#Grappling

Grappling Gi: Kazakhstan, Poland emerge best teams at World Championships

Monday, October 14, 2024 - 05:40 By Vinay Siwach

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ASTANA, Kazakhstan (October 12) -- Kazakhstan stole the show in men's Grappling Gi, winning four of the nine gold medals on the final day of the World Grappling Championships.

Alikhan ALSHINBAY (KAZ) won the gold medal at 58kg, Samat AITPANBET (KAZ) claimed a submission victory at 62kg, Sarsen ZHETIBAYEV (KAZ) defeated former world champion Iker CAMARA (ESP) 2-1 at 71kg and Ruslan ISRAILOV (KAZ) held on to a 5-2 win at 92kg.

Kazakhstan won the team title with 185 points, well clear of second-placed United States which could get only 68 points and third-placed Poland 66 points.

In women's grappling gi, Poland continued its dominance with yet another solid performance, earning it the team title. Led by returning champion Justyna SITKO (POL), Poland claimed two gold medals and 110 points overall to finish first. Kazakhstan was second with 43 points and Ukraine was third with 40 points.

Poland had five finalists with two winning the gold medals. Sitko defended her gold medal at 90kg with a 7-1 win over Alena VLASOVA (AIN) while Weronika ROT (POL) defeated Anna REMNEVA (AIN), 10-0, in the 71kg to win gold.

Alicja STYPULKOWSKA (POL) was also in the final but she came up short. Carlota PRENDES LARIOS (ESP) defeated her, 6-4, in the 53kg final. Magdalena GIEC (POL) ended up with a silver medal for the second year in a row, dropping the 58kg final 9-5 against Nikolett KIS (HUN).

In the 64kg final, Alsu IANSHINA (AIN) won via submission against Adrianna MAZUR (POL).

RESULTS

Men's Grappling Gi

58kg
GOLD: Alikhan ALSHINBAY (KAZ) df. Jerzy IZDEBSKI (POL), 4-2

BRONZE: Zhyldyzbek ABYLBEKOV (KGZ) df. Vahid ALAKBAROV (AZE), via submission (3-2)
BRONZE: Nurbek SATYBALDY (KAZ) df. Jad HERZHAFT (FRA), 12-5

62kg
GOLD: Samat AITPANBET (KAZ) df. Nurbek MYRZALINOV (KAZ), via submission (0-2) 

BRONZE: Sultan SHARIPOV (AIN) df. Guillermo GUTIERREZ (ESP), via submission (4-0) 
BRONZE: Joseph DIEHL (USA) df. Daniiar ZHAMANKULOV (KGZ), 8-3

66kg
GOLD: Giorgi RAZMADZE (GEO) df. Mayis NERSESYAN (ARM), 6-4

BRONZE: Anthony DE OLIVEIRA (FRA) df. Yurii CHERKALIUK (UKR), via submission (9-0)
BRONZE: Daulet ZHUMADULLAYEV (KAZ) df. Zack ZINZOW (USA), 3-2

71kg
GOLD: Sarsen ZHETIBAYEV (KAZ) df. Iker CAMARA (ESP), 2-1

BRONZE: Jedrzej LOSKA (POL) df. Cole MORRISON (USA), via submission (0-2)
BRONZE: Oleksandr HULIAIEV (UKR) df. Nico PULVERMUELLER (GER), 2-2

77kg
GOLD: Imam AMAGAEV (AIN) df. Adlan MADAYEV (KAZ), 6-4

BRONZE: Dmitriy MIKHAILIDI (KAZ) df. Pierre MANZO (FRA), 5-1
BRONZE: Arthur LEROY (FRA) df. Jakub NAJDEK (POL), 4-2

84kg
GOLD: Ruslan VALIEV (FRA) df. Hajimurad PURTIYEV (AZE), 6-0

BRONZE: Jeremie BLAIN (CAN) df. Bekarys SHYNGGYSBEK (KAZ), in overtime (1-1)
BRONZE: Igor DZIAG (POL) df. Samy MEZACHE (FRA), via submission (6-2)

92kg
GOLD: Ruslan ISRAILOV (KAZ) df. Mantas DAUBLYS (LTU), 5-2

BRONZE: Ramazan KUSSAINOV (KAZ) df. Borja ALVAREZ (ESP), via submission (6-0)
BRONZE: Pablo ESTEPA NIETO (ESP) df. Julian VANDERLINDEN (USA), 4-3

100kg
GOLD: Kristof SZUCS (HUN) df. Ramazan ABDRAKHIMOV (KAZ), via submission (10-2)

BRONZE: Ivan MALIN (UKR) df. Konstantin LI (KGZ), 6-1
BRONZE: Roman LUKASHEVICH (AIN) df. Pavlos VLACHOS (GRE), via submission (5-0)

130kg
GOLD: Abu GUDANATOV (AIN) df. Saulet ABUSSALIKHOV (KAZ), 2-1

BRONZE: John HANSEN (USA) df. Ioannis KARGIOTAKIS (GRE), 3-2
BRONZE: Eldar RAFIGAEV (MDA) df. Akhmed GAIRBEKOV (AIN), via submission (0-4)

Justyna SITKO (POL)Justyna SITKO (POL), center, defended her gold medal at 90kg. (Photo: United World Wrestling / Amirreza Aliasgari)

Women's Grappling Gi

53kg
GOLD: Carlota PRENDES LARIOS (ESP) df. Alicja STYPULKOWSKA (POL), 6-4

BRONZE: Zuzanna KOWALSKA (POL) df. Alina KASKINOVA (KAZ), via submission (2-2)
BRONZE: Polina KRUPSKAIA (AIN) df. Anna BEZHENAR (UKR), 3-2

58kg
GOLD: Nikolett KIS (HUN) df. Magdalena GIEC (POL), 9-5

BRONZE: Tetiana ASTAKHOVA (UKR) df. Rachel GUTIERREZ (USA), via submission (5-2)
BRONZE: Breanna STIKKELMAN (USA) df. Joanna ZABULEWICZ (POL), 4-4

64kg
GOLD: Alsu IANSHINA (AIN) df. Adrianna MAZUR (POL), via submission (2-2)

BRONZE: Fariza KULYNTAY (KAZ) df. Raluca ROSCA (ITA), 7-2
BRONZE: Veronika KARAKHONOVA (AIN) df. Sylwia WIERZBOWSKA (POL), via submission (5-0)

71kg
GOLD: Weronika ROT (POL) df. Anna REMNEVA (AIN), 10-0

BRONZE: Kateryna SHAKALOVA (UKR) df. Valeriia PROKOPIUK (UKR), 7-1
BRONZE: Emily GUENZLER (GER) df. Tatiana KABANOVA (AIN), via submission (0-4)

90kg
GOLD: Justyna SITKO (POL) df. Alena VLASOVA (AIN), 7-1

BRONZE: Tammy GRIEGO (USA) df. Vlada BOIAKHCHIEVA (AIN), via submission (2-2)

2026 U20 Asian Championships

China's Yang Turns Weight-Loss Plan into Historic U20 Asian Gold

Tuesday, July 7, 2026 - 10:04 By Vinay Siwach

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PATTAYA, Thailand (July 6) -- Even Yuanchong YANG (CHN) could not help but appreciate the irony.

Yang was introduced to wrestling because he was overweight. His parents simply wanted their youngest son to lose a few kilos. Instead, he created history for China, becoming the country's heaviest-ever Asian Freestyle champion.

China won only one Freestyle medal at the 2026 U20 Asian Wrestling Championships in Pattaya, Thailand but Yang made sure it was a historic one.

The 97kg wrestler claimed the gold medal to become China's first-ever U20 Asian champion in Freestyle and only the sixth Chinese to win an Asian Freestyle title at any level. He also surpassed Ying WANG (CHN), who won the 84kg title at the 2008 Senior Asian Championships, as the heaviest Chinese Freestyle wrestler to capture an Asian gold medal.

"I was extremely fat in elementary school, so my parents sent me to a sports school [later] to exercise and become thinner and healthier," Yang told United World Wrestling. "My parents thought wrestling would help me lose weight faster."

Yuanchong YANG (CHN)Yuanchong YANG (CHN) celebrates after winning the gold medal in 97kg at the U20 Asian Championships in Pattaya, Thailand. (Photo: United World Wrestling / Amirreza Aliasgari)

When he first stepped onto the mat as a 12-year-old, Yang never imagined he would one day represent China. Wrestling was simply a way to shed the extra kilos.

"Following my training, I was deeply touched by the passion of my team, the teamwork and the charm of wrestling," he said.

Yang's first major breakthrough came in 2023 when he captured the U17 National Championships title. Later that year, he represented China at the East Asian Youth Games but returned home without a medal.

"I saw my older teammates winning medals consistently, so I set myself the goal of winning my own gold medal," he said. "After five years of training, I finally won the U17 title in 2023."

Yang competed at both the 2025 U20 and U23 World Championships but came up short in both after losing close bouts. When he returned home to Jinan, Shandong Province, he shifted his focus to the 2026 season.

Last week in Pattaya, Yang produced a dominant 11-0 technical superiority win over LACKY (IND) in the semifinals before defeating Samir DURSUNOV (KAZ), 8-2, in the final to complete his historic run.

Yang relied on strong underhooks to force pushouts and controlled the par terre exchanges with an effective gut wrench, leaving little room for his opponents to recover.

Yuanchong YANG (CHN)Yuanchong YANG (CHN) at the podium with the 97kg gold medal. (Photo: United World Wrestling / Amirreza Aliasgari)

As he stood atop the podium, Yang was emotional but he soon realised that this is just the beginning.

"When I received the gold medal, I was really happy," he said. "But while I was walking down from the podium, I realised there are higher goals waiting for me. I can't be satisfied with this. My next target is to win a medal at the Senior Asian Championships."