#WrestleRome

Matteo Pellicone day three finals set

Friday, June 24, 2022 - 07:09 By Vinay Siwach

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ROME, Italy (June 24) -- The third day of the Matteo Pellicone Ranking Series will feature six women's wrestling weight classes and two from freestyle. Ukraine dominated day two, winning three out of the four women's wrestling gold medals. Azerbaijan clinched the Greco-Roman title with ease.

MATCH ORDER | WATCH LIVE

An absolutely thrilling session of wrestling comes to an end in Rome. Here are the final match-ups for the evening session. Action begins 1800 hours local time:

Women's wrestling

50kg: Madison PARKS (CAN) vs. Agata WALERZAK (POL)
53kg: Mariana DRAGUTAN (MDA) vs. Liliia MALANCHUK (UKR)
55kg: Mariia VYNNYK (UKR) vs. Katarzyna KRAWCZYK (POL)
59kg: Grace BULLEN (NOR) vs. Jowita WRZESIEN (POL)
65kg: Nordic style -- Tetiana RIZHKO (UKR) won gold
72kg: Nordic style -- Skylar GROTE (USA) won gold

Freestyle

97kg: Givi MATCHARASHVILI (GEO) vs. Batyrbek TCAKULOV (SVK)
125kg: Geno PETRIASHVILI (GEO) vs. Robert BARAN (POL)

13:30: Quick 2-0 lead for Grote and she then gets on a single leg and adds two more to lead 4-0 at the break against Schell. Another shot from Grote and she gets two more. Schell adds a takedown with 41 seconds left. Grote defends and takes the gold at 72kg 

13:20: Tetiana RIZHKO (UKR) absolutely thrashes Veronica BRASCHI (ITA) in the Round 5 bout at 65kg and seals the gold medal. What a performance from the European champion. On Mat A now, the Round 5 bout, with the gold medal on the line, between Anna SCHELL (GER) and Skylar GROTE (USA) 

13:10: Is that another upset? Mariia VYNNYK (UKR) scored a takedown in the final 20 seconds against European champion Andreea ANA (ROU). Even as Ana got on a two-on-one, Vynnyk hangs on for the win and enter the 55kg final 

13:00: Odunayo ADEKUOROYE (NGR) in trouble against Jowita WRZESIEN (POL). She warned for fleeing in danger and is trailing 3-0 at the break in the 59kg semifinal. A double leg to begin the second period and she gets on the scoreboard with a takedown. Adekuoroye gets on another double leg but the series of exposures scored to Wrzesien. Challenge from Adekuoroye. She wins it but the exposures are for Wrzesien while Adekuoroye gets a point for negative from Wrzesien. She has 10 seconds to overturn a 9-3 score. She cannot and she will be wrestling for a bronze later. 

12:45: Grace BULLEN (NOR) is on a roll. She is in the final at 59kg after a 10-0 win over Abigail NETTE (USA). This is the first time in two years that Bullen has managed to reach a final at an international competition.

12:43: Anna SCHELL (GER) and Skylar GROTE (USA) both dominate their Round 4 bouts and have set up a clash for the gold in Round 5. They will wrestle in the evening session for the 72kg gold.

12:35: Batyrbek TCAKULOV (SVK) has a strong leg lace and he uses it to perfection. He reaches his second straight Ranking Series final after beating fellow European bronze medalist Zbigniew BARANOWSKI (POL) 11-0 in the 97kg semifinal 

12:25: A rivalry that goes four years back. Tetiana RIZHKO (UKR) vs. Kriszta INCZE (ROU) are on Mat B for their virtual gold-medal bout. Both are the only unbeaten wrestlers at 65kg. Rizhko once again gets exposure to lead 2-0 but Incze with a reversal. Incze circles around and get behind Rizhko in standing but the Ukrainian tosses her for four. It's 6-1 for Rizhko as Incze rues a missed opportunity. No points were scored in the second period. European champion Rizhko once again beats Incze

12:20: Talk about comebacks! Emma BRUNTIL (USA) was down 6-0 but worked her way to a 7-6 lead before giving up 2 for a trip. But she scores a takedown to lead 9-8 with a minute left. Kateryna ZELENYKH (UKR) tried hard and desperately for a point but failed. Bruntil won 11-8

12:10: Pan-Am champion Skylar GROTE (USA) has picked up two wins at 72kg. After getting past compatriot Marilyn GARCIA (USA) 11-0 in Round 2, she beats Alexandra ANGHEL (ROU) 6-3 in Round 3 to strengthen her position for the gold. 

11:45: A minute and 10 seconds is all Givi MATCHARASHVILI (GEO) needs to upset European champion Magomedkhan MAGOMEDOV (AZE). Strong performance so far from him after beating BAITCAEV (HUN) in the opening round. He will face Erik THIELE (GER) in the semifinal after the German defeated Nishan RANDHAWA (CAN) 10-0.  

11:40: Odunayo ADEKUOROYE (NGR) and Solomiia VYNNYK (UKR) squaring off in the 59kg quarterfinals. A stepout for Adekuoroye to begin proceedings before she adds a takedown to lead 3-0 at the break. Vynnyk with a four and looks to pin Adekuoroye. Exposure sequence and it's 2 each with Vynnyk lead 6-5. Adekuoroye manages to go behind in the same sequence. She leads 7-6. She wins 10-6

11:30: Big match up at 65kg. Tetiana RIZHKO (UKR) up against Kateryna ZELENYKH (UKR). She gets two takedowns before working a leg turk. Zelenykh survives the fall. She then tries to reach Rizhko's far leg but ends up in a cradle and gives up two more. 8-0 for Rizhko. Zelenykh drives Rizhko out to make it 8-1. Rizhko with some crafty defence and puts Zelenykh on her back to secure the fall

11:15: European bronze medalist Batyrbek TCAKULOV (SVK) began with two takedowns against Elizbar ODIKADZE (GEO). But he survived a cradle before securing an 8-4 win  

11:05: Winning start for Romania. First, European champion Andreea ANA (ROU) pins Alice BEVILACQUA (ITA) at 55kg and then Kriszta INCZE (ROU) controls the bout against Kateryna ZELENYKH (UKR) for a 4-1 win at 65kg  

10:55: Vladislav BAITCAEV (HUN) was up 7-2 but fails to keep the intensity and suffers a 14-9 loss to Givi MATCHARASHVILI (GEO) at 97kg. Not the start the European Championships silver medalist would have hoped for. 

10: 50: Geno PETRIASHVILI (GEO) with a composed 11-0 win over Gennadij CUDINOVIC (GER). He did not waste too much energy and let the bout stroll into the second period.

10:45: We are moving very quickly. At 97kg, Batyrbek TCAKULOV (SVK) got an injury default win over Radoslaw BARAN (POL) while European champion Magomedkhan MAGOMEDOV (AZE) uses a gut wrench to secure a technical superiority win over  Radu LEFTER (MDA).

Grace BULLEN (NOR)Grace BULLEN (NOR) throws Nikolett SZABO (HUN) in their opening round bout at 59kg. (Photo: UWW / Kadir Caliskan)

10:41: What a start for Grace BULLEN (NOR)! She leg laces Nikolett SZABO (HUN) before securing a fall with a huge five at the end.

10:40: Emma BRUNTIL (USA) held off Tetiana RIZHKO (UKR) for a few moments but the European champion secures a first-period fall over the American. Big result for Rizhko as she looks to add a gold  

10:35: World bronze medalist Anna SCHELL (GER) with a series of go behinds and she secures an 11-0 win in Round 1 at 72kg.

10:30: Ukraine won four gold medals Thursday and Kateryna ZELENYKH (UKR) begins the new day like her teammates. He wins 11-0 over Veronica BRASCHI (ITA) at 65kg. 

#WrestlePontevedra

U20 Worlds: Zakriev dominates to gold; Abdevali repeats

Wednesday, September 4, 2024 - 09:57 By Vinay Siwach

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PONTEVEDRA, Spain (September 3) -- Erzu ZAKRIEV (AIN) was unsure if he would be participating in the U20 World Championships. Zakriev began preparing only two days before the start of the tournament in Spain.

"We were told that we wouldn’t come here," Zakriev said. "I went into relaxed mode. It was only three days before we were told that we could go. The way was really long and difficult, we were cutting weight at the airport. We had to change four flights on our way. We arrived at midnight and early next day I had my first match in the morning. I didn’t even have time to rest."

Zakriev did not show any signs of distress as he began the competition with a technical superiority win and reached the final with two more wins. On Tuesday, the 19-year-old won the gold medal at 63kg in Pontevedra, Spain, being the final against Otto BLACK (USA) 8-0.

A minute into the final and Zakriev had Black on the backfoot with a stepout and takedown. Black never got a chance to come back into the final as Zakriev finished it in two minutes and 40 seconds.

Erzu ZAKRIEV (AIN)Erzu ZAKRIEV (AIN) tries to complete a throw against Otto BLACK (USA) in the 63kg final. (Photo: United World Wrestling / Kadir Caliskan)

"I was very confident," he said. "Last year I was third at the national championships, and this year I finished first. I haven’t lost any single match for a year now."

The dominance of Zakriev was evident in the U20 European Championships as well as he outscored his opponents 29-0 in four bouts, winning the gold medal over Anri KHOZREVANIDZE (GEO), an opponent he defeated 16-4 in the semifinals on Monday.

Hailing from Chechnya, Zakriev grew up in Goyty village and began training after his parents took him to the academy when he was eight years old.

"I will be moving to the Olympic weight class of 67kg from next year," he said.

The United States suffered another heartbreak in the final as Isaiah CORTEZ (USA) lost the 55kg final against Ali AHMADI VAFA (IRI).

Unlike Black, Cortez had his chances to take the lead against Ahmadi Vafa in the final. He even had the Iranian in a fall position but failed to finish it. Ahmadi Vafa eventually won the final 11-3 in a match that was closer than the scoreline shows.

Ahmadi Vafa got the first par terre advantage and he used a high gut-wrench to take a 5-0 lead over Cortez. He used an arm spin to score two more points to make the lead 7-0. Cortez cut it to 7-2 just before the break with exposure.

Cortez, however, failed to score from par terre and Ahmadi Vafa led 7-3 with 1:25 left on the clock. Two desperate bodylock throws ended up in Cortez giving up points.

Ali AHMADI VAFA (IRI)Ali AHMADI VAFA (IRI) scores two points over Isaiah CORTEZ (USA) in the 55kg final. (Photo: United World Wrestling / Kadir Caliskan)

"I wrestled really well to reach the final. I had analyzed my American opponent’s wrestling style, and thank God, I was able to wrestle with the best results and win the gold medal," Ahmadi Vafa said.

A former U17 world champion, Ahmadi Vafa finished without a medal last year at the U20 Worlds. A gold medal in Pontevedra gave him some relief from his medalless campaign from last year.

"Last year, I couldn’t win a good medal and lost in the world championships," he said. "This year, I managed to win gold. Next year, I have the junior competitions again, but my main goal is to be selected for the senior competitions."

This was the first time since 2017 that the U.S. had two finalists in Greco-Roman at the U20 World Championships. Kamal BEY (USA) won the title in 2017. However, the wait for a new U20 world champion just grew for the U.S.

Alireza ABDEVALI (IRI)Alireza ABDEVALI (IRI) won his second U20 world gold medal at 77kg. (Photo: United World Wrestling / Kadir Caliskan)

Defending U20 world champion Alireza ABDEVALI (IRI) added the second gold medal, winning the 77kg weight class. Wrestling Magomed IARBILOV (AIN) in the final, Abdevali got the par terre advantage but failed to score and Iarbilov scored a reversal to lead 1-1 on criteria.

Abdevali scored an arm-drag takedown in the second period to lead 3-1 and defended it till the end of the time to win his second gold medal at this level.

"I feel great that I was able to win my second world championship medal," he said. "It felt even better than when I won the first time. I’m just at the beginning of my journey, and there’s a long way to go until the Olympics."

Alireza is the fourth of the five Abdevali brothers but said that he felt no pressure to win because of his family name.

"I didn’t feel any pressure. My older brother, Saeid, is a great wrestler, and he gives me motivation and spirit to be a fighter."

Laszlo DARABOS (HUN) Laszlo DARABOS (HUN) scores on Abolfazl FATHITAZANGI (IRI) in the 130kg final. (Photo: United World Wrestling / Jake Kirkman)

Iran could have won three gold medals on Tuesday but former U20 European champion Laszlo DARABOS (HUN) denied Abolfazl FATHITAZANGI (IRI), 5-3, in the 130kg final.

Darabos trailed 3-0 at the break after giving up a turn from par terre. However, when he got the par terre in the second period, he turned Fathitazangi twice and took a 5-3 lead and defended it.

This is the first U20 world champion for Hungary since 2019 and the first since 2012 in the highest weight class.

Asan ZHANYSHOV (KGZ)Asan ZHANYSHOV (KGZ) won the 87kg gold medal after beating Joju SAMADOV (AZE) in the final. (Photo: United World Wrestling / Jake Kirkman)

Zhanyshov upgrades

Returning bronze medalist Asan ZHANYSHOV (KGZ) upgraded to gold after he defeated Joju SAMADOV (AZE), 8-0, in the 87kg final to win Kyrgyzstan's first U20 world title in Greco-Roman since 2019. Incidentally, the last U20 world champion -- Erbol BAKIROV (KGZ) -- also hails from the same village, Taygaray, as Zhanyshov.

In the final, Samadov found it difficult to match the pace of Zhanyshov and failed to stop any of his attacks. He gave up five stepouts in the final.

"I had a great training camp with the senior team," Zhanyshov said. "I already have experience wrestling at the senior level. The difference is that on age-group levels you have to be prepared technically, performing throws and moves, while at the senior level that won’t be enough. You have to be physically and functionally very well prepared. So, my level is now senior."

Having trained with world champions Akzhol MAKHMUDOV (KGZ) and Zholaman SHARSHENBEKOV (KGZ), Zhanyshov felt motivated by his seniors and was determined to win the gold medal.

"Makhmudov and Sharshenbekov are my wrestling role models," he said.

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RESULTS

55kg
GOLD: Ali AHMADI VAFA (IRI) df. Isaiah CORTEZ (USA), 11-3

BRONZE: Alibek AMIROV (11) df. Rahim HASANOV (AZE), 10-0
BRONZE: Aibek AITBEKOV (KAZ) df. Maxim SARMANOV (MDA), 10-1

63kg
GOLD: Erzu ZAKRIEV (AIN) df. Otto BLACK (USA), 8-0

BRONZE: Erfan JARKANI (IRI) df. Anri KHOZREVANIDZE (GEO), 6-2
BRONZE: Yurik HOVEYAN (ARM) df. Enes ULKU (TUR), 2-1

77kg
GOLD: Alireza ABDEVALI (IRI) df. Magomed IARBILOV (AIN), 3-1

BRONZE: Levente LEVAI (HUN) df. Irfan MIRZOIEV (UKR), 3-2
BRONZE: Tornike MIKELADZE (GEO) df. Karl BAFF (SWE), 5-3 

87kg
GOLD: Asan ZHANYSHOV (KGZ) df. Joju SAMADOV (AZE), 8-0

BRONZE: Achiko BOLKVADZE (GEO) df. Patrik GORDAN (ROU), 10-0
BRONZE: Ruben GEVORGYAN (ARM) df. Temirlan TURDAKYN (KAZ), 3-1

130kg
GOLD: Laszlo DARABOS (HUN) df. Abolfazl FATHITAZANGI (IRI), 5-3

BRONZE: Aden ATTAO (USA) df. Aleksandr MELEKHOV (AIN), via fall
BRONZE: Samagan ORMONOV (KGZ) df. Aramayis HARUTYUNYAN (ARM), via fall

Semifinals 

60kg
GOLD: Servet ANGI (TUR) vs. Mohammadmehdi GHOLAMPOUR (IRI)

SF 1: Servet ANGI (TUR) df. Ongdassyn KHAMITOV (KAZ), 9-8
SF 2: Mohammadmehdi GHOLAMPOUR (IRI) df. Papik DZHAVADIAN (AIN), 9-8

67kg
GOLD: Ahmadreza MOHSEN NEZHAD (IRI) vs. Yussuf ASHRAPOV (KAZ)

SF 1: Ahmadreza MOHSEN NEZHAD (IRI) df. Kojiro HASEGAWA (JPN), 10-0
SF 2: Yussuf ASHRAPOV (KAZ) df. Grair OGANESIAN (AIN), 7-5

72kg
GOLD: Zaur BESLEKOEV (AIN) vs. Ashot KHACHATRYAN (ARM)

SF 1: Zaur BESLEKOEV (AIN) df. Muhammed GOCMEN (TUR), 1-1
SF 2: Ashot KHACHATRYAN (ARM) df. Ruslan NURULLAYEV (AZE), 4-1

82kg
GOLD: Islam YEVLOYEV (KAZ) vs. Alperen BERBER (TUR)

SF 1: Islam YEVLOYEV (KAZ) df. Abdurakhman ABDULKADYROV (AIN), via inj. def.
SF 2: Alperen BERBER (TUR) df. Taizo YOSHIDA (JPN), 12-0

97kg
GOLD: Yehor YAKUSHENKO (UKR) vs. Darius KIEFER (GER)

SF 1: Yehor YAKUSHENKO (UKR) df. Anatolii AVERIN (AIN), 7-4
SF 2: Darius KIEFER (GER) df. Ahmet EREMEKTER (TUR), via fall