#WrestleUfa

#WrestleUfa Junior World Championship Entries

By Eric Olanowski

UFA, Russia (August 12) --- After a 729-day layoff due to the worldwide pandemic, United World Wrestling will host the Junior World Championships for the first time since the '19 Tallinn Junior Worlds. 

Over 500 athletes from 52 different nations will compete in Ufa, Russia, August 16-22 for junior world gold. Freestyle kicks off the schedule of events next Monday, with women's wrestling and Greco-Roman action following.

Freestyle
57kg
Manvel KHNDZRTSYAN (ARM)
Nuraddin NOVRUZOV (AZE)
Kiryl PRAKOPAU (BLR)
Giorgi GEGELASHVILI (GEO)
Ioannis MARTIDIS (GRE)
Shubham SHUBHAM (IND)
Ali Abolfazl GHOLI ZADEGAN KOLOUKHI (IRI)
Simone Vincenzo PIRODDU (ITA)
Assylzhan YESSENGELDI (KAZ)
Abdymalik KARACHOV (KGZ)
Demian LIUTCANOV (MDA)
Dashtseren PURVEE (MGL)
Ramazan BAGAVUDINOV (RUS)
Hasintha Madhushika De Silva DUNUHINGA (SRI)
Thomas EPP (SUI)
Muhammet KARAVUS (TUR)
Richard FIGUEROA II (USA)

61kg
Levik MIKAYELYAN (ARM)
Abulfaz NASIROV (AZE)
Ivan HRAMYKA (BLR)
Alibeg ALIBEGOV (BRN)
Omar GAZASHVILI (GEO)
Ravinder RAVINDER (IND)
Rahman Mousa AMOUZADKHALILI (IRI)
Salamat MALIKOV (KAZ)
Aktan DOORONBEKOV (KGZ)
Pavel ANDRUSCA (MDA)
Battulga RAASH (MGL)
Bartosz Krzysztof SOLTYS (POL)
Fedor BALTUEV (RUS)
Lahiru Sumindya Fernando WANNAKU WATHTHA WADUGE (SRI)
Khairullo KULULOV (TJK)
Hamza ZOPALI (TUR)
Jesse Wayne MENDEZ (USA)

65kg
Davit MARGARYAN (ARM)
Ziraddin BAYRAMOV (AZE)
Anatoli HRAMYKA (BLR)
Lachlan Maurice MCNEIL (CAN)
Fathi Tarek Fathi Attia ISMAIL (EGY)
Giorgi TCHOLADZE (GEO)
Marcell BUDAI KOVACS (HUN)
Rohit ROHIT (IND)
Seyedhassan Seyedhossein EBADIMERMETI (IRI)
Bekzat YERMEKBAY (KAZ)
Orozobek TOKTOMAMBETOV (KGZ)
Viljams LUTKEVICS (LAT)
Alin CIORICI (MDA)
Tugsjargal ERDENEBAT (MGL)
Piotr Patryk SOBOLEWSKI (POL)
Shamil MAMEDOV (RUS)
Mustafo AKHMEDOV (TJK)
Burak SININ (TUR)
Saif Mubarak Belal Saeed ALMESMARI (UAE)
Narek POHOSIAN (UKR)
Beau Reynald BARTLETT (USA)

70kg
Narek HARUTYUNYAN (ARM)
Benedikt HUBER (AUT)
Dzhabrail GADZHIEV (AZE)
Mikita DZEMCHANKA (BLR)
Ivan Nikolaev STOYANOV (BUL)
Davit PATSINASHVILI (GEO)
Simon Jakob MONZ (GER)
Jonnathan Alejandro PEREZ CASTELLANOS (GUA)
Jaideep JAIDEEP (IND)
Erfan Mohammad ELAHI (IRI)
Asset BAUYRZHANOV (KAZ)
Alikhan ALISHER UULU (KGZ)
Stanislav NOVAC (MDA)
Stanislav SVINOBOEV (RUS)
Viktor Stiven VOINOVIC (SRB)
Anthony Chamoth Nethmina PETER COOREGE DON (SRI)
Kevin Gerry MAKOTA STROEM (SWE)
Jafarbek QURBONOV (TJK)
Mevlut OZDEMIR (TUR)
Bryce Parker ANDONIAN (USA)

74kg
Armen MUSIKYAN (ARM)
Joseph James Granich FALLON (AUS)
Turan BAYRAMOV (AZE)
David KISIYEU (BLR)
Vladimeri GAMKRELIDZE (GEO)
Stas David WOLF (GER)
Balint BALAZS (HUN)
Yash YASH (IND)
Sobhan Hooshang YARI (IRI)
Nurdaulet KUANYSHBAY (KAZ)
Stambul ZHANYBEK UULU (KGZ)
Daniels BENDIKS (LAT)
Suldkhuu OLONBAYAR (MGL)
Patryk KOSTRZEWSKI (POL)
Krisztian BIRO (ROU)
Idar KHATANOV (RUS)
Ushan Nadishka MUTHUGAL PEDIGE (SRI)
Saidasan ASHRAFKHONOV (TJK)
Taner GARIP (TUR)
Keegan Daniel OTOOLE (USA)

79kg
Ashraf ASHIROV (AZE)
Dzmitry DZENISENIA (BLR)
Carson Barry LEE (CAN)
Saifeldin Shokry Mohamed Mahmoud ELKOUMY (EGY)
Bagrati GAGNIDZE (GEO)
Richard SCHROEDER (GER)
Georgios KOUGIOUMTSIDIS (GRE)
Baliyan GOURAV (IND)
Mohammad Ashghar NOKHODILARIMI (IRI)
Makhambet NURZHAUBAYEV (KAZ)
Mukhammad ABDULLAEV (KGZ)
Osmans DZASEZEVS (LAT)
Lilian BALAN (MDA)
Munkhdavaa BAYARMUNKH (MGL)
Damian Daniel KORBUS (POL)
Arno VAN ZIJL (RSA)
Alik BADTIEV (RUS)
Jinuka Lankaja ABEYAGUNASEKARA (SRI)
Abubakr SHUKUROV (TJK)
Ismail KUCUKSOLAK (TUR)
Ruslan AKHMETKHANOV (UKR)
Donnell Russell WASHINGTON JR (USA)

86kg
Fateh BENFERDJALLAH (ALG)
Sagadulla AGAEV (AZE)
Ilya KHAMTSOU (BLR)
Rakhim MAGAMADOV (FRA)
Daviti KOGUASHVILI (GEO)
Joshua Philipp David MORODION (GER)
Cesar Andres UBICO ESTRADA (GUA)
Vetal Audumbar SHELKE (IND)
Amirhossein Biglar FIROUZPOURBANDPEI (IRI)
Islyambek ILYASSOV (KAZ)
Samatbek STANBEK UULU (KGZ)
Ion DEMIAN (MDA)
Temuujin MENDBILEG (MGL)
Islam KARTOEV (RUS)
Avindu Srilak WANNIARACHCHI (SRI)
Emre CIFTCI (TUR)
Colton Gregory HAWKS (USA)

92kg
Sergey SARGSYAN (ARM)
Abduljalil SHABANOV (AZE)
Uladzislau KAZLOU (BLR)
Juho Joel Eemeli RUUSILA (FIN)
Andro MARGISHVILI (GEO)
Johannes MAYER (GER)
Gkivi BLIATZE (GRE)
Krisztian Gabor ANGYAL (HUN)
Pruthviraj Babasaheb PATIL (IND)
Mahdi Moharamali HAJILOUEIANMORAFAH (IRI)
Bekzat URKIMBAY (KAZ)
Nurbolot ADYL UULU (KGZ)
Dmitrii DUSCOV (MDA)
Bayarbaatar NERGUIBAATAR (MGL)
Nicolaas Johannes Steyn DE LANGE (RSA)
Ivan KIRILLOV (RUS)
Sethusha Ruwel Vishmika Senanayake WADDUWA PALLIYA GURUNNANSELAGE DON (SRI)
Muhammed GIMRI (TUR)
Rocky Joseph ELAM (USA)
Mukhammadrasul RAKHIMOV (UZB)

97kg
Khasay YUSIFOV (AZE)
Aliaksei PARKHOMENKA (BLR)
Luka KHUTCHUA (GEO)
Charalampos AFTOFORIDIS (GRE)
Milan Andras KORCSOG (HUN)
Deepak DEEPAK (IND)
Ali Reza Abbasali ABDOLLAHI (IRI)
Yunus GAFUROV (KAZ)
Baiaman MYKTYBEKOV (KGZ)
Olegs ROMANOVSKIS (LAT)
Radu LEFTER (MDA)
Myagmarsuren AMARSANAA (MGL)
Soslan DZHAGAEV (RUS)
Polat POLATCI (TUR)
David MCHEDLIDZE (UKR)
Braxton James AMOS (USA)

125kg
Lyova GEVORGYAN (ARM)
Aydin AHMADOV (AZE)
Danila DANILOV (BLR)
Georgi Lyubomirov IVANOV (BUL)
Ahmed Mahmoud Elsayed Mohamed KHALIL (EGY)
Giorgi CHIKHRADZE (GEO)
Csaba UBORNYAK (HUN)
Kumar ANIRUDH (IND)
Ali Mohammadebrahim AKBARPOURKHORDOUNI (IRI)
Bekzat TAZHI (KAZ)
Arslanbek TURDUBEKOV (KGZ)
Batmagnai ENKHTUVSHIN (MGL)
Jakub CZERCZAK (POL)
Andrei BESTAEV (RUS)
Efe Anil AL (TUR)
Wyatt Avery HENDRICKSON (USA)


Greco-Roman
55kg
Garnik HOVHANNISYAN (ARM)
Elmir ALIYEV (AZE)
Artsiom KATSAR (BLR)
Denis Krasimirov DEMIROV (BUL)
Giorgi TOKHADZE (GEO)
Georgios SCARPELLO (GER)
Kumar ANUP (IND)
Amirreza Mohammadreza DEHBOZORGI (IRI)
Melkamu FETENE (ISR)
Iskhar KURBAYEV (KAZ)
Akyikat KULZHIGIT UULU (KGZ)
Kaspars BONDARENKO (LAT)
Snorre Harsem LUND (NOR)
Denis Florin MIHAI (ROU)
Pavel BELKIN (RUS)
Aslamdzhon AZIZOV (TJK)
Adem Burak UZUN (TUR)
Vasyl MYSHANYCH (UKR)
William Dennis SULLIVAN IV (USA)

60kg
Suren AGHAJANYAN (ARM)
Nihat Zahid MAMMADLI (AZE)
Hleb MAKARANKA (BLR)
Edmond Armen NAZARYAN (BUL)
Ahmed Fouad Fouad Hussein BAGHDOUDA (EGY)
Tino Tapio OJALA (FIN)
Pridon ABULADZE (GEO)
Vikas VIKAS (IND)
Saeid Morad Gholi ESMAEILI LEIVESI (IRI)
Abere FETENE (ISR)
Nursultan BAZARBAYEV (KAZ)
Baktiiar AKBERDIEV (KGZ)
Vitalie ERIOMENCO (MDA)
Arslanbek SALIMOV (POL)
Miguel Angelo LOUREIRO DOS SANTOS (POR)
Dinislam BAMMATOV (RUS)
Firuz MIRZORAJABOV (TJK)
Mert ILBARS (TUR)
Nicholas Pierce BOUZAKIS (USA)

63kg
Gevorg SUKIASYAN (ARM)
Ziya BABASHOV (AZE)
Maksim STUPAKEVICH (BLR)
Ilia Dimitrov MUSTAKOV (BUL)
Domagoj CELICEK (CRO)
Kasperi Kristian KAUHANEN (FIN)
Yanis Driss NIFRI (FRA)
Diego CHKHIKVADZE (GEO)
Ioannis PETKOS (GRE)
Anil ANIL (IND)
Iman Hossein Khoon MOHAMMADI (IRI)
Dias ASKERBAY (KAZ)
Omurzak TILEKABYLOV (KGZ)
Corneliu RUSU (MDA)
Mairbek SALIMOV (POL)
Manuel STOICA (ROU)
Said Khusein BAKAEV (RUS)
Niklas Jan Olov Pontus OEHLEN (SWE)
Ismail ORUCOGLU (TUR)
Oleg KHALILOV (UKR)
Chayse William Roy LAJOIE (USA)

67kg
Sahak HOVHANNISYAN (ARM)
Hasrat JAFAROV (AZE)
Uladzimir KARPIYEVICH (BLR)
Kristijan BOSNJAK (CRO)
Ekke Kou LEITHAM (EST)
Nestori Kalle Mikael MANNILA (FIN)
Gagik Mishai SNJOYAN (FRA)
Luka OCHIGAVA (GEO)
Aaron BELLSCHEIDT (GER)
Nikolaos KALAIDOPOULOS (GRE)
Carlos Valerio FUENTES PERALTA (GUA)
Adam POHILEC (HUN)
Deepak DEEPAK (IND)
Seyed Danial Seyed Shamsollah SOHRABI (IRI)
Shon NADORGIN (ISR)
Din Mukhamed KOSHKAR (KAZ)
Vilius SAVICKAS (LTU)
Kamil Aleksander CZARNECKI (POL)
Muslim IMADAEV (RUS)
Georgios Michalis BARBANOS (SWE)
Nozimjon SOBIROV (TJK)
Serhat KIRIK (TUR)
Marian HOLUBOVSKYI (UKR)
Dominic John DAMON (USA)

72kg
Shant KHACHATRYAN (ARM)
Matthias HAUTHALER (AUT)
Khasay HASANLI (AZE)
Andrei KAVALEUSKI (BLR)
Luka MALOBABIC (CRO)
Giorgi CHKHIKVADZE (GEO)
Samuel BELLSCHEIDT (GER)
Attila Tamas TOESMAGI (HUN)
Vikas VIKAS (IND)
Amir Ali ABDI (IRI)
Ariell SOSUNOV (ISR)
Abdiazim KARABAYEV (KAZ)
Yryskeldi MAKSATBEK UULU (KGZ)
Eimantas VILIMAS (LTU)
Diogo Alexandre FERREIRA CANILHAS (POR)
Evgenii BAIDUSOV (RUS)
Michael PORTMANN (SUI)
Sheroz OCHILOV (TJK)
Omer Can DOGAN (TUR)
Vladyslav YEVTUSHENKO (UKR)
Justus Rian SCOTT (USA)

77kg
Samvel GRIGORYAN (ARM)
Eljan MAMMADOV (AZE)
Aliaksei PIAKHOTA (BLR)
Marek VRBA (CZE)
Emad Ashraf Mohamed ABOUELATTA (EGY)
Robyn PAULBERG (EST)
Jonni Kunnari SARKKINEN (FIN)
Giorgi SHPETISHVILI (GEO)
Andreas VASILAKOPOULOS (GRE)
Krisztofer KLANYI (HUN)
Deepak DEEPAK (IND)
Mohammadhossein Rezaali AZARMDOKHT (IRI)
David ZHYTOMYRSKY (ISR)
Omar SATAYEV (KAZ)
Rassul ZHUNIS (KAZ)
Bakdaulet EGENBERDIEV (KGZ)
Alexandrin GUTU (MDA)
Exauce MUKUBU (NOR)
Konrad Lukasz KOZLOWSKI (POL)
Vasile Daniel COJOC (ROU)
Ravdan DZHUDZHINOV (RUS)
Aleksa ILIC (SRB)
Yuksel SARICICEK (TUR)
Matthew Arthur SINGLETON (USA)

82kg
Karen KHACHATRYAN (ARM)
Murad AHMADIYEV (AZE)
Mikhail KHACHATURAU (BLR)
Ondrej HAVELKA (CZE)
Fares Mohamed Abdelsattar GHALY (EGY)
Robin USPENSKI (EST)
Saba MAMALADZE (GEO)
Kevin GREMM (GER)
Dominik Andras MEZEI (HUN)
Ravi MALIK (IND)
Mohammad Aziz NAGHOUSI (IRI)
Azimkhon ABDALIYEV (KAZ)
Zhenish ZHUMABEKOV (KGZ)
Semion BREKKELI (MDA)
Marcel STERKENBURG (NED)
Adam Mateusz GARDZIOLA (POL)
Amirkhan TSECHOEV (RUS)
Samet YALDIRAN (TUR)
Mykyta ALIEKSIEIEV (UKR)
Jonathon Crag FAGEN (USA)

87kg
Fadi ROUABAH (ALG)
Vigen NAZARYAN (ARM)
Lachin VALIYEV (AZE)
Dzmitry SALAUYANAU (BLR)
Kristian LUKAC (CRO)
Kevin USPENSKI (EST)
Giorgi METREVELI (GEO)
Lucas Alexandros LAZOGIANIS (GER)
Patrik Janos MEZEI (HUN)
Sonu SONU (IND)
Ali Ramezanali ABEDIDARZI (IRI)
Maksat SAILAU (KAZ)
Nartu ABDURAKHMANOV (KGZ)
Gabriel LUPASCO (MDA)
Tyrone STERKENBURG (NED)
Mukhammad EVLOEV (RUS)
Mario VUKOVIC (SRB)
Algot Lennart Botvid KAELLMAN (SWE)
Tansel Can ORTUCU (TUR)
Oleksandr PRYMACHENKO (UKR)
Kodiak Gary STEPHENS (USA)

97kg
Hayk KHLOYAN (AZE)
Pavel HLINCHUK (BLR)
Vinko PRODANOVIC (CRO)
Richard KARELSON (EST)
Antti Henrik Juhani HAANPAEAE (FIN) 
Lasha TVILDIANI (GEO)
Anton Erich VIEWEG (GER)
Apostolos Panagiotis TSIOVOLOS (GRE)
Narinder CHEEMA (IND)
Morteza Rasoul ALGHOSI (IRI)
Yerzat YERLANOV (KAZ)
Arkyt OROZBEKOV (KGZ)
Ignas BUKAUSKAS (LTU)
Marcus WORREN (NOR)
Igor SHEPETUN (POL)
Aleksei MILESHIN (RUS)
Mustafa OLGUN (TUR)
Yurii DOROHAN (UKR)
Braxton James AMOS (USA)

125kg
Razmik KURDYAN (ARM)
Sarkhan MAMMADOV (AZE)
Mikita KAVALSKI (BLR)
Marcel ALBINI (CZE)
Mate GOKADZE (GEO)
Nikolaos NTOUNIAS (GRE)
Adolf BAZSO (HUN)
Parvesh PARVESH (IND)
Amirmohammad Mahdi BAYAT (IRI)
Assylbek ZHANIBEKULY (KAZ)
Erlan MANATBEKOV (KGZ)
Tomasz Jacek WAWRZYNCZYK (POL)
Armen CHOLOKIAN (RUS)
Muhammet Hamza BAKIR (TUR)
Mykhailo VYSHNYVETSKYI (UKR)
Luke Andrew LUFFMAN (USA)

Women's Wrestling
50kg
Gultakin SHIRINOVA (AZE)
Natallia VARAKINA (BLR)
Shaimaa Atef Barakat MOHAMED (EGY)
Simran SIMRAN (IND)
Ayazhan MARKASHEVA (KAZ)
Nazik MIRLAN KYZY (KGZ)
Enkhzul BATBAATAR (MGL)
Natalia Edyta WALCZAK (POL)
Georgiana Lavinia ANTUCA (ROU)
Viktoriia ALEKSANDROVA (RUS)
Ellen Inger Kristina OESTMAN (SWE)
Zehra DEMIRHAN (TUR)
Emily King SHILSON (USA)

53kg
Elnura MAMMADOVA (AZE)
Aliaksandra BULAVA (BLR)
Pinki PINKI (IND)
Zeinep BAYANOVA (KAZ)
Aizhan SABYRBEK KYZY (KGZ)
Mihaela SAMOIL (MDA)
Otgontuya CHINBOLD (MGL)
Agata Paulina KAZIMIERCZAK (POL)
Beatrice Ionela FERENT (ROU)
Choigana TUMAT (RUS)
Chamodya Keshani MADURAVALAGE DON (SRI)
Emma Jonna Denise MALMGREN (SWE)
Emine CAKMAK (TUR)
Jaslynn Isabella GALLEGOS (USA)

55kg
Alesia HETMANAVA (BLR)
Antonia Alejandra VALDEZ ARRIAGADA (CHI)
Roza SZENTTAMASI (HUN)
Sito SITO (IND)
Sandugash DYUSSENGALIYEVA (KAZ)
Kalmira BILIMBEK KYZY (KGZ)
Munkhgerel MUNKHBAT (MGL)
Anne SVARSTAD (NOR)
Julia Wiktoria NOWICKA (POL)
Anastasiia IANDUSHKINA (RUS)
Melda DERNEKCI (TUR)
Payton Jane STROUD (USA)

57kg
Maryia HULIDA (BLR)
Mansi MANSI (IND)
Aurora RUSSO (ITA)
Nilufar RAIMOVA (KAZ)
Sezim ZHUMANAZAROVA (KGZ)
Gantsetseg BATSUKH (MGL)
Jannicke Marie STROEMNES (NOR)
Patrycja Ewa STRZELCZYK (POL)
Anastasiia KOZLOVA (RUS)
Nethmi Ahinsa Fernando PORUTHOTAGE (SRI)
Nellie Anna Regina FLORENTIN (SWE)
Elvira KAMALOGLU (TUR)
Claire Marie DICUGNO (USA)

59kg
Zhala ALIYEVA (AZE)
Aryna MARTYNAVA (BLR)
Jolie Donna Elizabeth BRISCO (CAN)
Anna Hella SZEL (HUN)
Kusum KUSUM (IND)
Madina AMAN (KAZ)
Bermet NURIDIN KYZY (KGZ)
Khongorzul BOLDSAIKHAN (MGL)
Aleksandra Weronika WITOS (POL)
Anastasiia SIDELNIKOVA (RUS)
Ebru DAGBASI (TUR)
Mia Kaur MACALUSO (USA)

62kg
Birgul SOLTANOVA (AZE)
Nadzeya BULANAYA (BLR)
Meiriele CHARAMBA SANTOS HORA (BRA)
Iva GERIC (CRO)
Luisa SCHEEL (GER)
Devi SANJU (IND)
Zhangul BOLD (KAZ)
Dilnaz SAZANOVA (KGZ)
Viktoria Miriam OEVERBY (NOR)
Paulina Malgorzata DANISZ (POL)
Alina KASABIEVA (RUS)
Yagmur CAKMAK (TUR)
Korina Alexis BLADES (USA)

65kg
Nigar MIRZAZADA (AZE)
Yana TRETSIAK (BLR)
Viktoria VESSO (EST)
Noémi SZABADOS (HUN)
Bhateri BHATERI (IND)
Ayazhan TOKTASH (KAZ)
Irina RINGACI (MDA)
Enkhjin TUVSHINJARGAL (MGL)
Ingrid Bergh SKARD (NOR)
Zuzanna WOLCZYNSKA (POL)
Amina Roxana CAPEZAN (ROU)
Valeriia TRIFONOVA (RUS)
Khadija JLASSI (TUN)
Seda BASGOL (TUR)
Alara Lea BOYD (USA)

68kg
Alina MIKLASHEUSKAYA (BLR)
Arju ARJU (IND)
Anastassiya PANASSOVICH (KAZ)
Karolina Gabriela KOZLOWSKA (POL)
Elizaveta PETLIAKOVA (RUS)
Zsuzsanna MOLNAR (SVK)
Nesrin BAS (TUR)
Amit ELOR (USA)

72kg
Kseniya PATAPOVICH (BLR)
Marta PAJULA (EST)
Lilly SCHNEIDER (GER)
Lili UJFALVI (HUN)
Saneh SANEH (IND)
Alexandra ZAITSEVA (KAZ)
Nurzat NURTAEVA (KGZ)
Tsogzolmaa DORJSUREN (MGL)
Daniela TKACHUK (POL)
Paula Aurelia Izabela ROTARU (ROU)
Mariam GUSEINOVA (RUS)
Nazar BATIR (TUR)
Kennedy Alexis BLADES (USA)

76kg
Kseniya DZIBUK (BLR)
Carla LERA CELDA (ESP)
Laura Celine KUEHN (GER)
Eleni PAPADOPOULOU (GRE)
Bipasha BIPASHA (IND)
Dilnaz MULKINOVA (KAZ)
Odbag ULZIIBAT (MGL)
Mariia SILINA (RUS)
Melisa SARITAC (TUR)
Kylie Renee WELKER (USA)

#WrestleAmman

U20 Worlds: Red-hot Shapiro wins gold; Nishiuchi repeats

By Vinay Siwach

AMMAN, Jordan (August 15) -- Meyer SHAPIRO (USA) talks about his mental game. Whether it was the lectures from Jonh DIAKOMIHALIS (USA) before coming to Amman or surviving the heat in the city, Shapiro thinks he has managed to keep himself calm despite thinking about his final all day.

"I woke up this morning but it [the final] was always at the back of my mind," Shapiro said. It's hard to think about something all day and not be worried about it. Yesterday [Monday] was a grueling day. The country is hot so that was something I had to add to my mental game. The first session took a lot out of me. Tough matches."

Perhaps with lessons from those tough matches on Monday, Shapiro, on a sweltering day in Amman, kept his cool against Ali REZAEI (IRI) to win his second age-group world title, winning the 70kg gold medal at the U20 World Championships on Tuesday.

After trailing 4-0 and busting his head after a head collision with Rezaei, Shapiro gathered himself and continued his red-hot form to win the final 11-6 and give the United States its first champion of the tournament.

The 2021 U17 world champion entered the competition as one of the favorites and Rezaei, who was a bronze medalist in the 2021 tournament, and over the two days, he proved why his "creative and funky" wrestling was too much to handle for his opponents.

"My wrestling style is creative and I like the flow," Shapiro said. "I envisioned myself wearing this white tracksuit on the podium since they gave it to the senior world team [in 2022] and having that belt."

Shapiro achieved that by wrestling one of the greatest finals in tournament history as he broke Rezaei with his hard wrestling and remained unbeaten internationally. 

Though the final did not positively for Shapiro as he got spun for two before Rezaei scored a trap for two more points, Shapiro headed a hit to the head, literally to regain his focus. Shapiro hit his head against Rezaei's hip and a cut to his took some serious medical attention.

Despite "freaking out", Shapiro returned with a focused mind and opened his scoring with a stepout. He then added two points via exposure by thrusting Rezaei to the mat when he was trying to lift Shapiro.

"Lot of emotions in that match," he said. "I came out hard and he also came out hard. In that exchange, a lot of emotions were going on in my head. I was freaking out a little bit. But that was enough time to reset my mind. It looks hard out there but that was my favorite match of the tournament. I really got to show off my skill. 

Shapiro was a different wrestler in the second period as he used his reach to score via ankle picks. He scored a takedown 10 seconds after the break. A stepout and another counter takedown made it 8-4 for the U.S. wrestler. Rezaei got one back using a lighting double and closed the gap to 8-6. But Shapiro controlled the center of the mat and put Rezaei in uncomfortable positions. He managed one more stepout and takedown to win 11-6.

"I have long arms and legs. I can use that pretty well," he said. "Being able to wrestle into positions, wrestling with Yianni [Diakomihalis] and other guys who push me, I kept being told that put these guys in position, they are not better than you."

Shapiro will try proving that in the domestic college season later this year when he wrestles for Cornell University, home to Diakomihalis and four-time world champion Kyle DAKE (USA). But before that is his introduction where, in most likelihood, Shapiro will reach with a bruised eye and a cut to his head.

"I got a few bruises and cuts but I will be back to training," he said.

Mohammad Reza SHAKERI (IRI)Mohammad Reza SHAKERI (IRI) celebrates after winning the gold medal against Jesse MENDEZ (USA). (Photo: UWW / Kostadin Andonov)

The United States had two more wrestlers in the finals both failed to repeat what Shapiro managed.

At 65kg, Jesse MENDEZ (USA) wrestled Mohammad Reza SHAKERI (IRI) and just could not match Shakeri's level, dropping the final 5-2.

Shakeri, who had finished ninth at last year's U20 World Championships, jumped levels to win the gold medal this year. He put Mendez in strong underhooks and opened the scoring via a steptout before getting a point for the U.S. wrestler's inactivity.

In the second period, Shakeri was put on the shot clock and gave up a point but added a stepout to lead 3-1. He made it 4-1 with a minute left with another stepout. Mendez got on a single leg but only managed to push Shakeri out for a point. As Mendez's desperation grew, Shakeri kept his ground to win 5-2, earning himself a first world medal as he finished fifth at the 2021 U17 World Championships.

Yuto NISHIUCHI (JPN)Yuto NISHIUCHI (JPN) scores a takedown against Luke LILLEDAHL (USA) in the 57kg final. (Photo: UWW / Amirreza Aliasgari)

Last year's U17 world champion Luke LILLEDAHL (USA) was looking to add a U20 world title to his resume to he ran into Yuto NISHIUCHI (JPN) who won the U20 world title at 61kg in 2022.

Wrestling in the 57kg final this year, Nishiuchi created history by becoming the first wrestler from Japan to win two U20 world gold medals in Freestyle.

A wrestler who has won medals at the senior Ranking Series events, Nishiuchi used his experience to completely shut down Lilledahl who reached the final after a buzzer-beating fall over Ruslan ABDULLAYEV (AZE) in the semifinal.

But there were no comebacks from him in the final as Nishiuchi scored two takedowns and one stepout to win the gold medal 5-0.

"I wanted to go harder, widen the gap in points, and aim for a technical fall win," he said. "My opponents were physically strong and we couldn't attack as much as I wanted."

Nishiuchi was relieved with the gold medal as he had to recover from a knee injury suffered at the Meiji Cup in June in a short period of time.

"I was injured at the Meiji Cup and was worried if I will be able to recover in the short period before this World Championships. But I am in good condition now with taping," he said.

Dropping down from 61kg to 57kg brought its own challenges and the biggest one for Nishiuchi was the weight cut. That caused a few bumps on his way but the Japan wrestler managed to keep things under control.

"The most difficult match was the first one against Uzbekistan because I was cutting weight and I was not moving smoothly," he said."But my condition improved later."

Aware of the fact that he can create history, Nishiuchi felt the pressure of being a defending champion.

"I knew that no Japan wrestler has won two times at the U20 world championships," he said. "Last year I was the challenger but this year I was the champion so I was under pressure and also nervous.

"Even though I won last year, I didn't expect it to be easy because it's a world championship. However, I had been fighting for the Paris Olympics, so I could not afford to lose in the U20 category."

Abolfazl BABALOO (IRI)Abolfazl BABALOO (IRI) defeated Ivan PRYMACHENKO (UKR), 5-0, in the 97kg final. (Photo: UWW / Amirreza Aliasgari)

Iran won its second gold medal of the day when Abolfazl BABALOO (IRI) defeated Ivan PRYMACHENKO (UKR), 5-0, in the 97kg final.

In a remarkable turnaround, Babaloo went from finishing fifth at the U20 Asian Championships in Amman to becoming a U20 world champion in a month. He avenged his losses to Kamil KURGULIYEV (KAZ) and Deepak CHAHAL (IND).In the final, Babaloo got a point for Prymachenko's inactivity before adding two stepouts to lead 3-0 at the break. Any attempt from Prymachenko was easily defended by Babaloo who scored takedown to win 5-0.

Once the best wrestler in the world called him a 'machine', Ibragim KADIEV (AIN) had little choice but to accept the adjective. On Tuesday, he managed to live up to it.

Abdulrashid SADULAEV's one-word description of Kadiev was well on display as the 79kg wrestler clinched the gold medal after beating Sagar JAGLAN (IND) 17-6 in the final.

Kadiev, who trains at the Sadulaev Sports School, exploited Jaglan's open stance and attacked his legs to score the majority of his points. He began with a slide-by takedown but hit a double to score a stepout. Another takedown made it 5-0.

However, Jaglan, who is known to outpace his opponents, opened his scoring with a go-behind before adding a lace to cut the lead to 5-4. Kadiev was warned for an eye-poke and the caution gave Jaglan a 5-5 criteria lead at the break.

But Kadiev made a powerful start to the second period with a stepout and takedown, both using double-leg attacks. Jaglan continued to push the pace and Kadiev was cautioned for fleeing. As the bout restarted in par terre, Jagland tried to turn Kadiev who held Jaglan mid-turn and scored two more points to extend his lead 10-6.

Kadiev followed that up with a four-pointer which India challenge to only see it going against them as Kadiev now led 15-6. In the final scramble, Kadiev scored via exposure to win the gold after a draining bout.

df

RESULTS

57kg
GOLD: Yuto NISHIUCHI (JPN) df. Luke LILLEDAHL (USA), 5-0

BRONZE: Edik HARUTYUNYAN (ARM) df. Ruslan ABDULLAYEV (AZE), 8-4
BRONZE: Nodirbek JUMANAZAROV (UZB) df. SAGAR (IND), 10-0

65kg
GOLD: Mohammad Reza SHAKERI (IRI) df. Jesse MENDEZ (USA),

BRONZE: Dalgat ABDULKADYROV (AIN) df. Kaiji OGINO (JPN), 9-2
BRONZE: Abdullah TOPRAK (TUR) df. Aden SAKYBAEV (KGZ), 5-3

70kg
GOLD: Meyer SHAPIRO (USA) df. Ali REZAEI (IRI), 11-6

BRONZE: Ibrahim YAPRAK (TUR) df. Omurbek TAALAIBEK UULU (KGZ), 3-2
BRONZE: Magomed BAITUKAEV (AIN) df. Julian GEORGE (PUR), 12-2

79kg
GOLD: Ibragim KADIEV (AIN) df. Sagar JAGLAN (IND), 17-6

BRONZE: Matthew SINGLETON (USA) df. Ahmet YAGAN (TUR), 9-7
BRONZE: Ali TCOKAEV (AZE) df. Farzad SAFIJAHANSHAHI (IRI), 11-1

97kg
GOLD: Abolfazl BABALOO (IRI) df. Ivan PRYMACHENKO (UKR), 5-0

BRONZE: Deepak CHAHAL (IND) df. Uladzislau KAZLOU (AIN), 9-8
BRONZE: Camden McDANEL (USA) df. Kamil KURUGLIYEV (KAZ), 8-2

Semifinals

61kg
GOLD: Mohit KUMAR (IND) vs. Eldar AKHMADUDINOV (AIN)

SF 1: Mohit KUMAR (IND) df. Besir ALILI (MKD), via fall (8-6)
SF 2: Eldar AKHMADUDINOV (AIN) df. Ali KHORRAMDEL (IRI), 10-9

74kg
GOLD: Mitchell MESENBRINK (USA) vs. Hossein AGHAEI (IRI)

SF 1: Mitchell MESENBRINK (USA) df. Zhakshylyk BAITASHOV (KGZ), 10-0
SF 2: Hossein AGHAEI (IRI) df. Anton SUCHKOV (AIN), 9-0

86kg
GOLD: Fumiya IGARASHI (JPN) vs. Rakhim MAGAMADOV (FRA)

SF 1: Fumiya IGARASHI (JPN) df. Eugeniu MIHALCEAN (MDA), 10-0
SF 2: Rakhim MAGAMADOV (FRA) df. Bennett BERGE (USA), 9-2

92kg
GOLD: Mohammadmobin AZIMI (IRI) vs. Rizabek AITMUKHAN (KAZ)

SF 1: Mohammadmobin AZIMI (IRI) df. Knyaz IBOYAN (ARM), 10-0
SF 2: Rizabek AITMUKHAN (KAZ) df. Giorgi ROMELASHVILI (GEO), 11-1

125kg
GOLD: Said AKHMATOV (AIN) vs. Amirreza MASOUMI (IRI)

SF 1: Said AKHMATOV (AIN) df. Karanveer MAHIL (CAN), 6-3
SF 2: Amirreza MASOUMI (IRI) df. Volodymyr KOCHANOV (UKR), 11-0