#WrestleTokyo

#WrestleTokyo Olympic Games Preview: 74kg

Thursday, July 29, 2021 - 18:30 By Eric Olanowski

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TOKYO, Japan (July 20) --- Despite donning a trio of multiple-time world champions, Zaurbek SIDAKOV (RUS) heads into the Tokyo Olympic Games as the front-runner to win 74kg Olympic gold after he stole the show at the '18 and '19 World Championships. He’s seeded No. 3 behind Frank CHAMIZO MARQUEZ (ITA) and Daniyar KAISANOV (KAZ), respectively.

He'd Join Buvaisar SAITIEV (RUS) as the only Russian wrestler to win 74kg Olympic gold.

Sidakov made his world-level debut for Russia's freestyle squad at the '18 World Championships and has reigned supreme over the field since then. The 26-year-old Beslan, North Ossetia-Alania native, entered the World Championships in Budapest relatively unknown but upset Olympic champion Jordan BURROUGHS (USA) and fellow two-time world champions Chamizo before ultimately winning gold. He repeated the feat a year later in Nur-Sultan. Sidakov stole the match from Burroughs for a second consecutive year after he scored a stepout with less than two seconds left. He followed that up with a second win over Chamizo and reached the top of the podium for a second consecutive year. He's yet to drop a match to a non-Russian opponent, all while claiming gold medals at the World Championships in '18 and '19, and '19 gold at the European Games and Ivan Yariguin Ranking Series event. 

Even though he's fallen to Sidakov in their previous two meetings, it's Chamizo, who just turns 29 on July 10, that's seeded first at the weight. The two-time world champion and Rio Olympic bronze medalist reached the top of the seeds at 74kg after winning gold at the '20 European Championships and silver medals at the '19 World Championships and '21 Poland Open Ranking Series event.

Kaisanov and Mostafa HOSSEINKHANI (IRI) are the other two seeded wrestlers at 74kg. 

Kaisanov, the 28-year-old Semey-born wrestler, is seeded second and sits on the same side of the bracket Sidakov. He originally placed fifth '19 World Championships to secure Kazakhstan's place at Tokyo Olympics but was upgraded to bronze in February 2020 after Zelimkhan KHADJIEV (FRA) tested positive for doping. 

Hosseinkhani is the fourth-seeded and will share the top side of the bracket with Frank Chamizo. Iran elected to roll with the 32-year-old over Younes EMAMI, who qualified the weight for Iran through his gold-medal performance at the Asian Olympic Qualifier. 

Meanwhile, Kyle 'Kid Dynamite' DAKE (USA) is the third two-time world champion on everyone's radar.

Dake strolls into Tokyo riding a 48 match win streak that dates back to mid-2018. During that run, the 30-years-old struck 79kg gold in back-to-back years while outsourcing his opponents 64-6.

After the '19 World Championships, Dake descended from the non-Olympic weight of 79kg to 74kg to make an Olympic run. The father-of-two punched his ticket to the Olympic Games on USA's freestyle squad with a pair of convincing wins over four-time world champion Burroughs at the United States Olympic Trials and earned his spot in Tokyo.

Other past world finalists include Jeandry GARZON CABALLERO (CUB), Franklin GOMEZ MATOS (PUR) and Avtandil KENTCHADZE (GEO).

Kenchadze was the most recent of the three to reach a finals match. The 25-year-old from Ambrolauri, Georgia, grabbed four wins at the '18 World Championships -- highlighted by victories over Rio Olympic bronze medalist Soner DEMIRTAS (TUR) and world bronze medalist Bekzod ABDURAKHMONOV (UZB) -- and reached the gold-medal match. However, he dropped a close 2-2 match against Sidakov and finished in second place.

When Gomez takes the mat in Tokyo, he'll be the first Puerto Rican to wrestle in three Olympic Games. The soon-to-be 35-year-old fell to his '11 world finalist opponent and eventual silver medalist Besik KUDUKHOV (RUS) in the first round of the London Olympic Games and finished in 15th-place. In Rio, he fell to eventual bronze medalist Ikhtiyor NAVRUZOV (UZB) and finished in 9th place.

At 37-years-old, Garzon Caballero will be wrestling in his second Olympic Games. The four-time world medalist and '07 finalist will compete in his first Games since the '08 Beijing Olympic Games, where he finished in fifth place. 

Outside of the heavy hitters at 74kg, a pair outside dark horses that could shake up the bracket are Bekzod ABDURAKHMONOV (UZB) and Mahamedkhabib KADZIMAHAMEDAU (BLR). 

Abdurakhmonov, known for his 11-1 thumping of Burroughs at the Rio Olympic Games, will look to improve on his fifth-place finish from Brazil. This year, the two-time world bronze medalist finished on the podium at the two events he's entered. He won a bronze meal at the International Ukrainian Tournament and a silver medal at the Asian Olympic Qualifier.

Kadimahamedau is another guy who can end the title hopes for a lot of guys. Since transferring to Belarus in '20, the 27-year-old Khushtada, Tsumadinsky, Dagestan-born wrestler, won gold at the European Championships and World Olympic Qualifier and finished in third place at the Individual World Cup. 

It’s also worth noting, on July 20, Azerbaijan replaced Khadzhimurad GADZHIYEV (AZE) with Turan BAYRAMOV (AZE).

Wrestling at the Tokyo Olympic Games kicks off August 1-7 at the Makuhari Messe with 74kg action beginning on August 5.

74kg
No. 1 Frank CHAMIZO MARQUEZ (ITA)
No. 2 Daniyar KAISANOV (KAZ)
No. 3 Zaurbek SIDAKOV (RUS)
No. 4 Mostafa Mohabbali HOSSEINKHANI (IRI)
Kyle Douglas DAKE (USA)
Keisuke OTOGURO (JPN)
Kamil RYBICKI (POL)
Amr Reda Ramadan HUSSEN (EGY)
Augusto MIDANA (GBS)
Jeandry GARZON CABALLERO (CUB)
Franklin GOMEZ MATOS (PUR)
Avtandil KENTCHADZE (GEO)
Turan BAYRAMOV (AZE)
Bekzod ABDURAKHMONOV (UZB)
Mahamedkhabib KADZIMAHAMEDAU (BLR)
Vasyl MYKHAILOV (UKR)

#JapanWrestling

Fujinami to move up to 57kg in quest for consecutive Olympic golds

Wednesday, November 27, 2024 - 12:12 By Ken Marantz

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TOKYO (November 26) -- Akari FUJINAMI (JPN) won't be defending her Olympic gold at women's 53kg at the 2028 Los Angeles Games. That's bad news for anyone aiming to strike gold at 57kg.

Fujinami has announced that she will move up to the next Olympic weight class starting next year, the Japan federation website and Japan media widely recently reported.

Fujinami, who turned 21 on November 11, cited the difficulty of cutting weight for the decision, as well as the historic aspect that no woman wrestler has ever won a second straight Olympic gold after moving to a higher weight class.

"I have decided to move up to the 57kg weight class," Fujinami said after Sunday's East Japan Collegiate Women's League, a team tournament that marked her first competition since winning the gold at the Paris Olympics in August. "Considering my height and my normal weight, I think I can give my best performance at 57."

Fujinami competed at 59kg in the five-team league tournament (one school was a no-show), which was run in a round-robin, duel-meet format with only three weight classes -- 53kg, 59kg and 76kg.

She won both of her matches by fall, extending her current winning streak to 139 matches dating back to her junior high school days in September 2017.

The 1.64-meter Fujinami was actually wrestling near her natural weight, which she says is "about 61kg." But even against two opponents from higher weight classes -- Ikuei University's Ichika ARAI (JPN) was the 2023 world U20 silver medalist at 57kg -- her skills and speed were still overwhelming.

"It has been really hard to cut down to 53kg," Fujinami said. "I felt I lost muscle during the process. I feel I can give my best performance by going down three kilos from my natural weight."

Asked when she expects to make her full-fledged "debut" at the new weight, she replied in a text message, "It will be sometime next year. I haven't decided exactly when yet."

With a full schedule of post-Olympic TV appearances and local events curtailing her training, she has already ruled out appearing at next month's Emperor's Cup All-Japan Championships.

It is likely she will compete at the Meiji Cup All-Japan Invitational Championships in the spring, as that tournament, along with the Emperor's Cup, will serve as qualifiers for the 2025 World Championships.

The move up to 57kg will likely put her on a collision course with the reigning Olympic champion, Tsugumi SAKURAI (JPN). The two met last year at the East Japan Collegiate tournament, with Fujinami coming away with a 5-0 victory.

The challenge of possibly accomplishing a historic first appeals to Fujinami, who last year won her second career world title at 53kg in Belgrade.

"I heard that no [woman] has moved up a weight class and won another Olympic gold," Fujinami said. "It will difficult, but that's what makes it challenging. I hope I can become stronger at the next [Olympics] in Los Angeles."

Two Japanese women -- Saori YOSHIDA (JPN) and Kaori ICHO (JPN) -- have won an additional Olympic gold after going down a weight, but that was mainly because the number of weight classes was expanded from four to six, allowing them to compete more closely to their normal weight.

Among men, the legendary Aleksandr MEDVED (URS) won the freestyle 97kg gold in 1964, then triumphed again at 97+kg in 1968, while Levan TEDASHVILI (URS) won at freestyle 82kg in 1972 and 90kg in 1976. More recently, Abdulrashid SADULAEV claimed the freestyle 86kg gold in 2016, then won again at 97kg in 2021.

Fujinami said she doesn't expect to make any major alterations to her wrestling style at the heavier weight.

"I have no intention of making any big changes in my wrestling style," she said. "I will still try to keep the opponent from getting at my legs, and take the initiative to score points. Still, I can feel the extra weight of four kilos, so how I increase my weight could affect how I perform."

At this year's East Japan league tournament, Fujinami's Nippon Sport Science University was relegated to second by Ikuei University, which won 2-1 in their duel meet. Ikuei got victories from Moe KIYOOKA (JPN) and Ami ISHII (JPN), who both won gold medals at last month's Non-Olympic Weight Category World Championships.