Wiebe Sticks Vorobeva in Battle of Olympic Champs

Friday, May 24, 2019 - 20:05 By Eric Olanowski

SASSARI, Italy (May 24) – In arguably the most anticipated women’s wrestling match in the Ranking Series' two-year history, Rio Olympic champion Erica WIEBE (CAN) only needed two minutes to pick up the fall over London Olympic champion Natalia VOROBEVA (RUS).

In the first period of the 76kg finals, Wiebe ducked a front headlock attempt from her Russian opponent and used an unorthodox inside leg hook to throw Vorobeva on her back for the fall. “The secret to my success is I’m pretty dangerous from every position,” Wiebe said when asked out the unconventional maneuver she used to pick up the fall. She went on to say, “Today was a test, and I’m happy with how I competed. I love being creative on the mats, and I love to get to wrestling positions. That’s my bread and butter, so I went for it.”

The Budapest world bronze medalist went on to say “I wanted to go out there and compete. I wanted to make (Vorobeva) uncomfortable. I knew if I got her on her back, I wanted to stick her.” That's exactly what she did to pick up her second career Ranking Series title and first since last year's Poland Open.

Tamyra MENSAH (USA) defeated world runner-up Danielle LAPPAGE (CAN), 4-0 and won her third Ranking Series title of the year. (Photo: Gabor Martin)

In another highly anticipated women’s wrestling matchup on Friday night, Tamyra MENSAH (USA), who hadn’t even been in Italy for 24 hours, capped off her impressive run to a third consecutive Ranking Series title with a 4-0 win over Budapest world runner-up Danielle LAPPAGE (CAN).

The American landed in Italy on Thursday at 22:30, didn’t get to bed until well after midnight, then had to get up before sunrise for her final weight cut before weights.

Mensah fought through all sorts of adversity to get to Sassari, including having to check her weight on a baggage scale at Chicago’s airport - but her coach continued to hammer home that she needed to embrace the adversity and remind herself why she fell in love with the sport.

The second-ranked wrestler in the world didn’t use the long travel as an excuse, nor did she look at her extremely tough draw as a downfall. Mensah drew into Rio Olympic silver medalist Maryia MAMASHUK (BLR) in her first match. She won that match, 10-0. In her second match, she picked up a 5-1 win over Meerim ZHUMANAZAROVA (KGZ) and followed that up with a 9-2 semifinals routing of two-time European champion Anastasia BRATCHIKOVA (RUS).

In the finals, Mensah scored a pair of first-period takedowns to defeat Danielle Lappage, who was up from her Budapest weight of 65kg.

Mensah’s Friday night win in Sardinia helped her lock up the No. 2 seed at the Nur-Sultan World Championships.

Grace BULLEN (NOR) shutout Budapest bronze medalist Pooja DHANDA (IND), 5-0 in the 57kg finals. (Photo: Gabor Martin)

Bullen Avenges Loss to Dhanda, Wins 57kg Title
Norway’s U23 world champion Grace Jacob BULLEN (NOR) avenged her World Championship loss to Budapest bronze medalist Pooja DHANDA (IND), scoring a 5-0 shutout win in the 57kg finals. Bullen won her first Ranking Series title after failing to win a gold at the previous two. ”It feels awesome. I’ve tried twice this year and got third and second.”

Bullen had no problem putting her five points on the board, picking up an inactivity point and a takedown before the end of the first period. In the second period, the Norwegian wrestler planted Dhanda on her back and held her there for nearly the entirety of the second period and scored the 5-0 shutout win.

“I lost to her at the worlds, so it means a lot that I can (wrestle) a match so great.” Bullen added, “I can just see the development that I’ve had in my technical wrestling…I feel like I’m growing every day, so it’s really fun to do that and ultimately perform at such a big competition like this, so it means a lot.”

Henna JOHANSSON (SWE) made her first appearance at 62kg and won the Sassari gold medal. (Photo: Gabor Martin)

Sweden Wins Trio of Golds; Johansson Wins Highly Coveted 62kg Titled
Sweden brought a stacked squad to Sardinia and ended up having three champions in Sofia MATTSSON, Henna JOHANSSON, and Jenny FRANSSON. Mattsson won the 55kg gold medal, and Johansson walked away as the 62kg champion.

In the 55kg finals, a matchup of past world champions was supposed to happen – but tenth-ranked Mattsson got her hand raised after seventh-ranked Vanesa KALADZINSKAYA (BLR) injury defaulted out of the match before the whistle blew.

Mattsson added 14 points to her previous total of 18 and will sit inside the top-4 of the rankings with 32 points heading into the final Ranking Series event of the year.

In her first appearance at 62kg, Henna Johannsson hit a thunderous four-point double leg in the first period, followed by a deep double in the second period, and defeated No. 18 (at 59kg) Elmira GAMBAROVA (AZE), 6-4.

“I feel strong; I feel good, and I feel fast. I think 62kg is perfect for me.”

Johansson’s win leaves the Swedish coaching staff with a tough decision heading into the European Games and World Championships. Do they go with Johansson or do you go with the bronze medalist at this weight, Malin MATTSSON (SWE)? Mattsson beat Johansson two weeks ago, but Johansson outplaced here in Sardinia. “Of course I’m chasing her, and she’s chasing me. I think that’s making us step up a little bit more.”

When asked if she’s solidified her spot for Sweden at the European Games, Johansson said, “I hope so. I just knew I had to go out today and do my best because I didn’t two weeks ago. But I did what I could, and I hope the spot is going to be mine.”

In closing, the 62kg champion said, “My goal is to go to the World Championships and try to qualify Sweden for the Olympics.”

Sweden third champion was Jenny Fransson. The Olympic bronze medalist tallied three wins in the 72kg Nordic-style bracket.

Seema picked up a 10-0 win over Russia's Daria LEKSINA (RUS) in the 50kg gold-medal bout. (Photo: Gabor Martin)

Final Three Non-Nordic Golds Went to India, Russia, and Canada
The last three non-Nordic weight gold medals of the night went to Seema SEEMA (IND), Ekaterina POLESHCHUK (RUS), and Linda MORAIS (CAN), who won the 50kg, 53kg, and 59kg titles respectively.

India’s Seema Seema picked up a statement win over Daria LEKSINA (RUS) in the 50kg gold-medal bout, ending the match early after scoring five takedowns. Seema grabbed a pair of takedowns and led 4-0 after the first period, then tacked on three additional takedowns in period number two to end the match by technical superiority with over 60 seconds left on the clock.

Seema came into the Sassari ranked 30th in the world with 14 points. The Indian wrestlers win on Friday night doubled her Ranking Series point total and catapulted her up the rankings to No. 7 in the world behind sixth-ranked Olympic bronze medalist SUN Yanan (CHN) who has 25 points.

Russia’s Ekaterina POLESHCHUK controlled KIM Hyungjoo (KOR) in the 53kg finals from whistle to whistle and claimed her first gold medal since winning the Alexander Medved Prizes back in 2017. Poleshchuk, the 2018 U23 world bronze medalist, came into the weekend with 8 Ranking Series points, which was good enough for the 39th ranking in the last set of point-based rankings. Her 16 point win on Friday brought her new total to 24 points, moving her up into the eight spots when the next rankings come out.

Linda MORAIS (CAN) sacked Kumari MANJU (IND) in the 59kg finals after being up 9-0 and picked her first care Ranking Series title.

The final day of wrestling at the Sassari City Matteo Pellicone Memorial begins tomorrow at 10:00 (local time) when freestyle takes over.

RESULTS

Team Scores
GOLD – Canada (147 points)
SILVER – Russia (120 points)
BRONZE – Kazakhstan (102 points)
Fourth - Sweden (90 points)
Fifth - India (80 points)

50kg
GOLD - Seema SEEMA (IND) df. Daria LEKSINA (RUS), 10-0
BRONZE - Jacqueline MOLLOCANA ELENO (ECU) df. Kamila BARBOSA VITO DA SILVA (BRA), 10-1
BRONZE - Fredrika PETERSSON (SWE) df. Jade DUFOUR (CAN), 10-0

53kg
GOLD - Ekaterina POLESHCHUK (RUS) df. KIM Hyungjoo (KOR), 6-1
BRONZE – Diana WEICKER (CAN) df. Anzhelika VETOSHKINA (RUS), via fall
BRONZE - Luisa VALVERDE MELENDRES (ECU) df. Samantha STEWART (CAN), via fall

55kg (Single bronze)
GOLD - Sofia MATTSSON (SWE) df. Vanesa KALADZINSKAYA (BLR), via injury default
BRONZE – Viktoriia VAULINA (RUS) df. Marina SEDNEVA (KAZ), 12-1

57kg
GOLD - Grace BULLEN (NOR) df. Pooja DHANDA (IND), 5-0
BRONZE - Lissette Alexandra ANTES CASTILLO (ECU) df.
Olga KHOROSHAVTSEVA (RUS), 5-4
BRONZE – Alexandria TOWN (CAN) df. Katsiaryna YANUSHKEVICH (BLR), via fall

59kg
GOLD - Linda MORAIS (CAN) df. Kumari MANJU (IND), via fall
BRONZE - Laurence BEAUREGARD (CAN) df. Kelsey CAMPBELL (USA), 8-2

62kg
GOLD - Henna Katarina JOHANSSON (SWE) df. Elmira GAMBAROVA (AZE), 6-4
BRONZE – Lais NUNES DE OLIVERIA (BRA) df. Mallory VELTE (USA), 6-4
BRONZE - Malin Johanna MATTSSON (SWE) df. Marwa AMRI (TUN), 7-2

65kg
GOLD – Gabriella SLEISZ (HUN)
SILVER – Aina TEMIRTASSOVA (KAZ)
BRONZE – Braxton STONE (CAN)

68kg
GOLD - Tamyra MENSAH (USA) df. Danielle LAPPAGE (CAN), 4-0
BRONZE - Anastasia BRATCHIKOVA (RUS) df. Mariya MAMASHUK (BLR), 4-3
BRONZE - Divya KAKRAN (IND) df. Irina KAZYULINA (KAZ), 10-5

72kg
GOLD – Jenny FRANSSON (SWE)
SILVER – Zhamila BAKBERGENOVA (KAZ)
BRONZE – Tatiana MOROZOVA (RUS)

76kg
GOLD - Erica Elizabeth WIEBE (CAN) df. Natalia VOROBEVA (RUS), via fall
BRONZE – Epp MAE df. Ekaterina BUKINA (RUS), 8-7
BRONZE - Aline FOCKEN (GER) df. Iselin SOLHEIM (NOR), 8-0

#WrestleTirana

Berber adds to growing reputation with U23 Euro gold

Thursday, March 13, 2025 - 20:16 By United World Wrestling Press

TIRANA, Albania (March 13) -- Alperen BERBER (TUR) came jogging on the mat, gave the umpire a high-five and shook hands with his opponent Vladimeri KARCHAIDZE (FRA). Once the niceties were out of the way, he put his mean game face on, completely transforming himself.

As the reigning senior European champion and a world U23 medalist, Berber’s reputation of being a serial winner precedes him. And perhaps that also plays a role in the minds of his opponents. Karchaidze, at times, looked like giving too much respect to his opposite number. And so, when the moment presented itself, he couldn’t show the killer instinct.

Threatening to go off script, after a minute and 27 seconds, Berber – the odds-on favorite to win the 87kg gold medal bout – was put in a par terre position. But the young Frenchman, only in his second year of international wrestling, could not make the most of it as Berber returned to his feet without conceding a point from that position, except for the one penalty point for passivity.

Immediately after restart, he put Karchaidze under pressure. As Karchaidze tried a bear-hug throw, he fell back-first on the mat. Berber reacted fast as he got on top of his opponent and pinned him. In a blink of the eye – 20 seconds in the second period – the 19-year-old pocketed his first U23 European title.

Evgenii BAIDUSOV (UWW) won the gold medal in the 77kg weight class. (Photo: United World Wrestling / Kadir Caliskan)

He wasn’t the only wrestler to win this crown for the first time.

For four years after winning the U20 World Championship gold medal, in 2021, Evgenii BAIDUSOV (UWW) may have been away from action. But on his comeback, he hasn’t shown any signs of rustiness.

The 23-year-old dropped just one point en route to the 77kg final, showing he was the one to beat. And if Aaron BELLSCHEIDT (GER) harbored any hopes of scripting an upset, he was dealt a harsh reality check only 20 seconds into the match.

Starting aggressively, Baidusov got a firm grip on his opponent in the first big move of the gold medal bout and used an underhook throw for a takedown. He gripped Bellscheidt's elbow to turn and race to a 4-0 lead. Bellscheidt challenged for a stepout before the action but it was deemed continuous action and the lost challenge made it 5-0.

It set the tone for the rest of the bout and with 45 seconds still left in the first period, Bellscheidt lost his balance while defending. Baidusov leapt on his opponent’s mistake and closed the tie with a simple takeover, winning by technical superiority.

Mykhailo VYSHNYVETSKYI (UKR) won his third U23 European gold medal. (Photo: United World Wrestling / Kadir Caliskan)

At 130kg, Mykhailo VYSHNYVETSKYI (UKR) won his third U23 European Championship gold medal, beating Magomed ALICHUEV (UWW) on technical superiority.

The semifinal against Saba CHILASHVILI (GEO) was the only major hurdle on his way to a dominant gold medal. Vyshnyvetskyi executed a big four-point throw using double-arm locks inside the opening 90 seconds. From that moment onwards, it was always going to be a daunting task for Alichuev. So much so that he did not even get time to regroup.

Within seconds of his first big move, Vyshnyvetskyi launched another locked-arm throw send Alichuev over his head and slamming him on his back for four more points, which settled the gold medal bout in just two minutes and six seconds.

U23 world champion Vitalie ERIOMENCO (MDA) won U23 European gold after silver and two bronzes in previous attempts. (Photo: United World Wrestling / Kadir Caliskan)

For three years, Vitalie ERIOMENCO (MDA) has been striving to step on to the top of the podium at the U23 European Championships. In 2022 and 2023, the 22-year-old won bronze medals. Last year, he upgraded to silver, faltering at the final hurdle but the U23 World Championship title softened that blow.

On Thursday, as he returned to the arena where he won his only international title -- the U23 Worlds last year -- Eriomenco looked like a man on a mission. Having reached the final largely trouble free, the Moldovan wrestler didn’t allow Ziya BABASHOV (AZE) a sniff of the gold in the 63kg final as he won his first-ever U23 European title at fourth attempt.

During the first period, Babashov was put in par terre and Eriomenco managed to get a turn for a 3-0 lead. In the second round, Eriomenco was handed passivity but he defended from par terre position to escape Babashov’s tight grip and emerge unscathed from the position of disadvantage. He controlled the remainder of the bout masterfully to be crowned the champion.

He, thus, avenged his 3-2 loss against Babashov in the final of the U23 Europeans last year.

Alibek AMIROV (UWW) celebrates after winning the 55kg final in Tirana. (Photo: United World Wrestling / Kadir Caliskan)

At 55kg, Alibek AMIROV (UWW) ended his gold medal bout via technical superiority at the start of the finals session, beating Koba KARUMIDZE (GEO) 8-0 to win the U23 European title.

Amirov led 2-0 at the break but he scored arm throw for four which stunned Karumidze and Amirov finished the bout with two stepouts and win 8-0.

Historic final day

On the final day of the competition, Ukraine could add more gold medals to its tally when 19-year-old Yehor YAKUSHENKO (UKR) takes on Richard KARELSON (EST) in the 97 kg final. Yakushenko won the U20 World Championships last year and is competing in this age category for the first time. A win for Karelson will make him the first winner from Estonia in Greco at U23 European Championships.

Melkamu FETENE (ISR), too, will be eyeing his first gold medal at U23 Europeans when he faces Dimitri KHACHIDZE (GEO) in the 60kg final. A win for Fetene will make him only second Israel wrestler to win an European Championships title in Greco at any level.

RESULTS

55kg
GOLD: Alibek AMIROV (UWW) df. Koba KARUMIDZE (GEO), 8-0

BRONZE: Elmir ALIYEV (AZE) df. Filip BARTOSIK (CZE), 8-0
BRONZE: Arayik TOPALYAN (ARM) df. Hanifi SARP (TUR), 10-1

63kg
GOLD: Vitalie ERIOMENCO (MDA) df. Ziya BABASHOV (AZE), 3-1

BRONZE: Alexander VAFAI (SWE) df. Miroslav EMILOV (BUL), 5-2
BRONZE: Romeo BERIDZE (GEO) df. Davit JOTYAN (ARM), 8-2

77kg
GOLD: Evgenii BAIDUSOV (UWW) df. Aaron BELLSCHEIDT (GER), 8-0

BRONZE: Alexandrin GUTU (MDA) df. Karl BAFF (SWE), 5-1
BRONZE: Khasay HASANLI (AZE) df. Michal ZELENKA (CZE), 9-1

87kg
GOLD: Alperen BERBER (TUR) df. Vladimeri KARCHAIDZE (FRA), via fall (3-1)

BRONZE: Vigen NAZARYAN (ARM) df. Hamza SERTCANLI (SWE), via inj. def.
BRONZE: Baskhan SAIDOV (UWW) df. Ivan CHMYR (UKR), 3-1

130kg
GOLD: Mykhailo VYSHNYVETSKYI (UKR) df. Magomed ALICHUEV (UWW), 8-0

BRONZE: Cemal BAKIR (TUR) df. Artur SARKISJAN (CZE), 8-3
BRONZE: Saba CHILASHVILI (GEO) df. Razmik KURDYAN (ARM), 1-1

Semifinals

60kg
GOLD: Melkamu FETENE (ISR) vs. Dimitri KHACHIDZE (GEO)

BRONZE: Dimitri KHACHIDZE (GEO) df. Bohdan HRYSHYN (UKR), 10-0
BRONZE: Melkamu FETENE (ISR) df. Suren AGHAJANYAN (ARM), 7-5

67kg
GOLD: Hleb MAKARANKA (UWW) vs. Anri KHOZREVANIDZE (GEO)

SF 1: Anri KHOZREVANIDZE (GEO) df. Azat SARIYAR (TUR), 6-5
SF 2: Hleb MAKARANKA (UWW) df. Daniial AGAEV (UWW), 5-5

72kg
GOLD: Ruslan NURULLAYEV (AZE) vs. Danil GRIGOREV (UWW)

SF 1: Danil GRIGOREV (UWW) df. Vasile ZABICA (MDA), 8-7
SF 2: Ruslan NURULLAYEV (AZE) df. Oleh KHALILOV (UKR), 4-2

82kg
GOLD: Alexandru SOLOVEI (MDA) vs. Gamzat GADZHIEV (UWW)

SF 1: Gamzat GADZHIEV (UWW) df. Frederik MATHIESEN (DEN), 7-1
SF 2: Alexandru SOLOVEI (MDA) df. Elmin ALIYEV (AZE), 8-0

97kg
GOLD: Yehor YAKUSHENKO (UKR) vs. Richard KARELSON (EST)

SF 1: Richard KARELSON (EST) df. Luka GABISONIA (GEO), 9-0
SF 2: Yehor YAKUSHENKO (UKR) df. Muhittin HELVACI (TUR), 5-2

Wiebe Sticks Vorobeva in Battle of Olympic Champs

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Berber adds to growing reputation with U23 Euro gold