#BudaWrestle2018

Wrestling Elects New Bureau Members, Announces Host Cities Through 2021

By Tim Foley

BUDAPEST (October 19) – The United World Wresting Bureau and Congress held meetings and elections this week ahead of the 2018 Wrestling World Championships in Budapest, covering a range of important topics, including the allocation of host cities through 2021.

The Congress, who met Friday, began with a minute of silence in remembrance for the victims of last month’s Maiwand Wrestling Club in Kabul. Lalovic also announced the organization would dedicate significant resources to the club’s rebuilding effort.

“We must never accept these cowardly acts,” said Lalovic “We must stand together in support of our family members.”

The Congress gathers bi-annually to discuss a range of topics. The 2018 Congress focused on a complete financial review, new initiatives in women’s wrestling, media outreach, and the promotion of associated styles. Congressional representatives also voted for new bureau members, with a total of seven positions available. Six seats were up for election based on it being the end of their six-year term. The seventh had been vacated earlier in the year with the departure of Rasoul KHADEM (IRI).

Zamel Sayyaf Al SHAHRANI (QAT), Daulet TURLAKANOV (KAZ), and vice presidents Stan DZIEDIC (USA) and Natalia YARYGIN (RUS) were each re-elected and to serve six-year terms. Newly elected bureau members Pedro SILVA (POR) and Peter BACSA (HUN) will also serve until 2024.

Ms. ZHANG Xia of China was elected to replace Khadem and will serve until 2022.

Mr. Lalovic, As part of an ongoing dialogue supported by the Olympic movement, also oversaw a friendly handshake between representatives for the Republic of Korea and Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, with the sides trading kind words and wishing each other good luck during the world championships.

The United World Wrestling bureau met Thursday and approved a series of guidelines aimed to improve the sportsmanship of coaches and athletes.

Coaches and athletes who receive two yellow cards in a match will now be given a red card and face immediate disqualification from the tournament. They are also encouraged to celebrate gold medal victories but are asked to refrain from bronze medal celebrations and elaborate religious gestures while on the field of play.

It was also announced that plans were being constructed so that in the future coaches would be required to attain a United World Wrestling license to coach athletes at events.

In an effort to stabilize the calendar and allow national federations and host cities the proper time to prepare for championships, the Bureau also announced the allocation of several continental and world championships for 2019-2021.

2019 World C’Ships

Senior: Astana, KAZ

U23: Budapest, HUN

Junior: Tallinn, EST

Cadet: Sofia, BUL

Veterans: Tblisi, Geo


2020 World Championships

U23: Tampere, FIN

Junior: Belgrade, SRB

Cadet: Tatabanya, HUN

Veteran: Athens, GRE


2021 World C’Ships

Senior: Oslo, NOR

Cadet: Budapest, HUN


2019 European C’Ships

Senior: Bucharest, ROM

U23: Novi Sad, SRB

Junior: Pontevedra, ESP

Cadet: Faenza, ITA


2020 European C’Ships

U23: Salzburg, AUT

Junior: Skopje, MKD

Cadet: Chisinau, MDA


2021 African C’Ships

All: Marrakech, MAR


2019 Pan-American C’Ships

Senior: Buenos Aires, ARG

Junior: Guatemala City, GUA

Cadet: Morelia, MEX


2020 African C’Ships

All: Alger, ALG


2021 Asian C’Ships

Senior: Almaty, KAZ


2019 Asian C'Ships

Senior: Xi’an, CHN

Junior: Beirut, LBN

Cadet: Taichung, TPE
 

2020 Africa/Oceania Olympic

All: El Jadida, MAR
 

2019 African C’Ships

All: Tunis, TUN

 

 



 

 

#WrestleBaku

Ringaci rules Baku; Ukraine best WW team at U23 Euros

By United World Wrestling Press

BAKU, Azerbaijan (May 24) -- For around 15 seconds in the first period, Ekaterina KOSHKINA (AIN) must have thought she had the 65kg gold medal bout in her control.

Koshkina had Irina RINGACI (MDA) exactly where she would have wanted: in the center, on the defensive and gripping her right leg firmly. The 22-year-old had done all these things right. But she couldn’t execute the most crucial thing, the takedown.

Instead, in that moment of desperation, Ringaci showed why at the young age of 22 she has already seen her reputation grow leaps and bounds. First, she mustered all her strength to ensure Koshkina couldn’t affect a takedown and then, combining that with her flexibility she staged a perfect escape to break free from her opponent’s grasp.

Irina RINGACI (MDA)Irina RINGACI (MDA) won the 65kg gold medal at the U23 European Championships. (Photo: United World Wrestling / Kadir Caliskan)

In one motion, Ringaci freed her leg, got in a controlling position herself and flipped Koshkina on her back to score two points, adding to her 2-1 lead. That play, only two minutes into the final, set the tone for the rest of the bout as Ringaci won 11-3 to win her third U23 European Championship gold medal.

Conceding only five points and scoring 29, it was also quite a way for her to announce her readiness for the Paris Olympics. Only 22, Ringaci has won every possible title. In 2021, she won the senior World Championship gold (in 65kg) as a teenager and followed it up with two bronze medals in 68kg. She has two senior European Championship titles, a World Cup medal and U20 World Championship gold, apart from the third U23 continental crown.

Will the Olympic podium be the young wrestler’s next destination? We’ll know in August.

UkraineUkraine won the team title with 160 points. (Photo: United World Wrestling / Jake Kirkman)

Bondar leads Ukraine to team title

With three gold medals, Ukraine celebrated winning the women’s wrestling team title with 168 points. On Thursday, Mariia ORLEVYCH (UKR) defeated Laura KUEHN (GER) 6-0 on Thursday to win the 76kg title. And in the first gold medal bout on Friday, Liliia MALANCHUK (UKR) defeated Elnura MAMMADOVA (AZE) to be crowned the champion in 53kg category.

Malanchuk found the going difficult and was trailing until a minute-and-a-half remaining in the match. That’s when she attempted a suplex but Mammadova didn’t land in danger. Malanchuk was rewarded with two points for that takedown and she got a couple more for the rollover.

From trailing by two points, she now had a lead of four after Mammadova lost a challenge and Malanchuk then built on the advantage, finishing strongly with three two-point takedowns to win the bout 13-2.

Later in the day, Iryna BONDAR’S (UKR) fearless wrestling in the 62kg gold medal match ensured the country would finish on top.

Yana TRETSIAK (AIN) tried to keep the scorelines tight in the hope of launching a late attack but in her attempt to stop Bondar from scoring, she conceded passivity points in the opening round. The match-defining moment, however, came at the halfway stage of the second period.

Bondar was rewarded for her patience as she found the tiniest of openings to launch a speedy single-leg attack. It got her into a dominant position to execute a four-point takedown. Bondar didn’t let of off Trtsiak’s grips and rolled her on the mat twice to win the bout by technical superiority (11-0).

Apart from the three gold medals, Ukraine also won three silver with Mariia VYNNYK (55kg), Manola SKOBELSKA (68kg) and Nadiia SOKOLOVSKA (72kg) coming second best in their respective finals.

Turkiye finished second in the team standings with 118 points, followed by hosts Azerbaijan who ended with 76 points. Zhala ALIYEVA (AZE) won the gold at 57kg category, much to the happiness of the home fans.

Kanan HEYBATOV (AZE)Kanan HEYBATOV (AZE) was one of the two finalists for Azerbaijan as he reached the 70kg gold medal bout. (Photo: United World Wrestling / Jake Kirkman)

Azerbaijan eye freestyle gold medals

The host nation will hope to add more gold medals to its account two of its freestyle wrestlers qualified for the finals.

In the 70kg category, Kanan HEYBATOV (AZE) orchestrated a comprehensive drubbing of Mikita DZEMCHANKA (AIN) in the semifinals, winning 11-0 to put himself in contention for his maiden U23 title. Heybatov was in control for most parts of his bouts on Friday, but his resolve will be tested in the final where he will face Inalbek SHERIEV (AIN).

Sheriev is the reigning U23 World Champion and conceded only two points en route to the final while scoring 33 across the three bouts.

The other home favourite who will fight for the title is Ali TCOKAEV (AZE) in 79kg. The 21-year-old did not allow his opponents to score a single point as he spent a little more than 10 minutes on the mat to reach his maiden U23 European Championship final.

However, to win his first-ever gold medal in this competition, Tcokaev will have to get the better of defending champion Georgios KOUGIOUMTSIDIS (GRE), also a senior European Championship silver medallist.

 

df

RESULTS

53kg
GOLD: Liliia MALANCHUK (UKR) df. Elnura MAMMADOVA (AZE), 13-2

BRONZE: Venera NAFIKOVA (AIN) df. Sevval CAYIR (TUR), via fall (5-1)
BRONZE: Viktoryia VOLK (AIN) df. Laura STANELYTE (LTU), 12-1

57kg
GOLD: Zhala ALIYEVA (AZE) df. Elvira KAMALOGLU (TUR), 5-3

BRONZE: Solomiia VYNNYK (UKR) df. Nesrin SYULEYMANOVA (BUL), 11-0
BRONZE: Volha HARDZEI (AIN) df. Jana PETROVIC (SRB), 5-0

62kg
GOLD: Iryna BONDAR (UKR) df. Yana TRETSIAK (AIN), 11-0

BRONZE: Viktoria VESSO (EST) df. Ineta DANTAITE (LTU), 13-0
BRONZE: Alina KASABIEVA (AIN) df. Iris THIEBAUX (FRA), via fall

65kg
GOLD: Irina RINGACI (MDA) df. Ekaterina KOSHKINA (AIN), 11-3

BRONZE: Kateryna ZELENYKH (ROU) df. Ingrid SKARD (NOR), 10-0
BRONZE: Nesrin BAS (TUR) df. Laura GODINO (ITA), via fall (9-0)

72kg
GOLD: Alina SHAUCHUK (AIN) df. Nadiia SOKOLOVSKA (UKR),

BRONZE: Bukrenaz SERT (TUR) df. Marziya SADIGOVA (AZE), 13-0
BRONZE: Olesia BEZUGLOVA (AIN) df. Gia KASTELAN (CRO), 

Freestyle Semifinals

57kg
GOLD: Muhammet KARAVUS (TUR) vs. Artem GOBAEV (AIN)

SF 1: Artem GOBAEV (AIN) df. Luka GVINJILIA (GEO), 12-1
SF 2: Muhammet KARAVUS (TUR) df. Vladyslav ABRAMOV (UKR), via fall (10-0)

65kg
GOLD: Khamzat ARSAMERZOUEV (FRA) vs. Ibragim IBRAGIMOV (AIN)

SF 1: Khamzat ARSAMERZOUEV (FRA) df. Abdullah TOPRAK (TUR), 9-6
SF 2: Ibragim IBRAGIMOV (AIN) df. Serghei CILCIC (MDA), 11-0

70kg
GOLD: Kanan HEYBATOV (AZE) vs. Inalbek SHERIEV (AIN)

SF 1: Kanan HEYBATOV (AZE) df. Mikita DZEMCHANKA (AIN), 11-0
SF 2: Inalbek SHERIEV (AIN) df. Bohdan OLIINYK (UKR), 11-0

79kg
GOLD: Georgios KOUGIOUMTSIDIS (GRE) vs. Ali TCOKAEV (AZE)

SF 1: Ali TCOKAEV (AZE) df. Marius RETCO (MDA), 10-0
SF 2: Georgios KOUGIOUMTSIDIS (GRE) df. Arsen BALAIAN (AIN), 3-1

97kg
GOLD: Radu LEFTER (MDA) vs. Soslan DZHAGAEV (AIN)

SF 1: Soslan DZHAGAEV (AIN) df. Rifat GIDAK (TUR), 3-1
SF 2: Radu LEFTER (MDA) df. Merab SULEIMANISHVILI (GEO), 14-4