#WrestleBudapest19

Marin Potrille Takes Down Senior World Medalist for U23 World Title

Friday, November 1, 2019 - 21:59 By Taylor Miller

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Photo of Milaimys MARIN POTRILLE (CUB) by Sachiko Hotaka.

BUDAPEST, Hungary – Milaimys MARIN POTRILLE (CUB) knocked off a Senior World medalist in an impressive win in the women’s freestyle gold-medal finals at 72 kg on Friday night at the U23 World Championships.

The win marks Marin Potrille’s second World gold medal of the year as she was a 2019 Junior World champion.

For the title, Marin Potrille faced 2019 Senior World bronze medalist and 2018 U23 World bronze medalist Xiaoqian WANG (CHN).

Wang struck first on exposure, leading 2-0 at the break, but it was all Marin Potrille in the second period.

The Cuban got on the board with a takedown on the edge for a lead on criteria. With less than 10 seconds left, Marin Potrille iced the match with a takedown and gut wrench for a 6-2 victory.

Throughout the competition, Marin Potrille was the only women’s freestyle champion that does not represent Japan or China.

Three other 2019 Junior World champions added U23 World titles to their resumes tonight, including Haruna OKUNO (JPN), Sae NANJO (IND) and Yuzuka INAGAKI (JPN).

Wrestling at 53 kg, Okuno wrapped up her gold-medal match in only 1:12, pinning 2017 Junior Asian champion Pooja GEHLOT (IND).

Okuno is now a six-time World champion, owning two Senior World titles, two U23 World titles, a 2019 Junior World title and a 2016 Cadet World title.

For the gold at 57 kg, Nanjo was just as dominant, scoring two takedowns and three gut wrenches for a first-period 10-0 techical fall against 2019 Junior World silver medalist and 2017 U23 World bronze winner Alina AKOBIIA (UKR).

The U23 World title adds to Nanjo’s 2017 and 2019 Junior World golds.

Inagaki, a two-time Junior World champion, edged out two-time age-group World medalist Kayla MIRACLE (USA) in the championship bout at 62 kg.

Inagaki came out on top in a second-period scramble to give her an eventual 3-0 win.

To win the title at 65 kg, 2019 Ivan Yariguin Grand Prix runner-up Misuzu ENOMOTO (JPN) won a controlled 11-0 technical fall against Purevsuren ULZIISAIKHAN (MGL).

Japan won the team title, claiming seven gold medals, one silver medal and one bronze medal for 230 points. In second was China, which edged out Ukraine 105-103.

Finals results
53 kg
GOLD - Haruna OKUNO (JPN) df. Pooja GEHLOT (IND), fall 1:12
BRONZE - Anudari NANDINTSETSEG (MGL) df. Katsiaryna PICHKOUSKAYA (BLR), 10-0
BRONZE - Zeynep YETGIL (TUR) df. Ekaterina VERBINA (RUS), 5-2

57 kg
GOLD - Sae NANJO (JPN) df. Alina AKOBIIA (UKR), 10-0
BRONZE - Hannah Fay TAYLOR (CAN) df. Altynay SATYLGAN (KAZ), fall 5:48
BRONZE - Marina SIMONYAN (RUS) df. Valeryia YARMOLA (BLR), 10-0

62 kg
GOLD - Yuzuka INAGAKI (JPN) df. Kayla MIRACLE (USA), 3-0
BRONZE - Irina RINGACI (MDA) df. Veranika IVANOVA (BLR), 12-5
BRONZE - Ilona PROKOPEVNIUK (UKR) df. Mariia KUZNETSOVA (RUS), 7-4

65 kg
GOLD - Misuzu ENOMOTO (JPN) df. Purevsuren ULZIISAIKHAN (MGL), 11-0
BRONZE - Madina BAKBERGENOVA (KAZ) df. Nade DRAGUNOVA (BLR), 3-0
BRONZE - Iryna KOLIADENKO (UKR) df. Kriszta Tunde INCZE (ROU), fall 2:22

72 kg
GOLD - Milaimys MARIN POTRILLE (CUB) df. Xiaoqian WANG (CHN), 6-2
BRONZE - Mei SHINDO (JPN) df. Alexandra Nicoleta ANGHEL (ROU), 9-3
BRONZE - Evgeniia ZAKHARCHENKO (RUS) df. Zhamila BAKBERGENOVA (KAZ), 6-6

Team results
1. Japan – 230
2. China – 105
3. Ukraine – 103
4. Russia – 87
5. USA – 80
6. Mongolia – 71
7. Kazakhstan – 68
8. Canada – 65
9. Belarus – 58
10. Romania - 49

#UnitedWorldWrestling

Paris Olympics: Wrestling breaks new barriers, expands reach across continents

Thursday, August 22, 2024 - 14:05 By United World Wrestling Press

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CORSIER-SUR-VEVEY, Switzerland (August 22): More than half a million new fans in the digital community. An astounding 100 million engagements. And a remarkable 134 percent increase in social media impressions compared to Tokyo 2020.

At the Paris Olympics, it was a gold medal for wrestling.

UWW

On the mat, legends were born, records were set, and some moments would be remembered for ages. Off it, the sport broke new barriers, expanded its reach and engaged with a diverse audience as the United World Wrestling digital channels witnessed unprecedented growth during the Games.

The UWW’s online platforms recorded an impressive 11.2 percent increase in followers, adding over 508,000 new fans to its digital community. Compared to the growth in followers during the Tokyo Olympics, this figure represents a staggering 125 percent increase.

A large part of this surge was seen on Instagram, where the UWW gained 217,000 new followers. Facebook was a close second, adding 183,000 new followers while TikTok, the platform known for its short, engaging content, added 61,400 new followers. The growth across all platforms highlights the effectiveness of the UWW’s content strategy.

The inspiring clip of Greco-Roman star Mohammadhadi SARAVI (IRI), who won Iran’s first gold medal in the Paris Olympics drove the maximum engagement on Instagram. Saravi, who won a bronze medal in Tokyo, beat Artur ALEKSANYAN (ARM) 4-1 in the 97kg final.

Another Iranian, Rahman AMOUZAD, one of the most feared wrestlers in the 65 kg freestyle, went viral with a video in which he proclaimed himself the ‘king’. This post had the second-highest engagement while a slick clip of Frank CHAMIZO (ITA) was the third-most viewed, captivating the viewers and leading engagements as well as interactions.

These videos – and many others shared across UWW’s social media channels – resonated strongly with audiences, garnering record-breaking views. Overall, there were 330 million impressions, a remarkable rise of 134 percent compared to the Tokyo Olympics.

Moreover, the content also achieved 100 million engagements, and a 71 percent increase in reach compared to the previous Olympic Games. This surge in interaction underscores the high level of interest and excitement generated by UWW’s coverage of the Olympic wrestling events.

The video content drove UWW’s social media success. Across all platforms, UWW’s video content garnered over 156 million views, an extraordinary 205 percent increase compared to the Tokyo 2020 Olympics.

YouTube, in particular, saw significant traction with over 21 million views. This success was fueled by a mix of short and long-form videos apart from live streaming, with shorts emerging as the most popular content format.

With more than one million views, the YouTube video of AMAN (IND) getting his revenge over Zelimkhan ABAKAROV (ALB) with a win in the preliminary round. Aman, who won a bronze medal, had lost to Abakarov at the 2023 World Championships.

Chamizo’s video, Don't play with fire #WrestleParis, which went viral on Instagram was also a huge hit on YouTube with hundreds of thousands of viewers, making it the second-most watched video on the platform.

The Day Three highlights show which revisited one of the biggest upsets of the competition – Vinesh PHOGAT (IND) defeating Yui SUSAKI (JPN) in the women’s 50 kg first round – got the third-highest views on YouTube.

The UWW’s vibrant social media strategy was complemented by a robust email marketing campaign, which ran daily throughout the Olympic Games. The ongoing CRM campaigns helped boost engagement across Web, App and UWW+.