#WrestleBudapest, #WrestleParis

Budapest Ranking Series Entry List

By United World Wrestling Press

BUDAPEST, Hungary (May 28) — If you wanted to see how some of the Paris Olympians are preparing for the Games, follow the Ranking Series in Budapest. From June 6 to 9, Budapest will see almost 50 percent of the Paris-qualified wrestlers perform in the Ranking Series in their last leg of training. The tournament will also offer ranking points that can change a few seeds for the Games.

World champions, Olympic champions and superstars of wrestling will make up the 313-wrestler-strong field in Budapest with 134 Paris-qualified ones. The tournament will kick off on June 4 with all the action live on UWW+ on uww.org and the UWW App.

Freestyle

57kg
Aryan TSIUTRYN (AIN)
Aliabbas RZAZADE (AZE)
Roberti DINGASHVILI (GEO)
AMAN (IND)
Ali MOMENIJOUJADEH (IRI)
Rei HIGUCHI (JPN)
Almaz SMANBEKOV (KGZ)
Darian CRUZ (PUR)
Gulomjon ABDULLAEV (UZB)

61kg
Abdelhak KHERBACHE (ALG)
Arsen HARUTYUNYAN (ARM)
Gamal MOHAMED (EGY)
Giorgi GONIASHVILI (GEO)
Nika ZAKASHVILI (GEO)
Shahdad KHOSRAVI MARDAKHEH (IRI)
Taiyrbek ZHUMASHBEK UULU (KGZ)
Bekbolot MYRZANAZAR UULU (KGZ)
Nils LEUTERT (SUI)
Nahshon GARRETT (USA)

65kg
Haji ALIYEV (AZE)
Iszmail MUSZUKAJEV (HUN)
Gyoergy SZILAGYI (HUN)
Abbas EBRAHIMZADEHSAVADKOUHI (IRI)
Kotaro KIYOOKA (JPN)
Austin GOMEZ (MEX)
Umidjon JALOLOV (UZB)

70kg
Vazgen TEVANYAN (ARM)
Arman ANDREASYAN (ARM)
Akaki KEMERTELIDZE (GEO)
Edemi BOLKVADZE (GEO)
Marcell DELY (HUN)
Mohammadali AMOUZADKHALILI (IRI)
Alibek OSMONOV (KGZ)
Evan HENDERSON (USA)

74kg
Turan BAYRAMOV (AZE)
Adam THOMSON (CAN)
Giorgi ELBAKIDZE (GEO)
Murad KURAMAGOMEDOV (HUN)
Ali Abbas REZAEIAGHOUZGELEH (IRI)
Orozobek TOKTOMAMBETOV (KGZ)
Nemanja KIMOSKI (SRB)
Bekzod ABDURAKHMONOV (UZB)
Razambek JAMALOV (UZB)
Anthony MONTERO CHIRINOS (VEN)

79kg
Chems FETAIRIA (ALG)
Mihail GEORGIEV (BUL)
Piruzi KVLIVIDZE (GEO)
Otari BAGAURI (GEO)
Adel PANAEIAN (IRI)
Akhsarbek GULAEV (SVK)

86kg
Fateh BENFERDJALLAH (ALG)
Jayden LAWRENCE (AUS)
Evsem SHVELIDZE (GEO)
Patrik MEZEI (HUN)
Patrik PUESPOEKI (HUN)
Hassan YAZDANI (IRI)
Hayato ISHIGURO (JPN)
Azamat DAULETBEKOV (KAZ)
Ethan RAMOS (PUR)
Myles AMINE (SMR)
Trent HIDLAY (USA)
Bobur ISLOMOV (UZB)

92kg
Miriani MAISURADZE (GEO)
Iuza TSERTSVADZE (GEO)
Krisztian ANGYAL (HUN)
Balazs JUHASZ (HUN)
Amirhossein FIROUZPOUR (IRI)

97kg 
Magomedkhan MAGOMEDOV (AZE)
Aliaksandr HUSHTYN (AIN)
Mostafa ELDERS (EGY)
Zaur BERADZE (GEO)
Richard VEGH (HUN)
Abolfazl BABALOO (IRI)
Rizabek AITMUKHAN (KAZ)
Alisher YERGALI (KAZ)
Batyrbek TSAKULOV (SVK)
Ibrahim CIFTCI (TUR)

125kg 
Giorgi MESHVILDISHVILI (AZE)
Dzianis KHRAMIANKOU (AIN)
Georgi IVANOV (BUL)
Diaaeldin ABDELMOTTALEB (EGY)
Geno PETRIASHVILI (GEO)
Givi MATCHARASHVILI (GEO)
Milan KORCSOG (HUN)
Amirreza MASOUMI VALADI (IRI)
Yusup BATIRMURZAEV (KAZ)
Jonovan SMITH (PUR)
Mason PARRIS (USA)

Mohammadreza GERAEI (IRI)Mohammadreza GERAEI (IRI) and Kyotaro SOGABE (JPN) can face each other at 67kg. (Photo: United World Wrestling / Kadir Caliskan)

Greco-Roman

55kg
Eldaniz AZIZLI (AZE)
Marat GARIPOV (BRA)
Nugzari TSURTSUMIA (GEO)
Poya DAD MARZ (IRI)

60kg
Abdelkarim FERGAT (ALG)
Kevin DE ARMAS RODRIGUEZ (CUB)
Pridon ABULADZE (GEO)
Mehdi MOHSEN NEJAD (IRI)
Amirreza DEHBOZORGI (IRI)
Kenichiro FUMITA (JPN)
Aidos SULTANGALI (KAZ)
Dahyun KIM (KOR)
Dalton ROBERTS (USA)
Jamal VALIZADEH (UWW)

63kg
Murad MAMMADOV (AZE)
Moamen MOHAMED (EGY)
Stefan CLEMENT (FRA)
Leri ABULADZE (GEO)
Levente TOTH (HUN)
Meysam DALKHANI (IRI)
Yeongwoo JEONG (KOR)
Victor CIOBANU (MDA)
Razvan ARNAUT (ROU)
Enes BASAR (TUR)
Raiber RODRIGUEZ OROZCO (VEN)

67kg
Ishak GHAIOU (ALG)
Nestor ALMANZA TRUYOL (CHI)
Luis ORTA (CUB)
Andres MONTANO ARROYO (ECU)
Mamadassa SYLLA (FRA)
Joni KHETSURIANI (GEO)
David MANYIK (HUN)
Saeid ESMAEILI LEIVESI (IRI)
Mohammadreza GERAEI (IRI)
Kyotaro SOGABE (JPN)
Valentin PETIC (MDA)
Souleymen NASR (TUN)

72kg
Hasrat JAFAROV (AZE)
Ulvu GANIZADE (AZE)
Moustafa ALAMELDIN (EGY)
Gagik SNJOYAN (FRA)
Ibrahim GHANEM (FRA)
Shmagi BOLKVADZE (GEO)
Otar ABULADZE (GEO)
Adam POHILEC (HUN)
Krisztofer KLANYI (HUN)
Krisztian VANCZA (HUN)
Danial SOHRABI (IRI)
Hyeonjin KANG (KOR)
Alejandro SANCHO (USA)

77kg
Abd OUAKALI (ALG)
Sanan SULEYMANOV (AZE)
Aik MNATSAKANIAN (BUL)
Jair CUERO MUNOZ (COL)
Pavel PUKLAVEC (CRO)
Yosvanys PENA FLORES (CUB)
Mahmoud ABDELRAHMAN (EGY)
Iuri LOMADZE (GEO)
Levente LEVAI (HUN)
Robert FRITSCH (HUN)
Zoltan LEVAI (HUN)
Mohammadali GERAEI (IRI)
Mohammad MOKHTARI (IRI)
Nao KUSAKA (JPN)
Demeu ZHADRAYEV (KAZ)
Denis HORVATH (SVK)
Burhan AKBUDAK (TUR)
Jesse PORTER (USA)

82kg
Karlo KODRIC (CRO)
Gela BOLKVADZE (GEO)
Erik SZILVASSY (HUN)
Peter DOEMOEK (HUN)
Miklos KIRALYHAZI (HUN)
Ashkan SAADATI FARD (IRI)
Mihail BRADU (MDA)
Alperen BERBER (TUR)
Spencer WOODS (USA)

87kg
Bachir SID AZARA (ALG)
Semen NOVIKOV (BUL)
Carlos MUNOZ JARAMILLO (COL)
Matej MANDIC (CRO)
Gurami KHETSURIANI (GEO)
Aivengo RIKADZE (GEO)
Tornike DZAMASHVILI (GEO)
Ariel ALFONSO (HON)
David LOSONCZI (HUN)
Istvan TAKACS (HUN)
Vendel VITAI (HUN)
Mohammadhossein MAHMOODI (IRI)
Nursultan TURSYNOV (KAZ)
Shamil L OZHAEV (KAZ)
Seunghwan LEE (KOR)
Norbert SIPKA (SVK)
Ali CENGIZ (TUR)
Payton JACOBSON (USA)

97kg
Fadi ROUABAH (ALG)
Artur OMAROV (CZE)
Mohamed GABR (EGY)
Giorgi MELIA (GEO)
Kevin MEJIA CASTILLO (HON)
Tamas LEVAI (HUN)
Alex SZOKE (HUN)
Mohammadhadi SARAVI (IRI)
Shayan HABIBZARE (IRI)
Seungjun KIM (KOR)
Josef RAU (USA)

130kg
Beka KANDELAKI (AZE)
Yasmani ACOSTA FERNANDEZ (CHI)
Abdellatif MOHAMED (EGY)
Heiki NABI (EST)
Iakobi KAJAIA (GEO)
Koppany LASZLO (HUN)
Darius VITEK (HUN)
Fardin HEDAYATI (IRI)
Alimkhan SYZDYKOV (KAZ)
Seungchan LEE (KOR)
Alin ALEXUC CIURARIU (ROU)
Amine GUENNICHI (TUN)
Riza KAYAALP (TUR)
Adam COON (USA)

Helen MAROULIS (USA)Helen MAROULIS (USA) is entered to compete at 57kg. (Photo: United World Wrestling / Amirreza Aliasgari)

Women’s Wrestling

50kg
Nadezhda SOKOLOVA (AIN)
Ibtissem DOUDOU (ALG)
Madison PARKS (CAN)
Yu ZHANG (CHN)
Jiang ZHU (CHN)
Ziqi FENG (CHN)
Alisson CARDOZO REY (COL)
Yusneylis GUZMAN LOPEZ (CUB)
Emma LUTTENAUER (FRA)
VINESH (IND)
Otgonjargal DOLGORJAV (MGL)
Agata WALERZAK (POL)
Anna LUKASIAK (POL)
Evin DEMIRHAN YAVUZ (TUR)
Audrey JIMENEZ (USA)
Aktenge KEUNIMJAEVA (UZB)

53kg
Laura HERIN AVILA (CUB)
Lucia YEPEZ (ECU)
ANTIM (IND)
Katarzyna KRAWCZYK (POL)
Milana DADASHEVA (AIN)
Jonna MALMGREN (SWE)
Zeynep YETGIL (TUR)
Nataliia KLIVCHUTSKA (UKR)
Sakibjamal ESBOSYNOVA (UZB)
Betzabeth ARGUELLO VILLEGAS (VEN)

55kg
Ekaterina VERBINA (AIN)
Tatiana DEBIEN (FRA)
Roza SZENTTAMASI (HUN)
Emma TISSINA (KAZ)
Marina SEDNEVA (KAZ)
Mariana DRAGUTAN (MDA)
Jowita WRZESIEN (POL)
Amanda MARTINEZ (USA)

57kg
Chaimaa AOUISSI (ALG)
Giullia PENALBER (BRA)
Qi ZHANG (CHN)
Kexin HONG (CHN)
Luisa VALVERDE (ECU)
Erika BOGNAR (HUN)
Tamara DOLLAK (HUN)
ANSHU (IND)
Anastasia NICHITA (MDA)
Anhelina LYSAK (POL)
Helen MAROULIS (USA)

59kg
Nikolett SZABO (HUN)
Irina KUZNETSOVA (KAZ)
Diana KAYUMOVA (KAZ)
Magdalena GLODEK (POL)
Alina FILIPOVYCH (UKR)

62kg
Alina KASABIEVA (AIN)
Aleksandra SKIRENKO (AIN)
Lais NUNES (BRA)
Bilyana DUDOVA (BUL)
Ana GODINEZ (CAN)
Luisa NIEMESCH (GER)
Orkhon PUREVDORJ (MGL)
Esther KOLAWOLE (NGR)
Grace BULLEN (NOR)
Natalia KUBATY (POL)
Siwar BOUSETA (TUN)
Iryna KOLIADENKO (UKR)
Kayla MIRACLE (USA)

65kg
Dinara KUDAEVA (AIN)
Miki ROWBOTTOM (CAN)
Iris THIEBAUX (FRA)
Eniko ELEKES (HUN)
Irina KAZYULINA (KAZ)
Nesrin BAS (TUR)
Iryna BONDAR (UKR)

68kg
Kseniia BURAKOVA (AIN)
Koumba LARROQUE (FRA)
NISHA (IND)
Delgermaa ENKHSAIKHAN (MGL)
Blessing OBORUDUDU (NGR)
Tayla FORD (NZL)
Wiktoria CHOLUJ (POL)
Buse TOSUN (TUR)
Manola SKOBELSKA (UKR)
Firuza ESENBAEVA (UZB)
Soleymi CARABALLO HERNANDEZ (VEN)

72kg
Pauline LECARPENTIER (FRA)
Kendra DACHER (FRA)
Viktoria FELHO (HUN)
Noémi SZABADOS (HUN)
Gulmaral YERKEBAYEVA (KAZ)
Zhamila BAKBERGENOVA (KAZ)
Fanni NAGY NAD (SRB)
Iryna ZABLOTSKA (UKR)

76kg
Justina DI STASIO (CAN)
Tatiana RENTERIA (COL)
Milaimy MARIN POTRILLE (CUB)
Genesis REASCO VALDEZ (ECU)
REETIKA (IND)
Zaineb SGHAIER (TUN)
Yasemin ADAR (TUR)

#WrestleTirana

Jamalov loss, historic Olympic medal for Albania, defensive style: Valiev opens up to UWW

By Vinay Siwach

TIRANA, Albania (October 21) -- Cherman VALIEV (ALB) sits in the 'VIP Lounge' of the Feti Borova Sports Hall in Tirana on the sidelines of the U23 World Championships. He certainly is a very important person in Albania. At the Paris Olympics in August, Valiev won the bronze medal in the 74kg weight class, becoming Albania's first-ever Olympic medalist in any sport.

Two months later, he has had time to reflect on his Paris Olympic campaign, the controversial loss against Razambek JAMALOV (UZB), and is preparing for the new season, in which he wants to avenge that loss against Jamalov.

United World Wrestling caught up with Valiev on the sidelines of the U23 World Championships. Excerpts from the interview:

Chermen VALIEV (ALB)

- Reflecting on his bronze medal at the Paris Olympics

Valiev: It’s a dream for every athlete to compete at the Olympic Games. As for me, I was able to win a medal. It’s a historic medal for Albania, the first one ever in any sport. It’s a great honor for me that I was able to live up to their expectations. When I joined the national team, they believed in me. I am glad that I could meet their expectations.

I was given an apartment in Albania for winning the Olympic bronze. I am very grateful that they value the athlete’s hard work. I was given prize money as well. Sometimes people on the streets in Albania would come over and ask for a photo. It’s really nice and it motivates me to continue giving my all to show the best results. 

I realize that I’ve won a medal at the Olympic Games. This motivates me to keep working even harder. Time flies quickly, and before you know it, the next Olympic Games will be here.

Chermen VALIEV (ALB)

- Experience at the Paris Olympics

Valiev: I think I gave my all in those two days and did everything I could. I wrestled with all my strength and did my best on the mat. As I said before, I had four matches in Paris, and I won all four of them. To this day, I have been reviewing the matches and I believe that I won without any doubts. If there was any other wrestler in my position he would defend when leading the match. I wasn’t fleeing the mat, I was just defending and this is within the rules.

[In the bronze medal bout], I was emotionally motivated to avenge that loss in Istanbul [at the World Olympic Qualifier]. It was crucial for me at that time to prove that I was better than him, and I was very determined and focused on that match. So, I convincingly defeated Viktor with a score of 6-2 in Paris.

Chermen VALIEV (ALB)

- On his return to Ossetia after Paris Olympics

Valiev: I was welcomed very well in Ossetia as if I was an Olympic champion. I received a lot of support, people were saying that I was their Olympic champion. Even many people not from Ossetia, but from other regions were saying that they saw everything and that I was an Olympic champion for them. It’s very pleasing for me to be appreciated that way.

- On his wrestling style

Valiev: I am not going to change anything in my style. If you don't defend in wrestling, you will give up points. I defend and attack at the same time, scoring points. After all, I win matches somehow. If I didn’t attack, the referees wouldn’t give me points. As I said before, I will try to take the lead in order to avoid such situations in the future. I haven’t really noticed anyone saying that I have a passive wrestling style. I don’t know how to explain it, but as soon as I feel the referee is about to give a passivity point, I always try to change the course of the match. 

I don’t usually prepare for any specific wrestler. I just do my job. I have a plan in my head, I watch their matches, and I know their strengths and weaknesses. For example, if I know he has a signature move, I try not to get caught for that. Sitting and watching the matches of my opponents all day long isn't something I do.

Chermen VALIEV (ALB)

- On growing up with wrestling

Valiev: Wrestling is the number one sport in Ossetia. In my hometown Ardon, there was just wrestling and football. My elder brother started wrestling first. All our family is into it. My father used to wrestle as well. There are three kids in the family. My brother, sister and myself. I started wrestling when I was eight years old. My dad was wrestling only when he was at school, but my elder brother still trains, he sometimes competes at the local tournaments and finishes on the podium. So there was no choice. I liked playing football as well, but up until now, I do freestyle wrestling. When I was wrestling at the cadet level, I started showing some good results, I started going here and there to the training camps and competitions. I really loved that atmosphere of traveling to different places and meeting new people. So, I couldn’t give it up.

When I was a kid, the coaches were telling me that I was talented and that I had to train hard, but it wasn’t something like being a wonder kid or someone very special.

- On his idol Kudukhov

Valiev: I always wanted to be like Besik KUDUKHOV. I always tried to copy his wrestling style, his moves and his throws. He was super-fast and I really copied him, but only when I was a child. Over time I’ve got my own style and technique. It’s difficult to be as fast as he was. I got the chance to train with Besik only once. It was two days before he died. Up until now, people keep saying that he was a very well-mannered, decent man. He was not just a good wrestler, but also a very kind person. 

- On his return to competition next year

Valiev: My next tournament will be a Ranking Series here in Albania. When I step on the mat, the number one priority for me is to win the match. Of course, the Olympic medal gives me more confidence and status, but the medal won’t wrestle for me. So, I have to do my best to win the match.  

I have learned a little bit of the Albanian language, I really want to improve on that. But I need to start with English first.

(Translation by Karina Mirzoian)