#DanKolov2019

Dan Kolov Women's Wrestling Preview

Wednesday, February 27, 2019 - 19:31 By Eric Olanowski

Share this article

RUSE, Bulgaria (February 27) - Reigning world champions Petra OLLI (FIN), RONG Ningning (CHN), and Taybe YUSEIN (BUL) will wrestle at this week’s Dan Kolov-Nikola Petrov tournament, United World Wrestling’s second freestyle and women's wrestling Ranking Series event of the 2019 season.

In addition to the three reigning world champions, there will be seven defending Dan Kolov gold medalists and 25 women who are ranked inside the top-15 that'll be competing for the all-important Ranking Series points.


Deepest Weight Class: 57kg 
Without a doubt, the most loaded weight class of the tournament is 57kg. This weight features three of the four Budapest world medalists, including China's Rong Ningning and Bulgaria's Bilyana DUDOVA. The two wrestled each other for the Budapest gold medal, where Rong was victorious, 3-3, on criteria. 

Rong earned the top-spot in Budapest and collected the No.1-ranking at 57kg with her 60 Ranking Series points. Dudova’s runner-up finish at the 2018 world championships gave her 50 Ranking Series points, which are good enough for the second ranking. India’s Pooja DHANDA (IND) is the third and final returning 57kg medalist entered at this weight. Dhanda is ranked No. 5 in the world and has 25 Ranking Series points. 

In total, five top-10 wrestlers will compete at 57kg, with Grace BULLEN (NOR) and Kateryna ZHYDACHEVSKA (ROU) rounding out the ranked competitors. 

Bullen jumped into the third spot in the world rankings with her 30 Ranking Series points after her fifth-place finish at worlds and bronze-medal finish at the Ivan Yariguin. 

Though it didn’t count towards her Ranking Series points, Bullen does have a recent win over defending world champion Rong. Bullen used a last-second takedown to knock off Rong in the U23 finals to win her first world title. This win came just over a month after the 2018 Budapest World Championships. 

Ranked Wrestlers 
No. 1 Ningning RONG (CHN)
No. 2 Bilyana DUDOVA (BUL)
No. 3 Grace BULLEN (NOR)
No. 5 Pooja DHANDA    (IND)
No. 6 Kateryna ZHYDACHEVSKA (ROU)


Yusein Looking for Back-To-Back Kolov Titles 
After a tumultuous 13th-place finish at the Ivan Yariguin, reigning 62kg world champion Taybe YUSEIN (BUL) used the 2018 Dan Kolov as a turning point in her season. That 3-3 quarterfinal round loss to Russia’s Inna TRAZHUKOVA at the Ivan Yariguin sparked something inside of the Bulgarian that ignited one of the most impressive runs in the world across all divisions. 

After that January defeat, Yusein didn’t drop another match and went on to have gold-medal performances at the Yasar Dogu, the Ion Corneanu & Ladislau Simon Memorial and, the world championships. 

Yusein is the No.1 ranked wrestler in the world at 62kg and has 60 Ranking Series points. 

Ranked Wrestlers 
No. 1 Taybe YUSEIN (BUL)
No. 4 Mallory Maxine VELTE (USA)
No. 5 Yuliia TKACH OSTAPCHUK (UKR)
No. 11 Malin MATTSSON (SWE)


Olli One of Three World Champions Entered 
Petra Maarit OLLI (FIN) is one of the three defending world champions that’ll be wrestling in Ruse. Olli defeated Canada’s Danielle LAPPAGE (CAN), 6-5, in the 65kg world-title bout to become Finland’s first-ever women’s wrestling world champion. 

Olli will wrestle at 65kg where she’s the No.1 ranked wrestler in the world. She brings 60 Ranking Series points into the Dan Kolov. 

The only ranked opponent she could face this weekend is third-ranked Forrest MOLINARI (USA). Molinari, who’s ranked third in the world, lost in the bronze-medal match at the 2018 world championships and 2019 Ivan Yariguin. She has 28 Ranking Series points.

Ranked Wrestlers
No. 1 Petra Maarit OLLI (FIN)
No. 3 Forrest Ann MOLINARI (USA)


Pair of Returning Champions Entered at 53kg and 68kg 
Two weight classes feature a total of four defending Dan Kolov champions. They are 53kg and 68kg. 

Katarzyna KRAWCZYK (POL) and Roksana ZASINA (POL) won the 53kg and 55kg Dan Kolov titles respectively last season – but only one will have the opportunity to win the 53kg title. 

Krawczyk was Poland’s world team representative at 53kg in 2018, but Zasina will be dropping back down to 53kg where she’s welcomed the most success of her career. While at 53kg,  Zasina finished with a bronze medal at the world championships– the only one of her career.

Meanwhile, Adela HANZLICKOVA (CZE) and Agnieszka WIESZCZEK KORDUS (POL) also won a pair of Kolov titles last year and find themselves in the same weight. Hanzlickova and Wieszczek Kordus will compete at 68kg.

Hanzlickova will be moving up from her 2018 championship weight of 65kg, while Wieszczek Kordus will be stepping down from her 72kg Kolov title-winning weight. 

Ranked Wrestlers at 53kg 
No. 2 Sarah Ann HILDEBRANDT (USA)
No. 3 Qianyu PANG (CHN)
No. 6 Katarzyna KRAWCZYK (POL)

Ranked Wrestlers at 68kg 
No. 4 Feng ZHOU (CHN)
No. 5 Tamyra Mariama MENSAH (USA)


Two World Finalists Entered at 55kg and 76kg 
There are two world finalists that are entered at 55kg and 76kg. 

Zalina SIDAKOVA (BLR) and Sofia MATTSSON (SWE) are the only two ranked wrestlers competing at 55kg, and they're the only two wrestlers who’ve previously reached a world final. 

SIdakova is coming off her first world finals appearance where she fell short against Japan’s Mayu Mukaida, while Mattsson has reached the world finals five times. The Swedish wrestler captured the 2009 world title but dropped her other four world finals matches. 

SIdakova holds 40 Rankings Series points and is the second-ranked wrestler in the world at 55kg. Mattsson, who left Budapest with a seventh-place finish, is ranked No. 7 in the world with 18 Ranking Series points.

The second weight class that’ll feature a pair of past world finalists is 76kg. 

Aline ROTTER FOCKEN (GER) and Vasilisa MARZALIUK (BLR) fell short in the world finals two seasons ago but failed to medal at last year’s world championships. 

Focken won two matches before falling to the eventual third-place finisher and Rio Olympic champion Erica WIEBE (CAN) in the quarterfinals and had settled for eighth place. The German wrestler bounced back at the Ivan Yariguin and won the bronze medal, helping her take control of the third spot in the world ranking with 28 Ranking Series points 

After a silver-medal finish in Paris, Marzaliuk lost her first match in Budapest to Hungary’s Zsanett NEMETH and dropped down to 14th place. The tenth-ranked Belarusian wrestler rebounded at the Ivan Yariguin and collected 14 Ranking Series after a second-place finish. 

Ranked Wrestlers at 55kg 
No. 2 Zalina SIDAKOVA (BLR)
No. 7 Sofia MATTSSON (SWE)

Ranked Wrestlers at 76kg
No. 5 Aline ROTTER FOCKEN (GER)
No. 10 Vasilisa MARZALIUK (BLR)


Sun Looking for Second Gold of the Year 
China’s Rio Olympic and 2018 world bronze medalist Yanan SUN (CHN) will make her second appearance of the year. Last weekend, she wrestled her way to a 50kg Klippan Lady Open title in Sweden. 

The Chinese star is the highest ranked 50kg wrestler that’s entered into the Dan Kolov. She owns 25 Ranking Series points and is ranked third in the world behind Japan’s two-time world champion Yui SUSAKI and two-time Olympic medalist Mariya STADNIK (AZE).

Ranked Wrestlers 
No. 3 Yanan SUN (CHN)
No. 8 Fredrika PETERSSON
No. 13 Victoria ANTHONY
No. 14 Dauletbike YAKHSHIMURATOVA

Ranking Series Point Structure (Placement Points + Entry Points = Total Points) 

Placement Points
GOLD - 8 points 
SILVER - 6 points 
BRONZE - 4 points 
BRONZE - 4 points 
Fifth - 2 points 
Fifth - 2 points 

Entry Points 
10 or less entries - 6 points 
11-20 entries  - 8 points 
20 or more entries - 10 points 

SCHEDULE

February 27 (Wednesday) 
16:30 - Draw - FS - 61, 70, 79, 92kg; GR - 55, 63, 72, 82kg; WW - 55, 59, 65, 72kg

February 28 (Thursday) 
8:00 - Medical examination and weigh-in 1 - FS - 61, 70, 79, 92kg; GR (+2 kg) - 55, 63, 72, 82kg; WW - 55, 59, 65, 72kg
10:00 - Elimination rounds - FS - 61, 70, 79, 92kg; GR - 55, 63, 72, 82kg; WW - 55, 59, 65, 72kg
16:00 - Draw - FS - 57, 65, 74; GR-87 ,97, 130; WW - 62 ,68 ,76kg
16:30 - Opening ceremony
17:00 - Semifinals FS - 61, 70, 79, 92kg; GR - 55, 63, 72, 82kg; WW - 55, 59, 65, 72kg

March 1 (Friday) 
8:00 - Medical examination and weigh-in 1 - FS - 57, 65, 74; GR (+ 2 kg) - 87, 97, 130; WW - 62, 68, 76kg
8: 30 - Weigh-in 2 FS - 61,70,79, 92 kg; GR (+ 2 kg) - 55,63,72,82 kg; WW - 55,59,65, 72 kg Referee meeting
10: 00 - Elimination rounds FS - 57, 65, 74; GR - 87, 97, 130; WW - 62, 68, 76 kg
10: 00 - Repechages FS - 61, 70, 79, 92kg; GR - 55, 63, 72, 82kg; WW - 55, 59, 65, 72kg
16: 30 - Draw - FS - 86, 97, 125; GR - 60, 67, 77kg; WW - 50, 53, 57kg
17: 00 - Semi-finals FS - 57, 65, 74; GR - 87, 97, 130; WW - 62, 68, 76kg
18:00 - Final matches and awarding ceremony - FS - 61,70,79, 92kg; GR - 55, 63, 72, 82kg; WW - 55, 59, 65, 72kg

March 2 (Satuday) 
8:00 - Medical examination and weigh-in 1 - FS - 86, 97, 125; GR (+ 2 kg) - 60, 67, 77 kg; WW - 50, 53, 57kg 
8:30: - Weigh-in 2 - FS - 57, 65, 74; GR (+ 2 kg) - 87, 97, 130; WW - 62, 68, 76kg 
10: 00 - Elimination rounds - FS - 86, 97, 125; GR - 60, 67, 77 kg; WW - 50, 53, 57kg
10:00 - Repechages - FS - 57, 65, 74; GR - 87, 97, 130; WW - 62, 68, 76kg
17:00 - Semifinals - FS 86, 97, 125kg;GR - 60, 67, 77 kg; WW - 50, 53, 57kg
18: 00 - Final matches and awarding ceremony - FS - 57, 65, 74; GR - 87, 97, 130; WW - 62, 68, 76kg

March 3 (Sunday) 
8:00 - Weigh-in 2 - FS - 86, 97, 125; GR (+ 2 kg) - 60, 67, 77kg; WW - 50, 53, 57kg
Repechages - FS - 86, 97, 125; GR (+ 2 kg) - 60, 67, 77 kg; WW - 50, 53, 57kg
Final matches and awarding ceremony - FS - 86, 97, 125; GR - 60, 67, 77 kg; WW - 50, 53, 57kg

#WrestleBaku

European OG Qualifier: Greco-Roman Paris 2024 qualification bouts set

Friday, April 5, 2024 - 06:00 By United World Wrestling Press

Share this article

BAKU, Azerbaijan (April 5) -- European OG Qualifier kicks off in Baku, Azerbaijan with Greco-Roman. Six Olympic weight classes will run through on day one with 12 Olympic spots on offer. The six weight classes are -- 60kg, 67kg, 77kg, 87kg, 97kg and 130kg.

Use PROMO CODE UWW20 to get 20 percent off on the UWW+ annual subscription

WATCH LIVE | LIVE MATCH ORDER | GRECO-ROMAN PREVIEW

Here are the Paris 2024 qualification bouts for the evening session

60kg
Victor CIOBANU (MDA) vs. Hleb MAKARANKA (AIN)
Anvar ALLAKHIAROV (AIN) vs. Enes BASAR (TUR)

67kg
Krisztian VANCZA (HUN) vs Parviz NASIBOV (UKR)
Gevorg SAHAKYAN (POL) vs. Mamadassa SYLLA (FRA)

77kg
Alexandrin GUTU (MDA) vs. Burhan AKBUDAK (TUR)
Zoltán LÉVAI (HUN) vs. Jonni SARKKINEN (FIN)

87kg
Turpal BISULTANOV (DEN) vs. Aleksandr KOMAROV (SRB)
Milad ALIRZAEV (AIN) vs. Kiryl MASKEVICH (AIN)

97kg
Roberti KOBLIASHVILI (GEO) vs. Lucas LAZOGIANIS (GER)
Mihail KAJAIA (SRB) vs. Mindaugas VENCKAITIS (LTU)

130kg
Jello KRAHMER (GER) vs. Alin ALEXUC CIURARIU (ROU)
Beka KANDELAKI (AZE) vs Sergei SEMENOV (AIN)

15:05: Milad ALIRZAEV (AIN) ends Exauce MUKUBU (NOR) entertaining campaign with a 10-2 win at 87kg. He will wrestle in the semifinals later tonight 

14:50: Anvar ALLAKHIAROV (AIN) beats Leri ABULADZE (GEO) 4-0 and will move into the semifinals at 60kg. Abuladze was called passive in both periods and Allakhiarov scored a turn as well, winning 4-0.

14:40: Alexandru GUTU (MDA) will wrestle in the 77kg as he beats Adlet TIULIUBAEV (AIN) 5-3 in the quarterfinals. Tiuliubaev scored only one turn from par terre in the second period and failed to get the lead.

14:35: Enes BASAR (TUR) dashes the hopes of local fans as he beats European champion Nihat MAMMADLI (AZE) 3-1 in the 60kg quarterfinals. He will be wrestling in the semifinals later today

14:30: Turpal BISULTANOV (DEN) doesn't leave anything to chance this time. He gets a chest wrap and rolls to a 9-0 win over Mihail BRADU (MDA) and moves into the semifinal at 87kg against European champion Aleksandr KOMAROV (SRB).

14:20: Victor CIOBANU (MDA) with another quick win at 60kg. He beats Justas PETRAVICIUS (LTU) 14-0 and moves into the semifinal for the evening session.

14:10: Burhan AKBUDAK (TUR) hits a front five-pointer over Antonio KAMENJASEVIC (CRO) before finishing the bout 11-0. He reaches the 77kg semifinals.

14:00: European champion Sergei SEMENOV (AIN) with a 1-1 win over Heiki NABI (EST) at 130kg. He moves into the semifinals for the evening session. One more win to earn a Paris 2024 quota

13:45: Is that the upset of the tournament so far? Lucas LAZOGIANIS (GER) beats European silver medalist Magomed MURTAZALIEV (AIN) 1-1 in the 97kg 1/8 finals. The result means that Murtazaliev will not be able to win a Paris 2024 quota from Baku

13:30: Victor CIOBANU (MDA) wastes no time beating Melkamu FETENE (ISR) 11-0 and advancing to the quarterfinals at 60kg. Typical Ciobanu big throws.

13:25: Two Norway wrestlers advance to the quarterfinals. Felix BALDAUF (NOR) beats Arvi SAVOLAINEN (FIN) 7-1 at 97kg and Exauce MUKUBU (NOR) wins 9-0 against Martynas NEMSEVICIUS (LTU) at 87kg

13:20: Local star and European champion Nihat MAMMADLI (AZE) on the mat for his first bout at 60kg. He is taking on Oleksii MASYK (UKR).  The first par terre advantage goes to Mammadli and he scores four. But Masyk manages to block the second attempt and gets a point for stepout. Mammadli leads 5-1 at the break. Maysk with a par terre advantage in the second period but no points were scored. Mammadli leads 5-2 and will win with that score.

13:15: Leri ABULADZE (GEO) with an effortless 9-1 win over Razvan ARNAUT (ROU). He scores all his points in the second period from par terre to win.

12:55: Ivan HUKLEK (CRO) would be kicking himself as he let go of a 5-0 lead against Aleksandr KOMAROV (SRB) and lost 7-5. Huklek got the first par terre advantage and two for caution as Komarov blocked his attack. He scored a turn to lead 5-0. But in the second period, Komarov brought out his gut wrench and won 7-5.

12:45: Selcuk CAN (TUR) cannot catch a break from come-from-behind victories. From the brink of defeat, he wins 10-7 against Ruslan BICHURIN (AIN) at 67kg. Bichurin scored three turns from par terre to lead 7-0 but as he was going for a fourth, Can blocked him and tried a pin. Bichurin fouled and was cautioned. Can, from par terre, scored a throw to make the score 7-6. In the second period, Can hit a four-pointer to win 10-7

12:30: Two wrestlers returning from shoulder surgeries, Turpal BISULTANOV (DEN) and Islam ABBASOV (AZE) at 87kg. Bisultanov gets blocked in par terre and Abbasov gets a 2-1 lead. Bisultanov gets close to scoring a takedown twice in the second period but he gets called passive. Abbasov leads 3-1 and scores three turns from par terre to win 9-1. Denmark challenges the call and on review, Abbasov is seen grabbing the singlet. Abbasov's lead back to 3-1. Bisultanov with a takedown to take a 3-3 criteria lead. He scores another takedown and extends the lead to 5-3 and will finish the bout with a win.

12:20: Parviz NASIBOV (UKR) is up against Abu AMAEV (BUL) and gets the first par terre advantage. He scores two turns to lead 5-0. Amaev gets the advantage in the second period but fails to score. Nasibov leads 5-1. He wins with the same score to advance at 67kg.

12:00: Burhan AKBUDAK (TUR) is now in the quarterfinals at 77kg. He beats Oldrich VARGA (CZE) 4-1 and is now two wins away from a Paris 2024 spot. On Mat C, the European champion at 130kg Sergei SEMENOV (AIN) beats Dzmitry ZARUBSKI (AIN) 4-0.

11:50: Alexandru GUTU (MDA) is on Mat B against Patryk BEDNARZ (POL) and he gets his trademark front headlock four-pointer to lead 5-0 at the break. He gets another point for offense in the second period and wins 6-0.

11:35: A 5-1 victory for Leri ABULADZE (GEO) at 60kg. The 63kg world champion is hoping to qualify Georgia for the Paris Games at the new weight class.

11:30: Nikoloz KAKHELASHVILI (ITA) takes out Alex SZOKE (HUN) with a 1-1 win. The wrestlers exchanged passivity points and Kakhelashvili got the advantage in the second period to claim the win

11:19: Two friends Exauce MUKUBU (NOR) and Marcel STERKENBURG (NED) up against each other at 87kg. Sterkenburg leads 1-1 at the break but Mukubu takes a 2-1 lead before adding a takedown and roll for a 6-1 victory.

10:55: Selcuk CAN (TUR) and Kristupas SLEIVA (LTU) are coming on Mat C. Sleiva with a four-pointer to begin the match but Can answers with one of his own. Can with a lift but Sleiva blocks his second action and gets two points. Can scores a takedown to take a 6-6 lead at the break. Can scores a takedown but Sleiva asks for a break. Sleiva challenges but the takedown is confirmed and he takes a 9-6 lead with 23 seconds left. Can will advance to the next round.

10:42: Burhan AKBUDAK (TUR) gets his campaign going with a 7-4 win over Riccardo ABBRESCIA (ITA) at 77kg. On Mat C, Deni NAKAEV (GER) drops his first bout to Ilie COJOCARI (ROU) and France's 72kg world champion Ibrahim GHANEM (FRA) fails to advance after a 5-1 loss to Adlet TIULIUBAEV (AIN).

10:30: Welcome to the European OG Qualifier in Baku. The competition will run on three mats with the winners of the semifinals qualifying their nations for the Paris Olympic Games. There will be no repechage, bronze or gold-medal bouts.