U23 World C'ships

Petriashvili to Wrestle for Second World Gold of 2017 and Third of Career

Saturday, November 25, 2017 - 15:00 By Taylor Miller

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BYDGOSZCZ, Poland – Heavyweight power Geno PETRIASHVILI (GEO) is on track to win his second World title of the year, advancing to the 125 kg finals of freestyle competition at the U23 World Championships in Bydgoszcz, Poland.

Petriashvili, a six-time World medalist and 2016 Olympic bronze medalist, sailed to the finals, collecting three wins by technical fall and surrendering only one point in the first session.

The 2017 Senior World champion and 2013 Junior World champion will face two-time Junior European champion Magomedamin DIBIROV (RUS) in the gold-medal bout.

Dibirov impressed, knocking off two-time Junior World champion Amin Hossein TAHERI (IRI) in the semifinals, 12-1.

The other three finals are set up to be entertaining as well.

At 57 kg, six-time European Championships medalist Mikyay NAIM (BUL) will go up against 2017 Senior Pan American Championships bronze medalist Reineri Andreu ORTEGA (CUB).

2017 Senior World fifth-place finisher Rinya NAKAMURA (JPN) seeks his second World medal and first World title at 61 kg. Nakamura, a 2011 Cadet World bronze winner, will face Kuat AMIRTAYEV (KAZ), a 2017 Medved International bronze medalist.

2014 Junior World silver medalist and 2011 Cadet World bronze medalist Azamat DAULETBEKOV (KAZ) advanced to the 86 kg finals, looking for his third World medal at three different age groups.

He’ll go head-to-head with Intercontinental Cup champion Alikhan ZHABRAILOV (RUS).

The finals are set to begin at 6 p.m. local time (12 p.m. U.S. ET).

Finals matchups

57 kg
Gold - Mikyay Salim NAIM (BUL) vs. Reineri ANDREU ORTEGA (CUB)
Bronze - Zhandos ISMAILOV (KAZ) vs. Parviz IBRAHIMOV (AZE)
Bronze - Wanhao ZOU (CHN) vs. Suleyman ATLI (TUR)

61 kg
Gold - Rinya NAKAMURA (JPN) vs. Kuat AMIRTAYEV (KAZ)
Bronze - Mihai ESANU (MDA) vs. Sedat OZDEMIR (TUR)
Bronze - Husein SHAKHBANAU (BLR) vs. Islam DUDAEV (RUS)

86 kg
Gold - Alikhan ZHABRAILOV (RUS) vs. Azamat DAULETBEKOV (KAZ)
Bronze - Uri KALASHNIKOV (ISR) vs. Raman CHYTADZE (BLR)
Bronze - Irakli MTSITURI (GEO) vs. Lazaro Daniel HERNANDEZ LUIS (CUB)

125 kg
Gold - Geno PETRIASHVILI (GEO) vs. Magomedamin DIBIROV (RUS)
Bronze - Mihaly NAGY (HUN) vs. Amin Hossein TAHERI (IRI)
Bronze - Zhanxiang HU (CHN) vs. Danylo KARTAVYI (UKR)

#WrestleBelgrade

Aitmukhan: From volunteer at Worlds to Kazakhstan's first world champ

Tuesday, September 19, 2023 - 15:31 By Vinay Siwach

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BELGRADE, Serbia (September 19) -- Daulet NIYAZBEKOV (KAZ) was hoping to become Kazakhstan's first-ever Freestyle world champion when he reached the 65kg final at the World Championships in 2019. He failed after losing to Gazdhimurad RASHIDOV.

In that final, Rashidov took a bleeding timeout. A volunteer, Rizabek AITMUKHAN (KAZ), ran out to clean the blood dropped on the mat. Little did Niyazbekov or Kazakhstan know that the tall volunteer would go on to achieve what Niyazbekov failed to.

Born in Kyzyltu, a village with only 600 people in the northern region of Kazakhstan, Aitmukhan became the central Asian country's first-ever world champion in Freestyle on Monday as he defeated Osman NURMAGOMEDOV (AZE) in the 92kg final in Belgrade, Serbia.

In a thrilling final, Aitmukhan made a comeback after being down 2-0. He scored a stepout and caution with 30 seconds left. His criteria lead was threatened by Nurmagomedov in the final second when he almost scored a pushout. But Aitmukhan pushed the Azerbaijan wrestler out of bounds and won 6-2.

"The final match was very intense and tough," Aitmukhan said. "I noticed that he was getting tired. I used that moment and snatched the victory. We work hard, but all the success comes from God."

This victory was after five other wrestlers from Kazakhstan had tried to win the elusive Freestyle gold in the country's wrestling history to check out another box. With a Freestyle world champion, Kazakhstan is now without a world champion only in Women's Wrestling.

Aitmukhan's gold medal was also the first for Kazakhstan at the World Championships since Mkhitar MANUKYAN's (KAZ) won the last one in 1999 in Greco-Roman.

"This victory is the biggest in my life," Aitmukhan said. "I’ve been working for it for so many years. I would like to dedicate this win to my country and to my grandmother, she would have been 81 years old today [Monday]. But she passed away 3 years ago. This victory means a lot to me."

Back in 2019, Aitmukhan was the fourth-placer at the World School Combat Games and later won bronze at the U15 Asian Championships. He competed at the U23 Asian Championships as a 17-year-old and won gold at 92kg. Four months later, he was at the U23 World Championships but lost to Amirhossein FIROUZPOUR (IRI) in the first round and to Feyzulla AKTURK (TUR) in the bronze medal bout. Akturk also defeated him in the bronze medal bout at the 2023 Ibrahim Moustafa Ranking Series.

But as fate would have it, he would return to Astana in April this year, for the Asian Championships and enter the final. The 19-year-old finished with a silver medal against another teenager Arash YOSHIDA (JPN). He stepped on the top of the podium at the U23 Asian Championships before adding bronze at the Budapest Ranking Series. In an agonizing close U20 World Championships final in Amman in August, he finished with a silver medal.

The run in Belgrade saw him beat European champion Akturk 11-0 in the quarterfinals and returning bronze medalist Miriani MAISURADZE (GEO) 8-1 in the semifinals.

For a wrestler who began only in 2014, the success meant that he was on the path to achieving something historic. Ironically, he had no liking for the sport as well.

"My dad made me wrestle by force nine years ago," he said. "I didn’t want to train at all, by the he made me do that. And then I liked it. And now, 9 years later I am a world champion, the first one in Kazakh history. I think it’s not a bad result for a 19-year-old."

The losses at the Asian and U20 World Championships fueled Aitmukhan's effort to win the gold in Belgrade.

"In the Asian championships final and in U20 Worlds, there was that moment when I had to push myself. But that wasn’t enough," he said. "This time I felt the same during the match. I realized that if I didn’t do it now, I might not ever get this chance again. So, I tried my hardest and I did it."

Now that one goal is achieved, Rizabek will move to the Olympic weight class of 97kg. 

"We’ve decided that it’s the last world championships in this weight class, next year I’ll move up to the Olympic weight 97kg," he said. "I’ll wrestle for an Olympic spot. I will try to become an Olympic champion."