Susaki Slam: Japan star first to win all world and Olympic titles

Friday, October 21, 2022 - 00:25 By Vinay Siwach

PONTEVEDRA, Spain (October 20) -- Yui SUSAKI (JPN) and history will always have Paris.

But before that, the Japanese wonder decided she would get herself all the world titles wrestling could offer.

She entered the U23 World Championships in Pontevedra, Spain, a month after winning her third senior world title. And wrestling for just four minutes and 47 seconds in four bouts, Susaki completed wrestling 'Grand Slam' – winning all world titles and the Olympics, the first wrestler to achieve the feat.

“I wanted to take the U23 title and become the first to achieve the 'grand slam',” Susaki said. “I'm so happy I was able to achieve it.”

Having won the U17 world titles from 2014 to 2016, Susaki won her first senior and U20 titles in 2017 and the Olympics in 2021. Well aware that this year is the last chance for her to compete at the U23 level, Olympic champion Susaki entered the competition with no concerns and came out with another record to her name.

“I always knew about [the Grand Slam]. There were two of my predecessors who won four [age-group] titles,” Susaki said referring to Haruna OKUNO (JPN) and Masako FURUICHI (JPN) “but no one in the wrestling world had added the fifth title of the Olympics [which Susaki won in 2021]. I wanted to make history, so I was definitely going to enter this year. I knew this would be the first and last time [at U23].”

Yui SUSAKI (JPN) pins Ankush PANGHAL (IND) in the 50kg final. (Photo: UWW / Kadir Caliskan)

In the 50kg final, Susaki wrestled Ankush PANGHAL (IND) and went for the double-leg. Panghal put up a fight for a brief time and even tried getting exposure to score points on Susaki, something which has not happened for three years.

Susaki improvised quickly and locked Panghal's leg in Figure 4 and secured the fall in a minute and 52 seconds to create history.

“I wanted to create history, a new thing in history, and it's a feat that I could accomplish,” she said. “I wanted to leave my name in wrestling history.”

Wrestling will remember her as one of the most dominant wrestlers of all time if not the most. For some, she is strong while for others she is technically sound. A lot of fellow wrestlers credit Susaki for her mat awareness.

Like the leg lace she launches or the armbar she uses to pin her opponent. She will combine that with the front chest wrap to get the big points. Susaki doesn't wait for her opponent's mistake. She punishes them at the first opportunity she gets.

“Regardless of where the opponent is from, I mainly want to do my wrestling and before the match, I keep in mind to give everything I have,” she said after winning the gold Thursday.

That's only on the mat. Off it, she never lets the smile off her face, greeting her teammates, fans and even fellow wrestlers with the same energy. Nothing bothers her or so she makes it seem.

But there is a photo of her from the World Championships in Belgrade as she is walking out for the gold medal bout, Susaki is happily waving at her teammates in the stands while her opponent waited on the mat with a stern look.

Susaki finished the bout in a minute and 24 seconds with a pin.

Yui SUSAKI (JPN) won her first U23 world title. (Photo: UWW / Kadir Caliskan)

But it was not always like that. She used to be a little more human early in her career, feeling the nerves before a big bout of showing emotions after a tense win. She even made mistakes on the mat. Till 2018, Susaki was guilty of going into the defensive late in the second period or getting countered on her double-leg attacks.

It all changed after that famous 2-2 win at the 2018 Klippan Lady Open over four-time Olympic medalist Mariya STADNIK (AZE). Susaki has never celebrated as she did after winning that unimportant, yet the most iconic, bout of her career.

Susaki, then 17 years old, entered that tournament as the world champion. But the epitome of 50kg wrestling was Stadnik who did not take part in the 2017 World Championships. Susaki needed to beat her to be undisputed.

Stadnik led 2-1 with 50 seconds left. Susaki launched an attack using a front headlock with just 13 seconds left on the clock. Stadnik defended a takedown but Susaki pushed her out to lead 2-2 on criteria. She won and breached a new territory. She was the new star.

That loss broke Stadnik. She never scored a single point on Susaki in their future meetings.

Apart from Stadnik, SUN Yanan (CHN) is another wrestler who troubled Susaki. In their first meeting at the 2017 Asian Championships, Sun stunned her with a front headlock, and then at the 2017 World Cup, she almost won before Susaki held on for a 4-2 victory.

The 2019 bout at the World Cup was even closer. Susaki won 3-2 but it was the last time she allowed any of her opponents to trouble her. She humbled Sun 11-0 inside two minutes in the Olympic final in Tokyo to claim the gold, a medal which landed in Susaki's lap after drama and help from rivals, namely Sun and Stadnik.

After beating 2016 Rio Olympic champion Eri TOSAKA (JPN), Susaki was the favorite to be at the Tokyo Olympics. But Yuki IRIE (JPN) had other ideas.

Since high school, Susaki has only lost thrice -- all three losses to Irie. One of those losses came in the playoff for the 2019 World Championships which was the first qualification step for the Tokyo Olympics. Susaki's hopes were dashed as all Irie needed was to win a medal at 50kg in Nursultan, Kazakhstan. Given the domination of Japan at 50kg, it was a no-brainer that Irie will win one.

But as fate would have it, Irie suffered a 13-12 loss to Sun in the quarterfinals before Stadnik defeated Sun in the semifinals, thus eliminating Irie. That was Susaki's lifeline. She qualified for the Olympics at the Asian Olympic Qualifiers in Almaty, Kazakhstan and the rest is history.

She made her debut at the U17 World Championships in 2014, and since then Susaki has a 72-0 international record with only 10 of those bouts going the full six minutes. Overall, out of the total 406 minutes [72 bouts], Susaki has spent approximately 190 minutes on the mat, less than half of the full time.

Her first six-minute bout came at the prestigious Ivan Yarigiun Grand Prix in 2017 which was her senior international debut. Former European champion Valeria CHEPSARAKOVA (RWF) managed to keep her at bay but failed to stop her from winning 6-0.

The then 16-year-old Susaki had already won three U17 world gold medals and was yet to concede a point in 17 bouts. She would extend that record to 21 bouts before Anna LUKASIAK (POL) scored four points on her at the Klippan Lady Open in 2017.

But in her 72 bouts, Susaki has scored 663 points [including 10 falls] and given up only 27 points. The last time it happened was at the World Cup in Narita, Japan when Sun had a takedown that ended a 125-0 run for Susaki.

As of Friday, Susaki is on a 158-0 run with a chance to extend it further next year.

While for most wrestlers the season is all but over, for most Japanese wrestlers, December brings the Emperor's Cup. This year's tournament will serve as the first qualification for the 2023 World Championships which offers quotas for the 2024 Paris Olympics.

And the story of Susaki and her struggles to qualify for the Tokyo Olympics are well documented, she does not want to repeat the same for Paris.

“To me, the Paris Olympics is a special tournament,” she said. “I want to see what the scenery looks like when you win a second Olympic gold. I want to know what is the spectacular view. I am looking forward to that. And when I became a senior world champion for the first time, it was in Paris. I feel I have a destiny with the Paris Olympics.”

Tatiana RENTERIA (COL) became Colombia's first ever U23 world champion (Photo: UWW / Kostadin Andonov)

Colombia wins first U23 gold

More history was created in Pontevedra as Tatiana RENTERIA (COL) became Colombia's first-ever U23 world champion after she defeated Dymond GUILFORD (USA), 2-1, in the 76kg final.

Renteria, a returning silver medalist, had lost the final last year to Aiperi MEDET KYZY (KGZ) but took home the gold this year with a win that got the local crowd excited.

In the first period, she was called passive and Guilford led 1-0 at the break. Guilford got going in the second period and brought down Tenteria for a takedown. However, the Colombian managed to keep her knees from touching the match to avoid giving up any points.

And when Guilford was pressuring more, Renteria jumped over and forced Guilford on her back, giving her two points and a 2-1 lead which she maintained till the end.

“Last year I won silver so I had to step up here and take home the gold,” Renteria said. “It was a tough final.”

At 68kg, Nesrin BAS (TUR) defeated Naruha MATSUYUKI (JPN), 8-0, in the final to claim Turkey's third U23 world title in women's wrestling.

While Matsuyuki began on a good note, it was Bas who controlled the bout for most of the time and ultimately broke Matsuyuki with her high pace.

Apart from Susaki, Japan captured two more gold medals as U20 world champion Moe KIYOOKA (JPN) defeated Mihaela SAMOIL (MDA), 13-0, in the 55kg final while Himeka TOKUHARA (JPN), wrestling at her first World Championships, held off Magdalena GLODEK (POL), 3-2, to win the gold at 59kg.

Nonoka OZAKI (JPN) defeated returning champion Ana GODINEZ (CAN) in the 62kg semifinal. (Photo: UWW / Kadir Caliskan)

Japan has already sealed the team title but will have senior world champions Nonoka OZAKI (JPN) and Miwa MORIKAWA (JPN) wrestling for gold at 62kg and 68kg respectively.
Former senior and U23 world champion Haruna OKUNO (JPN) will be going for her third U23 world title Friday as she made it to the 53kg final against defending champion Lucia YEPEZ (ECU).

At 57kg, Sae NANJO (JPN) will look to add to her previous U23 world title as she takes on Patrycja GIL (POL) in the gold medal bout.

The only final Friday which does not feature a Japanese is at 72kg as senior world champion Amit ELOR (USA) reached the gold medal bout against U23 European champion Wiktoria CHOLUJ (POL).

Elor will join the select club of wrestlers with world titles at U17, U20, U23 and senior levels if she wins Friday.

Ozaki will also join the club by winning the 62kg gold while Okuno was the first wrestler to win world titles at four different levels.

Freestyle wrestling will begin in five weight classes – 57kg, 65kg, 70kg, 79kg and 97kg.

RESULTS

50kg
GOLD: Yui SUSAKI (JPN) df. ANKUSH (IND), via fall

BRONZE: Nada MOHAMED (EGY) df. Lisa ERSEL (GER), 4-2
BRONZE: Sarra HAMDI (TUN) df. Emanuela LIUZZI (ITA), 8-5

55kg
GOLD: Moe KIYOOKA (JPN) df. Mihaela SAMOIL (MDA), 13-0

BRONZE: Alisha HOWK (USA) df. Ahinsa FERNANDO (SRI), 13-5
BRONZE: Elvira KAMALOGLU (TUR) df. Virginie KAZE (CAN), 8-4

59kg
GOLD: Himeka TOKUHARA (JPN) df. Magdalena GLODEK (POL), 3-2

BRONZE: Solomiia VYNNYK (UKR) df. Lexie BASHAM (USA), 10-0
BRONZE: Mansi AHLAWAT (IND) df. Ramina MAMEDOVA (LAT), via injury default

68kg
GOLD: Nesrin BAS (TUR) df. Naruha MATSUYUKI (JPN), 8-0

BRONZE: Irina RINGACI (MDA) df. Sienna RAMIREZ (USA), via fall
BRONZE: Manola SKOBELSKA (UKR) df Noemi SZABADOS (HUN), 6-2

76kg
GOLD: Tatiana RENTERIA (COL) df. Dymond GUILFORD (USA), 2-1

BRONZE: Anastasiya ALPYEYEVA (UKR) df. Mehtap GULTEKIN (TUR), via fall
BRONZE: Yasuha MATSUYUKI (JPN) df. Inkara ZHANATAYEVA (KAZ), 7-0

Semifinals

53kg
GOLD: Haruna OKUNO (JPN) vs. Lucia YEPEZ (ECU)

SF 1: Haruna OKUNO (JPN) df. Felicity TAYLOR (USA), 9-1
SF 2: Lucia YEPEZ (ECU) df. Zeynep YETGIL (TUR), 10-0

57kg
GOLD: Sae NANJO (JPN) vs. Patrycja GIL (POL)

SF 1: Sae NANJO (JPN) df. Siwar BOUSETA (TUN), via fall
SF 2: Patrycja GIL (POL) df. Laura ALMAGANBETOVA (KAZ), via fall

62kg
GOLD: Nonoka OZAKI (JPN) vs. Iryna BONDAR (UKR)

SF 1: Nonoka OZAKI (JPN) df. Ana GODINEZ (CAN), 10-0
SF 2: Iryna BONDAR (UKR) df. Astrid MONTERO (VEN), 10-0

65kg
GOLD: Miwa MORIKAWA (JPN) vs. Nigar MIRZAZADA (AZE)

SF 1: Miwa MORIKAWA (JPN) df. Kateryna ZELENYKH (UKR), 6-2
SF 2: Nigar MIRZAZADA (AZE) df. Elena ESPOSITO (ITA), 3-2

72kg
GOLD: Amit ELOR (USA) vs. Wiktoria CHOLUJ (POL)

SF 1: Amit ELOR (USA) df. Maria NITU (ROU), via fall
SF 2: Wiktoria CHOLUJ (POL) df. Sumire NIIKURA (JPN), 3-1

#WrestleIstanbul

Kolitsopoulos wins Greece's first-ever U17 Worlds gold

Wednesday, August 2, 2023 - 20:01 By Vinay Siwach

ISTANBUL (August 2) -- Over the years, close to 200 wrestlers from Greece had vied for a U17 World Championships gold medal, but none managed to break through. That changed when Arionas KOLITSOPOULOS (GRE) stepped up. He became the first wrestler from Greece to win a gold medal in the U17 world event in any style, finally breaking the barrier.

While six wrestlers from Greece had secured seven world titles in different age groups and styles, none had achieved it at the U17 level. Kolitsopoulos also put an end to a 24-year drought for a Greco-Roman world gold medal, a feat accomplished by Theofanis ANAGNOSTOU (GRE) at the U20 World Championships in 1999.

No one would have bet on the 17-year-old Kolitsopoulus achieving this historic feat just two months ago. At the U17 European Championships in Triana, Albania, he suffered an opening-round defeat at the hands of Salih YAZICI (TUR) and finished 18th in the tournament.

"At the European Championships, I lost," Kolitsopoulos said. "I was not ready. I got angry."

Fortunately, he channeled that anger in the right way and rallied to beat some of the world's best wrestlers, including U17 Asian champion Ahmadreza MOHAMADIAN (IRI) in the 71kg final, winning the gold medal on the third day of the U17 World Championships.

As Greco-Roman concluded in Istanbul on Wednesday, Iran managed to defend its team title with 113 points, with Azerbaijan finishing a close second with 108 points. Georgia secured the third spot with 96 points, India came in fourth with 88 points, and Armenia claimed the fifth position with 77 points.

Kolitsopoulos' journey began on Tuesday as he secured wins over Cristian RISCA (MDA) in the opening round, Seongmin JANG (KOR) in the pre-quarterfinals, Dias SEITKALIYEV (KAZ) in the quarterfinals, and U17 European champion Abdurakhman ABDULKADYROV (AIN) in the semifinals.

The semifinal win over Abdulkadyrov was just a small hurdle on his path to becoming a champion. On Wednesday, he faced a formidable force in Mohamadian, who even had a 5-3 lead at one point in the final.

During the first period, Mohamadian was put in par terre and Kolitsopoulos managed to get a turn for a 3-0 lead. However, Mohamadian scored a reversal and executed a throw for four points and led 5-3 at the break.

"My plan was to be the aggressor from the start but it was only in the second par terre that I managed to win," he said.

Mohamadian was handed a second passivity in the second period, a rarity in Greco-Roman to see the same wrestler being called passive consecutively. That narrowed Mohamadian's lead to 5-4. Kolitsopoulos executed another turn, taking a 6-5 lead with 37 seconds left. Mohamadian attempted to find an opening but failed, resulting in a historic win for the Greek wrestler.

"I have dreamed it like thousand times," he said. "I am feeling great and I hope kids out there in Greece start training more to become like me or better."

Kolitsopoulos, an ardent follower of Olympic and world champion Mohammareza GERARI (IRI), draws inspiration from his father and coach, Alexios, a former Greco-Roman wrestler who competed at the 2004 Athens Olympics. Both of Arionas' parents cheered him on from the stands in Istanbul.

Though the senior level is still a while away for Kolitsopoulos, he has already set his sights on surpassing his father's achievements.

"The most important thing is the results at the senior level," he said. "So step by step. Maybe next year I will be ready for seniors. I am not ready now because it's different power between senior and U17.

"I made history because my father was a talent. So I am talented but why not be better than him."

Saba PURTSELADZE (GEO) won the 92kg gold after beating Saipula GADZHIMAGOMEDOV (AIN) 7-7 in the final. (Photo: UWW / Kadir Caliskan)

In another victory marked by a stunning comeback, Saba PURTSELADZE (GEO) beat Saipula GADZHIMAGOMEDOV (AIN), 7-7, to claim the gold medal at 92kg.

The two had clashed in the U17 European Championships final as well and Purtseladze won that bout 4-3 after leading 4-0 at the break.

But in Istanbul, Purtseladze was put in par terre in the first period and Gadzhimagomedov scored exposure using a front headlock to lead 3-0. While for the second exposure, Purtseladze blocked him by pulling his singlet for which he was docked two points. Georgia challenged the call but lost, adding one more point to Gadzhimagomedov's score.

The bout resumed in pat terre but Gadzhimagomedov failed to score any more points and the two wrestlers went into the break with the AIN wrestler leading 6-0.

Purtseladze began the second period with an arm-throw and was awarded two points for the correct throw. Gadzhimagomedov scored a reversal in the same sequence to lead 7-2.

Gadzhimagomedov was called passive 33 seconds later and was put in forced par terre. Purtseladze failed to get any of his moves in par terre and left Gadzhimagomedov 53 seconds to defend the 7-3 score.

But with 36 seconds left on the clock, Purtseladze produced an underhook to throw Gadzhimagomedov back-first on the mat and score four vital points which gave him a 7-7 criteria lead.

Gadzhimagomedov had little energy left in him to score any points to regain his lead and suffered a heartbreaking loss to Purtseladze for the second time in two months.

Ilia KANDALIN (AIN) added a U17 Worlds title to his U17 European gold. (Photo: UWW / Kadir Caliskan)

Individual Neutral Athletes did capture one gold and U17 European champion Ilia KANDALIN (AIN) did it in some style.

Wrestling Artur BROYAN (ARM) in the final at 51kg, Kandalin was effortless in the two minutes and 38 seconds he spend on the mat. He put the first points on the scoreboard by getting a stepout using a strong underhook. Broyan was called passive soon and Kandalin used two gut-wrenches to extend his lead to 6-0. Just before the 30-second period, Kandalin scored another stepout to lead 7-0.

It took him 38 seconds more to finish the bout 9-0 and add a world title to the European gold he won in Triana. With his win, Kandalin remains unbeaten internationally in three tournaments. He also has U15 European gold medal to his name.

In the quarterfinals, he defeated Koba KARUMIDZE (GEO) 5-1, a better margin than the 4-3 win he scored over Karumidze in the opening round in Triana.

Roman KARIMOV (AZE) attempts a gut-wrench against Saba SURMANIDZE (GEO) in the 60kg final. (Photo: UWW / Kadir Caliskan)

At 60kg, Roman KARIMOV (AZE) hung on to a one-point lead and beat Saba SURMANIDZE (GEO) 4-3 to win the gold medal.

Surmanidze was called passive in the first period but he defended all attempts from Karimov to score any points. He tried an arm-drag but an alert Karimov fleed. Surmanidze tried to use that momentum for a body throw but Karimov landed on top of Surmanidze, earning himself two points before the break.

Karimov was put in par terre in the second period and Surmanidze tried a reverse left before switching to a chest-wrap. He managed to expose Karimov who got out of the hold and scored a reversal. However, the score read 4-1 as Surmanidze's points were not awarded initially. Georgia challenged and won with the score 4-3 in Karimov's favor and 54 seconds left on the clock.

Despite U17 Euro bronze medalist Surmanidze's best efforts to score a point, Karimov held his lead and won the gold medal.

Rustem ABATSIEV (AIN), blue, was declared a joint-champion at 45kg. (Photo: UWW / Kadir Caliskan)

Two golds at 45kg
In a rare instance, two wrestlers -- Turan DASHDAMIROV (AZE) and Rustem ABATSIEV (AIN) -- were declared winners at 45kg after their gold medal bout at the U17 World Championships in Istanbul, Turkiye.

The first final of the night saw Dashdamirov and Abatsiev wrestling with the former getting the first advantage when Abatsiev was called passive. He lifted the AIN wrestler and executed the throw which got him a point as Abatasiev landed out of bounds. Abatsiev was cautioned for using his leg to stop Dashdamirov's attack.

With a 4-0 lead, Dashdamirov was put in par terre in the second period. Abatsiev scored a turn to cut the lead to 4-3 with a minute left on the clock.

At 3:42, the referee warned Dashdamirov for locking fingers and a caution-and-one was given against Dashdamirov with 6.2 seconds left which should have given Abatsiev the criteria advantage. But the scoreboard wrongfully showed Dashdamirov as the bout leader, and after the 6.2 seconds expired, the Azerbaijan wrestler's hand was raised, declaring him the winner of the final.

According to United World Wrestling’s rules, once a winner of a bout is declared, the result cannot be changed. The technical committee of the U17 World Championships held a review and arrived at the decision to award both wrestlers the 45kg title.

Defending champion Sowaka UCHIDA (JPN) defeated NEHA (IND) 8-4 at 57kg. (Photo: UWW / Ulug Bugra Han)

Japan gets 4 in WW finals

Japan would be a happy team after day one of women's wrestling as it managed to get four out of five wrestlers in the final. Mona EZAKA (JPN), Rinka OGAWA (JPN), Sowaka UCHIDA (JPN) and Chisato YOSHIDA (JPN) will wrestle for gold on Thursday.

Ezaka, Uchida and Yoshida are returning finalists with only Uchida as the defending champion. She continued from where she left last year and began with two 10-0 wins over Nikola PIECHOCKA (POL) and Kai Yi LI (TPE).

Next up was U17 Asian champion NEHA (IND) and after a few uncomfortable moments in the bout, Uchida was quick to win 8-4. A 10-0 semifinal win against Yeo Jin MIN (KOR) confirmed her place in the final in which she will face Eylem ENGIN (TUR).

Ezaka, the silver medalist from Rome, posted three wins via fall including one over PARVEEN (IND) to reach the final at 43kg. She will now face Morgan TURNER (USA) who defeated Nilufar NURMUKHAMMADOVA (UZB), 4-2, in the other semifinal.

Yoshida, who lost to Harshita MOR (IND) in the final last year, will try to win the gold medal against Duygu GEN (TUR) at 65kg. Both wrestlers defeated AIN wrestlers in the semifinals with Yoshida beating Margarita SALNAZARIAN (AIN) 5-0 while Gen won 10-1 against Maryia MAKARCHANKA (AIN).

Ogawa will be looking for the first U17 world gold as she takes on U17 European champion Sviatlana KATENKA (AIN) in the 49kg final. The two wrestlers were clearly more dominant than the rest of the field at 49kg. Ogawa won the semifinal via fall against Tana TIULIUSH (AIN) while Katena defeated Heather CRULL (USA) 10-1.

In the other final with no Japan wrestler, returning bronze medalist Lotta ENGLICH (GER) will wrestle Piper FOWLER (USA) for the gold at 73kg. Englich defeated Asaloy AMANGELDIEVA (UZB), 2-1, in the semifinal while Fowler was a little more aggressive to win 10-2 against Aliaksandra KAZLOVA (AIN) 10-2.

RESULTS

Greco-Roman

45kg
GOLD: Turan DASHDAMIROV (AZE) df. RUSTEM ABATSIEV (AIN), 4-4

BRONZE: Yurik MKHITARYAN (ARM) df. Nika TSETSKHLADZE (GEO), 9-0
BRONZE: Alireza AMIRIGHASRODDASHTI (IRI) df. Kadyrbek ALMANBETOV (KGZ), 5-1

51kg
GOLD: Ilia KANDALIN (AIN) df. Artur BROYAN (ARM), 9-0

BRONZE: Koba KARUMIDZE (GEO) df. Dostonbek ORIPOV (UZB), 3-1
BRONZE: Manu YADAV (IND) df. Husniddin ULUGBEKOV (TKM), 9-0

60kg
GOLD: Roman KARIMOV (AZE) df. Saba SURMANIDZE (GEO), 4-3

BRONZE: Kiryl VALEUSKI (AIN) df. Yerdaulet LASSIM (KAZ), 12-8
BRONZE: Mingiian GORIAEV (AIN) df. VARUN (IND), 15-6

71kg
GOLD: Arionas KOLITSOPOULOS (GRE) df. Ahmadreza MOHAMADIAN (IRI), 6-5

BRONZE: Alkan AKAR (TUR) df. Luka LOMADZE (GEO), 5-1
BRONZE: Abdurakhman ABDULKADYROV (AIN) df. Dias SEITKALIYEV (KAZ), 10-0

92kg
GOLD: Saba PURTSELADZE (GEO) df. Saipula GADZHIMAGOMEDOV (AIN), 7-7

BRONZE: Mikayil ISMAYILOV (AZE) df. Aliakbar ASGHAR (IRI), 3-1
BRONZE: Gabriel STAN (ROU) df. Maxim UKRAINTSEV (KAZ), 9-0

Women's Wrestling Semifinals

43kg
GOLD: Mona EZAKA (JPN) vs. Morgan TURNER (USA)

SF 1: Mona EZAKA (JPN) df. Maria GKIKA (GRE), via fall (8-0)
SF 2: Morgan TURNER (USA) df. Nilufar NURMUKHAMMADOVA (UZB), 4-2

49kg
GOLD: Sviatlana KATENKA (AIN) vs. Rinka OGAWA (JPN)

SF 1: Sviatlana KATENKA (AIN) df. Heather CRULL (USA), 10-1
SF 2: Rinka OGAWA (JPN) df. Tana TIULIUSH (AIN), via fall (6-0)

57kg
GOLD: Sowaka UCHIDA (JPN) vs. Eylem ENGIN (TUR)

SF 1: Sowaka UCHIDA (JPN) df. YeoJin MIN (KOR), 10-0
SF 2: Eylem ENGIN (TUR) df. Aziza KELDIBEKOVA (KGZ), 4-2

65kg
GOLD: Duygu GEN (TUR) vs. Chisato YOSHIDA (JPN)

SF 1: Duygu GEN (TUR) df. Maryia MAKARCHANKA (AIN), 10-1
SF 2: Chisato YOSHIDA (JPN) df. Margarita SALNAZARIAN (AIN), 5-0

73kg
GOLD: Lotta ENGLICH (GER) vs. Piper FOWLER (USA)

SF 1: Lotta ENGLICH (GER) df. Asaloy AMANGELDIEVA (UZB), 2-1
SF 2: Piper FOWLER (USA) df. Aliaksandra KAZLOVA (AIN), 10-2

Susaki Slam: Japan star first to win all world and Olympic titles

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Kolitsopoulos wins Greece's first-ever U17 Worlds gold