Ahmadiyev stuns Szoke as Azerbaijan wins 3 golds at U23 Euros

Wednesday, March 15, 2023 - 19:25 By Vinay Siwach

BUCHAREST, Romania (March 15) -- Led by U23 world champion Gurban GURBANOV (AZE), Azerbaijan won three gold medals on Wednesday at the U23 European Championships.

As the Greco-Roman competition drew to a close, Azerbaijan crowned champions in Gurbanov, Elmir ALIYEV (AZE) and Murad AHMADIYEV (AZE) at 72kg, 60kg and 97kg.

While the three gold medals were not enough for Azerbaijan to claim the team title, they helped it jump to a fourth-place finish behind Turkiye, Ukraine and Georgia.

In a nail-biting team race, Turkiye claimed the team title with 127 points, Ukraine finished second with 126 points and Georgia was third with 125 points. Azerbaijan ended with 123 points.

While Gurbanov and Aliyev were cautious in their wins, it was Ahmadiyev who stunned everyone with a victory via fall over world silver medalist and U23 world champion Alex SZOKE (HUN) in the final.

A stunned Szoke argued with the officials and even tried to challenge the call but to no avail as the pin was called by the referees.

Ahmadiyev was called for passivity in the first period and when Szoke was trying to score a gut wrench, both wrestlers went up on their feet with Szoke still holding Ahmadiyev in a bodylock.

At this point, Ahmadiyev threw his arm around Szoke's head and brought him down with his back on the mat and held him there. The referee was about to call for a pin when Szoke jumped out of the hold.

However, the referee delegation intervened and announced that the pin was already called by the referees and it will stand, giving Ahmadiyev a stunning victory and his first major medal at any competition.

Szoke was agitated over the decision but was cooled down by his coach and Olympic champion Viktor LORINCZ (HUN).

Gurban GURBANOV (AZE) won the 72kg gold medal in Bucharest. (Photo: UWW / Kadir Caliskan)

At 72kg, Gurbanov followed his U20 and U23 world titles with gold in Bucharest after a solid display of defense over the two days. In the semifinal, he defeated defending champion Girogi CHKHIKVADZE (GEO) 1-1 after the two wrestlers exchanged passivities.

In the final, he faced Irfan MIRZOIEV (UKR), an opponent he defeated 7-1 in the semifinal of U23 Worlds. Mirzoiev used different tactics but the result remained the same. Gurbanov claimed an 8-0 win over the Ukrainian.

Gurbanov, who scored an early stepout, ran to a 6-0 lead at the break after getting the par terre position. He scored two turns from that. In the second period, Mirzoiev never came close to troubling Gurbanov who scored a takedown with just under two minutes remaining in the final.

Elmir ALIYEV (AZE) scored a 5-3 win over Melkamu FETENE (ISR) to win the 60kg gold medal. (Photo: UWW / Kadir Caliskan)

At 60kg, Elmir ALIYEV (AZE) denied Melkamu FETENE (ISR) a historic gold medal as the Azerbaijan youngster defeated Fetene 5-3 in the 60kg final.

Fetene was hoping to become the first wrestler from Israel to become a European champion since Stepan DUBOV (ISR) won the 2001 U17 European title.

The U23 World bronze medalist did have his chances in the final when he led 1-0 after the break and later managed to score two points on Aliyev. But Aliyev scored a stepout, a point for passivity and snapped Fetene for a takedown.

Fetene used a toss in the same sequence but challenged the call, asking for four. He lost the challenge and gave up another point which gave Aliyev a 5-3 win.

Jonni SARKKINEN (FIN) defeated U23 world champion Exauce MUKUBU (NOR) 6-0 in the 82kg final. (Photo: UWW / Kadir Caliskan)

Finland wins second gold

Exauce MUKUBU (NOR) could have been another U23 world champ to win gold but he suffered a shocking 6-0 loss to Jonni SARKKINEN (FIN) in the 82kg final.

Sarkkinen joined teammate Tino OJALA (FIN) as Finland's gold medalist at the event as the country which had only one U23 European champion so far added two more in two days.

The U20 European silver medalist Sarkkinen used his counter-attacking style to frustrate Mukubu and scored points when Mukubu thought he had the momentum.

After locking Sarkkinen's arms twice, Mukubu tried forcing a stepout but Sarkkinen had cleverly forced Mukubu to step out first, a point he won after a challenge.

In a similar move, Sarkkinen unleashed an arm throw when Mukubu was about to push him out of bounds. That got him four points and a surprise for Mukubu.

It was always difficult to come back from 5-0 down and then Mukubu conceded another stepout to make things even worse for himself. Sarkkinen managed to stay calm and defend against all other attacks and claim the gold.

Diego CHKHIKVADZE (GEO) defend his U23 European title in Bucharest. (Photo: UWW / Kadir Caliskan)

At 67kg, defending champion Diego CHKHIKVADZE (GEO) went back-to-back after beating Mustafa YILDIRIM (TUR) in a tight gold medal bout.

Chkhikvadze has continued to impress since winning the U20 European title in 2021. He has added a U20 world silver medal, U23 European gold and U23 world bronze since then.

In the final against Yildirim, Chkhikvadze had to work harder than in his previous bouts as he managed to win 2-1. Both wrestlers got a passivity each but Chkhikvadze got a stepout late in the bout which was the difference between the two and the gold medal.

On Tuesday, Chkhikvadze did not give up a single point in three bouts, winning 7-0 against Shon NADORGIN (ISR), 9-0 against Maksym LIU (UKR) and 11-0 against Ashot KHACHATRYAN (ARM).

RESULTS

60kg
GOLD: Elmir ALIYEV (AZE) df. Melkamu FETENE (ISR), 5-3

BRONZE: Mert ILBARS (TUR) df. Dimitri KHACHIDZE (GEO), 10-0
BRONZE: Vladyslav KUZKO (UKR) df. Georgios SCARPELLO (GER), 7-1

67kg
GOLD: Diego CHKHIKVADZE (GEO) df. Mustafa YILDIRIM (TUR), 2-1

BRONZE: Ivo ILIEV (BUL) df. Hasan MAMMADLI (AZE), 10-8
BRONZE: Shon NADORGIN (ISR) df. Ashot KHACHATRYAN (ARM), 5-5

72kg
GOLD: Gurban GURBANOV (AZE) df. Irfan MIRZOIEV (UKR), 8-0

BRONZE: Giorgi CHKHIKVADZE (GEO) df. Igor BOTEZ (ROU), 7-0
BRONZE: Abdullah TOPRAK (TUR) df. Krisztofer KLANYI (HUN), 5-0

82kg
GOLD: Jonni SARKKINEN (FIN) df. Exauce MUKUBU (NOR), 6-0

BRONZE: Adam GARDZIOLA (POL) df. Ilias PAGKALIDIS (GRE), 2-2
BRONZE: Saba MAMALADZE (GEO) df. Branko KOVACEVIC (SRB), 5-1

97kg
GOLD: Murad AHMADIYEV (AZE) df. Alex SZOKE (HUN), via fall

BRONZE: Lucas LAZOGIANIS (GER) df. Oleksandr YEVDOKIMOV (UKR), 5-0
BRONZE: Hayk KHLOYAN (ARM) df. Mindaugas VENCKAITIS (LTU), 6-0

#wrestlebishkek, #WrestleParis

Top Asian stars battle for Paris 2024 spots at Olympic qualifier

Thursday, April 18, 2024 - 09:53 By Vinay Siwach

BISHKEK, Kyrgyzstan (April 18) -- Japan is the only nation from Asia to earn all six quotas in any style but other nations will be hoping to increase their 2024 Paris Olympic qualification as the Asian OG Qualifier begins in Bishkek from April 19.

The competition will offer 36 quotas in three styles, 12 in each style. The winner of the semifinals in each Olympic weight class will earn a Paris Olympic quota for their countries. There will be no gold and bronze-medal bouts as well as no repechage.

At the World Championships, wrestlers from Asia were able to win 32 out of the 90 available quotas with 12 each in Greco-Roman and Women's Wrestling. Freestyle wrestlers, however, could only win eight quotas. That being the case, the qualifiers in Bishkek have received more entries in Freestyle than the other two.

Here's a brief preview of each Olympic weight class:

57kg: Asian champion AMAN (IND) will be looking to earn a spot for India but will face a big challenge from Gulomjon ABDULLAEV (UZB) who will look to return to the Olympics. As Aman is seeded number two and Abdullaev is three, both should clash in the semifinal if the seeds hold.

Asian Games silver medalist Chong Song HAN (PRK) will have the responsibility of winning the quota for the DPR Korea. Iran is banking on Ahmad JAVAN (IRI) while Kyrgyzstan has U23 Asian champion Bekzat ALMAZ UULU (KGZ). Yerassyl MUKHTARULY (KAZ), who was second to Almaz Uulu at the U23 event, will be in for Kazakhstan.

65kg: With only Iran qualifying from the World Championships, a few strong countries will battle it out for the two spots at 65kg. Local star Ernazar AKMATALIEV (KGZ), who qualified for the Tokyo Olympics in 2021 with a dramatic pin over Ilyas BELBULATOV (UZB), will hope to repeat that success.

Tokyo Olympic champion Takuto OTOGURO (JPN) failed to win the domestic competition in Japan and lost his right to represent Japan at the qualifiers and the Olympics. Kotaro KIYOOKA (JPN), who defeated Otoguro in the final in Japan, will have the responsibility of earning the qualification for Japan.

Asian Championships silver medalist Tulga TUMUR OCHIR (MGL) lost in the national trials to Tsogbadrakh TSEVEENSUREN (MGL) who will be in Bishkek. Asian Games bronze medalist Kwang Jin KIM (PRK) is entered for the DPR Korea.

Former U20 world champion Umidjon JALOLOV (UZB) will be one of the favorites to win the quota as well along with U20 Asian champion Abdulmazhid KUDIEV (TJK) who is seeded number one.

74kg: If the seeds hold, seed number two Yones EMAMI (IRI) likely gets number three Nurkozha KAIPANOV (KAZ) in the semifinals for the Paris quota. Former Asian champion Bekzod ABDURAKHMONOV (UZB) is unseeded for the tournament and drawn at random.

Feng LU (CHN) is seeded number one in the bracket and also has Asian Games bronze medalist Orozbek TOKTOMAMBETOV (KGZ) in the mix. Former Asian Championships Byungmin GONG (KOR) will look to earn one for Korea.

86kg: Magomed SHARIPOV (BRN) will look to earn the second Paris Olympic quota after Akhmed TAZHUDINOV (BRN). Sharipov will be seeded number one for the tournament and can face Tokyo Olympic fifth-placer Deepak PUNIA (IND) for a place in Paris.

Zushen LIN (CHN) is the number two seed for the tournament with Bat Erdene BYAMBASUREN (MGL) taking the third spot. But it will be Hayato ISHIGURO (JPN) who will be the biggest threat to all the competitors.

97kg: It won't be the 92kg world champion Aitmukhan RIZABEK (KAZ) for Kazakhstan at 97kg in the qualifiers. He won a silver medal at the Asian Championships but Kazakhstan is going ahead with Alisher YERGALI (KAZ), who also gets the top seed.

His seed avoids a battle with Amirali AZARPIRA (IRI) who defeated Kyle SNYDER (USA) in the Zagreb Open at the beginning of the year. Veteran and Rio 2016 bronze medalist Magomed IBRAGIMOV (UZB) is seeded third and battle with Azarpira for the spot in Paris looks unavoidable.

Fourth seed and former Asian silver medalist Awusayiman HABILA (CHN) will fancy his chances as well. 20-year-old Arash YOSHIDA (JPN), who finished a commendable fifth at last year's World Championships at 92kg, can upend all the established wrestlers.

125kg: Tokyo Olympians Zhiwei DENG (CHN) and Aiaal LAZAREV (KGZ) will avoid each other in the tournament and hope to earn Olympic quotas for their respective nations. Former world silver medalist Lkhagvagerel MUNKHTUR (MGL) will be one of the favorites to win the quota along with Yusup BATIRMURZAEV (KAZ) and former age-group star Khasanboy RAKHIMOV (UZB).

Vinesh PHOGAT (IND) will compete at 50kg at the Asian OG Qualifier. (Photo: United World Wrestling)

Women’s Wrestling

50kg: With three out of five quotas won by Asian countries at the World Championships, the 50kg weight class is wide open. The biggest surprise is 53kg world bronze medalist and Tokyo Olympian VINESH (IND) moving down to 50kg in a bid to earn the quota for India.

Vinesh moved up from 50kg to 53kg in 2019 and won the world bronze medal to earn a Tokyo Olympics spot. But ANTIM (IND) won with a 53kg quota for the Paris Olympics at the World Championships, Vinesh moved to 50kg to remain in contention for Paris.

The biggest challenge for the Indian star will be Asian Games silver medalist Son Hyang KIM (PRK) who is one of the strongest 50kg wrestlers. Asian Games bronze medalist Aktenge KEUNIMJAEVA (UZB) is also in the mix.

53kg: Tokyo Olympics silver medalist Qianyu PANG (CHN) is the biggest name at 53kg with the Paris 2024 quota on line. 2022 world silver medalist Khulan BATKHUYAG (MGL) is also entered as she replaces Tokyo Olympic bronze medalist Bortulya BAT OCHIR (MGL).

57kg: Kexin HONG (CHN) won a bronze medal at the Asian Games and began this year with a big win over Anastasia NICHITA (MDA) at the Zagreb Open. She will be the top seed in the tournament. She will avoid a clash with Asian Games silver medalist In Sun JONG (PRK) who is seeded third. Jong defeated Hong 4-2 in the semifinals in Hangzhou.

Tokyo Olympian ANSHU (IND) returns to international competition since last year's Asian Championships and will look to win a 57kg quota for India. Bolortuya KHURELKHUU (MGL) and former Asia silver medalist Laylokhon SOBIROVA (UZB) are also in the mix.

62kg: Asian Games champion Hyon Gyong MUN (PRK) will be the best bet for the DPR Korea to win a quota at 62kg. She will unlikely to face any challenges unless Tokyo Olympian Jia LONG (CHN) and former world champs Orkhon PUREVDORJ (MGL) are drawn on her side.

68kg: With only seven wrestlers entered at 68kg, the draw will be Nelson style and the wrestlers will be divided into two groups of four and three. The top two wrestlers from each wrestler will reach the semifinal. The top wrestler in Group A will face second-placed wrestlers in Group B.

Feng ZHOU (CHN) will be in Group A as the top seed and will avoid Yelena SHALYGINA (KAZ) who is number two. Former world champion Meerim ZHUMANAZAROVA (KGZ) is seeded number three and likely to be placed in Group B.

That leaves former Asian Championships silver medalist NISHA (IND) and Sol Gum PAK (PRK) to be drawn at random in the bracket.

76kg: Another weight class with seven wrestlers and two groups. Asian Games bronze medalist and silver medalist at the Zagreb Open this year Juan WANG (CHN) takes the top spot in the seeding. But two-time world silver medalist at 72kg Zhamila BAKBERGENOVA (KAZ) has to be the favorite to win one of the two spots available at 76kg.

U23 world champion REETIKA (IND) and Davaanasan ENKH AMAR (MGL) also can win the Paris spots.

Kyotaro SOGABE (JPN) and Abror ATABAEV (UZB) will be wrestling at 67kg. (Photo: United World Wrestling / Kadir Caliskan)

Greco-Roman

60kg: The Greco-Roman 60kg was the only weight class at the World Championships that saw all five qualifications from one continent. With Kyrgyzstan, Japan, China, Uzbekistan and Iran qualified, two more Asian countries have a chance to win the quota for Paris.

A bronze medalist at the 2022 World Championships Aidos SULTANGALI (KAZ) will have a good chance to put Kazakhstan in for the Paris 2024 along with India represented by U20 World Championships silver medalist SUMIT (IND).

Former two-time Asian silver medalist and Asian Games bronze medalist Se Ung RI (PRK) will be an unseeded wrestler in the bracket with Aslamdzhon AZIZOV (TJK) taking the top seed.

67kg: A few stars will have to return empty-handed from Bishkek as the 67kg bracket draws some big names. Amantur ISMAILOV (KGZ) will be the top seed and Rovshen ATDAYEV (TKM) the second but it is Kyotaro SOGABE (JPN), HUSIYUETU (CHN), Meiirzhan SHERMAKHANBET (KAZ), Hansu RYU (KOR), Yong Jin RO (PRK) and Abror ATABAEV (UZB) who look to the top names to earn the two spots for Paris.

Sogabe was involved in a thrilling bout against Mohammadreza GERAEI (IRI) which he lost. He would be keen to earn the spot he missed in Belgrade. However, for that, he will have to go through a strong bracket. Challenging him will be Ryu, who is looking to enter his fourth Olympics. Asian Games silver medalist Shermakhanbet is another big threat to all other competitors.

Former U17 world champiom Atabaev along with Husiyuetu and Ro can upset the established stars in Bishkek.

77kg: Asian Games silver medalist Amin KAVIYANINEJAD (IRI) will have the task of earning a Paris 2024 quota for Iran. He will be the favorite as he lost only to Akzhol MAKHMUDOV (KGZ) at the Games.

He defeated Rui LIU (CHN), who is entered, 1-1 at the Asian Games. Liu earlier defeated VIKAS (IND) 9-1. This leaves top seed Demeu ZHADRAYEV (KAZ) as the other favorite to secure a place.

87kg: Asian Games champion Jalgasbay BERDIMURATOV (UZB) and Alireza MOHMADIPIANI (IRI) are seeded number two and three for the qualifiers which means only one of Uzbekistan and Iran will earn a quota for Paris 2024. Berdimuratov reached the quarterfinals at the World Championships while Mohmadipiani moved to 87kg at the start of this year.

A win for Mohmadipiani and Kaviyaninejad at 77kg will make Iran the first time to qualify all six weights in Greco-Roman.

Former Asian champion Sunil KUMAR (IND) and Soh SAKABE (JPN) will also be in the bracket.

97kg: Veteran Rustam ASSAKALOV (UZB), the top seed, is looking to qualify for yet another Olympics. He will have to go through a bracket that has Olzhas SYRLYBAY (KAZ) and Uzur DZHUZUPBEKOV (KGZ) as the biggest challengers.

Yiming LI (CHN) and NITESH (IND) will be the dark horses in this weight class.

130kg: Seungchan LEE (KOR), who finished 12th at the World Championships, will be seeded number one at 130kg. Iran and China, the two biggest nations in Greco-Roman in Asia, have already won the quotas.

Alimkhan SYZDYKOV (KAZ) and Roman KIM (KGZ) will have the best chance to earn the spot for Paris with NAVEEN (IND) and Temurbek NASIMOV (UZB) also in the fray if the bracket plans out well for them.

Ahmadiyev stuns Szoke as Azerbaijan wins 3 golds at U23 Euros

Comments

Top Asian stars battle for Paris 2024 spots at Olympic qualifier