U23 Worlds: AIN capture four golds; USA wins team title

Wednesday, October 25, 2023 - 20:44 By Vinay Siwach

TIRANA, Albania (October 25) -- Most of them were wrestling internationally after years but the Individual Neutral Athletes at the U23 World Championships in Tirana showed no signs of rust, winning four of the five gold medals on Wednesday.

Nachyn MONGUSH (AIN), Ibragim IBRAGIMOV (AIN), Inalbek SHERIEV (AIN) and Magomed MAGOMAEV (AIN) won a gold medal each and took the tally to five AIN champions as Bashir MAGOMEDOV (AIN) won gold on Tuesday.

The fifth gold medal on Wednesday went to Isaac TRUMBLE (USA) as the United States clinched the Freestyle team title with 148 points. Turkiye finished second with 113 points and Azerbaijan finished third with 87 points.

Trumble was the fourth gold medalist for the U.S. at the U23 World Championships; the first time the country has won multiple gold medals at the tournament. The team title is also the first time the U.S. has managed to win at the U23 Worlds.

Since Individual Neutral Athletes are not part of any team, their points will not be considered for any team and are not part of the team title race.

Mongush, a 2021 European silver medalist, was returning to international competition after two years and looked in stunning form, winning the 57kg gold medal over multiple-time age-group European medalist Manvel KHNDZRTSYAN (ARM), 11-0.

The final was over at the break when Mongush scored using exposure for an 11-0 win. The referee called it a fall but Armenia challenged for no exposure as the clock expired. On review, it was confirmed that the final move was scored before the three-minute mark, giving Mongush an 11-0 win.

Mongush was relieved to have won the gold but said that it felt like he was wrestling internationally for the first time.

"The last time I competed internationally was back in 2021, I forgot about the feeling during these two years," Mongush said. "I competed here as if it's my first time wrestling internationally. It's a great pleasure to win."

While he was comfortable in the final, Mongush expressed that the semifinal aganist Bekzat ALMAZ UULU (KGZ) was the toughest bout. Mongush won the semifinal 6-6 on criteria.

"I wouldn't say I'd shown a perfect performance, there were some mistakes," he said. "Maybe that's why from the side it seemed that it was a bit tough for me. The toughest match here was against Bekzat. However, to qualify for this tournament, we've defeated really strong opponents [back home], so the wrestlers here shouldn't be a problem."

If Individual Neutral Athletes are allowed at the European Olympic Qualifiers in Baku, Azerbaijan next year, Mongush will have a chance to earn a spot as well if he participates.

"The Olympic Games is the biggest goal I'm working for. Surely, I must be ready to challenge anyone and win," he said referring to Tokyo Olympic champion Zavur UGUEV (AIN).

Ibragimov did not clinch a technical superiority win but he left little to luck in his 7-0 win over Azerbaijan's high-flying talent Ziraddin BAYRAMOV (AZE).

The final was a showcase of Ibragimov's counter-attacking even as Bayramov tried his best to find an opening. Bayramov was put on the 30-second must-score activity clock and he got Ibragimov's leg but he slid out of the hold. Once up 1-0, Ibragimov got on his attacks and scored a stepout. Just at the stroke of the break, Bayramov tried a headpinch but failed to expose Ibragimov, giving up two as he landed on his own back. Azerbaijan challenged saying that the time expired before the move but Bayramov's back touched the mat in time.

Ibragimov scored a stepout in the second period and got another point for Bayramov's second passivity to win 7-0, winning gold in his first-ever international tournament.

"I could feel the pressure a bit, it's the U23 Worlds," Ibragimov said. "I was preparing as if it's a usual tournament for me. If I won here today, means I've done a good job, though I could have done even better. It's my first big international event, that's why I tried to be careful."

Magomaev denied another Azerbaijan wrestler the gold medal as he defeated Ashraf ASHIROV (AZE), 9-4, to win the gold medal at 79kg.

The first point was scored in the first 10 seconds of the bout as Ashirov tried defending a double-leg but gave up a stepout. But he could not defend the second and gave up a takedown. As Magomaev tried to turn him, his grip was broken and Ashirov scored two points. Magomaev hit another double and then turned Ashirov to build a 7-2 lead at the break.

In perhaps the highlight of the tournament so far, Magomaev defended a certain four-pointer from Ashirov when the Azerbaijan wrestler lifted with a duckunder and spun him over his head. But Magomaev landed on his feet and then locked Ashirov's leg to score two points of his own. Ashirov got a consolation takedown before Magomaev finished the final 9-4.

The fourth gold won as Individual Neutral Athlete was Inalbek SHERIEV (AIN) who defeated Yoshinosuke AOYAGI (JPN), 9-3, in the 70kg final.

Sheriev made the first big move of the final, launching a beautiful duckunder, and scored two points. Aoyagi tried scoring exposure but gave up two points as well. As the two wrestlers broke for the break, Sheriev led 5-0.

A scramble in the final minute saw Sheriev score a takedown and then get a cradle exposure to lead 9-0. Aoyagi scored a reversal and then a takedown in the final 10 seconds to bring the score to 9-3 but failed to stop Sheriev from clinching the gold.

Trumble denies Lefter, Moldova

Radu LEFTER (MDA) was in the U23 World Championships final for the second time in his career and a gold medal would have made him the first Moldovan to win the Freestyle title.

Unfortunately, Wednesday was not that day as Trumble denied Lefter and Moldova a historic gold medal. The American won the 97kg gold medal 12-2.

Trumble got the first takedown when he stopped Lefter from a headlock throw. He then tried to arm-bar Lefter for a fall but could manage only two points to lead 4-0. Lefter remained inactive for most of the bout and Trumble scored a stepout which the referee called fleeing, giving Trumble a 6-0 lead. He added a go-behind to lead 8-0 at the break.

Lefter did score a takedown in the second period but Trumble never looked in trouble, finishing the bout 12-2 with 43 seconds left on the clock.

RESULTS

57kg
GOLD: Nachyn MONGUSH (AIN) df. Manvel KHNDZRTSYAN (ARM), 11-0

BRONZE: Munkh Erdene BATKHUYAG (MGL) df. Niklas STECHELE (GER), 7-5
BRONZE: Bekzat ALMAZ UULU (KGZ) df. Yerassyl MUKHTARULY (KAZ), 6-3

65kg
GOLD: Ibragim IBRAGIMOV (AIN) df. Ziraddin BAYRAMOV (AZE), 7-0

BRONZE: Abdullah TOPRAK (TUR) df. Mohit KUMAR (UWW), 11-6
BRONZE: Brock HARDY (USA) df. Goga OTINASHVILI (GEO), 8-5

70kg
GOLD: Inalbek SHERIEV (AIN) df. Yoshinosuke AOYAGI (JPN), 9-3

BRONZE: Kanan HEYBATOV (AZE) df. Douglas ZAPF (USA), 9-2
BRONZE: Giorgi ELBAKIDZE (GEO) df. Burak SININ (TUR), via injury (5-0)

79kg
GOLD: Magomed MAGOMAEV (AIN) df. Ashraf ASHIROV (AZE), 9-4

BRONZE: Sagar JAGLAN (UWW) df. Shamsat TAIR (KAZ), 12-7
BRONZE: Vladimeri GAMKRELIDZE (GEO) df. Dzmitry DZENISENIA (AIN), 10-0

97kg
GOLD: Isaac TRUMBLE (USA) df. Radu LEFTER (MDA), 12-2

BRONZE: Oktay CIFTCI (TUR) df. Sergey SARGSYAN (ARM), via inj. def.
BRONZE: Sergei KOZYREV (AIN) df. SAHIL (UWW), 10-0

Women's Wrestling

50kg
GOLD: Umi ITO (JPN) vs. Audrey JIMENEZ (USA)

SF 1: Audrey JIMENEZ (USA) df. Elnura MAMMADOVA (AZE), 7-4
SF 2: Umi ITO (JPN) df. Emma LUTTENAUER (FRA), 10-0

55kg
GOLD: Neha SHARMA (UWW) vs. Umi IMAI (JPN)

SF 1: Umi IMAI (JPN) df. Mariia VYNNYK (UKR), 13-2
SF 2: Neha SHARMA (UWW) df. Aryna MARTYNAVA (AIN), 2-1

59kg
GOLD: Solomiia VYNNYK (UKR) vs. Sena NAGAMOTO (JPN)

SF 1: Sena NAGAMOTO (JPN) df. Anastasiia SIDELNIKOVA (AIN), 5-2
SF 2: Solomiia VYNNYK (UKR) df. Michaela RANKIN (CAN), 10-0

68kg
GOLD: Nesrin BAS (TUR) vs. Alina SHAUCHUK (AIN)

SF 1: Alina SHAUCHUK (AIN) df. Vanessa KEEFE (CAN), 10-0
SF 2: Nesrin BAS (TUR) df. Vusala PARFIANOVICH (AIN), 3-1

76kg
GOLD: Kennedy BLADES (USA) vs. REETIKA (UWW)

SF 1: REETIKA (UWW) df. Anastasiya ALPYEYEVA (UKR), 5-0
SF 2: Kennedy BLADES (USA) df. Kamile GAUCAITE (LTU), 10-0

#JapanWrestling

Motoki stuns Ozaki with last-second win in Japan's world team playoff

Sunday, June 22, 2025 - 11:52 By Ken Marantz

TOKYO (June 22) -- Each second that ticked off the clock left Paris Olympic champion Sakura MOTOKI that much further from a trip back to the World Championships and a chance to take care of some unfinished business.

But the final second was just enough for her to post arguably the most dramatic win of her life.

Motoki finished up a takedown at the buzzer to stun Nonoka OZAKI 6-5 in a world team playoff, following a close 3-3 victory over her fellow Paris Olympic medalist in the women's 62kg final at the Meiji Cup All-Japan Championships on Sunday in Tokyo.

"When she took back the lead, there was still 30 seconds left," Motoki said. "I train hard in practice every day, and deep down I knew, or at least thought, I could definitely get it. At the end, I gave it a last shot and was able to finish it off. As long as I kept attacking, there was always a chance."

The Meiji Cup was the second of Japan's domestic qualifiers for this year's World Championships in Zagreb in September. As the winner at the first qualifier, the Emperor's Cup All-Japan Championships last December, Ozaki could have secured her ticket to Zagreb by winning either the Meiji Cup final or the playoff.

Sakura MOTOKI (JPN) Sakura MOTOKI scores a match-winning takedown in the final second to defeat Nonoka OZAKI in the women's 62kg playoff. (Photo: Takeo Yabuki / wrestling-spirits.jp)

Instead it will be Motoki who will get a chance to make it to the top step of the world podium, after taking a bronze at 59kg in 2022 and a silver at 62kg in 2023 -- results that still leave a bad taste in her mouth that wasn't alleviated by her triumph in Paris.

Motoki and Ozaki already had a history when it comes to high-profile showdowns. At the start of the qualifying process for the Paris Olympics, Ozaki was the reigning world 62kg champion and the odd's-on favorite to secure the ticket to Paris.

But Motoki moved up from 59kg to 62kg and beat the odds and stunned the wrestling world by not only beating Ozaki at the 2022 Emperor's Cup, but also going on to qualify for Paris and take home a gold medal.

In the intervening years, Ozaki temporarily moved up to 65kg and won the world title at that weight in 2023. Then when the 68kg spot in Paris opened up, she took a shot at that, securing the berth with a last-second playoff win over Ami ISHII -- so unlike the one she experienced on Sunday with the shoe on the other foot.

Having taken a bronze in Paris, Ozaki was determined to regain the domestic throne at 62kg.

While all of Japan's Paris medalists took long post-Olympic hiatuses -- five of the eight gold medalists still haven't returned to competition -- Ozaki was the first one back in action, taking the title at the Emperor's Cup and a bronze at the Asian Championships in March.

Motoki returned to the mat for the Japan Junior Queen's Cup, but only needed one match to qualify for the World U23 Championships, taking just over a minute to win by fall. So she was still working out the kinks as she headed into the Meiji Cup.

"Compared to the Olympics, my wrestling is nowhere near as complete, and that made me a bit anxious," Motoki said. "But the wrestler I am now is stronger than the me of the past and I'm more confident going into matches. I was much stronger at the time of the Olympics. But I am still developing and from now will become a more complete wrestler and widen my range."

Motoki dug deep to defeat Ozaki as much on will as on technique.

Nonoka OZAKI (JPN) Sakura MOTOKI will get a chance to win a first world title after a dramatic victory over Nonoka OZAKI in the women's 62kg playoff. (Photo: Takeo Yabuki / wrestling-spirits.jp)

In the Meiji Cup final, Motoki received an activity point in the first period, then fell behind 3-1 when Ozaki scored a single-leg takedown while Motoki was on the clock. But with a minute to go, Motoki fended off a shot, launched a countershot and spun behind for a takedown that gave her a 3-3 win on last-point criteria.

Surprisingly or not, the playoff followed the exact same pattern. The only difference was that after Motoki went ahead 3-3, Ozaki came back and got a 2-point exposure during a single-leg attempt with 30 seconds left.

With :24 left, Motoki shot in on a low single that Ozaki stopped with a whizzer as the clockwound down. For all of the intricate movements involved, the final 10 seconds seemed to last forever:

-- Six seconds left. Motoki steps up and tries to drive forward, but Ozaki sits out and wriggles to the front, leaving Motoki in a double-leg position

-- Two seconds left. Motoki transitions to a single-leg, lifts up and drives with her left shoulder.

-- Ozaki lands on her side with a thud. The video replay on challenge shows her hitting the mat with "0.17" on the clock.

"She got out of it once and I wondered if I could get her leg," Motoki said. "At the end, I gave it everything I had and somehow managed to get it in time. It was just my body reacting."

Having won the world cadet (U17) title in 2017 and U20 in 2020, Motoki will get a chance to add the world u23 and senior titles in the coming months. That would make her just the third member of an elite group that has achieved the "Golden Grand Slam" of Olympic gold and all four world age-group titles, after Yui SUSAKI and Amit ELOR (USA).

But the gold in Zagreb is the one that most beckons. She has a reminder of it every morning to keep her from deviating from her mission.

"I have come up short at the World Championships twice, which is really vexing," Motoki said. "As the alarm on my smartphone to wake up in the morning, I use the music they play during the winning lap at the World Championships.

"Each time I hear it, it gives me an unpleasant feeling and makes me remember what happened. Even after I won at the Olympics, that sinking feeling never really went away."

Remina YOSHIMOTO (JPN) Remina YOSHIMOTO works to turn Umi ITO over during their women's 50kg playoff. (Photo: Takeo Yabuki / wrestling-spirits.jp)

Yoshimoto secures shot at world title

In other women's action on the final day at Tokyo Metropolitan Gym, Remina YOSHIMOTO took advantage of the absence of nemesis Susaki to win the 50kg gold and earn a shot at adding to the world title she won in 2021.

Yoshimoto went into the second period trailing 2023 world U23 champion Umi ITO, but got back on track and went ahead before ending the match by fall. It was the same pairing as the Emperor's Cup final, which Yoshimoto won 3-2.

Ito, who had lost all nine previous matches with Yoshimoto, took the lead with a takedown in the first period, countering a shot by getting on top and putting in a grapevine.

In the second period, Yoshimoto responded with a single-leg takedown, then used an arm bar to turn Ito over. Ito righted herself at one point, but Yoshimoto turned her over again and secured the fall at 4:19.

"At the start, Ito set the flow of the match and I didn't feel I was in control," Yoshimoto said. "This was the 10th time I've faced her, so we know each other and have each done our homework, and that made for a tough match. It was good that I kept my composure in the second period."

Since 2019, Yoshimoto has never been beaten either domestically and internationally by a wrestler not named Susaki, who has handed her all four of her losses in that span.

"It was frustrating that I couldn't get to the World Championships for four years," said Yoshimoto, who won a fourth Asian title this year. "I'm going to take advantage of this chance to get the gold medal. With the Los Angeles Olympics in mind, I want to practice so I can have a tournament that gives me confidence."

Himeka TAKUHARA (JPN) Himeka TOKUHARA launches a 4-point back suplex during her victory over Sae NANJO in the Meiji Cup final. (Photo: Takeo Yabuki / wrestling-spirits.jp)

At 57kg, 2022 world U23 champion Himeka TOKUHARA earned a ticket to her first senior worlds when she hit a 4-point roll through in defeating Emperor's Cup champion Sara NATAMI 7-1 in the playoff.

Tokuhara also had a 4-pointer with a masterful back suplex in the Meiji Cup final, in which she edged two-time former world U23 champion Sae NANJO 6-5. Tokuhara had defeated Natami, this year's Asian champion, 3-1 in the semifinals on Saturday.

Day 4 Results

Women's Wrestling

50kg (9 entries)
GOLD: Remina YOSHIMOTO df. Umi ITO by Fall, 4:19 (6-2)

BRONZE: Rinka OGAWA df. Mai OGAWA by TF, 10-0, 5:03
BRONZE: Miyu NAKAMURA df. Mako ONO by Def.

57kg (10 entries)
GOLD: Himeka TOKUHARA df. Sae NANJO, 6-5

BRONZE: Sara NATAMI df. Kanon YAMASHITA by Fall, 5:26 (6-7)
BRONZE: Ichika ARAI df. Momiji KIMURA, 8-0

World Team Playoff: Tokuhara df. Natami, 7-1

62kg (11 entries)
GOLD: Sakura MOTOKI df. Nonoka OZAKI, 3-3

BRONZE: Misuzu ENOMOTO df. Kiwa IWASAWA, 6-2
BRONZE: Yuzuka INAGAKI df. Shirin TAKEMOTO, 11-2

World Team Playoff: Motoki df. Ozaki, 6-5

U23 Worlds: AIN capture four golds; USA wins team title

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Motoki stuns Ozaki with last-second win in Japan's world team playoff