD: Islam YEVLOYEV (KAZ) vs. Alperen BERBER (TUR)

SF 1: Islam YEVLOYEV (KAZ) df. Abdurakhman ABDULKADYROV (AIN), via inj. def.
SF 2: Alperen BERBER (TUR) df. Taizo YOSHIDA (JPN), 12-0

97kg
GOLD: Yehor YAKUSHENKO (UKR) vs. Darius KIEFER (GER)

SF 1: Yehor YAKUSHENKO (UKR) df. Anatolii AVERIN (AIN), 7-4
SF 2: Darius KIEFER (GER) df. Ahmet EREMEKTER (TUR), via fall