#WrestlePontevedra

U23 World Championships entry list

By Eric Olanowski & Vinay Siwach

PONTEVEDRA, Spain (October 6) -- The final World Championships of the season is here. The U23 World Championships will be staged in Spain's eastern coastal city of Pontevedra from October 17 to 23.

The field consists of 15 senior world medalists and includes eight senior world champions.

As is always the case, Japan is sending a strong women's contingent headed by Olympic and world champion Yui SUSAKI (JPN) along with fellow 2022 world champs, Nonoka OZAKI (JPN) and Miwa MORIKAWA (JPN).

Amit ELOR (USA), the recently crowned world champion in Belgrade, will be aiming to win her third world title of the year having already won the U20 and senior titles.

The Greco-Roman field also has former world champion as Malkhas AMOYAN (ARM) leads his nation into the tournament. He won a bronze medal in Belgrade.

Iran will be led by the 2021 world champion at 130kg Aliakbar YOUSOFI (IRI). The team also has Poya DAD MARZ (IRI), Seyed SOHRABI (IRI) and Mohammad Reza MOKHTARI (IRI) among others.

The team will be keen on reinstating some of the pride for Iran which had a disastrous senior World Championships with no gold medals.

The freestyle competition will see strong teams entered by the USA, Iran, India, Armenia, Kazakhstan and Azerbaijan.

Arsen HARUTYUNYAN (ARM)Arsen HARUTYUNYAN (ARM) will look to defend his 61kg title. (Photo: UWW / Martin Gabor)

Freestyle

57kg
Tadeu De DEUS (ANG)
Manvel KHNDZRTSYAN (ARM)
Tofig ALIYEV (AZE)
Logan SLOAN (CAN)
Diego ZULUAGA CUEVAS (COL)
Adrian LOPEZ GOMEZ (ESP)
Diamantino IUNA FAFE (GBS)
Giorgi GEGELASHVILI (GEO)
Horst LEHR (GER)
Aman SEHRAWAT (IND)
Ahmad MOHAMMADNEZHADJAVAN (IRI)
Toshiya ABE (JPN)
Daulet TEMIRZHANOV (KAZ)
Bekzat ALMAZ UULU (KGZ)
Demian LIUTCANOV (MDA)
Munkh BATKHUYAG (MGL)
Rodrigo GANEGODAGE (SRI)
Thomas EPP (SUI)
Ahmet DUMAN (TUR)
Kamil KERYMOV (UKR)
Vitali ARUJAU (USA)

61kg
Arsen HARUTYUNYAN (ARM)
Intigam VALIZADA (AZE)
Stilyan ILIEV (BUL)
Jason LUNEAU (CAN)
Elkin ESPANA SANTA (COL)
Yousef EISSA (EGY)
Adam BIBOULATOV (FRA)
Ramaz TURMANIDZE (GEO)
Nico MEGERLE (GER)
Akash DAHIYA (IND)
Armin HABIBZADEH (IRI)
Kodai OGAWA (JPN)
Assyl AITAKYN (KAZ)
Taiyrbek ZHUMASHBEK UULU (KGZ)
Joseph SILVA (PUR)
Matheesha SAMARADIVAKARA (SRI)
Nils LEUTERT (SUI)
Emrah ORMANOGLU (TUR)
Andrii DZHELEP (UKR)
Aaron NAGAO (USA)

65kg
Vazgen TEVANYAN (ARM)
Ayub MUSAEV (BEL)
Ivan BADAVROV (BUL)
Daniel COLES (CAN)
Felipe FERRUSOLA MILLA (ESP)
Said HOSSEINI (FIN)
Khamzat ARSAMERZOUEV (FRA)
Ross CONNELLY (GBR)
Gia UGRELIDZE (GEO)
Leon GERSTENBERGER (GER)
Gamzatgadzsi HALIDOV (HUN)
Anuj KUMAR (IND)
Kian MAHMOUD (IRI)
Kaiki YAMAGUCHI (JPN)
Adlan ASKAROV (KAZ)
Ikromzhon KHADZHIMURODOV (KGZ)
Leomid COLESNIC (MDA)
Ganbayar NAMSRAI (MGL)
Samuel ALVAREZ (PUR)
Gunawardana KANKANAMLAGE (SRI)
Dominik LARITZ (SUI)
Gurbanmuhammet CHARYYEV (TKM)
Hamza ALACA (TUR)
Erik ARUSHANIAN (UKR)
Cole MATTHEWS (USA)
Aseel AL MAKTARI (YEM)

70kg
Arman ANDREASYAN (ARM)
Kanan HEYBATOV (AZE)
Muhammad ABDURACHMANOV (BEL)
Emmanuel OLAPADE (CAN)
Jorge GATICA HINRICKSEN (CHI)
Ramon GERSAK PEREZ (ESP)
Marwane YEZZA (FRA)
Giorgi ELBAKIDZE (GEO)
Shamil USTAEV (GER)
Parvinder NAIN (IND)
Amirmohammad YAZDANI (IRI)
Aliakbar FAZLIKHALILI (IRI)
Gianluca COLETTI (ITA)
Kota TAKAHASHI (JPN)
Syrbaz TALGAT (KAZ)
Orozobek TOKTOMAMBETOV (KGZ)
Nicolai GRAHMEZ (MDA)
Tugsjargal ERDENEBAT (MGL)
Stefan COMAN (ROU)
Waththa WADUGE (SRI)
Tobias PORTMANN (SUI)
Hojamuhammed IBRAGIMOV (TKM)
Omer CAYIR (TUR)
Ihor NYKYFORUK (UKR)
Yahya THOMAS (USA)
Saddam ALHADA (YEM)

74kg
Hrayr ALIKHANYAN (ARM)
Simon MARCHL (AUT)
Khadzhimurad GADZHIYEV (AZE)
Dimitar ANGELOV (BUL)
Patrik LEDER (CAN)
Jhoan SERNA RODRIGUEZ (COL)
Mohamed EL KARCHOUCH (ESP)
Temuri BERUASHVILI (GEO)
Richard SCHROEDER (GER)
Christos CHRISTOFORIDIS (GRE)
Sagar JAGLAN (IND)
Mohmmadsadegh FIROUZPOUR (IRI)
Raul ZARBALIEV (ISR)
Luca FINIZIO (ITA)
Yuto FUKADA (JPN)
Yerkhan BEXULTANOV (KAZ)
Alinur TAKIROV (KGZ)
Vasile DIACON (MDA)
Diego SANDOVAL (MEX)
Temuujin MENDBILEG (MGL)
Jean STE MARIE (MRI)
Szymon WOJTKOWSKI (POL)
Sonny SANTIAGO (PUR)
Krisztian BIRO (ROU)
Palamure PALAMURE ARACHCHILAGE (SRI)
Atamyrat CHARLYYEV (TKM)
Ismet CIFTCI (TUR)
Vadym KURYLENKO (UKR)
David CARR (USA)

79kg
Arman AVAGYAN (ARM)
Ashraf ASHIROV (AZE)
Oktay HASAN (BUL)
Adam THOMSON (CAN)
Gabriel IGLESIAS (ESP)
Erik REINBOK (EST)
Vladimeri GAMKRELIDZE (GEO)
Georgios KOUGIOUMTSIDIS (GRE)
Zsombor NAGY (HUN)
CHANDERMOHAN (IND)
Sobhan YARI (IRI)
Ilan BONDAR (ISR)
Kosuke YAMAKURA (JPN)
Daulet YERGESH (KAZ)
Mukhammad ABDULLAEV (KGZ)
Stanislav NOVAC (MDA)
Miguel ORNELAS (MEX)
Ernest DOROSZ (POL)
Tony NEGRON (PUR)
Divan ILANDARI PEDIGE (SRI)
Tanguy DARBELLAY (SUI)
Soltan BEGENJOV (TKM)
Abdulvasi BALTA (TUR)
Valentyn BABII (UKR)
Carter STAROCCI (USA)

86kg
Knyaz IBOYAN (ARM)
Benjamin GREIL (AUT)
Abubakr ABAKAROV (AZE)
Hunter LEE (CAN)
Jaime GARCIA (ESP)
Rakhim MAGAMADOV (FRA)
Evsem SHVELIDZE (GEO)
Lars SCHAEFLE (GER)
Angelos KOUKLARIS (GRE)
Cesar UBICO ESTRADA (GUA)
Jointy KUMAR (IND)
Sajjad GHOLAMI (IRI)
Chengiz SOLTANOV SOLTANLI (ISR)
Mattia NASELLO (ITA)
Tatsuya SHIRAI (JPN)
Maksat SATYBALDY (KAZ)
Nurtilek KARYPBAEV (KGZ)
Ivars SAMUSONOKS (LAT)
Ivan ICHIZLI (MDA)
Cezary SADOWSKI (POL)
Jairo RIVERA (PUR)
Edward LESSING (RSA)
Emre CIFTCI (TUR)
Mukhammed ALIIEV (UKR)
Trent HIDLAY (USA)
Steven RODRIGUEZ (VEN)

92kg
Sergey SARGSYAN (ARM)
Ilia HRISTOV (BUL)
Tejvir BOAL (CAN)
Aimar ALZON (ESP)
Adlan VISKHANOV (FRA)
Miriani MAISURADZE (GEO)
Johannes MAYER (GER)
Gkivi BLIATZE (GRE)
Krisztian ANGYAL (HUN)
Parveen KUMAR (IND)
Amirhossein FIROUZPOUR (IRI)
Hikaru ABE (JPN)
Rizabek AITMUKHAN (KAZ)
Baisal KUBATOV (KGZ)
Osmans DZASEZEVS (LAT)
Ion DEMIAN (MDA)
Machiel GROBLER (RSA)
Palliya GURUNNANSELAGE DON (SRI)
Feyzullah AKTURK (TUR)
Denys SAHALIUK (UKR)
Jacob CARDENAS (USA)

97kg
Hovhannes MAGHAKYAN (ARM)
Thomas BARNS (AUS)
Islam ILYASOV (AZE)
Callum KNOX (CAN)
Riveri MTSITURI (GEO)
Ertugrul AGCA (GER)
Richard VEGH (HUN)
Sahil AHLAWAT (IND)
Amirali AZARPIRA (IRI)
Hibiki ITO (JPN)
Yunus GAFUROV (KAZ)
Radu LEFTER (MDA)
Nicolaas DE LANGE (RSA)
Shatlyk HEMELYAYEV (TKM)
Mucahit CELIK (TUR)
Vasyl SOVA (UKR)
Tanner SLOAN (USA)

125kg
Vakhit GALAYEV (AZE)
Georgi IVANOV (BUL)
Jackson SERNA (CAN)
Carlos ACEBRON (ESP)
Solomon MANASHVILI (GEO)
Azamat KHOSONOV (GRE)
Milan KORCSOG (HUN)
Anirudh KUMAR (IND)
Amirreza MASOUMI (IRI)
Lior ALTSHULER (ISR)
Kai SHUTTO (JPN)
Alisher YERGALI (KAZ)
Zyyamuhammet SAPAROV (TKM)
Adil MISIRCI (TUR)
Yurii IDZINSKYI (UKR)
Anthony CASSIOPPI (USA)

Aliakbar YOUSOFI (IRI)Aliakbar YOUSOFI (IRI), a 2021 world champion, will lead the Iran Greco-Roman team. (Photo: UWW / Martin Gabor)

Greco-Roman

55kg
Nihad GULUZADE (AZE)
James CASTANO (ESP)
Giorgi TOKHADZE (GEO)
Ilias ZAIRAKIS (GRE)
LALIT (IND)
Poya DAD MARZ (IRI)
Ken MATSUI (JPN)
Nurzat KABDYRAKHIMOV (KAZ)
Taalaibek BEISHENBEK UULU (KGZ)
Artiom DELEANU (MDA)
Denis MIHAI (ROU)
Abduvali RAHIMBAYEV (TKM)
Ahmet TASKINOGLU (TUR)
Mykola HAVRYCHKIN (UKR)
Camden RUSSELL (USA)

60kg
Tigran MINASYAN (ARM)
Nihat MAMMADLI (AZE)
Borislav KIRILOV (BUL)
Ronaldo SANCHEZ (COL)
Aser EBRO (ESP)
Irakli DZIMISTARISHVILI (GEO)
Georgios SCARPELLO (GER)
Sumit DALAL (IND)
Omid ARAMI (IRI)
Melkamu FETENE (ISR)
Kaito INABA (JPN)
Olzhas SULTAN (KAZ)
Nurmukhammet ABDULLAEV (KGZ)
Grzegorz KUNKEL (POL)
Arslanbek ZAKIRBAYEV (TKM)
Jui HUANG (TPE)
Kerem KAMAL (TUR)
Vladyslav KUZKO (UKR)
Phillip MOOMEY (USA)

63kg
Hrachya POGHOSYAN (ARM)
Ziya BABASHOV (AZE)
Ilia MUSTAKOV (BUL)
Ahmed BAGHDOUDA (EGY)
Andy JUAN (ESP)
Tino OJALA (FIN)
Giorgi SHOTADZE (GEO)
Krisztian KECSKEMETI (HUN)
VINAY (IND)
Iman Khoon MOHAMMADI (IRI)
Abere FETENE (ISR)
Andrea SETTI (ITA)
Ryuto IKEDA (JPN)
Yerzhet ZHARLYKASSYN (KAZ)
Ermek KANYBEK UULU (KGZ)
Vitalie ERIOMENCO (MDA)
Azatjan ACHILOV (TKM)
Mustafa YILDIRIM (TUR)
Maksym LIU (UKR)
Mason CARZINO HARTSHORN (USA)
Yonaiker MARTINEZ (VEN)

67kg
Sahak HOVHANNISYAN (ARM)
Ivo ILIEV (BUL)
Julian HORTA (COL)
Elmer MATTILA (FIN)
Gagik SNJOYAN (FRA)
Diego CHKHIKVADZE (GEO)
Krisztian VANCZA (HUN)
ASHU (IND)
Seyed SOHRABI (IRI)
Kyotaro SOGABE (JPN)
Almatbek AMANBEK (KAZ)
Amanat SAMAT UULU (KGZ)
Vilius SAVICKAS (LTU)
Alexei HAHLOVSCHI (MDA)
Haavard JOERGENSEN (NOR)
Aleksander MIELEWCZYK (POL)
Niklas OEHLEN (SWE)
Begmyrat NOBATOV (TKM)
Ramazan AKTAS (TUR)
Dmytro MIROSHNYK (UKR)
Peyton OMANIA (USA)

72kg
Shant KHACHATRYAN (ARM)
Gurban GURBANOV (AZE)
Pavel PUKLAVEC (CRO)
Marcos SANCHEZ (ESP)
Randel UIBO (EST)
Giorgi CHKHIKVADZE (GEO)
Samuel BELLSCHEIDT (GER)
Jose VARELA (GUA)
VIKAS (IND)
Amir ABDI (IRI)
Daigo KOBAYASHI (JPN)
Yerassyl NURBOSSYNOV (KAZ)
Adilkhan NURLANBEKOV (KGZ)
Eimantas VILIMAS (LTU)
Valentin PETIC (MDA)
Edsson OLMOS (MEX)
Kamil CZARNECKI (POL)
Miru OLSSON (SWE)
Muhammetnazar JUMAYEV (TKM)
Furkan ZIRIN (TUR)
Irfan MIRZOIEV (UKR)
Benjamin PEAK (USA)

77kg
Malkhas AMOYAN (ARM)
Emad ABOUELATTA (EGY)
Junior BENITEZ (ESP)
Edvin KIN (EST)
Akseli YLI HANNUKSELA (FIN)
Davit SOLOGASHVILI (GEO)
Idris IBAEV (GER)
Attila TOESMAGI (HUN)
Sajan BHANWALA (IND)
Mohammad Reza MOKHTARI (IRI)
David ZHYTOMYRSKY (ISR)
Nao KUSAKA (JPN)
Rassul ZHUNIS (KAZ)
Akylbek TALANTBEKOV (KGZ)
Aistis LIAUGMINAS (LTU)
Alexandrin GUTU (MDA)
Emmanuel BENITEZ (MEX)
Patryk BEDNARZ (POL)
Aleksa ILIC (SRB)
Lamjed MAAFI (TUN)
Abdurrahman KALKAN (TUR)
Dmytro VASETSKYI (UKR)
Britton HOLMES (USA)
Daniel BELLO (VEN)

82kg
Jones MABUNGU (ANG)
Gagik HAKOBYAN (ARM)
Ivaylo IVANOV (BUL)
Karlo KODRIC (CRO)
Jose ESTEVEZ (ESP)
Ranet KALJOLA (EST)
Jonni SARKKINEN (FIN)
Beka GURULI (GEO)
Erik LOESER (GER)
Ilias PAGKALIDIS (GRE)
Peter DOEMOEK (HUN)
Rohit DAHIYA (IND)
Alireza MOHMADIPIANI (IRI)
Tesshin HIGUCHI (JPN)
Temirkhan BAIGANIN (KAZ)
Beksultan NAZARBAEV (KGZ)
Semion BREKKELI (MDA)
Exauce MUKUBU (NOR)
Adam GARDZIOLA (POL)
Mats AHLGREN (SWE)
Toyly ORAZOV (TKM)
Ali HUNC (TUR)
Madamin MIRZOIEV (UKR)
Tyler CUNNINGHAM (USA)

87kg
Gevorg TADEVOSYAN (ARM)
Lachin VALIYEV (AZE)
Zahari ZASHEV (BUL)
Filip SMETKO (CRO)
Andreas VAELIS (EST)
Beka MELELASHVILI (GEO)
Nikolaos IOSIFIDIS (GRE)
Istvan TAKACS (HUN)
Sunil KUMAR (IND)
Abolfazl CHOUBANI (IRI)
Satoki MUKAI (JPN)
Maksat SAILAU (KAZ)
Azat SALIDINOV (KGZ)
Daniel VELIZ (MEX)
Marcel STERKENBURG (NED)
Szymon SZYMONOWICZ (POL)
Christian ZEMP (SUI)
Muhittin SARICICEK (TUR)
Vitalii ANDRIIOVYCH (UKR)
Michial FOY (USA)

97kg
Hayk KHLOYAN (ARM)
Markus RAGGINGER (AUT)
Igor ALVES (BRA)
Sami SAMRA (EGY)
Jose FERRANDIZ (ESP)
Richard KARELSON (EST)
Loic SAMEN (FRA)
Giorgi KATSANASHVILI (GEO)
Anton VIEWEG (GER)
Apostolos TSIOVOLOS (GRE)
Alex SZOKE (HUN)
NITESH (IND)
Ali ABEDIDARZI (IRI)
Yuri NAKAZATO (JPN)
Islam UMAYEV (KAZ)
Mindaugas VENCKAITIS (LTU)
Tyrone STERKENBURG (NED)
Ionut GOSA (ROU)
Luka KATIC (SRB)
Aybegshazada KURRAYEV (TKM)
Mustafa OLGUN (TUR)
Valentyn SHKLIARENKO (UKR)
Nicholas BOYKIN (USA)

130kg
Sarkhan MAMMADOV (AZE)
Marcel ALBINI (CZE)
Geronimo CAMARA (ESP)
Giorgi TSOPURASHVILI (GEO)
Nikolaos NTOUNIAS (GRE)
Dariusz VITEK (HUN)
PARVESH (IND)
Aliakbar YOUSOFI (IRI)
Marin NISHIMURA (JPN)
Damir ZUPAROV (KAZ)
Paul MORALES (MEX)
Tomasz WAWRZYNCZYK (POL)
Jonovan SMITH (PUR)
Fatih BOZKURT (TUR)
Mykhailo VYSHNYVETSKYI (UKR)
Cohlton SCHULTZ (USA)

Yui SUSAKI (JPN)Yui SUSAKI (JPN) will be wrestling at her first U23 World Championships. (Photo: UWW / Kostadin Andonov)

Women’s Wrestling 

50kg
Shahana NAZAROVA (AZE)
Samantha ROMANO (CAN)
Nada MOHAMED (EGY)
Maria CAZALLA (ESP)
Emma LUTTENAUER (FRA)
Lisa ERSEL (GER)
Szimonetta SZEKER (HUN)
Ankush PANGHAL (IND)
Emanuela LIUZZI (ITA)
Yui SUSAKI (JPN)
Maral TANGIRBERGENOVA (KAZ)
Jekaterina JERMALONOKA (LAT)
Maria LEORDA (MDA)
Munkhgerel MUNKHBAT (MGL)
Christianah OGUNSANYA (NGR)
Amanda TOMCZYK (POL)
Stefania PRICEPUTU (ROU)
Svenja JUNGO (SUI)
Yung LIN (TPE)
Sarra HAMDI (TUN)
Zehra DEMIRHAN (TUR)
Aida KERYMOVA (UKR)
Nyla VALENCIA (USA)

53kg
Gultakin SHIRINOVA (AZE)
Taylor MCPHERSON (CAN)
Javiera ORTEGA (CHI)
Lucia YEPEZ (ECU)
Carla JAUME (ESP)
Anastasia BLAYVAS (GER)
Aikaterini VEKRI (GRE)
Antim PANGHAL (IND)
Akari FUJINAMI (JPN)
Ellada MAKHYADDINOVA (KAZ)
Mariana DRAGUTAN (MDA)
Zeltzin HERNANDEZ (MEX)
Beatrice FERENT (ROU)
Keshani MADURAVALAGE (SRI)
Meng HSIEH (TPE)
Zeynep YETGIL (TUR)
Liliia MALANCHUK (UKR)
Felicity TAYLOR (USA)
Mariana ROJAS (VEN)

55kg
Elnura MAMMADOVA (AZE)
Virginie KAZE GASCON (CAN)
Tatiana HURTADO (COL)
Laura GOMEZ (ESP)
Erika BOGNAR (HUN)
AARTI (IND)
Moe KIYOOKA (JPN)
Zeinep BAYANOVA (KAZ)
Mihaela SAMOIL (MDA)
Otgontuya BAYANMUNKH (MGL)
Mercy ADEKUOROYE (NGR)
Andreea ANA (ROU)
Fernando PORUTHOTAGE (SRI)
Elvira KAMALOGLU (TUR)
Oleksandra KHOMENETS (UKR)
Alisha HOWK (USA)

57kg
Sezen BELBEROVA (BUL)
Kirti SAXENA (CAN)
Maria BAEZ (ESP)
Celeste SION (FRA)
Tamara DOLLAK (HUN)
SITO (IND)
Sae NANJO (JPN)
Laura ALMAGANBETOVA (KAZ)
Susana LOZANO (MEX)
Esther KOLAWOLE (NGR)
Othelie HOEIE (NOR)
Patrycja GIL (POL)
Georgiana LIRCA (ROU)
Siwar BOUSETA (TUN)
Melda DERNEKCI (TUR)
Alina HRUSHYNA (UKR)
Alexandra HEDRICK (USA)

59kg
Welvina VEMBA (ANG)
Zhala ALIYEVA (AZE)
Fatme SHABAN (BUL)
Katherine RENTERIA (COL)
Maria RAMOS (ESP)
Gaelle RUIZ (FRA)
Anne NUERNBERGER (GER)
Nikolett SZABO (HUN)
Mansi AHLAWAT (IND)
Himeka TOKUHARA (JPN)
Diana KAYUMOVA (KAZ)
Ramina MAMEDOVA (LAT)
Ameyalli JESSEL (MEX)
Magdalena GLODEK (POL)
Karoline ORTIZ (PUR)
Ana PUIU (ROU)
Evelina HULTHEN (SWE)
Ebru DAGBASI (TUR)
Solomiia VYNNYK (UKR)
Lexie BASHAM (USA)

62kg
Birgul SOLTANOVA (AZE)
Ana GODINEZ (CAN)
Viktoria VESSO (EST)
Ameline DOUARRE (FRA)
Kelsey BARNES (GBR)
Anna SZEL (HUN)
SHAFALI (IND)
Nonoka OZAKI (JPN)
Irina KUZNETSOVA (KAZ)
Paulina DANISZ (POL)
Anna FABIAN (SRB)
Hsin PAI (TPE)
Yagmur CAKMAK (TUR)
Iryna BONDAR (UKR)
Alexandria LILES (USA)
Astrid MONTERO (VEN)

65kg
Nigar MIRZAZADA (AZE)
Aleah NICKEL (CAN)
Iva GERIC (CRO)
Nerea PAMPIN (ESP)
Iris THIEBAUX (FRA)
BHATERI (IND)
Elena ESPOSITO (ITA)
Miwa MORIKAWA (JPN)
Dariga ABEN (KAZ)
Asli DEMIR (TUR)
Kateryna ZELENYKH (UKR)
Emma BRUNTIL (USA)

68kg
Meiriele CHARAMBA SANTOS HORA (BRA)
Katie MULKAY (CAN)
Marta OJEDA (ESP)
Noémi SZABADOS (HUN)
ARJU (IND)
Naruha MATSUYUKI (JPN)
Albina KAIRGELDINOVA (KAZ)
Zuzanna WOLCZYNSKA (POL)
Zsuzsanna MOLNAR (SVK)
Tindra SJOEBERG (SWE)
Nesrin BAS (TUR)
Manola SKOBELSKA (UKR)
Sienna RAMIREZ (USA)

72kg
Brianna FRASER (CAN)
Maria CEBALLOS (COL)
Kendra DACHER (FRA)
Lilly SCHNEIDER (GER)
Reetika HOODA (IND)
Sumire NIIKURA (JPN)
Alexandra ZAITSEVA (KAZ)
Wiktoria CHOLUJ (POL)
Maria NITU (ROU)
Nazar BATIR (TUR)
Iryna ZABLOTSKA (UKR)
Amit ELOR (USA)

76kg
Amelia FRISBEE (CAN)
Tatiana RENTERIA (COL)
Carla LERA (ESP)
PRIYANKA (IND)
Yasuha MATSUYUKI (JPN)
Inkara ZHANATAYEVA (KAZ)
Luz HERNANDEZ (MEX)
Sarnai BAYARBAATAR (MGL)
Marion BYE (NOR)
Daniela TKACHUK (POL)
Hui CHANG (TPE)
Mehtap GULTEKIN (TUR)
Anastasiya ALPYEYEVA (UKR)
Dymond GUILFORD (USA)

#WrestleUlaanbaatar

Ranking Series: Ulaanbaatar Open 2025 Preview

By Vinay Siwach

ULAANBAATAR, Mongolia (May 23) -- While most Paris Olympic medalist have returned to action in either the first two Ranking Series or the recent continental championships, there are still who will be wrestling for the first time since Games in August 2024.

The Ulaanbaatar Open, the third stop of the Ranking Series, will see two such wrestlers -- AMAN (IND) and Uzur DZHUZUPBEKOV (KGZ).

Aman, the bronze medalist at 57kg in Paris, will mark his return to competition after dropping out from first two Ranking Series tournaments. Dzhuzupekov, who won bronze at Greco-Roman 97kg in Paris, will also be returning for the first time.

Barring those, a few world medalists are also wrestling in Ulaanbaatar. The tournament, which will see more than 200 wrestlers, throws up some top match-ups despite a several nations preparing for their domestic trials or national championships.

The tournament will run through May 29 to June 1 and will be live on UWW+ on uww.org and UWW App.

Freestyle

In a hugely viral clip of United World Wrestling, Zagir SHAKHIEV (UWW) is getting pinned by Shamil MAMMEDOV (UWW) who has Shakhiev in a cradle. That was January 2022 at the Yasar Dogu Ranking Series.

More than three years after his last international bout, Shakhiev is making a comeback. The 2021 world 65kg champion will take the mat at 70kg at the Ulaanbaatar Open as he tries to find a way back to the top in international wrestling.

However, it's won't be an easy journey. The 70kg in Ulaanbaatar will se Shakhiev clash with Tulga TUMUR OCHIR (MGL), Mohammadali AMOUZAD (IRI), Aliakbar FAZLI (IRI) and Viktor RASSADIN (TJK).

Tumur Ochir will be looking avenge his 4-4 loss to Shakhiev from that 2021 World Championships, a match which had all the drama in the final minute. How Shakhiev comes out now is yet to be seen.

Asian silver medalist Viktor RASSADIN (TJK) can trouble Shakhiev and so can Mohammadali AMOUZAD (IRI) and Aliakbar FAZLI (IRI) with their gas-tanks.

For Tumur Ochir, it will be a perfect opportunity to perform in front of his home crowd and regain some form before the World Championships in September.

Mongolia will be keen on its wrestlers finishing on podium at the home tournament. Their biggest hope, apart from Tumur Ochir, will be Lkhagvagerel MUNKHTUR (MGL) at 125kg.

The Asian silver medalist will have DINESH (IND),Hakan BUYUKCINGIL (TUR), Dzianis KHRAMIANKOU (UWW) and Abdulla KURBANOV (UWW) as some of his opponents but is expected to finish better than them. 

At 57kg, Aman may be the only Olympic medalist entered but the field seems challenging for anyone. European U23 champion Lev PAVLOV (UWW) brings a lot of craft with him and Aman will like face him if he wants to win another Ranking Series gold medal. Then there is Pan-Am champion Roman BRAVO YOUNG (MEX) who too is coming off a good run in Monterrey.

Kyrgyzstan is sending two wrestlers -- Abdymalik KARACHOV (KGZ) and Almaz SMANBEKOV (KGZ) -- and both can trouble their opponents. The hosts Mongolia is banking on Davaabandi MUNKH ERDENE (MGL).

Asian silver medalist UDIT (IND) will be another top name in Freestyle but his weight class also has quite a few challengers. Bekzat ALMAZ UULU (KGZ) and Bekbolot MYRZANAZAR UULU (KGZ) will be there from Kyrgyzstan along with Artem GOBAEV (UWW), who won the European U23 Championships gold last year.

Another Asian silver medalist Deepak PUNIA (IND) will continue to be at 92kg and not 86kg, his previous weight class. Punia made his return from surgery at the Asian Championships and won silver medal at 92kg, only dropping the final to Amirhossein FIROUZPOUR (IRI).

He will be put to further test in Ulaanbaatar and Askhab SAADULAEV (UWW) may emerge as his biggest competitor.

At 74kg, Iran is sending three wrestlers in the hope of finding the best for the World Championships. Amirmohammad YAZDANI (IRI), who recently moved up from 70kg and won the Takhti Cup, will be challenged by Yones EMAMI (IRI) and Hossein ABOUZARI (IRI).

To win gold, Yazdani will also face competition from JAIDEEP (IND), Orozobek TOKTOMAMBETOV (KGZ) and former world medalist Soner DEMIRTAS (TUR), who Yazdani defeated in a club competition in Iran recently.

European bronze medalist Osman GOECN (TUR) will be Türkiye chance to win gold medal at the Ranking Series. Gocen will largely be unchallenged at 86kg given his experience and style.

At 65kg, Kyrgyzstan is trying to find its best bet for a medal at the World Championships as both Taiyrbek ZHUMASHBEK UULU (KGZ) and Ikromzhon KHADZHIMURODOV (KGZ) are entered.

Greco-Roman

Kyrgyzstan and Türkiye are bringing strong teams for the Ranking Series. Kyrgyzstan will be led by Olympic bronze medalist Dzhuzupbekov while Turkiye has European champion Kerem KAMAL (TUR) and former world champion Burhan AKBUDAK (TUR). Barring those, only India is sending a full team for the tournament.

Iran has two wrestlers namely Mohammad KESHTKAR (IRI) and Danial SOHRABI (IRI) at 63kg and 72kg respectively.

Kamal, who has found a lifeline since switching to 63kg from 60kg, won the European Championships gold medal in spectacular fashion and is now out to win his second Ranking Series gold of the year.

He has Keshtkar in his weight class along with Doolotbek CHOIBEKOV (KGZ), Asian medalist Hanjae CHUNG (KOR) and Aref MOHAMMADI (QAT). However, Kamal remains the favorite. Akbudak should have an easy path to gold at 82kg.

European silver medalist Hamza BAKIR (TUR) at 130kg is also unlikely to face much challenge in the competition at the highest weight class.

The Kyrgyzstan vs Turkiye may emerge as the theme of the tournament in Greco-Roman for the rest of the weight classes.

Paris Olympian Enes BASAR (TUR) may have to navigate a stronger field at 60kg with former world U17 champion SURAJ (IND) and two of Kyrgyzstan's rising stars Akyl SULAIMANOV (KGZ) and Kurmanbek ZHAPAROV (KGZ).

Kyrgyzstan's Razzak BEISHEKEEV (KGZ), who won gold at Muhamet Malo and silver at Asian Championships, will be the favorite at 67kg despite the presence of Murat FIRAT (TUR).

Same goes for Yryskeldi MAKSATBEK UULU (KGZ) who won gold at 77kg in Albania and later a bronze medal at the Asian Championships. His battle with European bronze medalist Ahmet YILMAZ (TUR) will be one to watch out for.

At 87kg, two former age-group world champions will be fighting it out. Former world U20 champion Asan ZHANYSHOV (KGZ) had a rather disappointing Asian Championships as he finished seventh and will be looking to win gold in Ulaanbaatar to regain confidence.

Alperen BERBER (TUR), who has all age-group world titles, has not wrestled this year in any Ranking Series or Championships and will be test at 87kg.

Sohrabi, who won the Asian title at 72kg in Amman, will start as the favorite but has to be careful with Yryskeldi KHAMZAEV (KGZ) who can upset the Iranian.

Women's Wrestling

India, Turkiye and Mongolia are in a three-way battle in Women's Wrestling. A few UWW wrestlers are also in the fray in the tournament but not in all weight classes. The Indian and Turkish teams have some of their continental medalists and will make for an exciting clash in the respective weight classes.

No weight class in Women's Wrestling is expected to have eight wrestlers and will be competed in Nelson or round-robin format.  That throws big match ups in most weight classes.

At 62kg, Asian champion MANISHA (IND) will be clashing with Tserenchimed SUKHEE (MGL), Orkhon PUREVDORJ (MGL), Saruul ERDENEBILEG (MGL) and Alina KASABIEVA (UWW).

Sukhee, a former world champion, is known for her big moves and can easily reach the top of the podium in Ulaabaatar. But Purevdorj, who surprisingly missed the Asian Championships, will be keen on displaying her skills and reclaim the top spot in the weight class.

Kasabieva, world silver medalist at 65kg, has to face the Asian challenge and style and a good performance in Ulaabaatar can work wonders for her future tournaments.

Asian bronze medalist ANTIM (IND) will be the favorite at 53kg but has to step up against the likes of Namuuntsetseg TSOGT OCHIR (MGL) andNatalia MALYSHEVA (UWW).

Similarly, NEELAM (IND) may find it tough against European silver medalist Evin DEMIRHAN (TUR) and European U23 champion Natalia PUDOVA (UWW). A direct India-Turkiye battle is expected at 57kg as European silver medalist Elvira KAMALOGLU (TUR) will be tested by world U20 bronze NEHA (IND).

In most other weight classes, Mongolia is likely to have podium finishes as it has three wrestlers in each weights. 

Former world silver medalist Khulan BATKHUYAG (MGL) is at 55kg along with Dulguun MUNKHBOLD BOLORMAA (MGL) and 2023 world silver medalist Delgermaa ENKHSAIKHAN (MGL) is the favorite at 68kg despite her bronze-medal finish at the Asian Championships.

At 72kg, European U23 champion Kristina BRATCHIKOVA (UWW) will test herself against the Asian style of wrestling. Former U17 world champion HARSHITA (IND) will be her biggest test.