#25Under25

UWW 25-Under-25: No. 1-No. 5

Saturday, February 19, 2022 - 10:35 By Vinay Siwach

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CORSIER-SUR-VEVEY, Switzerland (February 19) -- For the past week, United World Wrestling brought you the top 20 wrestlers who could put on a show throughout 2022. These stars, all under the age of 25 years, have proved their mettle in the past and are likely to continue, especially with the Paris Olympics just two years away.

Now, it's time for the top five wrestlers on the list -- the number 1 to 5. All these wrestlers are already big names in the wrestling world and fans would be keen to follow going into this Olympic cycle.

These stars are not only the 'next big thing,' but they are trendsetters who can rewrite history moving forward.

Here's UWW's fifth and final segment -- No. 1 through No. 5 -- of the Top 25-Under-25 to keep an eye on.

UWW 25-Under-25: No. 21-No. 25
No. 25 - Alina AKOBIYA (UKR), 23-years-old
No. 24 - Osman NURMAGOMEDOV (AZE), 24-years-old
No. 23 - Artur SARGSYAN (RWF), 24-years-old
No. 22 - TUMUR OCHIR Tulga (MGL), 24-year-old
No. 21 - Arsen HARUTYUNYAN (ARM), 22-years-old

UWW 25-Under-25: No. 20-No. 16
No. 20 - Anshu MALIK (IND), 20-years-old
No. 19 - Irinia RINGACI (MDA), 21-years-old
No. 18 - Zagir SHAKHIEV (RUS), 23-years-old
No. 17 - Aiperi MEDET KYZY (KGZ), 23-years-old
No. 16 - Leri ABULADZE (GEO), 23-years-old

UWW 25-Under-25: No. 15-No. 11
No. 15 - Ernazar AKMATLIEV (KGZ), 23-years-old
No. 14 - Amin MIRZAZADEH (IRI), 24-years-old
No. 13 - Akari FUJINAMI (JPN), 18-years-old
No. 12 - Abasgadzhi MAGOMEDOV (RWF), 23-years-old
No. 11 - Koumba LARROQUE (FRA), 23-years-old

UWW 25-Under-25: No. 10-No. 6
No. 10 - Iryna KOLIADENKO (UKR), 23-years-old
No. 9 - Mohammad EL SAYED (EGY), 23-years-old  
No. 8 - Parviz NASIBOV (UKR) – 23-years-old
No. 7 - Akzhol MAKHMUDOV – 22-years-old
No. 6 - Meerim ZHUMANAZAROVA (KGZ) – 22-years-old

No. 5 - Ravi KUMAR (IND), 24-years-old (December 12, 1997)

Instagram: ravi_kumar_60

There is no doubt that Kumar is one of the most exciting wrestlers in the sport. For more than three years after winning junior silver in 2015, Kumar was sidelined with injuries. But he came back to win the silver medal at the U23 Worlds. Yet, he never was a threat at the senior level.

It all began with a bronze medal at the '19 World Championships in Nur-Sultan. A close bout with Zavur UGUEV (RWF) in the semifinal was his only loss. He followed that with Asian championship golds in 2020 and 2021, beating veterans like Yuki TAKAHASHI (JPN) and Nurislam SANAYEV (KAZ).

By the time Tokyo Olympics arrived, Kumar was a medal threat. His style, stamina and ability to come from behind made fans talk about him being an Olympic champion. Using his exceptional pace to attack, the Haryana-native reached the final of the Olympics at 57kg and faced a familiar opponent in Uguev, who once again overcame Kumar to win the gold in Tokyo. Kumar's hopes of being India's first-ever wrestling Olympic champion were dashed. The silver medal in Tokyo left the Indian dissatisfied.

The challenge for Kumar going into the Paris cycle will be to maintain his weight at 57kg. A big year ahead will see him compete at the Asian Championships and Asian Games which could give an insight into his condition for the next two years.

No. 4 - Mohammadhadi SARAVI (IRI), 24-years-old (January 6, 1998)

Instagram: mohammadhadi_saravi

When it comes to the 97kg Greco-Roman weight class, Artur ALEKSANYAN (ARM) and Musa EVLOEV (RWF) have dominated the world for two consecutive Olympic cycles. But there is a new name that is on a mission to remove the two greats. Saravi has proven that he can be a world-beater at 97kg.

A junior world and Asian champion, Saravi won a bronze medal at the Tokyo Olympics, losing to Aleksanyan in an encounter closer than the 4-1 scoreline suggested. Two months later, he was back on the mat for the World Championships in Oslo, Norway.

He humbled every wrestler that came in his way to the gold, claiming his first senior world title in dominating fashion. He began with a 6-4 win over U23 world champion and friend Artur SARGSIAN (RWF). He followed that up with a technical superiority win over Giorgi MELIA (GEO), a 5-1 victory over Nikoloz KAKHELASHVILI (ITA), and in the final, broke Hungary's Alex SZOKE (HUN).

In 2022, Saravi needs to find a way to match the strength of Evloev and even Aleksanyan. But by the time Paris comes, Saravi's name will be in the same league as the two Olympic champions.

No. 3 - Amir ZARE (IRI), 21-years-old (January 16, 2001)

Instagram: amirhossein.zarre

Iran was without a 125kg gold medal at the World Championships for the last 32 years. Then, Zare!

The teenager not only ended that draught, but he did so in style. Geno PETRIASHVILI (GEO) and Taha AKGUL (TUR) fell victims to Zare's wrath in Oslo as the Iranian wrestler did everything right. Zare defeated Akgul, 6-0, in the semifinals, and later avenged his Olympics loss to Petriashvili with a 9-2 gold-medal win, backed by the electrifying Iranian fans.

Zare shot to limelight in 2019 when he won the U23 Worlds at the age of 18 years and followed that up with a 15-11 win over Petriashvili in the Iranian league. But Mason PARRIS (USA) and Sergey KOTZEV (RWF) scored victories over Zare at the Junior Worlds and Youth Olympics to keep him under check.

The Amol-born star later qualified for the Tokyo Olympics and won a bronze at 125kg after losing his semifinal 6-4 to Petriashvili.

The stunning turnaround to beat the Georgian star only took two months and it stunned wrestling fans. With a lot of wrestling left in him, Zare could be a name that will be repeated at the medal ceremonies around the world for a long time.

No. 2 - Yukako KAWAI (JPN), 24-years-old (July 27, 1997)

Instagram: yukako_kawai27

How does it feel to win an Olympic gold medal at home with your sister? Just ask Yukako KAWAI (JPN).

Yukako and her sister Risako won gold medals at 57kg and 62kg, respectively, in Tokyo. But before being an Olympic champion, Kawai overcame a big hurdle.

Kawai's biggest hurdle was two-time world champion Aisuluu TYNYBEKOVA (KGZ), who defeated her at the 2019 Asian and World Championships. She needed to avenge her loss before the Olympics rolled around so she had a psychological advantage over the Kyrgystan wrestler. She did that with a final second four-point move at the Asian Championships in 2020.

That helped her when the two met in the final in Tokyo with Tynybekova being a slight favorite to win the gold. But as the match progressed, Kawai kept her cool and took home the gold medal with a 4-3 win, ending Tynybekova's dream of becoming the nation's first-ever Olympic gold medalist in any sport.

Both Risako and Yukako would like to repeat the feat in Paris 2024 and it will be an exhibition of high-class wrestling over the next three years whenever the two are on the mat.

No. 1 - Yui SUSAKI (JPN), 22 years old (June 30, 1999) and Takuto OTOGURO (JPN), 23-year-old (December 5, 1998)

Instagram: yui106301susaki, 01096taku

When you have two wrestlers who've won the world and Olympic titles before the age of 23 years old, it's impossible to give one the top spot over the other. With that being, Susaki and Otoguro share UWW's No. 1 spot for the Top 25 Under 25!

A little to differentiate the two Japanese studs as they handled the pressure of home Olympics with ease.

Susaki won her first world title in Paris in 2017. That was also the last time she surrendered a two-point takedown. Furthermore, in the last five years, the Japanese star has only given up exposure once. That came against her rival, SUN Yanan (CHN) during the World Cup in Narita, Japan in 2019.

A mind-blowing fact upcoming: Susaki has not allowed an offensive point to be scored on her since November 2019. That is more than two years of just toying with her opponents.

It remains unclear how long she will continue to wrestle internationally, but there’s one thing that’s clear: Susaki has the talent and will to match the all-time Japanese greats like Kaori ICHO (JPN) and Saori YOSHIDA (JPN).

Otoguro became a cadet world champ in 2014 but outlasted his 65kg foes at the ’18 Budapest World Championships and became Japan’s youngest-ever senior world champion at 19 years and 10 months old.

After an uncharacteristic fifth-place finish in Nur-Sultan, Otoguro bounced back and grabbed gold at back-to-back Asian Championships before winning Tokyo Olympic gold on home soil.

Otoguro's growth as a wrestler was visible during the Asian Championships in 2020 as he matured after that heartbreaking loss at the World Championships in 2019.

#BeachWrestling

Beach Wrestling: Iran's return to top; Puerto Rico, Azerbaijan win first golds

Sunday, September 28, 2025 - 13:44 By United World Wrestling Press

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KATERINI-PIERIA, Greece (September 27) -- Iran’s return to Beach Wrestling after an eight-year absence could have been cautious. Instead, it was commanding.

Iran won four medals, including two golds, to claim the men’s team title at the U17 World Beach Wrestling Championships after a close race with Georgia, which finished second with 75 points to Iran’s 80. Azerbaijan was third with 62 points.

In the women's category, hosts Greece managed to go past France to finish first with 50 points while France ended up second with 42. The United States was third with 32 points.

The U17 World Championships is a significant stop in Beach Wrestling as it will be taken into consideration for while awarding the quotas for the 2026 Youth Olympic Games.

IranIran's two gold medalists in Greece, Mahdi FOTOUHI (IRI), left, at 90kg and Youssof HOSSEIN (IRI), right, at 70kg.

Gold medalists for Iran, Youssof HOSSEIN (IRI) at 70kg and Mahdi FOTOUHI (IRI) at 90kg, were competing in Beach Wrestling for the first time but never let their inexperience affect their performances.

Hossein, who defeated Stefan MUNTEAN (MDA) in the knockout match, was placed in Group D with Yuki UEDA (JPN), Nikolaos PAPADOPOULOS (GRE) and Ilie TURCAN (MDA). He defeated Papadopoulos 3-1 in the group bout before blanking Turcan 3-0 in just 40 seconds. He was quicker against Ueda, winning in 34 seconds.

Facing Luka MAKHARADZE (GEO) in the quarterfinals, Hossein scored a 3-1 victory and took only 40 seconds to beat Rashad ALIYEV (AZE) in the semifinals.

In an all-Iran final, Hossein fell behind 1-0 against Ilyar VEGHARI (IRI) but stormed back with two straight points with a knee and head touch from Veghari. He used a lateral drop as his final move to win 5-1. Veghari's lost challenge added to Hossein's score and made it 6-1.

Fotouhi was even more dominant at 90kg, winning all three of his group bouts via fall. Charilaos CHAITIDIS (GRE) survived getting pinned in the quarterfinals but Fotouhi was strong enough to win 3-0 and advance to the semifinals.

After winning the semifinal 2-1 against Elgun KARIMLI (AZE), Fotouhi was back to his dominant self and slammed Joni SHAORSHADZE (GEO) to pick his fourth fall in six bouts and the gold medal for Iran.

Fotouhi began with a step out to earn his first point of the final. Both wrestlers arm-locked each other and tried to throw at the edge but it was Shaorshadze who touched outside first which gave Fotouhi his second point.

In one of those moments when his Freestyle instincts took over, Fotouhi went for duckunder and touched his knee on the sand which gave Shaorshadze a point to make the score 2-1. The Georgian tried a fireman carry in the final 10 seconds but Fotouhi pancaked him for a fall.

At 60kg, Mykyta KUZMENKO (UKR) defeated Rati BERIDZE (GEO) twice, first in the group stages and then in final, to claim the gold medal.

Kuzmenko blanked all his opponents barring Beridze who managed to score one point when the two met in the Group B bout. However, the Ukrainian improved and gave no chance to Beridze in the final, winning 3-0.

The Ukrainian was quick to score two step-outs and lead 2-0 and when Beridze tried to score a point, Kuzmenko snapped him down and scored his third and winning point.

Georgia had another silver medalist, Nuradin MUSTAFAEV (GEO), who suffered a one-sided loss in the 80kg final to Nihad SULEYMANLI (AZE), who had represented Azerbaijan at the U17 World Championships in Athens in August.

Suleymanli did not give up a single point in the tournament and won the final against Mustafaev 3-0. He scored a step-out to open the scoring in the final before Mustafaev fell on the ground to give a second point. The Georgian wrestler tried tripping Suleymanli but instead gave a takedown for one point to drop the final.

AzerbaijanAzerbaijan's first-ever gold medalist Ulviyya MUSAYEVA (AZE) with other team members.

Historic golds for Puerto Rico, Azerbaijan

In the women's category, Puerto Rico and Azerbaijan earned historic golds as four different countries crowned champions.

Heklanys RIVERA (PUR), the first woman to compete in Beach Wrestling for her country, made a stunning run to the gold medal at 45kg. She did not give up a single point in six bouts including the final.

Taking on Kaltouma SALISSOU (FRA) in the final, Rivera was put on the 30-second activity clock. With eight seconds remaining, Rivera used an underhook to get the first takedown for a point.

The second point was awarded to Rivera when Salissou committed a foul by grabbing Rivera's shorts. The winning takedown was similar to the first one as Rivera moved from underhook to tripping Salissou.

For Azerbaijan, 15-year-old Ulviyya MUSAYEVA (AZE) needed only 16 seconds to create history. She defeated last year's champion Reisa KOJIMA (JPN) via fall in the 55kg final. Kojima tried hitting a lateral drop in the final but fell on her back, which gave Musayeva three points for the win.

Earlier, Musayeva had lost one of the group bouts against Mia KOVAC (CRO) via fall but rebounded to win all remaining bouts to make the final and then capture the gold medal.

Hosts Greece, which won the team title, earned the gold medal at 75kg through Elena ZAIMIDOU (GRE) who scored a 32-second victory via fall over Madeline HAYDEN (USA) in the final.

Zaimidou, who has competed and won gold in Grappling at the European level, secured three victories via fall, and a victory via superiority over Merily VAESTER (EST) in the semifinals.

In the gold medal bout, Hayden stunned the local fans when she hit a beautiful over-the-head suplex on Zaimidou. Hayden went for a second suplex, but Zaimidou blocked her, using a headlock, and Hayden fell on her back which gave Zaimidou three points and the victory.

Hayden challenged the scoring but the points were confirmed on review and Zaimidou was awarded a point for lost challenge, which made her score 4-1.

European bronze medalist in Women's Wrestling, Alexandra MOISEI (MDA) earned the gold medal at 65kg after some nervous wins. She defeated Thea ROUSSEL (FRA), 3-0, in the final in 49 seconds using three easy snapdowns.