#WrestleAlmaty

Bolat Turlykhanov Cup day three finals set

Saturday, June 4, 2022 - 04:43 By Vinay Siwach

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ALMATY, Kazakhstan (June 4) -- Freestyle begins at the Bolat Turlykhanov Cup Ranking Series event in Almaty along with the remaining six weight classes of women's wrestling.

WATCH LIVE | MATCH ORDER

13:00: The finals for the night.

WW 50kg: Namuuntsetseg TSOGT OCHIR (MGL) vs Jasmina IMMAEVA (UZB)
WW 53kg: Zhuldyz ESHIMOVA (KAZ) vs Bolortuya BAT OCHIR (MGL)
FS 97kg: Amirhossein FIROUZPOUR (IRI) vs Batyrbek TCAKULOV (SVK)
WW 55kg: Marina SEDNEVA (KAZ) vs Shokhida AKHMEDOVA (UZB)
WW 59kg: Zhala ALIYEVA (AZE) vs Sarita MOR (IND)
FS 125kg: Amir Hossein ZARE (IRI) vs Yusup BATIRMURZAEV (KAZ)
WW 65kg: Elis MANOLOVA (AZE) vs MANISHA (IND)
WW 72kg: BIPASHA (IND) vs Zhamila BAKBERGENOVA (KAZ)

12:50: At 97kg, Magomed IBRAGIMOV (UZB) and Batyrbek TCAKULOV (SVK) fighting for a spot in the semifinal. Tcakulov with a quick takedown and two exposures. He then gets a cradle and secures the fall. Tcakulov is a U23 World silver medalist and even a senior Russian champion at 92kg. He switched to Slovakia and won a bronze at the European Championships this year.

12:45: Olympic bronze medalist Bolortuya BAT OCHIR (MGL) gave up four points in the first period against Leyla GURBANOVA (AZE) but she works her way back to pick a fall at 53kg and enter the final.

12:30: Amirhossein FIROUZPOUR (IRI) worked his way to a big win over Mukhammadrasul RAKHIMOV (UZB). He did give up two takedowns but continued working with pressure and won 15-4.

12:20: World champion Amir ZARE (IRI) against world bronze medalist Lkhagvagerel MUNKHTUR (MGL). Slow start to the bout as Munkhtur is called passive. Zare leads 1-0. Munkhtur is called for a second passive in the second period. He trails 2-0 now. Zare tries to get his takedown but only manages a stepout. He leads 3-0 and wins with the same scoreline.

12:00: We are beginning with the semifinals in a short while. Big matches all around.

11:45: World bronze medalist Lkhagvagerel MUNKHTUR (MGL) had a tough time navigating Alisher YERGALI (KAZ) at 125kg. He led 3-0 but Yergali scored a takedown and almost had another point for the win. But Munkhtur holds on.

11:30: Sarita MOR (IND) looks in top form. She wins 11-0 against Diana KAYUMOVA (KAZ) to book her spot in the semifinals at 59kg. She will be looking to move on from her bronze medal finish at the Asian Championships

11:25: Amirhossein FIROUZPOUR (IRI) and Akezhan AITBEKOV (KAZ) were involved in a fierce battle. Firouzpour is moving up to 97kg from 92kg for the first time. Aitbekov had a 3-1 lead but Firouzpour manages to crawl back and win 8-3. Not the perfect bout for him but he will take it.

11:10: Tokyo Olympian Elis MANALOVA (AZE) is in top form here. She has leg laced her way to the semifinals. She first defeated MANISHA (IND) and then Dinora RUSTAMOVA (UZB) in the same fashion

11:00: Zhamila BAKBERGENOVA (KAZ) begins her quest at the home Ranking Series event with a 10-0 win against Svetlana OKNAZAROVA (UZB) at 72kg.

10:50: Amir ZARE (IRI) led 6-0 but Oleg BOLTIN (KAZ) comes up with a takedown and then a four-point move to tie it 6-6. A reversal and takedown gave Zare a 9-7 win.

10:30: Welcome to the third day of the Ranking Series here in Almaty. With a sudden change of weather, it's windy and rainy here. 

#WrestleNoviSad

Mesenbrink takes steady steps to win U23 Worlds gold

Saturday, October 25, 2025 - 17:22 By Vinay Siwach

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NOVI SAD, Serbia (October 25) -- Mitchell MESENBRINK (USA) remembers his last year's U23 World Championships campaign. He won a bronze medal, left Tirana a little frustrated and missing his training room in Penn State.

With lessons from that tournament and surrounded by his Penn State teammates and coaches, Mesenbrink made sure he did not return home without a medal. The former U20 world champion became U23 world champion after beating Halit OZMUS (TUR), 12-2, in the 74kg final.

Mesenbrink was a leg-attack machine in the final and Ozmus did little to defend those, giving up the final in 2:59, just on the stroke of the break.

"It's just about constantly getting better, technically, and emotionally, too," Mesenbrink said. "If I'm just running in there, trying to grab onto his head, he can get in. So just being able to constantly improve. I think that's a strong testament to the people around me and to the coaches that I have and the teammates that I have at Penn State."

Seven wrestler out of the 10 on the United States Freestyle team are part of the same training center -- the Nittany Lions Wrestling Club, Penn State, which Mesenbrink said made a lot of difference this year.

"It's fun, because last year I came by myself. It was just me at the U23s. So it was fun this year that we had seven out of 10 guys," he said. "Last year, I knew the guys, but it wasn't my teammates, right? Now it's my teammates, the guys that I'm literally in the room with every day. We go over and it's almost like, are we even in Serbia right now? It feels like we're in America, because we got so many guys here."

In Tirana, the American wrestler lost to Kota TAKAHASHI (JPN) in the quarterfinals but bounced back to win the bronze medal. But in Novi Sad on Friday, Mesenbrink faced Yoshinosuke AOYAGI (JPN) in the semifinals and came out on top 6-4, with a buzzer beating takedown.

The win boasted Mesenbrink's confidence who was close to make the U.S. senior team for World Championships in Zagreb where Takahashi won gold, but lost to David CARR (USA) domestically.

However, that loss made Mesenbrink think about his aims and how he wants to improve his wrestling on the mat.

"I think the big thing of not making the world team, it was just, I got to get better in those specific areas," he said. "That's the most fun part. I thought this is all this is, is a title. This is gonna be fading so quick. So I thought I'm going to go out there and I'm going to work on the things that I've been working on and I've been working really hard since Final X to get those improvements."

Mobin AZIMI (IRI)Mobin AZIMI (IRI) celebrates after winning the 92kg gold medal. (Photo: United World Wrestling / Kostadin Andonov)

In the only other final of Freestyle, Mobin AZIMI (IRI) earned the first gold medal for Iran after beating Takhir KHANIEV (UWW), 5-3, in the 92kg final. Azimi broken Khaniev down in the final and scored three stepout points to win the gold medal.

RESULTS

74kg
GOLD: Mitchell MESENBRINK (USA) df. Halit OZMUS (TUR), 12-2

BRONZE: Yoshinosuke AOYAGI (JPN) df. PARVINDER (IND), 8-2
BRONZE: Manuel WAGIN (GER) df. Magomed KHANIEV (AZE), 8-4

92kg
GOLD: Mobin AZIMI (IRI) df. Takhir KHANIEV (UWW), 5-3

BRONZE: Sherzod POYONOV (UZB) df. Ivan CHORNOHUZ (UKR), 11-1
BRONZE: Magomed SHARIPOV (BRN) df. Ion DEMIAN (MDA), 10-0

Semifinals

57kg
GOLD: Yuta KIKUCHI (JPN) vs. Luke LILLEDAHL (USA)

SF 1: Yuta KIKUCHI (JPN) df. Nodirbek JUMANAZAROV (UZB), 6-1
SF 2: Luke LILLEDAHL (USA) df. Aiandai ONDAR (UWW), 7-1

70kg
GOLD: Kanan HEYBATOV (AZE) vs. Sina KHALILI (IRI)

SF 1: Kanan HEYBATOV (AZE) df. PJ DUKE (USA), 14-4
SF 2: Sina KHALILI (IRI) df. Alexandr GAIDARLI (MDA), 8-2

79kg
GOLD: Ibrahim YAPRAK (TUR) vs. Levi HAINES (USA)

SF 1: Ibrahim YAPRAK (TUR) df. Nikita DMITRIJEVS MAYEUSKI (UWW), 5-2
SF 2: Levi HAINES (USA) df. Davud DAUDOV (UWW), 11-4

125kg
GOLD: Abolfazl MOHAMMAD NEZHAD (IRI) vs. Khetag KARSANOV (AZE)

SF 1: Abolfazl MOHAMMAD NEZHAD (IRI) df. Khabib DAVUDGADZHIEV (UWW), 5-0
SF 2: Khetag KARSANOV (AZE) df. Daniel HERRERA (USA), 12-2