#EmperorsCup

World Bronze Medalist Matsumoto Regains National Title, But Falls Short of Own Standards

Thursday, December 20, 2018 - 14:47 By Ken Marantz

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TOKYO---Regaining his national title was not too much of a problem for Atsushi MATSUMOTO. But trying to live up to the high standard he has set for himself as a newly minted world medalist left him feeling less than thrilled with his performance.

Matsumoto captured the only title at stake on the opening day of the four-day All-Japan Championships on Thursday in Tokyo, defeating Ryoichi YAMANAKA 11-4 in the 92kg final for his first freestyle title since 2014 and fourth overall.

Matsumoto, who won a bronze at the Budapest world championships to end a long global medal drought by Japanese men in the upper weights, spotted Yamanaka a 4-point lead before storming back for the victory with a combination of points from both the standing and ground positions.

“I feel a sense of relief, but I can’t be satisfied with my performance,” said Matsumoto. 

Matsumoto had Yamanaka’s leg in the air when his former Nippon Sport Science University teammate executed a twisting flip that sent Matsumoto to his back for 4 points. Later, Matsumoto countered a leg attack with a 2-point lift, then added a takedown to make it 4-4 going in the second period. A nifty ankle pick for a 2-point takedown put him ahead for the first time, and he built on the lead to clinch the victory.

“I had trained almost every day with my opponent at [college],” Matsumoto said of Yamanaka, who is now a high school teacher. “But now, he was finishing up school, went back home and probably didn’t train fully. To have a close match with someone like that, it was pitiful and hard to take. I’m not happy.”

Matsumoto’s bronze in Budapest made him the first Japanese male to win a global medal in a weight class at 90kg or over since Akira OTA won a silver at the Seoul 1988 Olympics. The last world medal was a bronze won by Makoto KAMATA in 1970.  

“After the tournament, the phrase ‘world No. 3’ was in my head,” Matsumoto said. “But I had an injury, and I couldn’t get my mind and body in sync. I couldn’t move like I wanted to, I couldn’t train like I wanted to. To compete in that condition is, in a word, difficult.”

That Matsumoto was competing at 92kg was somewhat of a surprise, as this year’s tournament, also called the Emperor’s Cup, is the first stage of qualifying for what is every Japanese wrestler’s goal---a place on Japan’s team to the Tokyo 2020 Olympics. He said he will eventually move up to the Olympic division of 97kg. 

“In my mind, I’m not yet ready to compete at 97kg,” said Matsumoto, who spent 1 1/2 years in Greco after failing to make the Rio 2016 Olympics, but returned to freestyle this spring. “That’s my self-analysis. First, I’ll get prepared physically and compete at the next world championships at 92kg.”

Yukako KAWAI, U23 world champion and senior-level world runner-up will wrestle U23 bronze medalist Yuzuru KUMANO for the 62kg gold medal. (Photo: Sachiko Hotaka) 

All other top Japanese wrestlers have crammed into the six Olympic weight classes for each of the three styles, leading to potential matchups between world and/or Olympic champions, while conversely, some non-Olympic divisions have just a handful of entries. 

The other weight classes in action Thursday will be held over two days, even the three that have just four entries and are using a round-robin format. The competition ran through the semifinals, or through two rounds in the case of  round-robins.

Yukako KAWAI, the Budapest 2018 silver medalist and world U23 champion, advanced to the women’s 62kg final, where she will face Yuzuru KUMANO, a U23 bronze medalist at 59kg. 

This weight class was expected to feature a clash between Kawai and Ayana GEMPEI, like Kawai a senior world medalist and U23 champion who had dropped down to the Olympic division from 65kg. But Gempei suffered a knee injury in practice five days ago---while sparring with Shigakkan University teammate Kawai, no less---and made a game-day decision to withdraw.

While Gempei absolved Kawai of responsibility for the injury, Kawai said tearfully, “Two years ago, I got hurt just before a tournament and was out for a year. Thinking about that, I really feel I need to apologize. But life is not so easy in this competitive world, so if someone gets injured, you have to try and get over it and not let it steer you away from your goal.” 

Kawai made Friday’s final by beating world 65kg junior champion Miyu Imai by 14-3 technical fall in the semifinals. Kawai had built an 8-0 lead, but a flurry of points delayed her from finishing off the match sooner. 

“At a point where I could end it with 1 or 2 points, I got caught in a wild move,” Kawai said. “I need to stay calmer up to the end.”

Commenting on her selection as the UWW U23 Wrestler of the Year, Kawai said, “At first, I thought it was a mistake. I was tagged on Instagram and that’s how I found out, but I thought it was a mistake that I was tagged. When I realized that it was me, I was surprised.”

Yuka KAGAMI, the 17-year-old cadet, defeated the top-seed Naruha MATSUYUKI to make the 72kg gold-medal bout. (Photo: Sachiko Hotaka) 

Japan’s other UWW award winner, Cadet Wrestler of the Year Yuka KAGAMI, got off to a good start in her Emperor’s Cup debut, winning both of her matches in the round-robin at 72kg. The 17-year-old will win the gold Friday with a victory over winless Mai HAYAKAWA.

“I had two matches today and I won both, so I’m happy,” said Kagami, a two-time world cadet champion who put herself in line for the gold with a 2-1 victory over top-seed Naruha MATSUYUKI, a Budapest 2018 team member.

Kagami said she is motivated by the memory of a loss at the Youth Olympics in October in Buenos Aires, where she had to settle for the bronze medal. “The Youth Olympics was really disappointing,” she said. “I don’t want to feel that again, so I remind myself before every match of that memory.”


Sosuke TAKATANI, 2014 74kg world silver medalist bumped up to 86kg and made the finals. (Photo: Sachiko Hotaka)

Meanwhile, Sosuke TAKATANI, the 2014 world silver medalist at freestyle 74kg, made a solid start in his debut at the next Olympic weight of 86kg by advancing to the final. 

Takatani, who spent last year at 79kg as a stepping stone to 86kg, scraped out a 2-1 win in the semifinals over last year’s runner-up Masao MATSUSAKA. Both of Takatani’s points were scored with Matsusaka on the activity clock, and he had to survive a step-out in the final seconds that was overturned by video review. 

“I didn’t really feel the difference in weight,” said Takatani, who will face defending champion Shota SHIRAI in the final as he bids for an eighth straight national title.

Takatani has practiced with Shirai, and even had his nose broken by him during a sparring session in October. “I beat him in practice matches, but tomorrow I will be nervous, so I’ll go in regarding myself as the challenger,” he said.

Day 1 Results

Freestyle
86kg (15 entries)
Semifinals
Shota SHIRAI df. Hayato ISHIGURO, 4-3
Sosuke TAKATANI df. Masao MATSUSAKA, 2-1 

92kg (11 entries)
Final: Atsushi MATSUMOTO df. Ryoichi YAMANAKA, 11-4
3rdPlace: Keiwan YOSHIDA df. Kazuma SHIBATA by TF, 10-0, 1:41 
3rdPlace: Takuma OTSU df. Akinobu TAKEUCHI by TF, 11-0, 2:37

Semifinals
Matsumoto df. Yoshida, 7-2
Yamanaka df. Otsu, 10-1

97kg (12 entries)
Semifinals
Takeshi YAMAGUCHI df. Yuji FUKUI, 3-2
Naoya AKAGUMA df. Takashi ISHIGURO, 5-0

125kg (14 entries)
Semifinals
Katsutoshi KANAZAWA df. Tetsuya TANAKA, 2-1 
Nobuyoshi ARAKIDA df. Takuya HIGUCHI, 4-2 

Greco-Roman

63kg (18 entries)
Semifinals
Katsuaki ENDO df. Ryota KOSHIBA by TF, 8-0, 1:06
Yoshiki YAMADA df. Shintaro YOSHINAGA, 2-2 

72kg (16 entries)
Semifinals
Tomohiro INOUE df. Nao KUSAKA, 5-0
Takuya TOMIZUKA df. Masaki KONDO, 5-4 

87kg (13 entries)
Semifinals
Masato SUMI df. Shuhei SAKANO by TF, 8-0, :30
Takahiro TSURUDA df. Ryota NASUKAWA, 4-0 

97kg (15 entries)
Semifinals
Yuta NARA df. Masayuki AMANO, 7-0
Masaaki SHIKIYA df. Takuya YAMASHITA by TF, 8-0, 2:40 

130kg (13 entries)
Semifinals
Arata SONODA df. Shoma SUZUKI by TF, 8-0, :29
Ryota KONO df. Keita BANCHI by Fall, :44 (4-0)

Women’s Wrestling
 

55kg (4 entries)
Round-Robin Group (through 2 rounds)
1. Nao TANIYAMA (2-0, 6 pts); 2. Saki IGARASHI (1-1, 6); 3. Sena NAGAMOTO (1-1, 3); 4. Kana HIGASHIKAWA (0-2, 1)

59kg (4 entries)
Round-Robin Group (through 2 rounds)
1. Yuzuka INAGAKI (2-0, 6 pts) 2. Kiwa IWASAWA (1-1, 4); 3. Kumi IRIE (1-1, 4); 4. Yumeka TANABE (0-2, 2)

62kg (11 entries)
Semifinals
Yukako KAWAI df. Miyu IMAI by TF, 14-3, 4:57
Yuzuru KUMANO df. Yurika ITO, 3-2 

72kg (4 entries)
Round-Robin
Through 2 rounds
1. Yuka KAGAMI (2-0, 6 pts); 2. Mei SHINDO (1-1, 5); 3. Naruha MATSUYUKI (1-1, 4); 4. Mai HAYAKAWA (0-2, 0)

#WrestleZagreb

Kougioumtsidis gives Greece historic world gold as 1st male champion

Monday, September 15, 2025 - 20:27 By Ken Marantz

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ZAGREB, Croatia (September 15) -- For all of Greece's history in the sport of wrestling-- one of the current styles even bears the country's name -- it had never produced a male world champion.

Georgios KOUGIOUMTSIDIS (GRE) rectified that situation with a determined performance, defeating Levi HAINES (USA) 3-2 in the 79kg final on Monday night, the third day of the World Championships in Zagreb when four freestyle golds were up for grabs.

"I'm very proud," Kougioumtsidis said. "I'm the first one who won a gold medal at the World Championships. It's my dream come true. I failed at the Olympics last year. I think this year is a good achievement. I achieved my goal."

In other finals, Chongsong HAN (PRK) gave his country its first world gold since 2019 with a come-from-behind victory at 57kg, while Japan and the United States each picked up their second golds of the competition, with Kota TAKAHASHI (JPN) winning at 74kg under sad circumstances and Trent HIDLAY (USA) putting on a comeback for the ages to triumph at 92kg.

Georgios KOUGIOUMTSIDIS (GRE)Georgios KOUGIOUMTSIDIS (GRE) scores a stepout against Levi HAINES (USA) in the 79kg final. (Photo: United World Wrestling / Kostadin Andonov)

The 23-year-old Kougioumtsidis came to Zagreb flying under the radar for title favorites. He was a two-time European U23 champion, and won the senior gold in 2022, but had lost in the first round at 74kg at the Paris Olympics and was third at this year's Budapest Ranking Series.

But he steadily battled his way through the rounds to advance to final, where he wrestled a solid and sensible match that took advantage of opportunities while keeping his American foe at bay.

After receiving an activity point, Kougioumtsidis got in on a single that led to a stepout and a 2-0 lead at the break. He repeated the move again in the second period and, although he surrendered a takedown with :02 left, it wasn't enough to deter him from his appointment with destiny.

"He's a very offensive wrestler, I know that," Kougioumtsidis said. "He has very good conditioning. My condition is also good. I was a bit tired from yesterday because of four matches. But I won, that's what matters most."

Kougioumtsidis said that after his disappointment in Paris, he took some time off, then spent time training in Georgia.

"After the Olympics I had maybe five months off because I wasn't feeling very good," he said. "I had very good training. This year, I mostly was in Georgia for camp and thanks to my sparring partners from Georgia that helped me. I achieved the biggest goal here."

Until Kougioumtsidis' victory, the lone Greek to ever step to the top of the medal podium at the World Championships was Sofia POUMPOURIDOU (GRE), who won the women's 51kg gold in 2002 on home soil in Chalkida, Greece.

Only three times has a Greek man ever even advanced to a world final (Giorgios ATHANASSIADIS (GRE) did in twice), all in freestyle, but never did they come away with a gold. The last time was in 1991.

"I'm very lucky also that I am Greek," Kougioumtsidis said. "So I feel like I made all Greeks proud. I am Greek and I love my country."

Chongsong HAN (PRK)Chongsong HAN (PRK) works on a gut-wrench against Bekzat ALMAZ UULU (KGZ) during the 57kg final. (Photo: United World Wrestling / Kadir Caliskan)

At 57kg, things could hardly have gone worse for Han in his gold-medal match with Bekzat ALMAZ UULU (KGZ), which was a rematch of their semifinal clash at the 2023 Asian Games, which Han won 4-2.

Ahead 1-0 in the second period, Almaz Uulu stopped an arm throw attempt -- which, if challenged, could possibly have been overturned as a slip -- then added two 2-point exposures to go up 7-0.

Han determinedly fought on, and a scramble that he initiated with a front headlock roll gave him six points to cut the lead to 9-6. He then scored a takedown and added two gut wrenches to notch a 12-9 victory.

Kota TAKAHASHI (JPN)Kota TAKAHASHI (JPN) and Chermen VALIEV (ALB) wrestle in the 74kg final. (Photo: United World Wrestling / Kadir Caliskan)

At 74kg, Takahashi won by injury default after his opponent in the final, Olympic bronze medalist Chermen VALIEV (ALB), suffered a serious knee injury and, after trying to soldier on for a short time, was forced to give up the fight.

"It leaves a bit of a bad aftertaste, but I feel like I won the world title with the tackle that works best for me, so I'm happy," Takahashi said.

Takahashi, the 2024 world U23 champion, had a 3-2 lead when Valiev tried to counter a single-leg attempt 35 seconds into the second period by going over the top.

Takahashi had Valiev's left leg at an acute angle and his own action caused the knee to pop, after which he immediately sank to the mat in pain.

"When I got in on the single, I tried to get my head out and finish it off as I always do," said Takahashi, who scored off an identical move in the first period. "It was all but done, I thought. But the opponent was entangled deeper than I thought, and I heard a snap."

Valiev's leg was taped and he limped into the circle, but it was obvious it would be almost an impossible task to continue, much less win. Takahashi scored a stepout, then got a takedown that Valiev initially countered -- much to everyone's surprise -- but could not continue the move. Another takedown finally proved to Valiev that it was futile to go on and the match was ended at 4:07.

While Takahashi did not deliberately target the injured leg, nor did he let up on Valiev, which he said would have been disrespectful to such a high-level competitor. He also recalls not being given any special treatment when he suffered a similar injury himself while winning last year's U23 title.

"He's a strong competitor, and once you take the mat, you can't let your guard down," Takahashi said. "I thought to just give everything I had. When I had my injury a year ago, the opponent came right at me without thinking about it. Conversely, it would be rude to have eased up."

Takahashi's victory comes at what is increasingly looking like a golden era for Japan in freestyle. Following up on the two golds and a silver at the Paris Olympics, Japan got one of the first golds in Zagreb when Yoshinosuke AOYAGI (JPN) won the 70kg title on Sunday. And earlier Monday, Olympic champion Kotaro KIYOOKA (JPN) advanced to the 65kg final.

"At the Olympics, Japan really did amazingly well, so there were high expectations for this [competition]," Takahashi said. "Instead of feeling pressure or nerves, we want to show 'Japan is strong' and that actually gives us more confidence."

Looking ahead, which could include a direct clash with Paris silver medalist Daichi TAKATANI (JPN), Takahashi has his eyes firmly set on 2028.

"I'm really happy to be the world champion, but what I am aiming for is the Los Angeles Olympics," he said. "The Olympics is a stage where you can be a champion just once every four years. I will work on sharpening my tackles."

In the last bout of the evening, Hidlay was being tossed around like a rag doll by Amanula GADZHIMAGOMEDOV (UWW), only to rally from an eight-point deficit through sheer persistence and determination. When the dust cleared, Hidlay had himself a 13-10 win and a gold medal in his senior world debut.

"It wasn't my best wrestling match as I wrestle a lot better and cleaner than that," the 26-year-old Hidlay said. "But I would say nothing probably describes my wrestling style and career better than being down by eight points and figuring out a way to win within a short time."

Gadzhimagomedov, a relative unknown on the scene, relied almost solely on a counter lift and throw that he used to great effect early on, scoring a pair of 4-pointers to take a 10-2 lead. When he tried a third one that could have ended the match, Hidlay managed to hold his position enough to get an exposure, which, with an unsuccessful challenge, cut the gap to 10-5 at the break.

In the second period, Gadzhimagomedov didn't seem to have the energy to get the necessary height to complete the move, and Hidlay finished off a pair of double-leg takedowns to pull within one with a minute to go. Then he hit the coup de grace, a 4-point takedown with :15 left to complete the miracle.

"I think the work I put in in the first period, I wasn't scoring, but it was taking it out of him a little bit," Hidlay said. "It was just a matter of time before I was able to get to my scores."

Hidlay, the 2022 world U20 silver medalist at 86kg, called being a senior world champion "surreal" and said that it hadn't fully sunken in yet.

"I just had so many emotions kind of flood over you in that moment and you kind of just go blind to the world," he said. "Just for a couple of seconds, you just feel like you're floating.

"It's just something I've worked for my entire life, my entire career. To have it all come together in that fashion is just pretty incredible."

Harutyunyan denies Mexico first-ever world medal

Earlier, Roman BRAVO YOUNG (MEX) came an agonizing few centimeters from giving Mexico its first-ever world medalist.

That was the distance Arsen HARUTYUNYAN (ARM) kept his knee off the mat, preventing what would have been a last-second winning takedown in their 57kg bronze-medal match.

With a denied challenge giving him a final point, four-time European champion Harutyunyan secured a 7-4 win and a fourth world medal in five years.

Harutyunyan looked to be cruising to victory when he added a takedown and exposure to an activity point for a 5-0 lead going into the second period. But Bravo Young, a collegiate star in the United States, launched a comeback, sandwiching two takedowns around a Harutyunyan stepout to cut the gap to 6-4.

With the clock ticking down, Bravo Young deftly deked his way behind Harutyunyan, but the Armenian resisted as the Mexican did all he could to get his opponent's knee to hit the mat.

The other 57kg bronze went to Gulomjon ABDULLAEV (UZB), who was on the activity clock when he scored a second-period takedown to give him a 3-1 victory over Vladimir EGOROV (MKD). With the victory, Abdullaev adds the world bronze to his Olympic bronze from last year in Paris.

Former Olympic and three-time world champion Zaurbek SIDAKOV (UWW) assured he wouldn't leave Zagreb empty-handed, and he did it with a dramatic last-second victory over David CARR (USA) at 74kg.

Sidakov received an activity point in the first period, but he was on the clock in the second when Carr scored a stepout. Seconds later, the activity point was added to Carr's tally to put him ahead 2-1.

It looked like that was how it was going to end, but the cagey Sidakov managed to slip behind and force Carr over the edge for a stepout with :05 left to secure a 2-2 win on criteria.

Taimuraz SALKAZANOV (SVK) earned the other 74kg bronze with a 3-1 victory over Yones EMAMI (IRI), securing the decisive points with a second-period takedown for his fourth career world medal.

Iran picked up two bronze medals, with 2024 Asian champion Mohammad NOKHODI (IRI) taking home one at 79kg and reigning Asian champion Amirhossein FIROUZPOUR (IRI) winning the other at 92kg.

Nokhodi, the 2024 Asian champion, took home his fifth world medal -- alas, still no gold -- when he scored a takedown and stepout in the first period and held on for a 4-2 victory over Dzhabrail GADZHIEV (AZE) at 79kg.

Firouzpour quickly finished off Kamil KURUGLIYEV (KAZ), latching onto a cradle as he defended against a takedown attempt, then rocking backward to put the Kazakh onto his back and secure a fall in 1:49 for his first senior world medal.

The other 79kg bronze was claimed by Asian silver medalist Khidir SAIPUDINOV (BRN), who was trailing Suldkhuu OLONBAYAR (MGL) until the last minute when he went on a point-scoring spree, including a 4-point pancake, for a 9-2 victory.

European silver medalist Osman NURMAGOMEDOV (AZE) broke open a close match in the second period to beat Miriani MAISURADZE (GEO) 5-1 for the other 92kg bronze, upping his tally of world medals to four.

Day 3 Results

Freestyle

57kg (31 entries)
GOLD: Chongsong HAN (PRK) df. Bekzat ALMAZ UULU (KGZ), 12-9

BRONZE: Arsen HARUTYUNYAN (ARM) df. Roman BRAVO YOUNG (MEX), 7-4
BRONZE: Gulomjon ABDULLAEV (UZB) df. Vladimir EGOROV (MKD), 3-1

65kg (34 entries)
SEMIFINAL: Rahman AMOUZAD (IRI) df. Peiman BIABANI (CAN), 5-0
SEMIFINAL: Kotaro KIYOOKA (JPN) df. Umidjon JALOLOV (UZB), 5-0

74kg (35 entries)
GOLD: Kota TAKAHASHI (JPN) df. Chermen VALIEV (ALB) by Inj. Def., 4:07 (8-2)

BRONZE: Zaurbek SIDAKOV (UWW) df. David CARR (USA), 2-2
BRONZE: Taimuraz SALKAZANOV (SVK) df. Yones EMAMI (IRI), 3-1

79kg (27 entries)
GOLD: Georgios KOUGIOUMTSIDIS (GRE) df. Levi HAINES (USA), 3-2

BRONZE: Mohammad NOKHODI (IRI) df. Dzhabrail GADZHIEV (AZE), 4-2
BRONZE: Khidir SAIPUDINOV (BRN) df. Suldkhuu OLONBAYAR (MGL), 9-2

92kg (26 entries)
GOLD: Trent HIDLAY (USA) df. Amanula GADZHIMAGOMEDOV (UWW), 13-10

BRONZE: Osman NURMAGOMEDOV (AZE) df. Miriani MAISURADZE (GEO), 5-1
BRONZE: Amirhossein FIROUZPOUR (IRI) df. Kamil KURUGLIYEV (KAZ) by Fall, 1:49 (4-0)

97kg (29 entries)
SEMIFINAL: Amirali AZARPIRA (IRI) df. Akhmed TAZHUDINOV (BRN), 5-2
SEMIFINAL: Kyle SNYDER (USA) df. Arash YOSHIDA (JPN), 9-1

Women's Wrestling

55kg (18 entries)
SEMIFINAL: Kyong Ryong OH (PRK) df. Sowaka UCHIDA (JPN) by Fall, 1:06 (4-0)
SEMIFINAL: Ekaterina VERBINA (UWW) df. Andreea ANA (ROU), 5-3

59kg (22 entries)
SEMIFINAL: Sakura ONISHI (JPN) df. Altjin TOGTOKH (MGL), by Fall, 1:22 (6-0)
SEMIFINAL: Maria VYNNYK (URK) df. Laurence BEAUREGARD (CAN), 10-5