#JapanWrestling

Ozaki denies Onishi in 62kg semis, sets up clash with Motoki

Saturday, December 20, 2025 - 08:01 By Ken Marantz

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TOKYO (December 20) -- Nonoka OZAKI gave Sakura ONISHI a less-than-cordial welcome to the women’s 62kg weight class.

Ozaki, a two-time former world champion who has hit a wall of late amid Japan’s incredible depth in women’s wrestling, defeated world 59kg champion Onishi 4-1 in the semifinals at 62kg at the Emperor’s Cup All-Japan Championships on Saturday.

That earned Ozaki yet another shot at reigning world and Olympic champion Sakura MOTOKI, who advanced with an 8-2 victory over Yuzuka INAGAKI.

The Olympic weight classes are being contested over two days, and organizers saved a bevy of world and Olympic champions and medalists for the third day of the four-day tournament at Tokyo’s Komazawa Gym.

In other semifinals, a clash of champions from this year’s World Championships in Zagreb was set up at freestyle 74kg, in which reigning champion Kota TAKAHASHI will square off with Yoshinosuke AOYAGI, the victor at 70kg who has moved up to the Olympic division.

Takahashi easily disposed of Toki OGAWA by 11-0 technical fall, while Aoyagi posted a 7-1 victory over Hikaru TAKATA.

Meanwhile, Paris Olympic champions Akari FUJINAMI, Kotaro KIYOOKA and Nao KUSAKA all advanced to their respective finals with varying degrees of ease or difficulty, along with Paris bronze medalist Yui SUSAKI.

Nonoka OZAKI (JPN)Nonoka OZAKI will wrestle Sakura MOTOKI in the 62kg final. (Photo: Takeo Yabuki / wrestling-spirits.jp)

Ozaki had been forced to watch the World Championships from the sidelines after losing out Motoki at the Meiji Cup All-Japan Invitational Championships, which, along with Emperor’s Cup, serves as a domestic qualifier for major international competitions.

The last thing Ozaki needed was another interloper in the weight class, and she determinedly fended off the challenge from the 19-year-old Onishi.

“It was my first time facing her,” Ozaki said. “She’s a young, upcoming wrestler who hasn’t yet experienced the Olympics, just like I had been. But this is not a weight class that can be taken lightly.”

After giving up an activity point, Ozaki scored a late takedown in the first period, then added another in the second to earn a spot in Sunday’s final.

“There are many videos of her out there that I have watched, so I had an image of how she wrestles in mind,” Ozaki said. “I had to think of what form my wrestling should take.”

Asked if she has come up with a strategy to handle Motoki, Ozaki said, “I’ve faced her twice now, and I watched her at the World Championships. There is a ‘Motoki way’ of wrestling, and that’s implanted in my mind.”

Takara SUDA (JPN)Takara SUDA, left, works for a takedown in the first period against Kaisei TANABE during their 65kg semifinal. (Photo: Takeo Yabuki / wrestling-spirits.jp)

Suda spoils Tanabe’s bid for two-style double

The stacked freestyle 65kg division saw the match of the day, in which Takara SUDA spoiled Kaisei TANABE’s bid for a historic Greco-freestyle title double with dramatic last-second takedown in their semifinal.

Suda had taken the lead with a takedown with 1:10 left, only to see Tanabe come back with a takedown of his own with five seconds left. But Suda shot for all he’s
worth and managed to score in time for a 5-4 victory.

“There was still five seconds left and I just kept calm,” Suda said. “I thought if I kept cool, I could score.”

Tanabe had won the Greco 63kg gold on Thursday, and was aiming to become the first to double in two styles at the same tournament since 1973.

“I had lost to him twice before, both by technical fall,” Suda said. “This time I just wanted to avoid losing by technical fall. But those matches were two years ago, and I think I’ve gotten better over these two years.”

Suda’s victory earns him a shot at Paris gold medalist Kiyooka, who managed to hold on for a 3-2 victory over Kaiji OGINO that ended with a wild scramble in
the final 15 seconds.

“He’s an opponent on another level,” Suda said of Kiyooka. “I’ll have to keep moving and give everything I got."

Yui SUSAKI (JPN)Yui SUSAKI throws Mako ONO en route to a technical fall in their 50kg semifinal. (Photo: Takeo Yabuki / wrestling-spirits.jp)

Susaki stormed into the women’s 50kg final with three straight technical falls without surrendering a point, the last one a 10-0 rout of Mako ONO. In the final, she will face world U23 53kg champion Haruna MORIKAWA.

Susaki’s path to a fourth national title and first since 2022 was made slightly easier by the absence of rival Remina YOSHIMOTO and the late withdrawal of
Umi ITO.

Akari FUJINAMI (JPN)Akari FUJINAMI, left, squares off with Sara NATAMI in the 57kg semifinals. (Photo: Takeo Yabuki / wrestling-spirits.jp)

Fujinami, the Paris champion at 53kg, continued her transition to 57kg with solid victories, although with all of her points being scored from her feet, save
for an activity point.

In the semifinal, she built up a 7-0 lead over defending champion Sara NATAMI before her opponent twice countered single-leg attempts to score exposures, leaving Fujinami with a 7-4 victory. She will face Himeka TOKUHARA in the final.

Kusaka was clearly the most dominant of the Olympians on the day, winning his two matches by 11-0 scores -- both topped off with 4-point throws. He will face
Isami HORIKITA in the final.

#WrestleParis

Wrestling at Paris 2024: Tazhudinov vs Snyder in semis

Saturday, August 10, 2024 - 08:29 By Ken Marantz & Vinay Siwach

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PARIS (August 10) -- Wrestling at Paris enters its penultimate day with Freestyle in 65kg and 97kg and women's wrestling in 76kg. More medals to be won at the Olympics.

LIVE MATCH ORDER | PARIS 2024 DAY 5

13:48: Yuka KAGAMI (JPN) avenges a loss to her predecessor as world champion, Yasemin ADAR (TUR), at the 2022 World Championships, holding on for a 3-0 victory to gain a spot in the women's 76kg semifinals. Kagami gains an activity point in the first period, then connects on a single-leg attempt for a takedown. She then fends off all of Adar's attacks to keep alive her gold-medal hopes.

13:30: Akhmed TAZHUDINOV (BRN) seems to have recovered from that hectic opening bout against Amirali AZARPIRA (IRI). He casually beats Alisher YERGALI (KAZ) 14-2 in the quarterfinal. He will have a tough one in the semifinal -- Kyle SNYDER (USA).

13:24: Tatiana RENTERIA (COL) posts a dramatic 6-3 victory over Davaanasan ENKH AMAR (MGL) to advance to the women's 76kg semifinals and move a step closer to making Colombian history. Renteria gives up a go-ahead takedown in the second period, but comes back with a stepout and takedown to take a 5-3 lead. She then holds out against a single-leg attempt by Enkh Amar to clinch the victory. The Mongolian side challenges, but it is denied. Renteria is looking to join two-time Olympic bronze medalist Jackeline RENTERIA (COL) as Colombia's lone Olympic medalist in wrestling.

13:26: Rahman AMOUZAD (IRI) is looking particularly sharp at freestyle 65kg. He comes out like a buzzsaw in his quarterfinal against Islam DUDAEV (ALB), who has no answer as the Iranian chalks up three stepouts and two takedowns in the first period, and two stepouts and a clinching takedown in the second for an 11-0 victory.

13:23: Kennedy BLADES (USA) survives a tough battle with Milsimy MARIN (CUB), advancing to the women's 76kg semifinals with a 4-3 win. Blades goes ahead 2-1 in the second period with a stepout while on the activity clock, then makes it 4-1 by stuffing a takedown attempt by Marin for 2. But Marin scores a takedown in the final 10 seconds, and Blades does all she can to keep from being turned out.  

13:20: Kyle SNYDER (USA) with a fall! Arturo SILOT TORRES (CUB) kept him under control for some time but Snyder dumps him and holds him on the edge before a fall at the start of the second period.

13:14: In a testy freestyle 65kg quarterfinal between two longtime foes, Ismail MUSUKAEV (HUN) gets a 4-point takedown en route to a 10-3 victory over Haji ALIYEV (AZE). Musukaev clinched the win with a slick ankle pick for a takedown.  

13:10: Aiperi MEDET KYZY (KGZ) holds on for a 1-1 victory on last-point criteria over REETIKA (IND) in a women's 76kg quarterfinal limited to activity points. On the clock in the second period, Reetika came close to getting a clinching takedown, but Medet Kyzy managed to keep her from completing the move. 

13:00: World champion Yuka KAGAMI (JPN), looking to give powerhouse Japan its first-ever gold medal in the heaviest women's weight class, gets an activity point in the first period and a stepout in the second while on the clock to defeat Genesis REASCO  (ECU) 2-0 and fill the final women's 76kg quarterfinal spot.

13:00: Magomedkhan MAGOMEDOV (AZE) reaches the semifinal at 97kg after a 7-2 win over Zbigniew BARANOWSKI (POL).
      
12:59: Kotaro KIYOOKA (JPN) chalks up a dramatic and at times acrobatic 8-6 victory over Sebastian RIVERA (PUR) to advance to the freestyle 65kg semifinals. Kiyooka gets a pair of 2-point exposures in a scramble off his single-leg attempt, then transitions to a lace lock for 2 more. Rivera comes back with a takedown to cut the lead to 6-2 at the break. In the second period, Rivera successfully counters a low single for a 2-point exposure, but Kiyooka gets an exposure on his next takedown attempt. Rivera scores a final takedown, which he completes despite a balletic flip by Kiyooka, in an attempt to escape the hold.12:48: A dramatic win on Mat A for Tulga TUMUR OCHIR (MGL) and he's into the freestyle 65kg semifinals. After giving up a 4-point takedown to Vazgen TEVANYAN (ARM), he gradually cuts the lead, finally going ahead with a spin-behind takedown with :12 left. An unsuccessful challenge makes it a 7-5 win.

12:47: Tokyo bronze medalist Yasemin ADAR  (TUR) trails 2-2 on criteria when she scores three takedowns in the final minute for a 6-2 win over Justina DI STASIO (CAN), a world champion in 2018 who was making a long-awaited Olympic debut.  

12:47: World champion Akhmed TAZHUDINOV (BRN) with a huge comeback in the second period to move into the quarterfinals. Tazhudinov was down 2-0 against Amirali AZARPIRA (IRI) at the break and then 3-0 with 90 seconds left. But Azarpira could not hold for the final 40 seconds and gave up two takedowns to go down 4-3.

12:35: World 72kg silver medalist Davaanasan ENKH AMAR (MGL) bulls Hannah RUEBEN (NGR) backward for a takedown with 10 seconds left that clinches a 5-2 victory over at women's 76kg.

12:34: Two-time Asian champion Rahman AMOUZAD (IRI) gets two takedowns in the first period then scores with stepouts in the second in a comfortable 8-0 win over world 70kg champion Zain RETHERFORD (USA) in the final first-round match at freestyle 65kg.

12:24: World bronze medalist Tatiana RENTERIA (COL), who also dabbles in beach wrestling, dug herself out of a 4-point hole against Zaineb SGHAIER (TUN) to advance to the women's 76kg quarterfinals with an 8-4 win.

12:23: Japan-born Gaku AKAZAWA (SAM), who received Samoan citizenship in time to become just the second wrestler in the Pacific island nation's history to qualify for the Olympics, gets a rough intro to the Olympic level when he is dealt a 10-0 loss by Islam DUDAEV (ALB) at freestyle 65kg.

12:18: Tempestuous Tokyo silver medalist Haji ALIYEV (AZE) keeps Austin GOMEZ (MEX) at bay and advances at freestyle 65kg with a safe 7-0 victory. Aliyev leads 2-0 in the second period when he chalks up two takedowns and a stepout at the buzzer.

12:14: Arturo SILOT TORRES (CUB) works his way to a slow but controlled 5-0 win over Erik THIELE (GER). He will face Snyder in the next bout.

12:14: There is a delay on Mat B as Catalina AXENTE (ROU) continues to receive treatment on her neck. She is taken off on a stretcher to respectful applause from the crowd.

12:07: Awusayiman HABILA (CHN) would be proud of his four-point counter against Kyle SNYDER (USA) but the returning silver medalist from America breaks Habila and goes on to win 9-5 in the opening 97kg bout for Snyder.

12:06: Reigning world champion and two-time world bronze medalist Ismail MUSUKAEV (HUN) gets a slow start, taking a 1-0 lead into the second period at freestyle 65kg against Ernazar AKMATALIEV (KGZ). But a second-period takedown opens the door for a series of gut wrenches that give him an 11-0 win.

12:05: Kennedy BLADES (USA), who defeated six-time world champion and Tokyo silver medalist Adeline GRAY (USA) at the U.S. trials, gets her Olympic debut off to a roaring start, but a painful one for Catalina AXENTE (ROU). After an opening takedown, Blades connects with a 4-point takedown to take a 6-0 lead into second period. It is then she hits a back suplex for which any Greco wrestler would be proud for 5.

11:46: World U23 champion REETIKA (IND) uses her counter lifts to great advantage and advances at women's 68kg with a 12-2 win over Bernadett NAGY (HUN).

11:45: Sebastian RIVERA (PUR) gives up an opening takedown to Georgii OKOROKOVV (AUS), then takes control of their freestyle 65kg clash. Rivera scores a takedown and two gut wrenches, then another takedown and two tilts for a 12-2 win.

11:43: European champion Givi MATCHARASHVILI (GEO) has little trouble seeing off Nicolaas DE LANGE (RSA) at 97kg. Top counter game from Matcharashvili who has a really good chance to be in the final here.
      
11:41: Kotaro KIYOOKA (JPN), who dethroned Tokyo Olympic gold medalist Takuto OTOGURO (JPN) as national freestyle 65kg champion and earned his ticket to Paris at the Asian Qualifier, showed no fear in his first major senior tournament, rolling to a 10-0 victory over 2021 European bronze medalist Maxim SACULTAN (MDA). Kiyooka follows his third takedown with two rolls to end the match with three seconds to spare in the second period.

11:36: Asian champion Aiperi MEDET KYZY (KGZ), a fifth-place finisher at the Tokyo Olympics, executes a classic counter-lift for 2, then twists around to put Juan WANG (CHN) onto her back for 2 more. Wang gets an activity point in the second period, but falls well short in a 4-1 scoreline in their women's 76kg clash.

11:35: Two-time Asian silver medalist Tulga TUMUR OCHIR (MGL) gets an activity point and takedown in the first period, and he goes on to a 5-0 victory at freestyle 65kg over 35-year-old Alejandro VALDES (CUB), a two-time Olympian who won consecutive world bronze medals in 2017-18.

11:30: World silver medalist Magomedkhan MAGOMEDOV (AZE) with a nice warm-up win over Luis PEREZ SOSA (DOM) at 97kg. Perez Sosa is the first ever freestyle wrestler from Dominica to be at the Olympics.

11:26: Ana GODINEZ  (CAN) scores a takedown while on the activity clock in the first period, and that's enough to defeat Kriszta INCZE (ROU) 2-0 in the second repechage at women's 62kg.  She will face Grace BULLEN (NOR) for the bronze.

11:24: World bronze medalist Vazgen TEVANYAN (ARM) gets a pair of takedowns in the second period to finish up an 11-0 victory over  Goderdzi DZEBISASHVILI (GEO) in 4:45 of the opening match at freestyle 65kg.

11:20: Aiaal LAZAREV (KGZ) is into the bronze medal bout after missing out on it twice before at the Olympics. He pins Amarveer DHESI (CAN) at 125kg. In the second 125kg repechage, Robert BARAN (POL) gives himself a chance to win a bronze after he beats Oleksandr KHOTSIANIVSKYI (UKR)

11:16: A women's 62kg repechage match starts the action on Mat B, Orkhon PUREVDORJ (MGL) gets a takedown with 1:02 left to defeat Bilyana DUDOVA (BUL) 3-2 in a clash of former world champions.  Purevdorj will face Tokyo silver medalist and reigning world champion Aisuluu TYNYBEKOVA (KGZ) for a bronze medal.

11:15: The last full morning session on Mat A starts with a 74kg repechage match between Tokyo silver medalist Mahamedkhabib KADZIMAHAMEDAU (AIN) and four-time reigning European champion Taimuraz SALKAZANOV (SVK). An earlier defensive exposure and a key takedown with a minute to go give Kadzmihamedau a 6-6 victory on big-point criteria. Because 74kg had 18 entries and there was a preliminary round, Kadzmihamedau will have another repechage match later in the session against Chermen VALIEV (ALB) for a place in the bronze-medal match.

11:00: Welcome to Paris 2024! We have a few big matches coming on the last full day of wrestling at the Champs de Mars Arena.