wrestleOaxtepec

Competition Wraps Up at Cadet and Junior Pan American Championships in Mexico

By Taylor Miller

Photo of Arturo SILOT TORRES (CUB). Photo by Sachiko Hotaka. 

OAXTEPEC, Mexico – The last 12 weight classes were contested today as the Cadet and Junior Pan American Championships concluded on Sunday in Oaxtepec, Mexico.

In the Junior freestyle division, USA won five of the six titles with gold medals from Edward SCOTT (USA) at 70 kg, Jacob LOGAN (USA) at 79 kg, Darrien ROBERTS (USA) at 86 kg, Tyler HANNAH (USA) at 92 kg and Joshua HEINDELSMEN (USA) at 125 kg.

Winning the other title in Junior freestyle was Arturo SILOT TORRES (CUB), who defeated Santos CANTU (USA) in the finals with a 10-0 technical superiority.

The USA won the Junior men’s freestyle title with 230 points, followed by Mexico with 129 points and Canada with 123 points.

In Cadet Greco-Roman, the USA swept the gold medals, winning the final six titles of the tournament on Sunday. Winning titles were Brock BOBZIEN (USA) at 60 kg, Pierson MANVILLE (USA) at 65 kg, Thor MICHAELSON (USA) at 71 kg, Ryder ROGOTZKE (USA) at 80 kg, Peter CASALE (USA) at 92 kg and James MULLEN (USA) at 110 kg.

Their performance resulted in a Cadet Greco team title for USA with 250 points. Coming in second was Mexico with 152 points and Brazil rounded out the top-three with 87 points.

Photo of Darrien ROBERTS (USA). Photo by Osvaldo Aguilar. 

En español
OAXTEPEC, Mexico - Las últimas 12 categorías de peso se disputaron hoy en el último día de los Campeonatos Panamericanos Cadetes y Juveniles en Oaxtepec, México.

En la división de estilo libre juvenil, USA ganó cinco de los seis títulos con medallas de oro de Edward SCOTT (USA) en 70 kg, Jacob LOGAN (USA) en 79 kg, Darrien ROBERTS (USA) en 86 kg, Tyler HANNAH (USA) en 92 kg y Joshua HEINDELSMEN (USA) en 125 kg.

El otro campeón en estilo libre juvenil fue Arturo SILOT TORRES (CUB), que venció en la final al Santos CANTU (USA) con una superioridad técnica de 10-0.

USA aseguró el título del equipo con 230 puntos. México ganó plata con 129 puntos y Canadá ganó bronce con 123 puntos.

En grecorromano cadete, USA ganó todas las medallas de oro, asegurando los seis títulos finales el domingo. Ganando oro fueron Brock BOBZIEN (USA) en 60 kg, Pierson MANVILLE (USA) en 65 kg, Thor MICHAELSON (USA) en 71 kg, Ryder ROGOTZKE (USA) en 80 kg, Peter CASALE (USA) en 92 kg and James MULLEN (USA) en 110 kg.

USA ganó el título del equipo con 250 puntos. México fue segundo con 152 puntos y Brasil termino en tercer lugar con 87 puntos.

JUNIOR MEN’S FREESTYLE RESULTS
70 kg
GOLD - Edward SCOTT (USA)
SILVER - Lautaro SEGHESSO (ARG)
BRONZE - Amaan GULACHA (CAN)

79 kg
GOLD - Jacob LOGAN (USA)
SILVER - Carson LEE (CAN)
BRONZE - Kevin DE LEON TREVINO (MEX)

86 kg
GOLD - Darrien ROBERTS (USA)
SILVER - Liosbel HERNANDEZ BUSTAMANTE (CUB)
BRONZE - Juan ITURRIZA RUIZ (MEX)
BRONZE - Lucas IMBERNON DA SILVA (BRA)

92 kg
GOLD - Tyler HANNAH (USA)
SILVER - Karanpreet GILL (CAN)
BRONZE - Adrian ZAPATA JACOBO (MEX)

97 kg
GOLD - Arturo SILOT TORRES (CUB)
SILVER - Santos CANTU (USA)
BRONZE - Josue CAMPOS ARIZPE (MEX)

125 kg
GOLD - Joshua HEINDELSMAN (USA)
SILVER - Gabriel de SOUSA SILVA (BRA)
BRONZE - Luis OROZCO CORTEZ (MEX)
BRONZE - Yoan ROBERT RAMIREZ (CUB)

CADET GRECO-ROMAN RESULTS
60 kg
GOLD - Brock BOBZIEN (USA)
SILVER - Edwin ALLAIN MIRANDA (PER)
BRONZE - Joao DA SILVA NETO (BRA)

65 kg
GOLD - Pierson MANVILLE (USA)
SILVER - Marco FERNANDEZ CUBAS (PER)
BRONZE - Oliver PLASCENCIA ESTRADA (MEX)

71 kg
GOLD - Thor MICHAELSON (USA)
SILVER - Isaac TENORIO MOSQUERA (ECU)
BRONZE - Hector LOERA ROJAS (MEX)

80 kg
GOLD - Ryder ROGOTZKE (USA)
SILVER - Enrique OLVERA RODRIGUEZ (MEX)

92 kg
GOLD - Peter CASALE (USA)
SILVER - Mateus FREIRE SANTOS (BRA)
BRONZE - Ivan CORONADO GARCIA (MEX)

110 kg
GOLD - James MULLEN (USA)
SILVER - Alan PEREZ URIBE (MEX)

#WrestleZagreb

Tazhudinov in search for answers despite bronze medal

By Vinay Siwach

ZAGREB, Croatia (September 16) -- A World Championships medal might be a career milestone for most wrestlers, but for Akhmed TAZHUDINOV (BRN), the bronze he won in Zagreb is a prize he hopes to forget.

Coming into the tournament in Zagreb, Tazhudinov was considered as the best wrestler in the world and the favorite to win the gold medal at the 97kg. He had built a reputation of a wrestler who bulldozes anyone who stands in his path, as he did to win the gold medal at the 2024 Paris Olympics.

But Tazhudinov was anything but an Olympic and world champion in Zagreb.

He almost dropped his quarterfinal match with Mogomed KURBANOV (UWW), needing a front headlock roll to survive. The thrill of victory was short lived, as Amirali AZARPIRA (IRI) showed that Tazhudinov is indeed human, winning their semifinal 5-2 to end Tazhudinov's golden run.

"My initial goal was the gold medal," Tazhudinov said. "I wanted to become a two-time world champion. Unfortunately, it didn't happen -- maybe it was meant to be this way. It's very painful to lose."

As he searched for answers for his performance, Tazhudinov said that recent shoulder surgery may have affected his wrestling at the World Championships.

"I was coming back after surgery, after a serious injury," Tazhudinov said. "Maybe that had an effect, I don't even know. It took me a very long time to get myself together. At the beginning, training sessions were very difficult."

Tazhudinov returned from surgery to win two gold medals in a one-month span -- first at the Spain Grand Prix and then at the Budapest Ranking Series in June.

After the semifinal loss to Azarpira, Tazhudinov returned the next night for the bronze-medal bout with 34-year-old Akhmed MAGAMAEV (BUL), which only further put Tazhudinov under the scanner despite winning the match.

Magamaev was on the activity clock when he bodylocked Tazhudinov and slammed him for four points just before the 30 seconds elapsed. Tazhudinov rebounded with a takedown to make it 4-2 at the break.

He began the second period with another takedown to make it 4-4, but Magamaev continued the scramble and both wrestlers were awarded two exposure points each, putting the Bulgarian ahead 6-6 on criteria.

A counter lift to exposure gave Tazhudinov the lead for the first time, 8-6, and as Magamaev tried doing the counter lift, he gave up two as Tazhudinov blocked him. The final scramble, which gave Tazhudinov an 11-10 win, was challenged by Bulgaria. Eventually, it was scored 13-10.

Despite winning the bout, Tazhudinov shook his head as he left the mat, perhaps surprised himself by his lackluster performance.

"Honestly, I don't even know what went wrong," he said. "It means I wasn't well enough prepared. It means I wasn't in my best shape. It means I need to work even more."

Tazhudinov said he had difficulty preparing mentally for the bronze-medal bout after the loss to Azarpira.

"After the semifinal loss, I couldn't motivate myself at all for the bronze-medal match," he said. "I don't even know how I stepped onto the mat. I wasn't mentally ready to wrestle at all, and that's why the match was so difficult.

"But I will not give up -- I'll go home, work on my mistakes, and train even harder to come back stronger."