#Trnava2018

World Champs Susaki, Larroque Lead #Trnava2018 Field

Sunday, September 2, 2018 - 13:54 By Eric Olanowski

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TRNAVA, Slovakia (September 2) - The final women's wrestling entries for the #Trnava2018 World Championships have been submitted and the most surprising entry comes from reigning senior-level world champion, Yui SUSAKI (JPN).

Susaki, Japan's 19-year-old superstar won three straight Cadet World Championships before heading to Paris last year to claim her first senior-level World Championship, defeating current world No.1 Alina VUC (ROU), 14-4. 

The 2018 Junior World Championships will be Susaki's first junior-level competition ever. 

Another surprising entry comes from France's U23 world champion and 2017 world bronze medalist, Koumba LARROQUE. Larroque enters her first junior-level competition since winning the 2016 Junior World Championship gold medal. 

Reigning champions Sae NANJO (JPN) and Khanum VELIEVA (RUS) also make their return to the Junior World Championships with hopes of winning back-to-back gold medals.

ROSTERS
AZE
50kg - Yasaman MAJIDLI         
53kg - Tatyana VARANSOVA  
65kg - Jeyla NAGHIZADE  

BLR
50kg - Viktoryia APALONIK    
53kg - Yuliya ZHAUNERYK      
55kg - Darya SINKAVETS        
59kg - Maryia HULIDA
62kg - Krystsina SAZYKINA     
65kg - Hanna SADCHANKA     
68kg - Yauheniya ANDREICHYKAVA   
72kg - Anastasiya ZIMIANKOVA         

BRA
72kg - Thais DE LUCAS DE OLIVEIRA  

BUL
50kg - Raymyal ZIBEROVA   
53kg - Kremena PETROVA          
55kg - Sezen BELBEROVA           
57kg - Aleksandrina KASHINOVA  
62kg - Yuliana YANEVA        
68kg - Siyka IVANOVA        

CAN
50kg - Samantha ROMANO           
53kg - Jayd DAVIS
57kg - Hannah TAYLOR    
59kg - Sara BRINKAC   
62kg - Xiao LIU    
65kg - Megan FENDELET            
68kg - Dejah SLATER   

CHN
50kg - Yumei ZHONGCHN
53kg - Yuhong ZHONG          
55kg - Jiajing HOU     
57kg - Qi ZHANG       
59kg - Xiuyun CHEN   
62kg - Xinyuan SUN   
65kg - Yue ZHANG     
68kg - Man ZHANG    
76kg - Yuanyuan HUANG      

EGY
50kg - Nada MOHAMED     
65kg - Mona AHMED       

France's U23 World Champion, Koumba LARROQUE. (Photo by Max Rose-Fyne.)

FRA
72kg - Koumba LARROQUE     

GER
50kg - Ellen RIESTERER          
55kg - Anne NUERNBERGER
57kg - Serena BOELKE
59kg - Debora LAWNITZAK     
62kg - Janny SOMMERMEYER
65kg - Eyleen SEWINA

HUN
55kg - Szimonetta SZEKER      
57kg - Tamara DOLLAK          
59kg - Erika BOGNAR
62kg - Viktoria FELHO
76kg - Bernadett NAGY         

IND
50kg - Shivani PAWAR
53kg - Swati SHINDE   
55kg - Reena REENA   
57kg - Mansi MANSI   
59kg - Sangeeta SANGEETA   
62kg - Anshu ANSHU  
65kg - Tina TINA         
68kg - Divya KAKRAN  
72kg - Sonika HOODA
76kg - Karuna KARUNA         

ITA
50kg - Emanuela LIUZZI         
53kg - Carmen DI DIO
55kg - Teresa LUMIA 
59kg - Morena DE VITA         
62kg - Aurora CAMPAGNA    
65kg - Elena ESPOSITO          
72kg - Enrica RINALDI
76kg - Eleni PJOLLAJ   

Reigning Junior World Champion, Sae NANJO (JPN). (Photo by Marion Stein)

JPN
50kg - Yui SUSAKI      
53kg - Umi IMAI         
55kg - Saki IGARASHI
57kg - Andoriahanako SAWA
59kg - Sae NANJO      
62kg - Rin KONDO      
62kg - Atena KODAMA           
65kg - Miyu IMAI       
68kg - Miwa MORIKAWA       
72kg - Naruha MATSUYUKI   
76kg - Yasuha MATSUYUKI    

KAZ
50kg - Marina ZAKSHEVSKAYA          
53kg - Ellada MAKHYADDINOVA       
55kg - Aigerim IBRASHEVA   
57kg - Zhanerke ASSANOVA 
59kg - Yekaterina FIRSTOVA 
62kg - Irina KUZNETSOVA     
65kg - Albina KAIRGELDINOVA          
68kg - Valeriya GONCHAROVA         
72kg - Gulnaz ZHAPPAROVA 
76kg - Inkara ZHANATAYEVA

KOR
50kg - Miran CHEON  
53kg - Haeyeong IM   
55kg - Eunyoung PARK          
57kg - Jeongae BARK 
59kg - Hwa Young SUNG       
62kg - Ohyoung HA    
65kg - Hyerim YUN    
68kg - Hyeonyeong PARK      
72kg - Jisu KIM           

LTU
72kg - Kamile GAUCAITE       

Anastasia NICHITA, 2018 Junior European Champion. (Photo by Max Rose-Fyne)

MDA
53kg - Mariana DRAGUTAN  
59kg - Anastasia NICHITA      

MGL
50kg - Anudari NANDINTSETSEG      
53kg - Enkhtsetseg BATBAATAR       
55kg - Khaliunaa BAYARAA   
57kg - Enkhtuvshin BALJINNYAM      
65kg - Delgermaa ENKHSAIKHAN     
68kg - Davaanasan ENKH AMAR       
72kg - Namuunzaya BATBOLD          
76kg - Ariunjargal GANBAT   

NOR
59kg - Laura AAK           
62kg - Hedda STRAND  

POL
50kg - Magdalena MAJOS       
53kg - Alicja CZYZOWICZ       
55kg - Patrycja GIL     
57kg - Magdalena GLODEK   
65kg - Wiktoria CHOLUJ        
72kg - Kamila KULWICKA   

PUR
55kg - Gabriela RAMOS DIAZ  
59kg - Andribeth RIVERA BELLIARD  

ROU
50kg - Stefania PRICEPUTU   
53kg - Andreea ANA
72kg - Maria NITU        

Reigning Junior World Champion, Khanum VELIEVA (RUS). (Photo by Max Rose-Fyne) 

RUS
50kg - Veronika GURSKAYA  
53kg - Mariia TIUMEREKOVA
55kg - Aleksandra NITSENKO
57kg - Viktoriia VAULINA       
59kg - Alina KAZYMOVA        
62kg - Daria BOBRULKO        
65kg - Alena TIMOFEEVA      
68kg - Khanum VELIEVA        
72kg - Evgeniia ZAKHARCHENKO      
76kg - Elmira KHALAEVA       

SVK
53kg - Nina KOLLAROVA        
59kg - Reka BACSFAIOVA      
62kg - Kristina OROSZOVA    
72kg - Zsuzsanna MOLNAR    

SWE
57kg - Sara LINDBORG        
62kg - Linnea SVENSSON     
68kg - Tindra SJOEBERG        
76kg - Denise MAKOTA STROEM       

TPE
50kg - Meng HSIEH    
53kg - Ya Ling PENG   
59kg - Yu Han CHENG
72kg - Hui Tsz CHANG
 

TUN
50kg - Sarra HAMDI   
55kg - Siwar BOUSETTA        
57kg - Khouloud EL OUNI       
62kg - Fatma INOUBLI
68kg - Rihem AYARI   

TUR
50kg - Aynur ERGE     
53kg - Zeynep YETGIL
55kg - Nurife DUMAN
57kg - Ozge FINDIKCI 
59kg - Sule KABAK     
62kg - Gamze Nur ADAKAN   
65kg - Asli DEMIR       
68kg - Kadriye AKSOY
72kg - Tugba KILIC      
76kg - Aysegul OZBEGE         

UKR
50kg - Mariia VYNNYK
53kg - Veronika RYABOVOLOVA       
55kg - Khrystyna Zoryana DEMKO     
57kg - Alina AKOBIIA  
59kg - Tetiana RIZHKO           
62kg - Anhelina LYSAK
65kg - Iryna KOLIADENKO      
68kg - Alina RUDNYTSKA LEVYTSKA  
72kg - Romana VOVCHAK      
76kg - Anna TISLICHENKO     

Reigning Cadet World Champion, Macey KILTY (USA). (Photo by Max Rose-Fyne) 

USA
50kg - Alleida MARTINEZ       
53kg - Alisha HOWK        
55kg - Ronna HEATON
57kg - Alexandra HEDRICK       
59kg - Brenda REYNA  
62kg - Alexandria LILES          
65kg - Jayden LAURENT
68kg - Macey KILTY       
72kg - Alyvia FISKE     

UZB
50kg - Aktenge KEUNIMJAEVA          
55kg - Khodicha NAJIMOVA  
59kg - Nabira ESENBAEVA    
65kg - Bakhtigul BALTANIYAZOVA

#JapanWrestling

Tokyo champ Shidochi dealt setback in return from two-year layoff

Friday, June 20, 2025 - 16:02 By Ken Marantz

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Top photo: Haruna MURAYAMA flips Mayu SHIDOCHI onto her back for a 2-point takedown during their women's 53kg quarterfinal match. (Photo: Takeo Yabuki / wrestling-spirits.jp)

TOKYO (June 20) -- Through their years as university teammates and beyond, Tokyo Olympic champion Mayu SHIDOCHI and Haruna MURAYAMA each compiled a long list of laurels that included three world titles.

But when their paths crossed on the mat, Shidochi had been the dominant one. Murayama showed on Friday that those days are over.

Shidochi, returning to the mat after a two-year layoff that included giving birth to her first child, saw her bid for a shot at a fourth world title end when Murayama dealt her a 5-1 loss in the women's 53kg quarterfinals at the Meiji Cup All-Japan Invitational Championships in Tokyo, the second of two qualifiers for this year's World Championships.

Shidochi, who won the Tokyo Olympic gold at 53kg under her maiden name of MUKAIDA, was ahead on criteria in the second period after each received an activity point, but Murayama (nee OKUNO) went ahead with a pair of takedowns.

"It's really disappointing," said Shidochi, who had a 9-0 career record against Murayama before losing to her for the first time at the Emperor's Cup All-Japan Championships in December 2022. "I lost to Okuno at the Tokyo qualifier and I really wanted to get revenge for that."

Mayu SHIDOCHI (JPN)Haruna MURAYAMA works to get behind Mayu SHIDOCHI for a takedown during their women's 53kg quarterfinal match. (Photo: Takeo Yabuki / wrestling-spirits.jp)

Shidochi, who will turn 28 on Sunday, had last competed two years at the Meiji Cup, which was part of the qualifying process for the Paris Olympics. Her dreams of an Olympic repeat ended with a loss by fall in the second round to Akari FUJINAMI, who went on to take the 53kg gold in Paris.

Shidochi, who has her sights set on the 2026 Asian Games to be hosted by Japan, had planned to return in July at a lower-tier national tournament, where she could qualify for this year's Emperor's Cup, a qualifier for the Asian Games. But she moved it up a month when she found out her status as a former Olympic champion granted her entry into the Meiji Cup.

"Even though I lost like this at this tournament, I'm glad I took up the challenge," she said. "Ilost, but I found out things that I need to work on. I want to use that to step up my game so I can win in December."

Shidochi said that is probably more nerves than rustiness that did her in against Murayama, who is two years her junior.

"When I was warming up, I was moving really well," she said. "But during the match, I thought I could do more. I wasn't moving my feet. In preparation, I trained hard and did my research. I was really looking forward to it, but it didn't work out."

Murayama still has her work cut out for her if she wants to be on the plane to Zagreb. In Saturday's final, she will face Moe KIYOOKA, who last year succeeded her as the world 55kg champion. The two met in the final at the 2023 Emperor's Cup, which Kiyooka won 5-1.

A victory by Kiyooka would give her the world team spot outright. If Murayama wins, it will set up a playoff between the two later in the session, although Murayama has another option.

Murayama won the 55kg title at the Emperor's Cup, but opted not contest that playoff.

In another weight class that started Friday and will end Saturday, world 72kg champion Ami ISHII looks poised to grab the world team spot at 68kg after easily winning her lone match of the day in a four-woman round-robin that is down to three after Rin MIYAGI's injury withdrawal.

Ishii will clinch the spot with a victory in her final match against Seia MOCHINAGA. Meanwhile, Yoshinosuke AOYAGI will need to take the playoff route if he wants to improve on the world silver medal at freestyle 70kg that he won last year.

Aoyagi, the Emperor's Cup champion, was dealt a last-second 3-2 defeat in the semifinals by world U20 champion Ryoya YAMASHITA, who will take on Shoya MIURA in Saturday's final in a battle of 19-year-olds.

Aoyagi, a two time world U23 medalist, is coming off winning a gold at the Muhamet Malo Ranking Series tournament in Tirana and his second career Asian medal with a bronze in Amman.

Keyvan GHAREHDAGHI (JPN)Keyvan GHAREHDAGHI scores a takedown during his 4-4 victory over Emperor's Cup champion Ryunosuke KAMIYA in the freestyle 74kg semifinals. (Photo: Takeo Yakubi / wrestling-spirits.jp)

There will also be a playoff at freestyle 74kg, where Emperor's Cup champion Ryunosuke KAMIYA was dealt a nail-biting loss to 19-year-old collegiate champion Keyvan GHAREHDAGHI.

Gharehdaghi, whose father is Iranian, has already made Japan's team to the U20 worlds. To get the senior worlds, he will first have to get through fellow collegian Subaru TAKAHARA, who has qualified for the U23 worlds.

At freestyle 61kg, 2021 world bronze medalist Toshihiro HASEGAWA scored in double-digits in all three of his victories to advance to the final, capped by a 10-2 semifinal win over Aiki KAWAI.

In the final, Hasegawa will face Akito MUKAIDA -- Shidochi's younger brother, who has already qualified for the World U23 Championships.