#WrestleIstanbul

#WrestleIstanbul: Burroughs Takes 79kg Gold; Turkey Wins Team Title

Sunday, February 27, 2022 - 20:38 By Vinay Siwach

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ISTANBUL, Turkey (February 27) -- Istanbul couldn't have asked for a better ending at the Yasar Dogu Ranking Series event -- even after a long day of wrestling, the best was yet to come. 

Turkey and Iran had a pair of gold-medal winners out of the eight contested weights on Sunday.

Five-time world champion Jordan BURROUGHS (USA) claimed his third Ranking Series gold medal after an All-USA final at 79kg, while his teammate James GREEN (USA) ended with silver after Amirmohammad YAZDANI (IRI) scored an 8-2 win at 70kg.

The Russian Wrestling Federation got their heir-apparent to world champion Gazdhimurad RASHIDOV (RWF) as junior world champion Shamil MAMEDOV (RWF) defeated Oslo gold winner Zagir SHAKHIEV (RWF) in the 65kg final.

Wrestlers from Kyrgyzstan and India won the 57kg and 61kg gold medals, respectively.

Burroughs' rise to the top of the podium four months after he won his fifth world title in Oslo was a testimony to the longevity and high-class wrestling that he still possesses. After overcoming Chance MARSTELLER (USA), 8-0, in the final, Burroughs said that he never felt better, thanks to not reducing weight to wrestle at 74kg.

"Yes, 79kg is comfortable for me," Burroughs said. "I am going to stay here until 2024 when I make my way down to 74kg to make the US Olympic team.

"People don't take it [79kg] seriously because it's not an Olympic weight. It's given me some rejuvenation late in my career. I'm 33-years-old and will be 34 in four months. I don't have to cut [too much weight]. I get to eat the things I want and training is more fun for me."

But come the '24 Paris Games, Burroughs will be back to his most successful weight, 74kg, in an attempt to win a second Olympic gold after the '12 London Games.

"I am going to be moving down," he said. "I cannot promise that I will make the [USA] team, but you know that I am going to give my best. It's effort, attitude and a warrior-like spirit. I am going to do my best to make the team. It's going to be a tough cut for me, but I'm committed."

Burroughs' stellar career began in Istanbul when he won his first-ever world gold medal in 2011. Reminiscing the memories, he said it is always great to be back.

"I didn't know what to expect in Istanbul 11 years ago, wow," he said. "The blessing was that I was young and naive and knew what I had. Denis TSARGUSH (RWF) was a reigning world champion at the weight class, and I had not wrestled him before. I had him in the second round.

"I was little nervous to be honest. Going to that tournament gave me a lot of confidence going forward because after winning that with very little freestyle experience, I thought about what I can do if I really train full time. The body of work has been something I have been grateful for. There are not a lot of people from that tournament that are competing and winning."

In the final Sunday, he began with an ankle pick, then added a stepout. A two-on-one to takedown transition gave him a 5-0 lead going into the break. In the second period, Burroughs scored another stepout before closing out the match with a takedown. 

In his five bouts, Burroughs outscored his opponent 35-2. He got going with a 14-0 win over Meiir KOSHKINBAYEV (KAZ), then teched another Kazakhstan wrestler, Zhiger ZAKIROV (KAZ), 10-0. Gadzhimurad ALIKHMAEV (RWF) pushed him a little more than the others, but Burroughs was happy to outscore him 4-1.

"It [the tournament] was good," he said. "I think I got progressively better throughout the day. It was a tough tournament. I haven't wrestled five matches in a day since like 2015. I feel good about the bodywork I put in and feel blessed I am sore."

But the real drama occurred in the semifinal against junior Asian champion Ali SAVADKOUHI (IRI). The two were tied 1-1 with a minute remaining when Burroughs was put on the activity clock, meaning he had to score inside 30 seconds.

But midway after the clock began, the referee called Savadkouhi for a singlet-pull when Burroughs was in the middle of an attack, giving the USA wrestler a direct caution-and-one. Burroughs defended the final 10 seconds and won, 2-1.

"The semifinal was crazy," he said. "I've never wrestled him before. He's tough and I am sure I'll see him again in the future. He did a really good job of slowing me down."

"For me to get to guys that are intent on playing the shot clock passivity battle, I got to find a way to evolve on offense and find ways to score. The double wasn't there, and really no straight attacks. So getting angles and staying engaged with my hands and feet. "

Another Iran-USA bout of the day was the 70kg final in which Yazdani began with a slide-by to a gut for a 4-0 lead before Green hit a double-leg to make it 4-2 at the break.

The second period began with Yazdani being more aggressive and faking Green a few times before a single leg to a gut wrench gave him four more points. Leading 8-2, Yazdani brought the traditional Iranian underhook defense, and Green got no space to complete his attacks.

The gold ended a long drought for Yazdani, who had won four silver medals at different international tournaments in seven years.

"This is the first gold medal for me at any international tournament, and I cannot tell you how happy I am," Yazdani said. "I hope I made the Iranian fans happy."

Earlier, Green eliminated RWF national champion Rassadin with a 3-2 win. Rassadin's loss meant that world silver medalist Ernazar AKMATALIEV (KGZ) returned home empty-handed.

"Green is a tough wrestler, but I was confident and had faith in my defense as well," Yazdani said.

Iran's second gold came at 92kg as Ahmad BAZRIGHALEH (IRI) stopped Erhan YAYLACI (TUR) from winning a third Turkish gold of the night. He scored a couple of stepouts and a takedown for his four points, while Yaylaci scored only one takedown.

The RWF got their answer to who would represent them at 65kg at the senior European Championships in Budapest, Hungary, next month after Mammedov stunned world champion Shakhiev with a 23-second fall in the final.

The 21-year-old locked Shakhiev's hands and spun him on his head to get two points. In the same sequence, he managed to roll Shakhiev and put both shoulders to the mat for the pin.

"I am very happy with the way I wrestled the world champion and secured a fall," Mammedov said. "In the whole tournament, I was constantly improving and my confidence was increasing.

"Now we will have a mini-trial for European Championship, but this gold against Shakhiev has helped me a lot in confidence."

But making the Russian Wrestling Federation team is one thing. The 65kg weight class is stacked with prime wrestlers from across the world with Olympic champion Takuto OTOGURO (JPN), Tokyo silver medalist Haji ALIYEV (AZE), bronze medalist Bajrang PUNIA (IND) and 2019 world champion and perhaps RWF's best 65kg wrestler Rashidov.

Mammedov said he's not afraid of any name in the lot and was looking to wrestle some of those guys in Istanbul.

"I was waiting for Punia here," he said. "Sad he did not wrestle, but now I have planned for every wrestler, and I am not afraid to wrestle anyone. It's just a matter of time before I beat them."

At 61kg, a rematch of the Poland Open Ranking Series final between Ravi KUMAR (IND) and Gulomjon ABDULLAEV (UZB) saw frantic back-and-forth action in which the former came out on top, 11-10.

Abdullaev outclassed Kumar in Warsaw last year, and it looked like Sunday would be a similar story. The Uzbek scored early with a duck under, but as the bout progressed, Kumar upped the pressure and scored from double-leg attacks twice to lead 4-2 at the break.

A kip over to a high-crotch made it 4-4 for Abdullaev, and in the same sequence, he exposed Kumar on the edge to extend the lead 6-4.

Kumar then hit a four using a cradle to lead 8-6. But once again, Abdullaev came back and scored two points, and at the end of the scramble, the referees gave two for both guys, bringing the score to 10-8. Uzbekistan challenged and it was back to 8-8 with Kumar leading.

Kumar looked to take a clean lead when he shot for Abdullaev's leg but got countered and gave up two points with 22 seconds remaining.

As Abdalluev tried to catch his breath after a stunningly high-paced bout, Kumar used that as an opportunity and blasted a double-leg to make the score 10-10, taking the criteria advantage. A lost challenge from Uzbekistan made it 11-10.

"I had wrestled him in Ranking Series in Warsaw and lost," Kumar said. "But this time, it was better, and I was able to beat him. The bout was stopped several times, which I think worked against me because that gave him [Abdullaev] a lot of rest, and he was visibly tired."

Kumar has now wrestled at two tournaments this year. Apart from the Yasar Dogu, he won a silver medal at the Dan Kolov tournament in Bulgaria last week.

"I am coming after Tokyo, and it feels that I am in good shape," he said. "This final also helped me assess myself. Now the focus is on Asian Championships."

Turkey's two champions came in the role of veteran Soner DEMIRTAS (TUR) at 74kg and Osman GOCEN (TUR) at 86kg.

Demitras defeated Fazli ERYILMAZ (TUR), 11-0, in the final. The two exchanged ties early, but Demitras came out with a takedown and leg lace to lead, 7-0.  He added another takedown after the break to increase it to 9-0, the final score of the bout.

The 86kg home stars Gocen and Fatih ERDIN (TUR) slugged it out with the latter getting put on the activity clock. After giving up that point, he quickly scored a takedown to take a 2-1 lead, but a scramble resulted in Erdin's 4-2 lead at the break.

The second period saw more action as Gocen mounted a comeback. He scored two, bringing Erdin down in reverse, then gave up a point for reversal as the score changed to 5-4. Erdin scored another takedown and exposure to finish the bout 8-5.

At 57kg, Almaz SMANBEKOV (KGZ) brought home gold after Beka BUJIASHVILI (GEO) conceded a walkover via injury default in the final.

United World Wrestling's action will now move onto the U23 European Championships that will begin March 7 to 13 in Plovdiv, Bulgaria.

RESULTS

57kg
GOLD: Almaz SMANBEKOV (KGZ) df Beka BUJIASHVILI (GEO), via injury default
BRONZE: Muhammet KARAVUS (TUR) df Saban KIZILTAS (TUR), 7-0
BRONZE: AMAN (IND) df Zanabazar ZANDANBUD (MGL), 10-5

61kg
GOLD: Ravi KUMAR (IND) df Gulomjon ABDULLAEV (UZB), 11-10
BRONZE: Ulukbek ZHOLDOSHBEKOV (KGZ) df Recep TOPAL (TUR), via fall
BRONZE: Nicholas MEGALUDIS (USA) df Mohammadbagher YAKHKESHI (IRI), 6-4

65kg
GOLD: Shamil MAMEDOV (RWF) df Zagir SHAKHIEV (RWF), via fall
BRONZE: Umidjon JALOLOV (UZB) df Tulga TUMUR OCHIR (MGL), 5-4
BRONZE: Joseph MCKENNA (USA) df Ikromzhon KHADZHIMURODOV (KGZ), via forfeit

70kg
GOLD: Amirmohammad  YAZDANI (IRI) df James GREEN (USA), 10-2
BRONZE: Zurabi IAKOBISHVILI (GEO) df Levan KELEKHSASHVILI (GEO), 2-1
BRONZE: Viktor RASSADIN (RWF) df Aliakbar FAZLIKHALILI (IRI), via fall

74kg
GOLD: Soner DEMIRTAS (TUR) df Fazli ERYILMAZ (TUR), 9-0
BRONZE: Sumiyabazar ZANDANBUD (MGL) df Mohmmad FIROUZPOUR (IRI), via injury default
BRONZE: Islambek OROZBEKOV (KGZ) df PRITAM (IND), 11-0

79kg
GOLD: Jordan BURROUGHS (USA) df Chance MARSTELLER (USA), 8-0
BRONZE: Arsalan BUDAZHAPOV (KGZ) df Nuri TEMUR (TUR), via injury default
BRONZE: Ali SAVADKOUHI (IRI) df Gadzhimurad ALIKHMAEV (RWF), 5-4

86kg
GOLD: Osman GOCEN (TUR) df Fatih ERDIN (TUR), 8-5
BRONZE: Gadzhimurad MAGOMEDSAIDOV (AZE) df Lars SCHAEFLE (GER), 7-0
BRONZE: Bekzod ABDURAKHMONOV (UZB) df Akhmed AIBUEV (FRA), 4-4

92kg
GOLD: Ahmad BAZRIGHALEH (IRI) df Erhan YAYLACI (TUR), 4-1
BRONZE: Deepak PUNIA (IND) df Elkhan ASSADOV (KAZ), 7-1
BRONZE: Ahmet BILICI (TUR) df Guram CHERTKOEV (RWF), via fall

#JapanWrestling

Paris champ Kiyooka sets up clash with Tanabe, Motoki faces Ozaki

Saturday, June 21, 2025 - 12:44 By Ken Marantz

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TOKYO (June 21) -- Before his astonishing run to an unlikely Olympic title, Kotaro KIYOOKA was the one doing the chasing. Now at the forefront and looking over his shoulder, he sees a familiar face bearing down on him whom he now has to confront.

Paris Olympic champion Kiyooka advanced to the freestyle 65kg final at the Meiji Cup All-Japan Championships on Saturday, where he will face former Nippon Sport Science University teammate Kaisei TANABE with a ticket to this year's World Championships on the line.

Kiyooka is one of three Paris gold medalists, along with Sakura MOTOKI at women's 62kg and Nao KUSAKA at Greco 77kg, who are making their full-fledged returns to the mat at the Meiji Cup, the second of Japan's two domestic qualifiers for the World Championships in Zagreb in September.

Both Motoki and Kusaka advanced with little trouble to Sunday's finals at Tokyo Metropolitan Gym, with Motoki setting up a highly anticipated clash with Paris 68kg bronze medalist Nonoka OZAKI -- whom she beat out for the spot in Paris at 62kg but is intent on reclaiming that weight class.

Kotaro KIYOOK (JPN)Kotaro KIYOOKA, left, ended up scoring 4 points off this scramble in his semifinal match at freestyle 65kg with Yuto NISHIUCHI. (Photo: Takeo Yabuki / wrestling-spirits.jp)

Unlike the other two, Kiyooka has never been to a senior World Championships. Standing in his way is a formidable opponent in Tanabe, two years his junior who is coming off an impressive victory at the Asian Championships in March in Amman, Jordan. Tanabe only moved up to 65kg last year, and the two had not crossed paths before.

Following the Olympics, Kiyooka spent some time (with Kusaka) competing in the German Bundesliga. But the Meiji Cup marks his first high-level competition since Paris.

"It's been awhile since I've been in an official tournament," the 24-year-old Kiyooka said. "Looking ahead to the Los Angeles Olympics, I'm still a long way away. What's important at this tournament is to come out with a victory.

"I have to make adjustments and prepare mentally for tomorrow. It's not just a one-and-done final, there is also a playoff so I can make it to the World Championships."

Tanabe, the son of NSSU coach and 2004 Olympic bronze medalist Chikara TANABE, captured the title at the first domestic qualifier for the world team, the Emperor's Cup All-Japan Championships in December, in Kiyooka's absence.

As such, Kiyooka will not only have to beat him on Sunday in the final, but again in a playoff to be held at the end of the session.

As an indication of the depth of Japan in the weight class, even with the retirement of Tokyo Olympic champion Takuto OTOGURO, both Kiyooka and Tanabe had to get over tough hurdles to make the championship match.

In the semifinals, Kiyooka struggled to break through the defenses of two-time world U20 champion and current NSSU star Yuto NISHIUCHI. In the end, he used counters to great effect in an 8-1 win, scoring 4 by stepping over during a scramble and 2 more defending against a single leg.

"I'm not usually the type who scores big points," Kiyooka said. "But I have built myself up physically after the Olympics and I think the result was that I could get the big point."

In his opening match, Tanabe needed a stepout with 20 seconds left to get past Shinnosuke SUWAMA 5-4, before topping Ryuto SAKAKI 5-0 to make the final.

While Kiyooka is a bit unsettled about having a target on his back, he seems ready to face whatever comes his way.

"Up to now, it's always been the reverse situation," he said. "I never had the feeling that I was being chased. But I don't want to lose. As being among those who is aiming for the Los Angeles Olympics, I want to be a big barrier for the others. If you give them an opening, they will use it. I don't want to show them any gaps."

Sakura MOTOKI (JPN)Sakura MOTOKI pries over Shirin TAKEMOTO en route to a 10-0 win in their women's 62kg semifinal. (Photo: Takeo Yabuki / wrestling-spirits.jp)

As surprising as Kiyooka's run to gold in Paris was, the bigger shock likely came during the qualifying process when an underrated Motoki, who was "only" a world bronze medalist at 59kg, had the audacity to move up and challenge the highly touted Ozaki at 62kg.

But the 2022 world U20 champion believed in herself, and keeps making believers of others. She returned to competition earlier this year in order to qualify for the World U23 Championships.

Victories at the U23 and senior worlds will make her just the third person in history to achieve the "Golden Grand Slam" of Olympic gold combined with all four world age-group titles.

On Saturday, Motoki's toughest test in advancing to the final came in the opener, when she used a low single to score a takedown in each period of a 5-0 win over two-time world U23 champion Yuzuku INAGAKI.

"She has a good defense," Motoki said. "Being able to get through a tough match really boosts my confidence. When you're an Olympic champion, it's only natural that [opponents] try to come up with a strategy against you.

"In that light, I have to figure out a way to become stronger from the start of Olympic qualifying. That's still under development."

Like Kiyooka, Motoki will have to beat the Emperor's Cup champion twice to secure a place on the world team, and Ozaki won't make it easy.

"She's a really strong wrestler," Motoki said. "I will have to summon up all of my power and try my best."

Nao KUSAKA (JPN)Nao KUSAKA sets up a 4-point overhead lift of Naoki KADODE during their semifinal at Greco 77kg. (Photo: Takeo Yabuki / wrestling-spirits.jp)

At Greco 77kg, Kusaka chalked up a pair of technical falls to advance to the final, where he will face the Emperor's Cup champion in Kodai SAKURABA, a 2022 Asian bronze medalist whom he aced out in the qualifying for Paris.

In the semifinals, Kusaka romped to a 12-1 victory over Naoki KADODE. After giving up a stepout, he came back with three of his own. Then he got behind and dropped backwards for 4, then ended the match with a 4-point lift at 2:04.

In other weight classes that will finish with medal matches on Sunday, longtime rivals and former NSSU teammates Katsukai ENDO and Kyotaro SOGABE set up their latest clash in the final at Greco 67kg.

Asian bronze medalist Endo, the Emperor's Cup champion, defeated 2021 world bronze 63kg medalist Kensuke SHIMIZU 7-3 in the semifinals, while Paris Olympian Sogabe rallied for a 13-6 win over 2023 world U23 bronze medalist and fellow NSSU alum Haruto YABE.

With Paris bronze medalist Yui SUSAKI still on post-Olympic hiatus, Remina YOSHIMOTO remained on track for a shot at a second world title at women's 50kg when she stormed to 10-0 victories over a pair of teenagers. She will face Umi ITO in a repeat of the Emperor's Cup final, which she won 3-2.

Emperor's Cup champion Rin SAKAMOTO, who has taken the rare collegiate path of going to the United States to compete at Oklahoma State University, advanced to the final at Freestyle 57kg and a showdown with Kento YUMIYA.