#WrestleXian

Younger Geraei Earns Shot at Asian Greco Gold; Iran, Uzbekistan Put 2 Each in Finals

Sunday, April 28, 2019 - 09:01 By Ken Marantz

Share this article

XI’AN, China (April 28)— Mohammadreza GERAEI (IRI) has already exceeded his older brother at the Asian Championships, while Uzur DZHUZUPBEKOV (KGZ) prevented the possibility of a Iranian sweep of the four heaviest weights in Greco-Roman. 

Geraei was one of two Iranians to advance to the finals in the five remaining weight classes on the final day of the six-day tournament in Xi’an, setting up a clash for the 72kg gold with local favorite ZHANG Hujun (CHN).

Rio 2016 Olympic bronze medalist Saeid ABDVALI (IRI) gained a place in the 82kg final against Singh HARPEET (IND), but world bronze medalist Mahdi ALIYARIFEIZABADI (IRI) was denied a shot at the 97kg gold after suffering a nail-biting 7-5 loss to Dzhuzupbekov in the semifinals.

Uzbekistan also placed two wrestlers in the finals in the night session at Xidian University’s Invengo Gymnasium, with 2018 bronze medalist Islomjon BAKHRAMOV (UZB) advancing at 60kg and Jahongir TURDIEV (UZB) taking on Dzhuzupbekov at 97kg.

Mohammadreza GERAEI (IRI) will wrestle China's ZHANG Hujun in the 72kg finals. (Photo: Gabor Martin)

Geraei, third at last summer’s Asian Games in Jakarta, overcame a high hurdle in the semifinals by beating 2017 world silver medalist Demeu ZHADRAYEV (KAZ), 9-3, capping the victory with a highlight-reel four-point throw.

Geraei had watched as older brother Mohammadali GERAEI (IRI) had to settle for the 77kg bronze the day before, when Iran picked up golds at 87kg and 130kg. 

 “There was no effect on my wrestling,” Geraei said of his brother’s defeat. “But I was little sad about my brother. My brother could have been first.”

Uzur DZHUZUPBEKOV (KGZ) will wrestle Jahongir TURDIEV (UZB) in a rematch of the Asian Games bronze-medal match. (Photo: Sachiko Hotaka)

ZHANG Hujun (CHN) seemed to be heading to the 97kg final when Dzhuzupbekov reversed him to his back during a roll attempt with 30 seconds left for the winning points. That avenged a loss to the Iranian at a tournament in Istanbul last year.

“Everyone was screaming and it was motivating me,” said Dzhuzupbekov, a bronze medalist on home soil last year in Bishkek as well as at the Asian Games. “At the end, I was just thinking to keep attacking him.”

The final against Turdiev, who turns 37 this week, will be a rematch of the bronze-medal match in Jakarta won by Dzhuzupbekov.

RI Se Ung (PRK) knocked off world champion Kenichiro FUMITA (JPN) and world bronze medalist Sailike WALIHAN (CHN) on his road to the 60kg finals. (Photo: Sachiko Hotaka)

The depth of quality in Asia in the 60kg division came out as neither 2017 world champion Kenichiro FUMITA (JPN) nor 2018 world bronze medalist Sailike WALIHAN (CHN) made it to the final.

Both wrestlers were knocked off by crafty RI Se Ung (PRK), and will meet for a bronze medal. Ri will take on Bakhramov for the gold.

Ri, the silver medalist at Bishkek 2018, defeated Fumita, 5-3, in the quarterfnals. From the par terre position, Ri reeled off a pair of rolls before giving up a reversal to lead 5-1. In the second period, Fumita put the pressure on, but could only gain a two-point penalty for fleeing. 

“[The difference] was that I didn’t attack, that was big,” said Fumita, who returned from a knee injury to defeat 2018 Asian champion Shinobu OTA (JPN) at the national championships in December, a month after winning the world U23 title. 

Ri’s victory over Walihan in the semifinals followed a similar pattern, as he scored five points in the first period and went on to win 5-2.

Mirambek AINAGULOV (KAZ), the runner-up to Fumita at the Paris 2017 world championships and an Asian bronze medalist last year, failed to make it out of the first round, falling to LEE Jungbaik (KOR), who was subsequently ousted by Walihan.

RYU Hansu (KOR) will look to win his third Asian title when he competes against Meiirzhan SHERMAKHANBET (KAZ) in the 67kg finals. (Photo: Sachiko Hotaka)

At 67kg, Asian Games champion RYU Hansu (KOR) will look to add to his long list of laurels, which includes two previous Asian titles, when he takes on world bronze medalist Meiirzhan SHERMAKHANBET (KAZ) in the final.

Ryu, a 2017 world champion, knocked off 2018 bronze medalist Mirzobek RAKHMATOV (UZB), 7-2, in the semifinals, while Shermakhanbet trailed 2-0 going into the second period against gritty Abdulkarim ALHASAN (SYR) before blitzing his way to a 10-2 technical fall victory.

Day 6 results

Greco-Roman

60kg (12 entries)
Gold – Islomjon BAKHRAMOV (UZB) v RI Se Ung (PRK)
Bronze – HUANG Jui Chi (TPE) vs Gyanender GYANENDER (IND)
Bronze – Kenichiro FUMITA (JPN) v Sailike WALIHAN (CHN)

Semifinals
RI Se Ung (PRK) df. Sailike WALIHAN (CHN), 5-2
Islomjon BAKHRAMOV (UZB) df. Gyanender GYANENDER (IND) by TF, 9-0, 1:24

67kg (14 entries)
Gold – Meiirzhan SHERMAKHANBET (KAZ) v RYU Hansu (KOR)
Bronze – ZHANG Gaoquan (CHN) v Abdulkarim AL HASAN (SYR)
Bronze – Shogo TAKAHASHI (JPN) v Mirzobek RAKHMATOV (UZB)

Semifinals
Meiirzhan SHERMAKHANBET (KAZ) df. Abdulkarim AL HASAN (SYR) by TF, 10-2, 4:06
RYU Hansu (KOR) df. Mirzobek RAKHMATOV (UZB), 7-2

72kg (9 entries)
Gold – ZHANG Hujun (CHN) v Mohammadreza GERAEI (IRI)
Bronze – Yogesh YOGESH (IND) v Ruslan TSAREV (KGZ)
Bronze – Aram VARDANYAN (UZB) v Demeu ZHADRAYEV (KAZ)

Semifinals
Mohammadreza GERAEI (IRI) df. Demeu ZHADRAYEV (KAZ), 9-3
ZHANG Hujun (CHN) df. Ruslan TSAREV (KGZ), 5-5

82kg (9 entries)
Gold – Saeid ABDVALI (IRI) v Singh HARPEET (IND)
Bronze – Maxat YEREZHEPOV (KAZ) v Jalgasbay BERDIMURATOV (UZB)
Bronze – Burgo BEISHALIEV (KGZ) v QIAN Haitao (CHN)

Semifinals
Saeid ABDVALI (IRI) df. Jalgasbay BERDIMURATOV (UZB) by TF, 10-0, 4:27
Singh HARPEET (IND) df. QIAN Haitao (CHN) by TF, 10-1, 3:42

97kg (9 entries)
Gold – Jahongir TURDIEV (UZB) v Uzur DZHUZUPBEKOV (KGZ)
Bronze – LEE Seyeol (KOR) v XIAO Di (CHN)
Bronze – Alimkhan SYZDYKOV (KAZ) v Mahdi ALIYARIFEIZABADI (IRI)

Semifinals
Uzur DZHUZUPBEKOV (KGZ) df. Mahdi ALIYARIFEIZABADI (IRI), 7-5
Jahongir TURDIEV (UZB) df. XIAO Di (CHN), 4-1

#JapanWrestling

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

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

Share this article

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.