#WrestleOttawa

Rau and Pena Claim Second Pan Am Titles, Sovero wins gold in 13th Pan Am event

By Taylor GREGORIO

Photo of Yosvanys PENA FLORES (CUB). By Tony Rotundo. 

OTTAWA, Canada – Greco-Roman action of the Pan American Championships wrapped up on Saturday with the final three weight classes, while the first two women’s weight classes were contested.

The United States won two of the last three Greco gold medals, earning it the team title with 200 points. In second place was Cuba with 105 points. Cuba collected the other gold medal on Saturday.

John STEFANOWICZ (82 kg) and Josef RAU (87 kg) emerged victorious from their respective weight classes for the United States.

Stefanowicz put together a 2-0 record in round-robin action to secure the gold. In his final match of the day, he dominated Marciano ALI (PUR) with a 14-4 technical fall, which featured multiple big throws.

At 87 kg, Rau drew two passivity points from Carlos MUNOZ JARAMILLO (COL) in the gold-medal match and scored gut wrenches each time in par terre for a 6-0 win.

Yosvanys PENA FLORES (CUB) won his second-consecutive Pan Am Championships title, taking the crown at 77 kg.

Wrestling in a Nordic system bracket, Pena lost earlier in the day to Pat Smith in pool action. The two eventually met up once again in the finals, where the Cuban got his revenge.

Trailing after the first period, Pena got an opportunity on top, where picked up a gut wrench and held on to defeat Smith, 3-1.

Photo of Yanet SOVERO NINO (PER). By Tony Rotundo. 

In women’s freestyle, Yanet SOVERO NINO (PER) impressed at 72 kg, winning her first Pan Am title and sixth overall continental medal. She won her first Senior Pan American medal in 2002.

Sovero went 3-0 on the day, dominating the field. She opened her tournament with back-to-back falls before securing a 10-0 technical fall her final round against Shauna KUEBECK (CAN).

At 59 kg in women’s, 2018 U23 World champion Alexandria TOWN (CAN) swept the field, winning all three of her matches by technical fall. In her last match, she took out Karoline SILVA DE SANTANA (BRA), 10-0.

There were two athletes funded by the United World Wrestling Development Technical Assistance program that won medals today, including a silver medal from Nes Marie RODRIGUEZ TIRADO (PUR) at 57 kg in women’s freestyle and a bronze from Lesyan COUSIN OTOMURO (JAM) at 87 kg in Greco-Roman.

Final Greco Team standings
1. USA – 200
2. Cuba – 105
3. Venezuela – 69
4. Mexico – 68
5. Colombia – 67
6. Brazil – 65
7. Canada – 55
8. Dominican Republic – 42
9. Puerto Rico – 29
10. Honduras - 18

Greco-Roman results
77 kg
GOLD - Yosvanys PENA FLORES (CUB) df. Patrick SMITH (USA), 3-1
BRONZE - Wuileixis de Jesus RIVAS ESPINOZA (VEN) df. Jair Alexis CUERO MUNOZ (COL), 6-1

82 kg
GOLD - John STEFANOWICZ (USA)
SILVER – Jose Andres VARGAS RUEDA (MEX)
BRONZE - Marciano ALI (PUR)

87 kg
GOLD - Josef RAU (USA) df. Carlos MUNOZ JARAMILLO (COL), 6-0
BRONZE - Lesyan Osvaldo COUSIN OTOMURO (JAM), win by injury default
BRONZE - Ronisson BRANDAO SANTIAGO (BRA), win by injury default

Women’s freestyle results
59 kg
GOLD - Alexandria TOWN (CAN)
SILVER – Nes Marie RODRIGUEZ TIRADO (PUR)
BRONZE – Lauren LOUIVE (USA)

72 kg
GOLD - Yanet SOVERO NINO (PER)
SILVER – Victoria FRANCIS (USA)
BRONZE – Shauna KUEBECK (CAN)

#WrestleBudapest

Yazdani, Jamalov reach final; China dominates WW in Budapest

By Vinay Siwach

BUDAPEST, Hungary (June 7) -- With three Freestyle and four Women's Wrestling weight classes in action, the Budapest Ranking Series enters day two. Hassan YAZDANI (IRI) will be competing for the first time since his surgery.

WATCH LIVE | LIVE MATCH ORDER

13:00: Hassan YAZDANI (IRI) with some high-paced action in his 86kg semifinal to blank Azamat DAULETBEKOV (KAZ) 10-0. He will wrestle for the gold medal at 86kg against Trent HIDLAY (USA).

12:50: ANTIM (IND) hangs on! Katarzyna KRAWCZYK (POL) went all out for a takedown in the final seconds but Antim kept her at bay. A 3-1 win for Antim and she will wrestle for gold at 53kg against Jonna MALMGREN (SWE), a rematch of the bronze medal bout from the World Championships.

12:45: Otgonjargal DOLGORJAV (MGL) seems to have upped her game since that fifth-place finish at the Asian Championships. She beats Nadezhda SOKOLOVA (AIN) 12-8 in an action-packed bout.

12:35: Jonna MALMGREN (SWE) is in the 53kg final without wrestling in Budapest. First, Zeynep YETGIL (TUR) pulled out injured and now Lucia YEPEZ (ECU) is injured.

12:30: Incredible bout between Anastasia NICHITA (MDA) and Anshu MALIK (IND) at 57kg. Nichita trailed 4-3 but she got a stepout and Anshu was cautioned for fleeing which gave Nichita a 5-4 lead with 19 seconds on the clock. Anshu continues the pressure and scores a takedown on the edge to claim a 6-5 lead and the win.

12:15: Kexin HONG (CHN) with a brutal lace over Anhelina LYSAK (POL) to finish the 57kg bout 10-0. 59kg world champion then scores an 11-1 win over Luisa VALVERDE (ECU) to advance to the semifinal.

12:10: Ali Abbas REZAEI (IRI) beats Turan BAYRAMOV (AZE) 5-0 in the 74kg quarterfinal. Bayramov was warned for passivity in the first period, he committed two defensive fouls in the second as Rezaei built a 3-0 lead. Bayramov tried getting some opening but Rezaei solid in defense and finished with a solid takedown.

12:00: Jiang ZHU (CHN) blanks VINESH (IND) 5-0. Two counter takedowns for Zhu and a point for Vinesh's inactivity were the points for Zhu. No openings for Vinesh in that bout.

11:55: Hassan YAZDANI (IRI) and Azamat DAULETBEKOV (KAZ) have set up a semifinal at 86kg. Yazdani with a high-scoring 12-2 win over Hayato ISHIGURO (JPN) while Dauletbekov with a controlled 3-0 win over Patrik PUESPOEKI (HUN).

11:50: Otgonjargal DOLGORJAV (MGL) needs to dig deep to keep Yu ZHANG (CHN) at bay. Zhang kept the pressure high even when trailing 4-3 but Dolgorjav hit a counter to win 6-3 at 50kg.

11:30: Zeynep YETGIL (TUR) pulls out of her bout against Jonna MALMGREN (SWE) at 53kg. Malmgren will now wrestle Lucia YEPEZ (ECU) in the semifinal.

11:25:  Razambek JAMALOV (UZB) is looking to grab the 74kg spot for the Paris Olympics for Uzbekistan over Bekzod ABDURAKHAMANOV (UZB) who qualified the weight. He begins that journey with a 5-0 win over Anthony MONTERO (VEN) in Budapest.   

11:15: Quick 10-0 win for ANTIM (IND) over Sakibjamal ESBOSYNOVA (UZB) at 53kg. She sets up a semifinal against Katarzyna KRAWCZYK (POL). 

11:10: VINESH (IND) begins her 50kg campaign in Budapest with a 10-0 technical superiority over Alisson CARDOZO (COL). She sets up a quarterfinal against Jian ZHU (CHN) which will prove to be a big test. 

11:00: No clutch comeback from Myles AMINE (SMR) this time. Azamat DAULETBEKOV (KAZ) holds on to a 3-1 lead and beat Amine with that scoreline at 86kg.

10:50: Hassan YAZDANI (IRI) was in danger position twice in the match against Ethan RAMOS (PUR) but bailed out both times to race to a 13-2 victory over Ramos who seems to have hurt his back. Once the wrestlers are off mat, Ramos is carried in a stretcher as he is unable to walk.

10:30: Ranking points up for grabs, Olympics opponents facing each other and some Paris 2024 line-ups to be finalized. Day two of the Ranking Series in Budapest has everything to offer.