#WrestlePlovdiv

#WrestlePlovdiv: Four Nations Highlight Day 1 with Eight Finalists

Monday, March 7, 2022 - 18:59 By Vinay Siwach

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PLOVDIV, Bulgaria (March 7) -- Four different countries had a pair of finalists each on the first day of the U23 European Championships that got underway in Plovdiv, Bulgaria.

Home nation Bulgaria and Denmark managed to put one each as well in Tuesday's final as five Greco-Roman weight classes were in action Monday.

Returning bronze medalist Istvan TAKACS (HUN) and junior European champion Turpan BISULTANOV (DEN) set up the summit clash for the 87kg gold medal. The two stars delivered close to perfect performances throughout the day of the competition.

The Hungarian wrestler began with an 8-0 win over Matej MANDIC (CRO) in the morning session before returning to win the semifinal against Szymon SZYMONOWICZ (POL) 3-1. He was awarded a point for Szymnonowicz's passivity in the first period and he managed to get exposure from par terre.

Some classic defense from Takacs made sure that he only conceded a point when was put in a par terre position in the second period.

Turpan BisultanovTurpan BISULTANOV (DEN) reached the 87kg final in Plovdiv. (Photo: UWW / Kostadin Andonov)

Bisultanov wrestled three bouts, outscoring his opponents 28-7 to reach the final. He began with a 10-2 win over Lachin VALIYEV (AZE) before surviving a scare against Muhutdin SARICICEK (TUR) in the quarterfinals. Saricicek managed to throw Bisultanov for a four-pointer but the Denmark wrestler came back and secured the win via fall.

The semifinal was a one-sided affair as returning bronze medalist Gevorg TADEVOSYAN (ARM) had to answer to Bisultanov's pressure. After scoring via a stepout, he went up 2-0 and then scored through a gut-wrench to lead 4-0. Another takedown made it 6-0 at the break before a stepout in the second period gave him a 7-0 win.

Hungary's second wrestler to reach the final was U23 World and European bronze medalist Dariusz VITEK (HUN). He denied Georgia's Giorgi TSOPURASHVILI in the semifinal at 130kg, 5-2. Despite the Georgian's continuous attacks, Vitek managed to keep it under control with some tactical defense.

Fatih BOZKURT

Vitek will face Fatih BOZKURT (TUR) in the final as both try to win the gold which they missed last year. Both the bronze medalists have already confirmed a better result from 2021.

Bozkurt had a 19-point slugfest against Sarkhan MAMMADOV (AZE) in the semifinal. The Azerbaijan wrestler stunned Bozkurt with a four-point throw and then scored a takedown to lead 6-2. But the Turkey wrestler continued to increase the pressure and scored a four-pointer with an arm spin and then scored via takedown to win 13-6.

Another Turkey wrestler who came from behind to enter the final was Emre MUTLU (TUR). He was trailing 7-0 at the break against Artiom DELEANU (MDA) and had lost all hopes for a win. But a passivity call against Deleanu opened a window of hope for him and then he scored four points via a front headlock. He then added six more points for exposure to change the bout.

He will face home wrestler Denis DEMIROV (BUL) in the 55kg final who needed an overhead jump against Denis MIHAI (ROU) in the final five seconds to win the bout 10-6. Trailing 6-5, he jumped over Mihai and kept his hands locked to get confirmed points. He was initially awarded two points but Romanian corner challenged the call. But it backfired and Demirov was awarded four points for the move.

Azerbaijan and Georgia will compete in the remaining two finals at 63kg and 77kg.

At 63kg, former junior World and European champion Giorgi SHOTADZE (GEO) will face Ziya BABASHOV (AZE) with an aim to repeat his junior age-group performances at the U23 level. He defeated Mustafa YILDIRIM (TUR) 6-3 in the semifinal.

Babashov ended local hopes of Ilia MUSTAKOV (BUL) to have a second home finalist when he defeated him 6-1 in the other semifinal at 63kg.

Khasay HASANLI (AZE) will face Davit SOLOGASHVILI (GEO) in the 77kg final after both scored close wins in the semifinals.

The Azerbaijan wrestler overcame Aleksa ILIC (SRB) in the semifinal 5-1 after scoring twice via exposure in par terre. When Ilic had the same opportunity, he failed to convert it into any points.

Like his teammate Shotadze, Sologashvili defeated a Turkey wrestler in the semifinal. Abdurrahman KALKAN (TUR) was 17-0 in the two bouts before running into Sologashvili in the semifinal.

The Georgian wrestler scored four points from par terre while Kalkan managed only two which remained the difference in the bout which Sologashvili won 5-3.

The five remaining Greco-Roman weight classes will be in action Tuesday.

#JapanWrestling

Two-time Olympic champ Risako Kinjo brings curtain down on stellar career

Sunday, October 12, 2025 - 23:14 By Ken Marantz

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TOKYO, Japan (October 12) -- Risako KINJO (JPN), who won two Olympic gold medals under her maiden name of Kawai before capturing a fourth world title last year after giving birth, officially announced her retirement over the weekend.

"I felt that I had experienced everything that was good about being a wrestler," the 31-year-old Kinjo told the Japanese media Sunday on bringing down the curtain on one of wrestling's most sterling careers. "I felt fulfilled and happy with a life in which wrestling was my passion."

Kinjo also revealed that she is pregnant with her second child as she spoke to the media at the Japan Women's Open in Akitsu, Shizuoka Prefecture, where she was coaching younger sister Yukako TSUNEMURA (JPN), who was returning to the mat for the first time since becoming a mother herself.

Kinjo first announced her retirement on her Instagram account on Saturday night, stating that in the 24 years since she started wrestling at age 7, "I have had good experiences and bad, highs and lows. But to win four world championships and two consecutive Olympics was all due to the support and encouragement of many people. I thank them all."

Kinjo first struck Olympic gold at 63kg at Rio in 2016, then won out in a duel that captivated the wrestling world with fellow Rio and four-time Olympic champion Kaori ICHO (JPN) for the 57kg spot at the 2021 Tokyo Olympics, where she took home a second gold.

Of the clash of the titans with Icho, Kawai remarked, "I had no more difficult period than that. I'm glad I was able to experience it."

In the Tokyo semifinals, Kinjo had to face yet another Rio gold medalist in Helen MAROULIS (USA), who had moved up from 53kg. Kinjo came away with a 2-1 win, then defeated Iryna KURACHKINA (UWW) 5-0 for the gold.

With Yukako also winning the 62kg gold, it elevated the Kawai sisters to celebrity status in the host country. The two got their start in the sport at the kids' club run by their mother. Both of their parents were national-level wrestlers.

Soon after Tokyo, Risako married former wrestler Kiryu KINJO, and in May 2022, gave birth to a baby girl. Instead of settling down to a domestic life, motherhood lit a fresh flame to continue the sport.

"I had originally planned to win the Tokyo Olympics and then retire gracefully," Kinjo said. "I even told people around me that I would quit after the Tokyo Olympics. But when I got married and got pregnant, I felt that my body wasn't only my own, and I wanted to continue wrestling.

"While I was pregnant, I watched Yukako's matches and thought to myself, 'If it were me, I would do it like this,' so after my child was born, I decided to try it again."

Her bid to win a third straight Olympic gold in Paris, however, was derailed by the reigning world 57kg champion Tsugumi SAKURAI (JPN), who went on to triumph in the French capital.

Rebuffing speculation that the loss would mark her swan song, she showed her passion for the sport by sticking around. With the incentive of wanting to have her daughter see her compete and make some history, she had no qualms about moving into the non-Olympic weight of 59kg.

She suffered a setback of sorts at the Asian Championships in April 2024, when she lost to Qi ZHANG (CHN) in the semifinals and had to settle for a bronze medal.

But she righted the ship at the Non-Olympic Weight World Championships in October that year in Tirana, Albania, where she cruised into the 59kg final and defeated Tserenchimed SUKHEE (MGL) 4-2.

"No one from Japan had ever achieved becoming a 'world No. 1 as a mama', and it would be ideal if I could do it," Kinjo recalled thinking. "When I accomplished it at the World Championships last October, as soon as it was over I thought there is nothing else that I want."

That victory added to the three consecutive senior world golds that she won from 2017 to 2019. She also has a silver from 2015, and her laurels include a world cadet (U17) gold and two world junior (U20) titles, and she was a four-time Asian champion.

Kinjo was a star at Shigakkan University during its golden era as the elite powerhouse of women's wrestling in Japan, also producing such greats as Icho, Saori YOSHIDA (JPN), Eri TOSAKA (JPN), Mayu MUKAIDA (JPN) and Sara DOSHO (JPN).

Looking ahead, she says her focus will be on raising her new baby while staying involved in the sport.

"Right now I am eight months pregnant, and first and foremost I will put my full efforts into proper childcare. And at the same time, I will be Yukako's coach and always maintain a link to wrestling," she said.

At the Japan Women's Open, a second-tier event that offers qualifying spots at the All-Japan Championships, Yukako showed she still has some rust to be knocked off. Entered at 59kg, she won her first two matches before falling to high schooler Miuna KIMURA (JPN) 4-1 in the semifinals.

The tournament also saw the return of Sakurai for her first competition since winning the gold in Paris. She needed three wins to take the 57kg title, defeating collegian Himeka HASEGAWA (JPN) 5-0 in the final.