world wrestling month, BTS, Beat the streets, May, Hamada, Maroulis

United World Wrestling Designates May as “World Wrestling Month”

By Tim Foley

CORSIER-SUR-VEVEY (April 28) – United World Wrestling has announced that May will be “World Wrestling Month.” The month will be highlighted by a series of tournaments, special events, and social media interactions with fans and athletes around the world.

The designation started during the 2013 Save Olympic Wrestling campaign when wrestlers, coaches and fans from around the world celebrated the sport with a number of promotional events in that May.

May is also one of the most active months of the 2017 wrestling season, featuring three of United World Wrestling's premier senior-level continental championships; the European Championships (May 2-7), the Pan-Am Championships (May 5-7) and the Asian Championships (May 10-14). The events will help give fans, athletes, coaches and national federations the opportunity to share their experiences on and off the mat.

“Wrestling fans will have a lot of opportunity this month to watch their favorite sport,” said United World Wrestling president Nenad Lalovic. “We want them to enjoy the competitions, but also share their stories online with other fans and athletes. We want to see and hear about their life in the sport”

United World Wrestling will focus its social media campaign around two wrestling hashtags for the month of May. #WrestlingMonth is a chance for users share their wrestling photos, stories, and goals for their athletic and coaching career. #WhereITrain will be an entertaining peek inside the wrestling halls, gyms and homes where wrestlers from all levels train in the hopes of becoming a world and Olympic champions.

The month will also be an opportunity for national federations and wrestling-based non-profits to hold events. Beat the Streets-New York will be holding their annual fundraising event in Times Square featuring a dual meet between the stars of USA Wrestling and the Japanese Wrestling Federation, including a much-anticipated rematch between 2016 Olympic champion Helen MAROULIS (USA) and 2014 world champion Chiho HAMADA (JPN). 

Wrestling month will also include new media content from United World Wrestling including video interviews with wrestlers, highlight films from action around the world and short docu-follows on some of the sport’s biggest personalities.

#wrestlebishkek

Asian Championships 2026 Live: Women's Wrestling

By Ken Marantz & Vinay Siwach

BISHKEK, Kyrgyzstan (April 8) -- Women's Wrestling will be in action in 50kg, 55kg, 59kg, 68kg and 76kg at the Asian Championships on day three in Bishkek. The likes of Yui SUSAKI (JPN), Sowaka UCHIDA (JPN), NEHA (IND), Miwa MORIKAWA (JPN), Meerim ZHUMANAZAROVA (KGZ) and Aiperi MEDET KYZY (KGZ) will take the mat.

WATCH LIVE | LIVE MATCH ORDER | YUI SUSAKI 2.0

12:02: Former Asian champion and world bronze medalist Mengyu XIE (CHN) overwhelms two-time Asian medalist Bolortuya KHURELKHUU (MGL), scoring seven points in the first period and then ending the match in the second for an 11-0 win to advance to the 59kg semifinals

11:59: Rising star Sowaka UCHIDA (JPN), a 2025 world bronze medalist a year after winning the world U20 gold, storms to a 10-0 victory over Jeongbin OH (KOR) to secure her spot in the 55kg semifinals

11:58: Ulmeken ESENBAEVA (UZB), a multiple-time medalist at age-group Asian Championships, begins with a fall over Hyebin AHN (KOR) at 59kg.

11:56: Wenji LI (CHN) proves too powerful for Yasuha MATSUYUKI (JPN) in their qualifying round bout at 76kg, handing the Japanese squad its first loss by topping off two of her three takedowns with 2-point rolls in a 12-2 technical superiority win in 5:31

11:55: NEHA (IND), a former U20 world bronze medalist, starts with a fall over Viktoriia KHUSAINOVA (KAZ) at 59kg. She built a 6-0 lead before scoring a takedown and then used a cradle to secure the fall

11:53: An impressive start for last year's runner-up at 55kg, Yuxuan LI (CHN). After a stepout to get started against Aruuke KADYRBEK KYZY (KGZ), Li gains a takedown, then reels off four gut wrenches in succession for an 11-0 victory in just over a minute.

11:52: Five-time Asian medalist and 2023 world silver medalist Delgermaa ENKHSAIKHAN (MGL) scores two stepouts in the first period, the second with Svetlana OKNAZAROVA (UZB) on the activity clock, and adds two takedowns in the second before finishing the match with a 4-point takedown in the last seconds for an 11-0 victory at 68kg.

11:41: Yi Hui LIN (TPE) stuns Ngoc Linh DO (VIE) with a 4-point takedown with :16 left, then holds on for a 5-4 victory  at 50kg in the opening match on Mat B. Her reward is a quarterfinal clash with Susaki

11:35: Son Hyang KIM (PRK), a world bronze medalist and Asian silver medalist way back in 2017, storms into the quarterfinals at 50kg with a 10-0 thrashing of Nipuni HEWA PEDIGE (SRI). Kim's most recent accomplishment was a silver at the 2023 Asian Games.

11:34: 53-second fall for Yui SUSAKI (JPN) in her first international match since the 2024 Paris Olympics! Susaki got Ziqi FENG (CHN) in her opening bout at 50kg, a rematch of the final from the 2024 Asian Championships final. Susaki tried two leg attacks but failed to covert them into points. Out of nowhere, Feng tried an arm-spin which was blocked by Susaki. Feng fell back first on the mat and Susaki kept the pressure to secure the fall!

11:30: After two of exciting Greco-Roman in the morning, the Asian Championships will see Women's Wrestling on the mats. Local stars Meerim ZHUMANAZAROVA (KGZ) and Aiperi MEDET KYZY (KGZ) will be the favorites at 68kg and 76kg