#WrestleZagreb

Zagreb Open: Amouzad vs Tevanyan for 65kg gold; Nolf, Aman in finals

By United World Wrestling Press

ZAGREB, Croatia (January 10) -- The season begins with the Zagreb Open Grand Prix in the Croatian capital. Freestyle will kick off action in seven weight classes. The Ranking Series provides points that will be used to seed the wrestlers for the Paris Olympics.

Watch all the action from the #WrestleZagreb Ranking Series event, FREE on UWW+ using CODE: ZAGREB100

WATCH LIVE | LIVE MATCH ORDER

The gold medal bouts for the evening session

57kg: AMAN (UWW) vs. Wanhao ZOU (CHN)
61kg: Bekhbayar ERDENEBAT (MGL) vs. Andrii DZHELEP (UKR)
65kg: Rahman AMOUZAD (IRI) vs. Vazgen TEVANYAN (ARM)
70kg: Akaki KEMERTELIDZE (GEO) vs. Giorgi ELBAKIDZE (GEO)
74kg: Jason NOLF (USA) vs. Hossein ABOUZARIPASHKOLAEI (IRI)
86kg: Azamat DAULETBEKOV (KAZ) vs. Magomed RAMAZANOV (BUL)

14:40: Vazgen TEVANYAN (ARM) is not letting Sebastian RIVERA (PUR) do his things. Rivera had beaten Tevanyan in the World Championships semifinals but the Armenian avenges that loss with a 9-1 win in Zagreb. Tevanyan will take on Rahman AMOUZAD (IRI) in the 65kg final.

14:32: Jason NOLF (USA) with a 35-second pin over Georgios KOUGIOUMTSIDIS (GRE)! A strong headlock to put the Greek wrestler on the mat and Nolf kept him there to win and move into the final at 74kg.

14:18: We have our 57kg finalists. AMAN (UWW) won 11-0 against Roberti DINGASHVILI (GEO) while Wanhao ZOU (CHN) scored a takedown with 16 seconds left to beat Horst LEHR (GER) 4-3.

14:03: World bronze medalist Vazgen TEVANYAN (ARM) moves into the semifinals at 65kg after a 5-2 win over Jo MCKENNA (USA). He used a takedown and gut wrench in the first period to keep his lead.

13:55: A big result in the Iran national team context as Yones EMAMI (IRI), the first choice wrestler, drops his match against Hossein ABOUZARIPASHKOLAEI (IRI) 4-4 at 74kg. Emami disappointed with that result.

13:50: Georgios KOUGIOUMTSIDIS (GRE) is too much for Zelimkhan KHADJIEV (FRA) as the Greek wins 8-0. Khadjiev had some moves but wasn't strong enough to score on Kougioumtsidis who is now into the 74kg semifinals.

13:45: Dzhbrail GADZHIEV (AZE) hangs on for a 5-4 win over Quincy MONDAY (USA). The two were 4-4 with Gadzhiev leading on criteria but he scored a late stepout to claim a 5-4 win.

13:40: Chace MARSTELLER (USA) makes a huge comeback against Vladimeri GAMKRELIDZE (GEO) to win at 86kg. The Georgian raced to a 5-0 lead but Marsteller's conditioning helped him make it 8-5 for the win.

13:30: Aman works his way to an 11-0 technical superiority win over Richards at 57kg. Aman continued to attack throughout the six minutes and never let Richards make a comeback.

13:20: First of the big quarterfinals on Mat C. AMAN (UWW) takes on Zane RICHARDS (USA) at 57kg. This match will be followed by Chandler MARSTELLER (USA) vs Vladimeri GAMKRELIDZE (GEO) at 86kg, Zelimkhan KHADJIEV (FRA) vs Georgios KOUGIOUMTSIDIS (GRE) at 74kg and Vazgen TEVANYAN (ARM) vs Joseph MC KENNA (USA) at 65kg.

13:00: Another comeback man Bekhbayar ERDENEBAT (MGL) is at 57kg. He last wrestled at the Tokyo Olympics. Now he is in the quarterfinals with a 9-4 win over Joseph SILVA (PUR).

12:55: Georgios KOUGIOUMTSIDIS (GRE) rolls into the 74kg quarterfinals after a 9-1 win over Giorgi GOGRITCHIANI (GEO). He seems to have adjusted well to the lower weight class.

12:35: Vazgen TEVANYAN (ARM) was slow to get off the mark but raced to a 12-1 victory over Khamzat ARSAMERZOUEV (FRA) at 65kg. On Mat C, Joseph MC KENNA (USA) gets a lace to beat Ziraddin BAYRAMOV (AZE) 10-0

12:15: Rahman AMOUZAD (IRI) gets a 10-0 victory at 65kg. While he looks in control of his wrestling, his conditioning still looks off. He takes his time to walk off the mat after the bout.

12:00: Yones EMAMI (IRI) with a technical superiority win over Nuerlanbieke WURENIBAI (CHN) at 74kg. Emami missed out on a medal and Olympic qualification at the World Championships.

11:35: Osman NURMAGOMEDOV (AZE) and Chance MARSTELLER (USA) are squaring it off at 86kg. Marsteller put on the clock for passivity and Nurmagomedov goes 1-0 up at the break. Marsteller with a takedown in the second period and Nurmagomedov is called for passivity. Marsteller takes a 3-0 lead which Nurmagomedov fails to cover. Marsteller moves on 3-0 at 86kg.

11:15: Zelimkhan KHADJIEV (FRA), making a comeback after testing positive for a banned substance in 2019, begins with a pin over Ivan STOYANOV (BUL) at 74kg. It will be interesting to see how far he can go in this tournament.

11:00: Rahman AMOUZAD (IRI), who finished fifth at the World Championships, seems to have found his form back, at least by the looks of the first bout. He beats Abdullah TOPRAK (TUR), who is out after three cautions against him.

10:42: Chance MARSTELLER (USA), moving up to 86kg, gets two takedowns on either side of the break to win 4-0 over Ceballos PEDRO (VEN).

10:30: World silver medalist at 79kg Vladimeri GAMKRELIDZE (GEO) makes a winning debut at 86kg. He beats U20 world champion Rakhim MAGAMADOV (FRA) 6-3 in Zagreb. On Mat C, Zahid VALENCIA (USA) doesn't have the same start as he falls to Valentyn BABII (UKR).

10:15: Deepak PUNIA (UWW) was up 2-0 after two activity points but world bronze medalist Azamat DAULETBEKOV (KAZ) got a takedown and gut wrench to make it 4-2 with under a minute left. He added another takedown to win the 86kg opening bout 6-2.

10:00: Welcome to the Zagreb Open! The first tournament of the season and we have around 600 wrestlers competition.

2026 U17 World Championships

U17 World Championships 2026 Day 6 Freestyle Highlights

By Vinay Siwach

BAKU, Azerbaijan (August 1) -- The day six of the U17 World Championships will be all Freestyle with action in 45kg, 51kg, 60kg, 81kg and 92kg weight classes. The matches will go on till semifinals before the medal bouts of Friday's weight classes.

WATCH LIVE | LIVE MATCH ORDER | DAY 5 RESULTS

 

15:15: Rylen WAX (USA) takes another step towards winning gold after he beats Aryn ZHANAT (KAZ), 8-6, 45kg. Zhanat hit a four-pointer to lead 5-4 at the start of the second period but Wax with a takedown to make it 6-5. Zhanat threatened to score the match winning takedown but Wax whizzed him for a two before a reversal but was safe to win the bout and reach the semifinal.

15:08: Ibrahim HASANOV (AZE) gets one back for Azerbaijan as he beats GOVIND (IND), 10-3 at 51kg. He scored an early takedown and turned Govind twice to lead 6-1. Govind played catch up for the remaining time as Hasanov would sit after grabbing the leg and defend his lead.

15:05: Mahdi DAMERCHELI (IRI) scored two takedowns to Marko KVASNIUK (UKR) one and wins the battle 5-2 and enters the semifinals at 45kg.

15:00: Marshall EVERETT (GBR) is into the 92kg semifinals after an 11-0 blanking of Amirbek FAZLITDINOV (UZB). Everett with a strong performance and he will now wrestle for a medal for Great Britian

14:55: Salah TSARNI (USA) puts on a masterclass to beat Shu YOSHIDA (JPN) at 92kg. Tsarni scores easy takedowns before hitting a big four-pointer. He then trips Yoshida for another four for a 12-0 win.

14:51: SITENDER (IND) returns to the semifinals at the World Championships after he beats Shai SABAG (ISR) at 60kg. He uses the trap arm gut to finish a 10-0 win.

14:50: Aryn ZHANAT (KAZ) rolls to a 10-0 win over Siarhei LAUZHEL (BLR) in a minute and 15 seconds to enter the quarterfinals at 45kg.

14:40: A challenge saves Reza SHAMSIPOUR (IRI) at 71kg! After leading 5-0, Shamsipour gave up four points in the last 30 seconds and then Adilet RYSBAY (KAZ) scored the match winning points to claim 6-5 victory. But Iran challenges and wins it as Rysbay had committed a foul. An ecstatic Shamsipour could not controlled his happiness

14:20: Bonkers match on Mat A between Davit MDZEVASHVILI (GEO) and Taha GANJEH (IRI). Mdzeashvili took a 6-0 lead which Ganjeh erased and scored 10 points. However Mdzevashvili scored a four-pointer and took a 10-10 criteria lead with 30 seconds left. Ganjeh did not give up and used a lift to get two points and Mdzeashvili scored a reversal. Ganjeh led 12-11 when time expired but Georgia challenged. On review, it was clear that Mdzeashvili got a two-point exposure and not a reversal for one point, making him a 12-12 winner at 60kg

14:03: SITENDER (IND), the defending champion at 60kg, beats Mardan ORYNBASSAR (KAZ), 13-3 and advances to the quarterfinals. Sitender with two four point throws in the match

13:55: Rylen WAX (USA), who won the gold medal at 45kg in Greco-Roman, begins his Freestyle campaign with a 14-3 win over Hanumant JADHAV (USA). Wax with some big throws using the headpinch as Jadhav struggled to even stand his ground

13:50: Mahdi DAMERCHELI (IRI) has no trouble seeing off Aldar BADMAEV (RUS) at 45kg. The U17 Asian champion had Badmaev in all sorts of trouble, majorly circling around and scoring takedowns. A 9-2 win for the Iranian.

13:30: Marshall EVERETT (GBR) with some solid counters against Yasin ERTURK (TUR) as he moves on at 92kg after a 6-2 win

13:20: Reza SHAMSIPOUR (IRI) on a roll here! Typical Iranian wrestling of pressuring his opponent and Camryn HOWARD (USA) has no answers. Shamsipour wins 8-1 and advances at 71kg

12:56: Abdurazak SHABANOV (RUS) stops after his third turn against Anatoli TAMAROVICH (BLR) thinking he has done enough to beat the Belarus wrestler at 92kg. But he was only up 8-0 so he scores one more takedown soon after to complete a 10-0 victory

12:52: U17 European silver medalist Ali DADAEV (FRA) takes his time but beats Johnson TSAKIRAKIS (AUS) at 92kg, 12-2.

12:50: Shota FUJIWARA (JPN) and Joseph BURKE (USA) with some great wrestling at 60kg. Fujiwara was up 3-2 at the break but Burke with a Burroughs-like double-leg attack and turn to lead 6-3. However, Fujiwara counters and lifts Burke and dumps him for four points to lead 7-6. He scores a takedown and a stepout to win the bout 10-6

12:30: SAKSHAM (IND) continues the winning run of India wrestlers over Azerbaijan wrestler as he beats Elgun KARIMLI (AZE) at 92kg, 5-5 on criteria. Karimli led 4-4 on criteria before scoring a stepout in the second period to make it 5-4. Saksham found no way to score but got a stepout with 3 seconds left to win the bout.

12:15: Exceptional wrestling from U17 Asian silver medalist Masamune USHIMADO (JPN) who completes a 10-0 win over Yigit EGEMEN (TUR) at 51kg. A series of sweep singles are unanswered by Egemen and Ushimado manages to complete all five takedowns.

11:55: Said NABIEV (TJK) with a stunning 12-1 win over Evan RESTIVO (USA) at 51kg. Difficult result for the U.S. after none of its wrestlers made the finals on Friday

11:40: Defending champion at 60kg SITENDER (IND) begins with an 11-0 blanking of Sufjan SINANI (MKD). Sitender led 1-0 after Sinani was called passive and then he scored a takedown and four turns in the second period to complete the victory. 

11:25: Tunar GULIYEV (AZE) is not happy after a challenge decision is given against him. The Azerbaijan wrestler led 2-0 against Adilet RYSBAY (KAZ) but the Kazakhstan wrestler scored a takedown to lead 2-2 on criteria. Guliyev challenged asking for two points for himself but on review, there were no points and a cautioned point was docked from Guliyev for biting Rysbay. Dramatic emotions from Guliyev as he is unable to process the result

11:20: Koichiro NAGAI (JPN) with a smile on his face after he scores a late takedown to beat Joab CARRILLO (PUR), 6-4, and win his 71kg bout

11:10: Reza SHAMSIPOUR (IRI) begins with an 8-4 win over Jaloliddin DJALALOV (UZB) in the wide-open 71kg weight class. Down 2-0, Shamsipour switches with a head-outside single and scores a takedown and turn to lead 4-2. He begins the second period with a takedown as well before fumbling one attack and Djalalov makes it count. But Shamsipour, leading 6-4, is happy to defend. He got one more takedown at the end to finish the bout.

11:00: Orel BENOGUEV (ISR) had no business winning the 71kg bout against Mohamed HAFEZ (EGY) who dominant it throughout. But Benoguev used a headlock for throw and then pinned Hafez when trailing 11-5.

10:30: As usual, the repechage rounds will begin the day before moving to the qualification rounds of the five weight classes.