Returning medalists rule day one at U23 Europeans

Monday, March 13, 2023 - 16:57 By Vinay Siwach

BUCHAREST, Romania (March 13) -- All five returning medalists who were in action on day one of the U23 European Championships made it to their respective finals in Bucharest, Romania.

Giorgi SHOTADZE (GEO) and Khasay HASANLI (AZE) earned a shot at winning their second straight gold medals while Denis MIHAI (ROU), Turpal BISULTANOV (DEN) and Giorgi TSOPURASHVILI (GEO) have a chance to improve their previous medals to gold.

The U23 European Championships got underway in the Romanian capital with five Greco-Roman weight classes and not many surprises.

Defending champion at 63kg Shotadze entered the final after a clinical performance. He began the day with a 9-0 win over Mairbek SALIMOV (POL) before the semifinal against Ismail CULFA (TUR).

Shotadze gave up passivity in the first period but defended the par terre position. He tried to body lock Culfa who answered with a head pinch. However, both wrestlers failed in their respective moves and Shotadze fell on top of Culfa, earning four points.

With less than a minute remaining in the bout, Culfa got a go behind to cut the lead to 4-3. He tried a front headlock but gave up two points on exposure, enough for Shotadze to win 6-3.

Shotadze will face Tino OJALA (FIN) for the gold medal as the latter became just the fourth wrestler from his country to reach the final at U23 Europeans.

Ojala won his first bout 9-0 and escaped Vitalie ERIOMENCO (MDA) 6-6 in the quarterfinals. He was in trouble in the semifinal against Andrii SEMENCHUK (UKR) after conceding the par terre and a turn. But he managed a near-perfect throw from par terre and a turn to lead 7-3. Semenchuk tried an arm spin that fetched him two points but could not stop Ojala from winning 7-5.

Defending champion at 77kg Khasay HASANLI (AZE) reached the final with a 5-1 win over Mykyta POLITAIEV (UKR). (Photo: UWW / Kadir Caliskan)

At 77kg, Hasanli amassed 19 points in his first two bouts before wrestling Mykyta POLITAIEV (UKR) in the semifinal. He came out on top 5-1. In the final, he will take on U23 world silver medalist Alexandrin GUTU (MDA) who also had a dominating day in the office.

In the semifinal, Gutu defeated U20 world champion Deni NAKAEV (GER) 7-1 using three gut wrenches from par terre after getting the advantage in the first period. Nakaev failed to capitalize on the same in the second period.

Turpan BISULTANOV (DEN) Turpal BISULTANOV (DEN) used his big throws to great effect and reached the 87kg final. (Photo: UWW / Kadir Caliskan)

Bisultanov clearly was the most dominant wrestler of the day as he entered the final without giving up a point in three bouts. In the semifinal, he faced Gabriel LUPASCO (MDA) and won 9-0, extending his overall score to 24-0.

He used an arm throw for the first takedown before using the same to get four points. He ended the bout with a gut wrench. Lupasco challenged the call for four points on the second throw but lost.

Bisultanov, who won a silver medal last year, will face David LOSONCZI (HUN) in the final after the Hungary wrestler defeated Muhutdin SARICICEK (TUR) 7-3.

Istvan TAKACS (HUN) denied Bisultanov the gold medal last year and now it will be upon world bronze Losonczi to repeat against the world silver medalist.

Denis MIHAI (ROU) reached the 55kg final in front of his home crowd in Bucharest. (Photo: UWW / Kadir Caliskan)

At 55kg, Mihai will get yet another chance to win his first championships gold medal. He finished with a bronze medal last year but defeated Eduard STRILCHUK (UKR) 3-0 in the semifinals on Monday.

Mihai has wrestled at 13 World or European Championships in different age groups and reached the final twice. Monday marked his third entry into a final in which he will face Karapet MANVELYAN (ARM).

In a close semifinal, Manvelyan defeated Muhammet CAKIR (TUR) 1-1 after the two wrestlers traded passivities in the bout.

Mykhailo VYSHNYVETSKYI (UKR) reached the 130kg final after beating Muhammet BAKIR (TUR). (Photo: UWW / Kadir Caliskan)

The final gold medal bout on Tuesday will see Mykhailo VYSHNYVETSKYI (UKR) take on Giorgi Tsopurashvili at 130kg.

U20 world champion Vyshnyvetskyi pinned Muhammet BAKIR (TUR) in the semifinal, his second pin of the day, to earn his spot in his first U23 European final.

Bakir got a turn from par terre to lead 3-0 in the first period but Vyshnyvetskyi scored a four-pointer using a front lock from par terre to lead 5-3. Bakir challenged the call which revealed that the move was dangerous and points were removed.

However, as Bakir got tired, Vyshnyvetskyi got him into a bear hug and launched a four-pointer. Bakir tried a desperate body throw but failed and Vyshnyvetskyi sat on him to get the fall with a minute remaining in the bout.

Tsopurashvili had a one-sided semifinal as he beat Albert VARDANYAN (ARM) 5-0 to set up the final against the Ukraine wrestler.

Bronze medalist from last year, Tsopurashvili used a big arm throw and a stepout early in the bout to claim the victory over Vardanyan. While he has already upgraded his bronze from last year, the Georgian will have a chance to claim the gold medal.

RESULTS

55kg
GOLD: Denis MIHAI (ROU) vs. Karapet MANVELYAN (ARM)

SF 1: Karapet MANVELYAN (ARM) df. Muhammet CAKIR (TUR), 1-1
SF 2: Denis MIHAI (ROU) df. Eduard STRILCHUK (UKR), 3-0

63kg
GOLD: Tino OJALA (FIN) vs. Giorgi SHOTADZE (GEO)

SF 1: Tino OJALA (FIN) df. Andrii SEMENCHUK (UKR), 7-5
SF 2: Giorgi SHOTADZE (GEO) df. Ismail CULFA (TUR), 6-3

77kg
GOLD: Alexandrin GUTU (MDA) vs. Khasay HASANLI (AZE)

SF 1: Alexandrin GUTU (MDA) df. Deni NAKAEV (GER), 7-1
SF 2: Khasay HASANLI (AZE) df. Mykyta POLITAIEV (UKR), 5-1

87kg
GOLD: David LOSONCZI (HUN) vs. Turpal BISULTANOV (DEN)

SF 1: David LOSONCZI (HUN) df. Muhutdin SARICICEK (TUR), 7-3
SF 2: Turpal BISULTANOV (DEN) df. Gabriel LUPASCO (MDA), 9-0

130kg
GOLD: Giorgi TSOPURASHVILI (GEO) vs. Mykhailo VYSHNYVETSKYI (UKR)

SF 1: Giorgi TSOPURASHVILI (GEO) df. Albert VARDANYAN (ARM), 6-0
SF 2: Mykhailo VYSHNYVETSKYI (UKR) df. Muhammet BAKIR (TUR), 7-3

#JapanWrestling

Gomi Takes Big Strides as Japan’s Next Greco-Roman Hope

Wednesday, February 18, 2026 - 13:33 By Vinay Siwach

JAPAN (February 18) -- Koto GOMI (JPN) has been racking up titles in recent times. Last year, he won the U23 world title, the first for Japan in six years. He then won the All-Japan Championships gold in December for the first time.

Making his senior debut in 2026, the 21-year-old had an extraordinary run at the Zagreb Open Ranking Series event, winning the 60kg gold medal and giving up only three points in four bouts. In the final, Gomi defeated world silver medalist Alisher GANIEV (UZB), 10-0, using three arm-throws to secure the victory inside the first period.

Koto GOMI (JPN) defeated Alisher GANIEV (UZB) in the Zagreb Open final. (Photo: United World Wrestling / Amirreza Aliasgari)

While it may be too early to call Gomi a protégé, he may have already ended Japan's search for a new star at 60kg and a replacement for Olympic champion Kenichiro FUMITA (JPN).

The 30-year-old Fumita is a two-time world champion and won silver at the 2023 World Championships. A silver medalist from the Tokyo Olympics, he turned it into gold at Paris 2024.

But Fumita has not stepped on the mat since. He took time off and was entered in the All-Japan Championships at 63kg, but later pulled out. Though he did not mention it, most in Japan cite weight-cut issues for his delayed return.

That leaves Yu SHIOTANI (JPN), Kaito INABA (JPN) and Gomi as the front-runners for the spot if Fumita cannot make it. Gomi pinned Shiotani and then beat Inaba via technical superiority at the National Sports Festival in October.

Two months later in December, he again beat Shiotani to earn a spot on Japan’s Asian Championships team.

Koto GOMI (JPN), left, after winning the All-Japan University Championships. (Photo: Koto Gomi / Instagram)

Early start

Gomi was born in the Yamanashi Prefecture, west of Tokyo. The prefecture has given wrestling some of its biggest stars including Olympic champions Takuto OTOGURO (JPN) and Tatsuhiro YONEMITSU (JPN).

He was introduced to wrestling by his father Joe, a kickboxer. Joe would take his eldest son Koto to far away tournaments to compete. Though the results were not always satisfying, Shiro wanted his son to face high-level competition every year.

"Wrestling has few injuries," he was quoted as saying by Japan Wrestling Federation in 2010. "It's a sport that develops physical ability and trains both the body and mind. I think it's the perfect martial art for children.

"It's a sport where older students take care of younger students. They naturally take care of you without you having to teach them."

It's true in Gomi's case. Like Gomi, both Fumita and Inaba hail from the same prefecture and attended the same high school.

Fumita's father, Toshiro, introduced most wrestlers to Greco in their high school. While Fumita and Inaba moved to Nippon Sports Science University, Gomi is at the Ikuei University, same as the world and Olympic champions in women's Sakura MOTOKI (JPN) and Tsugumi SAKURAI (JPN).

Koto GOMI (JPN), blue, at the 2022 U20 World Championships. (Photo: United World Wrestling / Kostadin Andonov)

Gomi began competing exclusively in Greco-Roman around 2022 but did not get satisfactory results internationally, finishing fifth and ninth at the two U20 World Championships.

In one of the memorable matches early in his career, Gomi had troubled the now Olympic Saied ESMAEILI (IRI). At the 2022 U20 Worlds, he was led 6-4 and then 9-4 at one point in the match against the Iranian but he lost it 13-9.

Two years later, Gomi emerged as a dominant force. He won the gold medal at the U20 Asian Championships and all age-group domestic competitions. His only losses came at the senior All-Japan Championships, winning bronze at three of them.

Gomi said his recent success was the result of years of hard work, particularly at university.

"I don't seem to be the athletic type, but rather a refreshing liberal arts type, and that's how I'm often seen," Gomi said. "I'm competitive. I get really annoyed and frustrated when I lose in practice. The hard work I've put in over the past four years at university is starting to show in the past year."

Domestic challenges

In 2025, Gomi suffered only one loss in five tournaments -- a 10-0 humiliation to Shiotani in May. But in December, he avenged that loss in the final of the All-Japan Championships and earned a chance to represent Japan at the 2026 Asian Championships in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan in April.

The December win also put Gomi a step closer to the 2026 World Championships and Asian Games. He now has to win the Japan National Championships in May to qualify for both. If he fails to win, he will have a wrestle-off with the winner on the same day.

Both the U23 World Championships and the Zagreb Open showcased Gomi's technical excellence. He often uses a two-on-one to set up his arm-throws and arm-drags. It is his swiftness, rather than brute force, that allows him to complete his attacks.

In par terre, Gomi has an excellent high gut-wrench, which he used effectively against Sajjad ABBASPOUR (IRI) in Zagreb and Maxwell BLACK (USA) at the U23 Worlds.

"I'm starting to find my strengths, like in terms of technique, so I think that's a good thing," he said.

Despite his rapid rise, Gomi is cautious about calling himself the best yet. He knows he still needs to get past several domestic rivals before becoming Japan’s first-choice wrestler at 60kg.

"It's not like that, but I was conscious of focusing on my strengths and techniques and taking the initiative to attack," he said. "But, there are many other players in Japan, like Fumita and Inaba, and I don't think I can beat them yet, so I'll continue to practice hard."

But if Zagreb was any indication, it may not take long.

Returning medalists rule day one at U23 Europeans

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Gomi Takes Big Strides as Japan’s Next Greco-Roman Hope