Bozkurt joins list of rising Turkey heavyweights with U23 World gold

Tuesday, October 18, 2022 - 21:51 By Vinay Siwach

PONTEVEDRA, Spain (October 18) -- As if the Turkey super heavyweight class was not already packed, Fatih BOZKURT (TUR) is the latest name to enter the list of successors to five-time world champion Riza KAYAALP (TUR).

Bozkurt won the 130kg gold medal at the U23 World Championships in dominating fashion in Pontevedra, Spain to inch closer to the spot on the senior team.

Apart from Kayaalp, Osman YILDIRIM (TUR), Muhammet BAKIR (TUR), Cemal BAKIR (TUR) and now Bozkurt are the wrestlers trying to fill the spot in the heaviest weight category.

Bozkurt, who finished fifth at the last edition of the U23 Worlds in Belgrade, outscored his opponents 31-2 in five bouts for the gold.

In the final, he wrestled U20 world champion Mykhailo VYSHNYVETSKYI (UKR) and came out with a technical superiority win, trouncing the Ukrainian at will.

He opened the scoring with a takedown when Vyshnyvetskyi tried a headlock. He also got the par terre position. When he scored the second takedown, he made sure he turns Vyshnyvetskyi and extends his lead.

Desperate to get back in the final with just one point on the board, Vyshnyvetskyi tried a bodylock throw but landed on his back to give two more points to Bozkurt.

Vyshnyvetskyi had used the bodylock to perfection Monday but the same became his undoing a day later.

“The final was a good one,” Bozkurt said. “ A little easy.”

Bozkurt also avenged his loss from the U23 European Championships final which he lost to Dariusz VITEK (HUN) 1-1. In the semifinals Monday, he scored a 6-1 win over Vitek.

“I was expecting to medal here and it's a relief that I was able to win the gold,” he said. “I am very pleased with this performance.”

While he aims to make the senior team in the coming time, Bozkurt is aware that it will be one challenging task.

“The competition in the Turkey national team is always tough, especially at 130kg,” he said. “It's good and that means I have to perform better to win.”

Poya DAD MARZ (IRI) upgraded his silver from 2021 to gold on Tuesday at the U23 Worlds. (Photo: UWW / Kostadin Andonov)

In the other four Greco-Roman gold medal bouts Tuesday, Iran managed to capture two while Armenia and Hungary shared one each.

For Iran, Poya DAD MARZ (IRI) made sure he doesn't return home with silver like last year. He defeated Nihad GULUZADE (AZE) 5-1 at 55kg to win the gold.

In a highly-paced bout, Dad Marz scored the first takedown. He did not let the guard down and got Guluzade to be passive. From par terre he got one gut wrench to lead 5-0 at the break.

In the second period, he was called passive but Guluzade did not get the turn that could have helped him remain in contention.

The former U20 world champion was also at the senior world championships this year but finished eighth. He was relieved that he managed to finish the season on a high.

Iman Khoon MOHAMMADI (IRI) defeated Giorgi SHOTADZE (GEO) 8-0 in the 63kg final. (Photo: UWW / Kostandin Andonov)

The second gold medal for Iran was won by Iman Khoon MOHAMMADI (IRI) at 63kg. He defeated Giorgi SHOTADZE (GEO) via technical superiority in the final.

Shotadze was never able to match the high-paced wrestling of Khoon Mohammadi. He was warned for being inactive both in the first and second periods. Khoon Mohammadi then scored using a stepout. Shotadze was cautioned for fleeing.

Khoon Mohammadi then scored a takedown before Shotadze hit a desperate throw but fell on his back, giving Khoon Mohammadi a technical superiority win.

Malkhas AMOYAN (ARM) now has three world titles -- U20, U23 and senior. (Photo: UWW / Kadir Caliskan)

In a highly anticipated 77kg final, senior world champion Malkhas AMOYAN (ARM) humbled Alexandrin GUTU (MDA) to win his first U23 world title.

Continuing his streak of winning medals in all the tournaments he has wrestled since the Individual World Cup in 2020, Amoyan captured the top medal to complete the set of U20, U23 and senior world gold.

Amoyan, who won the 72kg gold medal at the Oslo World Championships, also continues his smooth transition to 77kg, a weight in which he won bronze at the recent senior World Championships.

His opponent, 20-year-old Gutu was expected to put up a stronger challenge for the gold medal and did so at the start of the bout but was consistently caught off guard by Amoyan.

The first par terre advantage went to Amoyan. Gutu, however, managed to escape from the position before Amoyan caught him midway and exposed him with a high gut wrench. Gutu scored a stepout to cut the lead to 3-1 at the break.

Early in the second period, Gutu was once again caught in his own attack when Amoyan got one of his hands around Gutu's waist and after a little struggle, brought him to the mat for a takedown. He also turned Gutu for two more points.

In the end, Gutu, who finished 17th at the '21 U23 Worlds, had to contend with a silver medal as his search for the first world title since the U17 one in 2018 continues.

Istvan TAKACS (HUN) scored a 7-4 win over Gevorg TADEVOSYAN (ARM) in the 87kg final. (Photo: UWW / Kadir Caliskan)

Another rapidly rising star captured the gold Tuesday. Istvan TAKACS (HUN) added a U23 world gold medal to his already impressive resume which boasts of U20 world and continental gold medals. Takacs also won the U23 European Championships this year.

In the 87kg gold medal bout, he faced Gevorg TADEVOSYAN (ARM), a surprise finalist.

Tadevosyan built a 4-0 lead with a passivity call, a turn and a stepout. But just before the break, Takacs scored a big throw for four to lead on criteria.

The second period saw Takacs add three more points to his score to win the gold medal with no real trouble at the end.

After the medals were decided in five weight classes, Iran leads the team title race in Greco-Roman with Armenia in second and Turkey placed third.

The gold medal bouts of the remaining five weights were also decided Tuesday with eight different countries getting a finalist. Azerbaijan and Croatia were the only countries to have two finalists each.

Women's wrestling will begin at the U23 World Championships Wednesday with 50kg, 55kg, 59kg, 68kg and 76kg wrestlers going on the mat.

Olympic and world champion Yui SUSAKI (JPN) will be one of the wrestlers in action Wednesday as she begins her quest to win the U23 world gold and complete the Grand Slam in wrestling.

RESULTS

55kg
GOLD: Poya DAD MARZ (IRI) df. Nihad GULUZADE (AZE), 5-1

BRONZE: Ahmet TASKINOGLU (TUR) df. Denis MIHAI (ROU), 8-3
BRONZE: Giorgi TOKHADZE (GEO) df. Ken MATSUI (JPN), 8-0

63kg
GOLD: Iman Khoon MOHAMMADI (IRI) df. Giorgi SHOTADZE (GEO), 8-0

BRONZE: Ryuto IKEDA (JPN) df. Ziya BABASHOV (AZE), 1-1
BRONZE: Hrachya POGHOSYAN (ARM) df. Maksym LIU (UKR), 3-1

77kg
GOLD: Malkhas AMOYAN (ARM) df. Alexandrin GUTU (MDA), 7-2

BRONZE: Sajan BHANWALA (IND) df. Dmytro VASETSKYI (UKR), 10-10
BRONZE: Nao KUSAKA (JPN) df. Mohammad Reza MOKHTARI (IRI), 3-1

87kg
GOLD: Istvan TAKACS (HUN) df. Gevorg TADEVOSYAN (ARM), 7-2

BRONZE: Szymon SZYMONOWICZ (POL) df. Beka MELELASHVILI (GEO), 4-1
BRONZE: Marcel STERKENBURG (NED) df. Maksat SAILAU (KAZ), 9-1

130kg
GOLD: Fatih BOZKURT (TUR) df. Mykhailo VYSHNYVETSKYI (UKR), 9-1

BRONZE: Dariusz VITEK (HUN) df. Nikolaos NTOUNIAS (GRE), 12-2
BRONZE: Aliakbar YOUSOFI (IRI) df. Sarkhan MAMMADOV (AZE), 9-1

Semifinals

60kg
GOLD: Nihat MAMMADLI (AZE) vs. Kerem KAMAL (TUR)

SF 1: Nihat MAMMADLI (AZE) df. Nurmukhammet ABDULLAEV (KGZ), 3-1
SF 2: Kerem KAMAL (TUR) df. Irakli DZIMISTARISHVILI (GEO), 4-4

67kg
GOLD: Seyed SOHRABI (IRI) vs. Gagik SNJOYAN (FRA)

SF 1: Seyed SOHRABI (IRI) df. Diego CHKHIKVADZE (GEO), 6-3
SF 2: Gagik SNJOYAN (FRA) df. Kyotaro SOGABE (JPN), 9-1

72kg
GOLD: Pavel PUKLAVEC (CRO) vs. Gurban GURBANOV (AZE)

SF 1: Pavel PUKLAVEC (CRO) df. VIKAS (IND), 9-0
SF 2: Gurban GURBANOV (AZE) df. Irfan MIRZOIEV (UKR), 7-1

82kg
GOLD: Exauce MUKUBU (NOR) vs. Karlo KODRIC (CRO)

SF 1: Exauce MUKUBU (NOR) df. Mats AHLGREN (SWE), 11-0
SF 2: Karlo KODRIC (CRO) df. Beka GURULI (GEO), 6-5

97kg
GOLD: Markus RAGGINGER (AUT) vs. Alex SZOKE (HUN)

SF 1: Markus RAGGINGER (AUT) df. Giorgi KATSANASHVILI (GEO), 4-1
SF 2: Alex SZOKE (HUN) df. Igor ALVES (BRA), 3-0

#WrestleTirana

U23 Worlds: Reetika wins 76kg gold; Bas repeats

Thursday, October 26, 2023 - 21:12 By Vinay Siwach

TIRANA, Albania (October 26) -- Perhaps the best was saved for the last. After four snoozefests, Reetika HOODA (UWW) and Kennedy BLADES (USA) wrestled in an action-packed final, ironically at 76kg, at the U23 World Championships on Thursday with the former beating Blades 9-2 and denied the former U20 world champion another world title.

The four finals before that went like this -- injury default at 50kg, 4-2 at 55kg, 1-1 at 59kg and 2-1 at 68kg.

The 76kg final was on unexpected lines as Blades, the clear favorite against Hooda who was jumping to 76kg for the first time after spending two years at 72kg, suffered a rather tame loss. Hooda used a gameplan of counter-offense which completely shut Blades in the final.

The first two points for Hooda were stepouts she got as counters to Blades' attacks. The American was put on the activity clock but managed to hit a double-leg for two points to lead 2-2 on criteria. Blades' tried another attack but Hooda pushed Blades out one more time to lead 3-2 at the break.

REETIKA (UWW) Reetika HOODA (UWW) scores against Kennedy BLADES (USA) in the 76kg final. (Photo: UWW / Kadir Caliskan)

Hooda, a senior Asian Championships bronze medalist, kept the pressure on and Blades at a distance. Blades desperately tried to attack Hooda's legs but was shot off using underhooks. In one such situation, Hooda got Blades and scored a takedown. A stepout later, she scored another takedown in a similar fashion, before clinching the gold medal with another stepout.

The gold is Hooda's first at a world event and a step towards the Olympic journey at 76kg. Having first stepped on the mat at the age of 14 years, Hooda has earned a considerable name for herself in seven years. She has a U23 Asia title to go with her U20 world bronze and senior Asian bronze.

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Hailing from Rohtak, Haryana in India, she chose to join the CR Stadium, the school that has produced several age-group world medalists including U20 world champion SAVITA, Manshi AHLAWAT, Pooja GEHLOT. In fact, the three UWW medalists on Thursday, Hooda, Neha SHARMA and NITIKA, all hail from the same stadium.

Hooda, pushed by her army veteran father to take up wrestling, will fly directly to Goa for the National Games and try to win another medal at 76kg.

Even Blades will have to quickly regroup and fly to Chile for the Pan-Am Games as she is part of the United States team for the Santiago tournament from November 1.

An estatic Nesrin BAS (TUR) after she won a challenge and the 68kg final. (Photo: UWW / Kadir Caliskan)

The 68kg final too was going towards an upset as U20 world bronze medalist Alina SHAUCHUK (AIN) clinched the gold medal over defending champion Nesrin BAS (TUR) on 1-1 criteria as both wrestlers had exchanged activity points only to see it go after a challenge.

In the final 10 seconds of the bout, Bas got on a double leg and pushed Shauchuk toward the zone. Shauchuk managed to pressure Bas and keep her from scoring a stepout till the clock expired.

Turkiye however challenged hoping for a miracle and on review, a stepout was confirmed as Shauchuk tried to circle back when Bas tried standing up with her hands on Shauchuk's legs. Shauchuk's body was in the air when her leg foot touched outside the zone which the jury deemed as a stepout, giving an additional point to Bas and the gold medal.

Bas, the U23 European champion and bronze medalist at the senior level, is the first wrestler from Turkiye to win the U23 world title for the second time.

Solomiia VYNNYK (UKR) celebrates after winning the 59kg final. (Photo: UWW / Kadir Caliskan)

While Shauchuk failed to hold her 1-1 criteria lead, Solomiia VYNNYK (UKR) managed to hold off Sena NAGAMOTO (JPN) 1-1 in the 59kg final. Nagamoto never looked convincing in her attacks after trailing and Vynnyk had no trouble to play the time.

Vynnyk gave Ukraine its first gold in Women's Wrestling at the U23 World Championships after the nation drew a blank last year in Pontevedra, Spain where the former European silver medalist had won a bronze medal at 59kg.

Umi IMAI (JPN) won the 55kg gold over Neha SHARMA (UWW). (Photo: UWW / Kadir Caliskan)

Japan, the most dominant nation in Women's Wrestling, did win two gold medals as Umi ITO (JPN) won at 50kg and Umi IMAI (JPN) won at 55kg.

Imai wrestled Neha SHARMA (UWW) in the final and opened the scoring in typical Japanese style, hitting an outside single and converting it into a takedown. Despite several efforts by Sharma to get a point on board, Imai was solid in defense and did not allow Sharma to go behind.

The 2022 Asian champion would score another takedown in a similar fashion in the second period to lead 4-0 with a minute and 30 seconds left in the final. Sharma got a counter takedown with 50 seconds left to close the gap to 4-2 but could not score another for the win.

Umi ITO (JPN) added a U23 world title to her U17 and U20 titles. (Photo: UWW / Kadir Caliskan)

At 50kg, Ito, who has never lost internationally with gold medals at the U17 and U20 World Championships, added the U23 world title after her finals opponent Audrey JIMENEZ (USA) pulled out due to a knee injury.

Ito and Jimenez had wrestled in the U20 World Championships final last year at 50kg with Ito winning 10-0. Even in Tirana, the Japanese wrestler won all three of her bouts via technical superiority.

Kamile GAUCAITE (LTU), second from right, won bronze at 76kg. (Photo: UWW / Ulug Bugra Han Degirmenci)

Lithuania wins bronze

Six years after Danute DOMIKAITYTE (LTU) won Lithuania's last world medal at any level, Kamile GAUCAITE (LTU) ended that drought by winning the bronze medal at 76kg in Tirana. Gaucaite was able to see off Patrycja SLOMSKA (POL) 7-3 in the bronze-medal bout.

The second bronze medal at 76kg went to 2021 U23 world champion Anastasiya ALPYEYEVA (UKR) who pinned Nodoka YAMAMOTO (JPN) after leading 4-2.

Manola SKOBELSKA (UKR) gave Ukraine the second bronze as she defeated Vusala PARFIANOVICH (AIN), 5-3, at 68kg while Tindra SJOEBERG (SWE) rolled to an 11-0 victory over Vanessa KEEFE (CAN) to earn the second bronze at this weight.

European champion Andreea ANA (ROU) bounced back from her defeat to Imai to beat Mariia VYNNYK (UKR), 3-1, in a tense bout for the bronze medal. U20 world champion Aryna MARTYNAVA (AIN) dug deep to help herself beat Zeinep BAYANOVA (KAZ), 8-5, and take home a bronze medal.

At 50kg, U23 European champion Emma LUTTENAUER (FRA) blanked Aida KERYMOVA (UKR), 7-0, to win bronze, her first world medal. Elnura MAMMADOVA (AZE) held off NEELAM (UWW), 8-5, in the other bronze-medal playoff.

Anastasiia SIDELNIKOVA (AIN) won the bronze medal at 59kg after she defeated Nadzeya BULANAYA (AIN), 6-3, while NITIKA (UWW) pinned Michaela RANKIN (CAN) to claim one for herself as well.

Irina RINGACI (MDA) reached the 65kg final after beating Macey KILTY (USA). (Photo: UWW / Kadir Caliskan)

Ringaci, Elor in final

Defending champion Amit ELOR (USA) reached the final after two pins and a 5-0 win at 72kg in Tirana. Elor, chasing a career eighth world title, will take on Jyoti BERWAL (UWW) for the gold medal on Friday.

Elor spent 34 seconds on the mat for her first two pins, the first in 16 seconds and the second in 18 seconds. In the semifinal, she defeated her last year's finals opponent Wiktoria CHOLUJ (POL), 5-0.

Berwal defeated U20 world silver medalist Bukrenaz SERT (TUR), 7-0, in the other semifinal to set up the gold medal clash against Elor.

At 65kg, Irina RINGACI (MDA) defended everything Macey KILTY (USA) threw at her to win the semifinal 5-4. She also had two pins to begin with but Kilty, world silver medalist, surprised her with a flurry of attacks early in the semifinal

Kilty got the first takedown and worked for others but Ringaci's defense was too much for her as the Moldovan scored from disadvantageous postition to lead 4-2 at the break.

Ringaci scored a stepout to begin the second period and defended a takedown attempt from Kilty using the split. It took a lot out of Ringaci who still had a minute and a half to defend her 5-2 lead.

Kilty would eventually get a takedown with 30 seconds left on the clock but Ringaci held on to beat Kilty 5-4 and head to her first U23 world final. She will take on Amina TANDELOVA (AIN) who defetaed Elma ZEIDLERE (LAT), 6-2, in the other semifinal.

Mariana DRAGUTAN (MDA) was the second Moldovan to reach the final on Thursday as she defeated Altyn SHAGAYEVA (KAZ), 6-2 at 53kg. She will take on Mako OONO (JPN) who also won her semifinal against Ekaterina VERBINA (AIN) with a similar scoreline.

2022 Asian champion Sara NATAMI (JPN) will take on Zhala ALIYEVA (AZE) in the 57kg final after she won her semifinal against Elvira KAMALOGLU (TUR), 8-1. Aliyeva blanked Mia FRIESEN (CAN), 10-0, in the other semifinal.

Iryna BONDAR (UKR) will have a chance to improve her silver from last year to gold as she returned to the final at 62kg. She defeated Bhagyashree FAND (UWW) 10-0 and will take on Yuzuka INAGAKI (JPN) who won her semifinal over Alina KASABIEVA (AIN), 12-2.

RESULTS

50kg
GOLD: Umi ITO (JPN) df. Audrey JIMENEZ (USA), via inj. def.

BRONZE: Elnura MAMMADOVA (AZE) df. NEELAM (UWW), 8-5
BRONZE: Emma LUTTENAUER (FRA) df. Aida KERYMOVA (UKR), 7-0

55kg
GOLD: Umi IMAI (JPN) df. Neha SHARMA (UWW), 4-2

BRONZE: Andreea ANA (ROU) df. Mariia VYNNYK (UKR), 3-1
BRONZE: Aryna MARTYNAVA (AIN) df. Zeinep BAYANOVA (KAZ), 8-5

59kg
GOLD: Solomiia VYNNYK (UKR) df. Sena NAGAMOTO (JPN), 1-1

BRONZE: Anastasiia SIDELNIKOVA (AIN) df. Nadzeya BULANAYA (AIN), 6-3
BRONZE: NITIKA (UWW) df. Michaela RANKIN (CAN), via fall

68kg
GOLD: Nesrin BAS (TUR) df. Alina SHAUCHUK (AIN), 2-1

BRONZE: Tindra SJOEBERG (SWE) df. Vanessa KEEFE (CAN), 11-0
BRONZE: Manola SKOBELSKA (UKR) df. Vusala PARFIANOVICH (AIN), 5-3

76kg
GOLD: REETIKA (UWW) df. Kennedy BLADES (USA), 9-2

BRONZE: Anastasiya ALPYEYEVA (UKR) df. Nodoka YAMAMOTO (JPN), via fall
BRONZE: Kamile GAUCAITE (LTU) df. Patrycja SLOMSKA (POL), 7-3

SEMIFINALS

53kg
GOLD: Mariana DRAGUTAN (MDA) vs. Mako OONO (JPN)

SF 1: Mako OONO (JPN) df. Ekaterina VERBINA (AIN), 6-2
SF 2: Mariana DRAGUTAN (MDA) df. Altyn SHAGAYEVA (KAZ), 6-2

57kg
GOLD: Sara NATAMI (JPN) vs. Zhala ALIYEVA (AZE)

SF 1: Zhala ALIYEVA (AZE) df. Mia FRIESEN (CAN), 10-0
SF 2: Sara NATAMI (JPN) df. Elvira KAMALOGLU (TUR), 8-1

62kg
GOLD: Iryna BONDAR (UKR) vs. Yuzuka INAGAKI (JPN)

SF 1: Yuzuka INAGAKI (JPN) df. Alina KASABIEVA (AIN), 12-2
SF 2: Iryna BONDAR (UKR) df. Bhagyashree FAND (UWW), 10-0

65kg
GOLD: Irina RINGACI (MDA) vs. Amina TANDELOVA (AIN)

SF 1: Amina TANDELOVA (AIN) df. Elma ZEIDLERE (LAT), 6-2
SF 2: Irina RINGACI (MDA) df. Macey KILTY (USA), 5-4

72kg
GOLD: Amit ELOR (USA) vs. Jyoti BERWAL (UWW)

SF 1: Jyoti BERWAL (UWW) df. Bukrenaz SERT (TUR), 7-0
SF 2: Amit ELOR (USA) df. Wiktoria CHOLUJ (POL), 5-0

Bozkurt joins list of rising Turkey heavyweights with U23 World gold

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U23 Worlds: Reetika wins 76kg gold; Bas repeats