Lorincz Locks up Sixth Career Ranking Series Gold Medal

Wednesday, January 15, 2020 - 20:01 By Eric Olanowski

ROME, Italy (January 15) --- Coming into the Matteo Pellicone, Viktor LORINCZ (HUN) already owned a Ranking Series title for every finger on one hand. The 2019 Greco-Roman Wrestler of the Year now has to move to a second hand to count his Ranking Series gold medals after he captured his sixth career Ranking Series title on Wednesday night in the Roman seaside town of Ostia.

The Hungarian tallied 19 wins in his previous five Ranking Series appearances. With his quartet of wins on Wednesday, Lorincz improved his Ranking Series record to a perfect 23-0 with a 2-1 win over last year’s Asian silver medalist Kumar SUNIL (IND) in the 87kg finals.

“I am very happy to win this tournament. I want to continue this very good series for me. I want to win the last two qualifications (European Championships and Poland Open) because it helps my seed for the Olympic Games,” said Lorincz.

In the finals, Lorincz, last year's world runner-up, picked up an inactivity point and a stepout in the first period. He had his lead cut to a single point when he was dinged for an inactivity point himself. But the Hungarian Hammer relied on his world-renound defensive skills and hung on to win an unprecedented sixth Ranking Series title, 2-1.

“I came here to win. I had some hard matches, and I’m not where I want to be. I want to (build) my strength and power for the other tournaments.”

Nikoloz KAKHELASHVILI (ITA) won his second Ranking Series title on home soil with a 5-4 win over Felix BALDAUF (NOR).(Photo: Kadir Caliskan)

Kakhelashvili Wins Second Ranking Series Gold on Home Soil
Last year’s City of Sassari champion Nikoloz KAKHELASHVILI (ITA) edged Felix BALDAUF (NOR) in the 97kg finals and seized his second Ranking Series title on home soil. “I’m so happy that I won in my country,” Kakhelashvili said. “Today was a big tournament. I think it’s good that I won, and I felt very strong. Now I hope to win the European Championships.”

In the 97kg gold-medal bout, Kakhelashvili jumped out to a five-point opening-period lead, but surrendered four unanswered points against his Norwegian opponent and narrowly won, 5-4. “I was a little bit nervous. I thought it was a touché, but I won the match, so everything is okay.”

Sailike WALIHAN (CHN) won his first Ranking Series gold medal after dropping his two previous trips to the finals. (Photo: Kadir Caliskan)

Walihan, Bakhshilloev and Mohamed Claim Remaining Three Olympic Weight Golds
The remaining trio of Olympic weight gold medals of the day went to Sailike WALIHAN (CHN), Makhmud BAKHSHILLOEV (UZB) and Abdellatif MOHAMED (EGY), who topped the podium at 60kg, 67kg and 130kg, respectively.

At 60kg, Walihan was 70 seconds away from seeing his hopes of winning a first Ranking Series gold disappear after he allowed a three-point second-period lead dwindle to nothing against Islomjon BAKHRAMOV (UZB). But in the end, the Chinese wrestler capitalized on a late stepout and scooped up the one-point victory.

Walihan, a 2018 world bronze medalist, scored an inactivity point and a gut wrench and carried the 3-0 lead late into the closing frame. That all changed when Walihan’s opponent, Bakhramov, a four-time Ranking Series finalist, scored an inactivity point that was quickly followed by a two-point tight low-level gut wrench and stole the 3-3 lead on criteria.

But like the savvy veteran he is, Walihan responded when it was needed the most. He scored a stepout with just under a minute left and hung on to win his first Ranking Series gold medal, 4-3.

Makhmud BAKHSHILLOEV (UZB) gut wrenched Abouhalima ABOUHALIMA (EGY) and won the 67kg title, 3-1. (Photo: Kadir Caliskan)

In the finals at 67kg, junior world champion Bakshilloev sealed up a 3-1 win over Rio Olympian Abouhalima ABOUHALIMA (EGY) by scoring a first-period inactivity point and gut wrench.

Abdellatif Mohamed, a two-time Ranking Series finalist, only needed 83 seconds to pick up the fall against Moises Salvador PEREZ HELLBURG (VEN) in the 130kg finals. Mohamed's Wednesday night fall put him in rare company, as he joined Mohamed EL SAYED as the only other Egyptian Greco-Roman wrestler to win a Ranking Series gold medal.

Andres Roberto MONTANO ARROYO (ECU) took down Rio Olympic bronze medalist Stig-Andre BERGE (NOR), 11-0, on his way to the 63kg title. (Photo: Kadir Caliskan)

Ayazci and Montano Arroyo Win Nordic Golds
Dogus AYAZCI (TUR) and Andres Roberto MONTANO ARROYO (ECU) claimed the final two opening-day golds, which both came in Nordic-style brackets. Their wins came in the non-Olympic weight classes of 55kg and 63kg, respectively.

Ayazci outscored his three opponents 22-0 en route to the 55kg gold medal, while Montano Arroya’s 11-0 thumping of Rio Olympic bronze medalist Stig-Andre BERGE (NOR) highlighted his run to the 63kg title.

RESULTS
50kg
GOLD - Dogus AYAZCI (TUR)
SILVER - Max NOWRY (USA)
BRONZE - Andrii SEMENCHUK (UKR)

60kg
GOLD - Islomjon BAKHRAMOV (UZB) vs. Sailike WALIHAN (CHN)
BRONZE - Erbatu TUO (CHN) vs. Kerem KAMAL (TUR), 7-1
BRONZE - Firuz TUKHTAEV (UZB) df. Sachin RANA (IND), 9-0

63kg
GOLD – Andres Roberto MONTANO ARROYO (ECU)
SILVER – Stig-Andre BERGE (NOR)
BRONZE – Erik TORBA (HUN)

67kg
GOLD - Makhmud BAKHSHILLOEV (UZB) df. Abouhalima ABOUHALIMA (EGY), 3-2
BRONZE - Qiye TIAN (CHN) df. Ashu ASHU (IND), 9-0
BRONZE - Anthony PALENCIA PUENTES (VEN) df. Ruben MARVICE (ITA), 10-1

87kg
GOLD - Viktor LORINCZ (HUN) df. Kumar SUNIL (IND), 2-1
BRONZE - Ali CENGIZ (TUR) df. Josef Patrick RAU (USA), 9-0
BRONZE - Luis Eduardo AVENDANO ROJAS (VEN) df. Patrick Anthony MARTINEZ (USA), 4-1

97kg
GOLD - Nikoloz KAKHELASHVILI (ITA)df. Felix BALDAUF (NOR), 5-4
BRONZE - Mélonin NOUMONVI (FRA) df. Matti Elias KUOSMANEN (FIN), 3-2
BRONZE - Gangelo HANCOCK (USA) df. Semen NOVIKOV (UKR), 10-0

130kg
GOLD - Abdellatif MOHAMED (EGY) vdf Moises PEREZ HELLBURG (VEN), via fall (4:37)
BRONZE - Lingzhe MENG (CHN) df. Adam Jacob COON (USA), 4-2
BRONZE – Muminjon ABDULLAEV (UZB) df. Oskar MARVIK (NOR), 3-3

#WrestleRome

Japan, India share 2 WW golds at U17 Worlds

Thursday, July 28, 2022 - 18:58 By Vinay Siwach

ROME, Italy (July 28) -- In the history of women's wrestling at the U17 World Championships dating back to 1998, India never won a medal in the highest weight class 73kg; earlier 70kg.

Priya MALIK (IND) now has changed that record. She broke the jinx in 2021 by winning the gold at the U17 World Championships in Budapest.

The 17-year-old on Thursday defended her world title with a clinic display, to become a two-time U17 world champion, only the third Indian wrestler to achieve the feat in women's wrestling.

Malik entered this competition with only one loss in her entire career, a 3-3 defeat against Nodoka YAMAMOTO (JPN) at the U20 Asian Championships just 20 days back.

Priya MALIK (IND) defeated Mariia ZENKINA (UKR) in the 73kg final. (Photo: UWW / Martin Gabor)

But she put that behind and wrestled like a pro throughout the tournament. After warming up with a 3-1 win over Kaiulani GARCIA (USA) in the opening round, she scored 10-0 on Dominika POCHOWSKA (POL) before pinning Alina YERTOSTIK (KAZ) in the semifinals, replicating the result from the U17 Asian Championships final.

In the gold medal bout, she wrestled European bronze medalist Mariia ZENKINA (UKR) and gave no chance to even score a point. A single leg attack opened the scoring for her and then she added one more takedown using the same attack as Zenkina tried to escape the hold.

Malik mixed it up with a double leg attack and go behind in the second period before securing the 10-0 win with 55 seconds remaining.

The Haryana-native has now joined Sonam MALIK (IND) and Komal PANCHAL (IND) as the only two-time U17 world champions in women's wrestling.

Ritika MALIK (IND) Ritika KATARIA (IND) defeated world champion Erica PASTORIZA (USA) in the 43kg. (Photo: UWW / Martin Gabor)

Another U17 Asian champion, Ritika KATARIA (IND), added a world title to her name. In the 43kg final, she defeated returning gold medalist (40kg) Erica PASTORIZA (USA) via fall after leading 9-0.

Kataria and Pastoriza were arguably the top two wrestlers of the weight classes as they dominated their way to the finals. But Pastoriza could not get going in the gold bout, failing to attack Kataria once.

The 15-year-old Indian tried to cradle Pastoriza early but the American survived the attempt. She again locked her arms in front and pressed Pastoriza's head for another cradle but once again the American defended but could not stop Kataria from a go behind. A takedown in the zone added two more to Kataria's score as she led 5-0 at the break.

It was a similar story in the second half as Kataria opened with a takedown before a headlock worked out well and she pinned Pastoriza to claim her first world gold.

Sowaka UCHIDA (JPN) pinned Gerda TEREK (HUN) in 55 seconds to win 57kg gold. (Photo: UWW / Martin Gabor)

Japan also won two gold medals as Sowaka UCHIDA (JPN) capped off a dominant display in Rome with a fall over European champion Gerda TEREK (HUN) in the 57kg final. She took only 55 seconds to get the pin.

A product of the JOC Elite Academy which has produced the likes of Olympic champion Yui SUSAKI (JPN) and Asian champion Nonoka OZAKI (JPN) among other stars, Uchida showed glimpses of the trademark Japanese wrestling style.

Keeping a low stance, she was lighting quick to attack the front leg of the opponents and finished her bouts well before the time, majorly using a leg lace.

Anju SATO (JPN) became the U17 world champion at 65kg. (Photo: UWW / Martin Gabor)

The second gold for Japan came at 65kg as Anju SATO (JPN) held on for a nervy 5-2 win over Maria PANTIRU (ROU) in the final.

Pantiru was called passive first and Sato shot for the leg soon after but the Romanian wrestler scored an exposure to lead 2-1. Sato continued her snap downs and during one such snap, Pantiru lost her balance and Sato was quick to go behind and score a takedown to lead 3-2 at the break.

A late takedown was the only other action in the bout as Sato kept her distance from Pantiru.

Ruzanna MAMMADOVA (AZE) upgraded her '21 silver to gold in Rome. (Photo: UWW / Kadir Caliskan)

Japan's missed a chance to win a third gold medal of the night as Ruzanna MAMMADOVA (AZE) won a thrilling 49kg final against Mihoko TAKEUCHI (JPN), 5-3.

The victory was even sweeter as Mammadov had to make a comeback in the second period after trailing 3-0. Warned for passivity, Mammadova gave up a takedown after conceding the point for passivity.

Takeuchi had to hold her lead but was warned for inactivity and she then gave up a takedown in the activity period as Mammadova took a 3-3 criteria lead with 15 seconds remaining.

As Takeuchi tried to find her final attack, Mammadova used an arm throw to score two more points and seal the gold medal with a 5-3 win.

The European champion had fallen short at the last U17 World Championships as she suffered a 7-2 loss to Komal in the 46kg final.

A clearly improved Mammadova showed up in Rome as she went past U20 European champion Sevval CAYIR (TUR) 3-2 in the quarterfinals as well.

She is now only the fourth wrestler from Azerbaijan to win the U17 world title in women's wrestling.

Chisato YOSHIDA (JPN) will wrestle in the 69kg final on Friday. (Photo: UWW / Kadir Caliskan)

Japan, India dominate, again

Japan and India shared seven spots out of 10 in the finals on Thursday. Japan managed to send four wrestlers into the gold medal bouts while India managed three. The USA entered two while Ukraine managed a finalist.

In a repeat of the U17 Asian Championships final, MUSKAN (IND) set up the 40kg gold medal bout against Mona EZAKA (JPN). Both were class apart in the eight-wrestler field and will now wrestle for gold. In the Asian final, Muskan had pinned Ezaka.

At 46kg, Gabriella GOMEZ (USA) came from behind to beat European champion Kornelia LASZLO (HUN), 3-3, in the semifinals. She will now wrestle for gold against Koko MATSUDA (JPN) who managed to scrape past SHRUTI (IND) 4-0 with some solid defense.

India manage to beat a Japanese wrestler when SAVITA (IND) pinned Suzu SASAKI (JPN) in the 61kg semifinal by locking up a cradle. She will now face Valerie HAMILTON (USA) in the final after the USA wrestler made it past Sevinch SULTONOVA (UZB) with ease.

Mariia YEFREMOVA (UKR) will wrestle Sakura ONISHI (JPN) in a bid to win her second U17 world title. (Photo: UWW / Martin Gabor)

At 53kg, one of the two finalists is destined to suffer their first-ever international loss. Sakura ONISHI (JPN) overpowered Ya CHEN (TPE) in the semifinal while returning world champion Mariia YEFREMOVA (UKR) pinned Khaliun BYAMBASUREN (MGL) in the other semifinal.

Both Onishi and Yefremova have never lost a bout on the international stage but that record will hold one more day for one of them.

HARSHITA (IND) secured her first U17 world medal after missing out in 2021. (Photo: UWW / Martin Gabor)

The final pair at 69kg includes HARSHITA (IND) and Chisato YOSHIDA (JPN). Harshita gave no chance to Veronika VILK (CRO) to get her double arm lock and won 8-1 while Yoshida had to recover from 4-2 down to score a takedown Nadiia SOKOLOVSKA (UKR) and then score another clumsy one with seven seconds remaining.

RESULTS

43kg
GOLD: Ritika KATARIA (IND) df. Erica PASTORIZA (USA), via fall (9-0)

BRONZE: Elvina KARIMZADA (AZE) df. Arina ABDULLINA (KAZ), via fall (8-0)
BRONZE: Anastasiia POLSKA (UKR) df. Gulnura RUSLANOVA (UZB), 5-3

49kg
GOLD: Ruzanna MAMMADOVA (AZE) df. Mihoko TAKEUCHI (JPN), 5-3

BRONZE: Sevval CAYIR (TUR) df. Aiymgul ABYLOVA (KAZ), 13-0
BRONZE: Fabiana RINELLA (ITA) df. Reka HEGEDUS (SVK), 7-0

57kg
GOLD: Sowaka UCHIDA (JPN) df. Gerda TEREK (HUN), via fall (6-0)

BRONZE: Ulmeken ESENBAEVA (UZB) df. Shelby MOORE (USA), 4-2
BRONZE: Tuba DEMIR (TUR) df. Liza TOMAR (IND), 7-0

65kg
GOLD: Anju SATO (JPN) df. Maria PANTIRU (ROU), 5-2

BRONZE: Zharkynai NURLAN KYZY (KGZ) df. Sydney PERRY (USA), 7-0
BRONZE: Reka VAN OS (NED) df. Viktoria FOELDESIOVA (SVK), via fall (4-0)

73kg
GOLD: Priya MALIK (IND) vs. Mariia ZENKINA (UKR)

BRONZE: Alina YERTOSTIK (KAZ) df. Kaiulani GARCIA (USA), via fall (2-6)
BRONZE: Lotta ENGLICH (GER) df. Makoto KOMADA (JPN), 11-0

Semifinals

40kg
GOLD: Mona EZAKA (JPN) vs MUSKAN (IND)

SF 1: Mona EZAKA (JPN) df. Yagmur KARABACAK (TUR), 11-0
SF 2: MUSKAN (IND) df. Diana VOICULESCU (ROU), 10-0

46kg
GOLD: Koko MATSUDA (JPN) vs Gabriella GOMEZ (USA)

SF 1: Koko MATSUDA (JPN) df. SHRUTI (IND), 4-0
SF 2: Gabriella GOMEZ (USA) df. Kornelia LASZLO (HUN), 3-3

53kg
GOLD: Mariia YEFREMOVA (UKR) vs Sakura ONISHI (JPN)

SF 1: Mariia YEFREMOVA (UKR) df. Khaliun BYAMBASUREN (MGL), via fall
SF 2: Sakura ONISHI (JPN) df. Ya CHEN (TPE), 10-0

61kg
GOLD: SAVITA (IND) vs Valerie HAMILTON (USA)

SF 1: SAVITA (IND) df. Suzu SASAKI (JPN), via fall
SF 2: Valerie HAMILTON (USA) df. Sevinch SULTONOVA (UZB), 5-0

69kg
GOLD: Chisato YOSHIDA (JPN) vs. HARSHITA (IND)

SF 1: Chisato YOSHIDA (JPN) df. Nadiia SOKOLOVSKA (UZB), 6-4
SF 2: HARSHITA (IND) df. Veronika VILK (CRO), 8-0

Lorincz Locks up Sixth Career Ranking Series Gold Medal

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Japan, India share 2 WW golds at U17 Worlds