#WrestleBudapest19

Andreu Ortega and Goleij Seek Second U23 World Titles

Monday, October 28, 2019 - 20:54 By Taylor Miller

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Photo: Reineri ANDREU ORTEGA (CUB). / Photo: Kadir Caliskan

BUDAPEST, Hungary – Two men’s freestyle athletes and 2017 U23 World champions, Reineri ANDREU ORTEGA (CUB) at 57 kg and Mojtaba GOLEIJ (IRI) at 97 kg, seek to earn their second U23 World gold medals on Tuesday in Budapest, Hungary.

Both Andreu Ortega and Goleij won their first U23 World titles in 2017.

At 57 kg, Andreu Ortega will return to the U23 gold-medal finals, thanks to three wins on Monday in Budapest.

After taking out 2016 Junior World champion Afgan Smail KHASHALOV (AZE) in the first round and 2018 U23 World bronze medalist Wanhao ZOU (CHN) in the quarterfinals, Andreu Ortega battled 2019 Russian Nationals champion Ramiz GAMZATOV (RUS).

Trailing 1-0 at the break, Andreu Ortega used a takedown, trapped-arm gut and a four-point takedown for an 8-2 win and a spot in the finals.

Tomorrow for gold, Andreu Ortega will face 2019 Junior World bronze medalist and 2017 Cadet World bronze medalist Adlan ASKAROV (KAZ).

Askarov had several close battles on the day, including his semifinal match against Alireza Nosratolha SARLAK (IRI).

Sarlak led 3-1 late in the second period, but with less than 20 seconds left, Askarov scored a takedown to take the lead and secure a 3-3 win on criteria.

Photo of Mojtaba GOLEIJ (IRI). Photo: Kadir Caliskan

Wrestling at 97 kg, Goleij had a big day, opening his day with an 11-0 win against Lukas KRASAUSKAS (LTU). In the quarterfinals, Goleij took down 2018 U23 World champion Givi MATCHARASHVILI (GEO) in an 8-6 decision.

To move onto the finals, Goleij put together a decisive 8-2 win against Dzianis KHRAMIANKOU (BLR) in a rematch of the 2017 U23 World gold-medal match.

In his finals bout tomorrow, Goleij will face 2017 Junior World champion Shamil MUSAEV (RUS), who was dominant in his opening day of competition, picking up three-straight technical falls, including a 12-0 victory over Serik BAKYTKHANOV (KAZ) in the quarterfinals.  

Photo of Tariel GAPHRINDASHVILI (GEO). Photo: Kadir Caliskan

2018 Cadet World champion Turan BAYRAMOV (AZE) seeks his second-career World title, advancing to the 65 kg finals.

Bayramov, a 2019 Junior World bronze medalist and a 2017 Cadet World silver medalist, outlasted Ilman MUKHTAROV (FRA) in the semifinals tonight, scoring a second-period takedown to give him a 2-1 advantage.

For gold, Bayramov will take on 2018 Junior Asian champion Takuma TANIYAMA (JPN). In his semifinal, Taniyama held off Ernazar AKMATALIEV (KGZ) with a 4-3 decision.

Mirza SKHULUKHIA (GEO) locked up his second U23 World medal by battling his way to the 70 kg finals. He was a bronze medalist at the 2017 U23 World Championships.

For the 70 kg title, Skhulukhia will go head-to-head with Cherman VALIEV (RUS), who did not give up a single point in his first four matches of the tournament. He outscored his opponents on Monday, 39-0, including a 10-0 win over Amirhossein HOSSEINI (IRI) in the semifinals.

Wrestling in the gold bout at 79 kg is 2016 Junior World bronze medalist Tariel GAPHRINDASHVILI (GEO) and three-time World medalist Abubakr ABAKAROV (AZE).

Abakarov is a 2016 Cadet World champion, 2018 Junior World silver medalist and a 2019 Junior World bronze medalist.

The finals will take place at 6 p.m. on Tuesday. Fans can watch live on unitedworldwrestling.org.

Semifinals results
57 kg
Reineri ANDREU ORTEGA (CUB) df. Ramiz GAMZATOV (RUS), 8-2
Adlan ASKAROV (KAZ) df. Alireza SARLAK (IRI), 3-3

65 kg
Turan BAYRAMOV (AZE) df. Ilman MUKHTAROV (FRA), 2-1
Takuma TANIYAMA (JPN) df. Ernazar AKMATALIEV (KGZ), 4-3

70 kg
Mirza SKHULUKHIA (GEO) df. Oleksii BORUTA (UKR), 9-5
Cherman VALIEV (RUS) df. Amirhossein HOSSEINI (IRI), 10-0

79 kg
Tariel GAPHRINDASHVILI (GEO) df. Ramazan SARI (TUR), 10-6
Abubakr ABAKAROV (AZE) df. Ver Dev GULIA (IND), 8-1

97 kg
Mojtaba GOLEIJ (IRI) df. Dzianis KHRAMIANKOU (BLR), 8-2
Shamil MUSAEV (RUS) df. Danylo STASIUK (UKR), 13-2

Finals matchups
57 kg: Reineri ANDREU ORTEGA (CUB) vs. Adlan ASKAROV (KAZ)
65 kg: Turan BAYRAMOV (AZE) vs. Takuma TANIYAMA (JPN)
70 kg: Mirza SKHULUKHIA (GEO) vs. Cherman VALIEV (RUS)
79 kg: Tariel GAPHRINDASHVILI (GEO) vs. Abubakr ABAKAROV (AZE)
97 kg: Mojtaba GOLEIJ (IRI) vs. Shamil MUSAEV (RUS)

#UnitedWorldWrestling

Wrestling for schools: UWW, ISF take steps to encourage students

Thursday, December 14, 2023 - 13:51 By United World Wrestling Press

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LAUSANNE, Switzerland (December 14) -- United World Wrestling and International School Sport Federation entered into a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to cooperate and facilitate collaboration between ISF and UWW for the promotion of wrestling and beach wrestling in schools.

The two federations will strive to establish wrestling and beach wrestling as recognized sports among National School Sport Federations and strengthen overall cooperation and partnership between the two organizations and their members.

UWW President Nenad LALOVIC and ISF President Laurent PETRYNKA, along with other representatives from both organizations, met in Lausanne during the International Federation Forum to ink the cooperation.

"Wrestling is a sport that prepares you both physically and mentally," Lalovic said. "It is a sport that transcends the lessons learned on the mat to those needed through life. This is why it is important to have the opportunities the sport of wrestling provides embedded in the school curriculum."

UWW and ISF will now work on similar lines and look to bring wrestling into education at both local and international levels, attracting school-age enthusiasts of the sport and fostering cooperation between UWW and ISF with local authorities.

"Wrestling provides a pathway that can uniquely prepare the youth of tomorrow by building their confidence, improving their self-esteem and sense of belonging, and creating mental and physical discipline from a young age," Lalovic added. "Wrestling is a sport that continues to stand the test of time and I am confident the more people who wrestle the more we prepare youth to have a bright future."

The focus will also be on promoting girls' school sports and encouraging students of all genders to practice wrestling, on the mat and the beach.

The cooperation will extend to the field of play as well and both organizations will work to identify and implement synergies, establish a training and assessment unit for International/National Technical Officials, promote sustainability, the principles of fair play and integrity, and join the fight against all forms of racism in sport.

School wrestling can be used as a development platform for experimenting with new rules and formats or any other innovation as well.

Off the mat, both UWW and ISF will work to organize workshops, seminars, and other educational events for technical officials and teachers, especially PE teachers and a Technical Officials Education Program, specifically targeting youth, will be developed and implemented. This program will aim to ensure the future participation of youth officials at various events.

To help countries that suffer from a lack of school sports, UWW will provide experts for teaching and coaching sessions for the School Sport Foundation to promote wrestling in such countries. It will also define an educational calendar with ISF before the ISF competitions to provide experts to deliver education courses.

The partnership is a step towards taking wrestling to a wider sphere, especially at the school level.