2026 U17 World Championships

U17 World Championships 2026 Entries: Wrestling's Young Stars in Baku

By United World Wrestling Press

BAKU, Azerbaijan (July 11) -- The U17 Wrestling World Championships will be held in Baku, Azerbaijan from July 27 to August 2 at the National Gymnastics Arena.

The competition will kick off with Greco-Roman, then move to Women's Wrestling and finish with Freestyle.

Note: The entries are subject to change

UWW+

Women's Wrestling

40kg
Gulkhanim SHIRINOVA (AZE)
Rohini DEVBA (IND)
Natsumi SASAKI (JPN)
Aiaru ILIYAS (KAZ)
Ozgorush KASYMBEKOVA (KGZ)
Azzaya BATTULGA (MGL)
Fidan MAMEDOVA (RUS)
Tasmin ATHIMNI (TUN)
Sirin ASKARA (TUR)
Mariia DREBOT (UKR)
Sophia VALDEZ (USA)
Zaytuna SAPAROVA (UZB)

43kg
Vafa ORUJOVA (AZE)
Anastasiya LAZARCHYK (BLR)
Kristin ILIYNA (BUL)
Maya NAICKER (CAN)
Finja STRAUCH (GER)
DIKSHA (IND)
Sera FURUICHI (JPN)
Danara DAIRBEKOVA (KAZ)
Asema ASANGARYEVA (KGZ)
Rusalina PORTARU (MDA)
Tola RUDNIK (POL)
Valia HARSAN (ROU)
Daria MASLENNIKOVA (RUS)
Aysemin KACAN (TUR)
Valeriia YATSKIV (UKR)
Suzannah LUNDY (USA)
Mukhlisa MASHARIPOVA (UZB)

46kg
Nuray JAFARLI (AZE)
Anastasiya NIAKLIAYEVA (BLR)
Frederika GROSSE (GER)
Vivien SZENTPAL (HUN)
Sandhya VISHNOI (IND)
Kokona MAKINO (JPN)
Inzhu BAKKOZHA (KAZ)
Aiana NIIAZBEKOVA (KGZ)
Mungunchimeg GAVAA (MGL)
Julia PALKA (POL)
Alina BARANOVA (RUS)
Elif Su AKSOY (TUR)
Kateryna HOZHELOVA (UKR)
Madison HEALEY (USA)
Gulnoza ZAKIRDJANOVA (UZB)

49kg
Khadija GURBANZADA (AZE)
Milana TSIKHANOVICH (BLR)
Isabelle CHEN (CAN)
Hilary SOTO SUAZA (COL)
Lara BLAZEKOVIC (CRO)
Malak NAWWAR (EGY)
Madina BAYRAMOVA (GER)
Kamna BABAL (IND)
Saika UCHIDA (JPN)
Ayanat MEINAMBAY (KAZ)
Aiana ASYLBEKOVA (KGZ)
Mihaela BACOS (MDA)
Enerel MUNKHBAT (MGL)
Irina TSYDEEVA (RUS)
Evin DEMIR (TUR)
Olena KOLUBAI (UKR)
Isla Belle SILVA (USA)
Madina GAFUROVA (UZB)
Asia SANCHEZ (VEN)

53kg
Fatima BAYRAMOVA (AZE)
Anastasiya KEZHUN (BLR)
Valeria STANCHEVA (BUL)
Alejandra SERRANO (COL)
Lea LINGSCHEIDT (GER)
Mariia ZHYTOVOZ (HUN)
AKSHARA (IND)
Sela ROZOV (ISR)
Rion OGAWA (JPN)
Arailym KOPZHASSAR (KAZ)
Aidemi ASANGAZIEVA (KGZ)
Ruslana CARAPETIANT (MDA)
Nomin SHINEBAYAR (MGL)
Zuzanna SOKOLOWSKA (POL)
Madalina PAVEL (ROU)
Sofiia AKCHURINA (RUS)
Miriam MISAKOVA (SVK)
Rahma REZGUI (TUN)
Ecrin SALIK (TUR)
Ivanna MAIDANSKA (UKR)
Marlee SOLOMON (USA)
Guzal ABDULLAEVA (UZB)

57kg
Ulviyya MUSAYEVA (AZE)
Divine NKUNZIMANA (BDI)
Marharyta DANILEVICH (BLR)
Gurleen DHILLON (CAN)
Mia KOVAC (CRO)
Nadiia ZHOLTIKOVA (ESP)
Ana LABADZE (GEO)
Eleni GAVRINIOTI (GRE)
Janka SILLEI (HUN)
Nikita SEHRAWAT (IND)
Rion SUZUKI (JPN)
Arina KUANYSHOVA (KAZ)
Muslima BOLOTBEKOVA (KGZ)
Ana RACHITEANU (MDA)
Valentina PADRON TALAVERA (MEX)
Uranbayar BALJINNYAM (MGL)
Emilia REICH (POL)
Valeria FLOCEA (ROU)
Sofiia BELOVA (RUS)
Delia GISLER (SUI)
Emna HAMMAMI (TUN)
Su SOYALP (TUR)
Mariia POLTORAK (UKR)
Epenesa ELISON (USA)
Dilnura AVEZOVA (UZB)

61kg
Fidan BABAYEVA (AZE)
Maryia KHRUSHCHOVA (BLR)
Andrea NISEVA (BUL)
Kai PARE (CAN)
Graciela ENINGO (ESP)
Karol TAMSON (EST)
Surae ABBASSOY (FIN)
Ana TSERETELI (GEO)
Eleni NTOUNIA (GRE)
Mariama KABA (GUI)
Zea BALAZS (HUN)
AVANSHIKA (IND)
Marharyta OVCHARENKO (ISR)
Waka AWANO (JPN)
Aruzhan BAKYTNUR (KAZ)
Alina DZHARKINBAEVA (KGZ)
Lidia UNGUREANU (MDA)
Anujin ERKHEMBAATAR (MGL)
Inga KUC (POL)
Marisa ITURRINO (PUR)
Oana DUMITRU (ROU)
Kamila TEMIRAEVA (RUS)
Zaineb NASRI (TUN)
Ozdenur OZMEZ (TUR)
Yuliia HOLHOVSKA (UKR)
Landri VON GONTEN (USA)
Siysagul SARSENBAEVA (UZB)

65kg
Rana NURIYEVA (AZE)
Palina BRAHINETS (BLR)
Annie NIEMANN (CAN)
Lana PEZIC (CRO)
Yolayni ROSADO (DOM)
Vasiliki KARAVANOU (GRE)
Szonja VERES (HUN)
ANTRA (IND)
Haruka KANEMOTO (JPN)
Aisha ABDIMALIK (KAZ)
Margarita LISITA (MDA)
Sylvia ESPINOSA (MEX)
Ariunzul BOLDBAATAR (MGL)
Mariia SHANINA (RUS)
Zaineb NASRI (TUN)
Melisa SARICICEK (TUR)
Iryna BUKHTINA (UKR)
Eve SKROCKI (USA)
Shahzoda AZIMOVA (UZB)

69kg
Simura ABDULLAYEVA (AZE)
Kamila RUDZIANKOVA (BLR)
Natalia TASEVA (BUL)
Khushleen JHALLI (CAN)
Nino SAMKHARADZE (GEO)
TANIYA (IND)
Hibiki IIDA (JPN)
Khadisha FLYUK (KAZ)
Milana ULANOVA (KGZ)
Maria PAZ (MEX)
Khuslen MUNKHBAYASGALAN (MGL)
Maja WEJCHAN (POL)
Sophia ANASTASE (ROU)
Polina EFIMOVA (RUS)
Kiymet TEZCAN (TUR)
Marusia HAIDAMANCHUK (UKR)
Taina FERNANDEZ (USA)
Shakhsanem TORENIYAZOVA (UZB)

73kg
Yeseniya SALADUN (BLR)
Kaillany MELO (BRA)
Asees BAINS (CAN)
Rodina SOLIMAN (EGY)
Paula BENAIXA (ESP)
Lyra LEDERER (GER)
Bianka BARANY (HUN)
GARIMA (IND)
Tsukasa KOMADA (JPN)
Bagzhan KURMANBAY (KAZ)
Diana TURGUNBEKOVA (KGZ)
Namuuntsetseg BATBOLD (MGL)
Aisha WILLIAMS (PAN)
Karina MUZALEVSKAIA (RUS)
Sude CAMOGLU (TUR)
Solomiia PETRIV (UKR)
Kaili MANUEL (USA)
Chamangul MUKHAMMATSALIEVA (UZB)

Arseni KIKINIOU (USA)Arseni KIKINIOU (USA), a medalist in both Greco-Roman and Freestyle in 2025, will make the run again in 2026. (Photo: United World Wrestling / Kostadin Andonov)

Freestyle

45kg
Tunar HASANOV (AZE)
Aliaksandr HAMAU (BLR)
Radoslav VELIKOV (BUL)
Jude GARRUCHO (CAN)
Ahmed SALEH (EGY)
Luka DOTIASHVILI (GEO)
Hanumant JADHAV (IND)
Mahdi DAMERCHELI (IRI)
Aryn ZHANAT (KAZ)
Abdunazar BAATYRKANOV (KGZ)
Catalin COJOCARU (MDA)
Ariun Erdene ERDENETUGS (MGL)
Nelson VILLAFANE (PUR)
Aldar BADMAEV (RUS)
Baraa LAMOUCHI (TUN)
Utku SOGUTLU (TUR)
Marko KVASNIUK (UKR)
Rylen WAX (USA)
Mukhammad RAKHIMJONOV (UZB)

48kg
Huseyn RZAZADE (AZE)
Sayaan SKRABIN (BLR)
Emir DZHEVATOV (BUL)
Esneider AYALA (COL)
Zurab DOTIASHVILI (GEO)
Bogdan SAPOJNIC (GER)
AARYAN (IND)
Amirali RAGHEB (IRI)
Netanel RAHMISTOV (ISR)
Kanta NAGAO (JPN)
Bakdaulet AGABEK (KAZ)
Abdulla RYSBEKOV (KGZ)
Leonidas ZABRIAN (MDA)
Temuulen USUKHBAYAR (MGL)
Kirill KONDRASHOV (RUS)
Muslikhiddin KHODZHIEV (TJK)
Batin NANIS (TUR)
Volodymyr BOIKO (UKR)
Kooper DEPUTY (USA)
Farrukh MAKHMUDOV (UZB)

51kg
Youcef BOUKHALFA (ALG)
Murad GHARIBYAN (ARM)
Ibrahim HASANOV (AZE)
Hristiyan LAZAROV (BUL)
Guarav BAHI (CAN)
Giorgi NARIMANIDZE (GEO)
Dariusz DRZYZGA (GER)
GOVIND (IND)
Benyamin ASHOFTEH (IRI)
Tamir SHIRMAMEDOV (ISR)
Masamune USHIMADO (JPN)
Sabyrzhan RAKHATOV (KAZ)
Nurdan BODONOEV (KGZ)
Dionisie NEGRU (MDA)
Munkhtuvshin BOLOR ERDENE (MGL)
William SOTO (PUR)
Zaiden BOTHA (RSA)
Islam KURAKHMAEV (RUS)
Attila HEGEDUS (SVK)
Said NABIEV (TJK)
Yigit EGEMEN (TUR)
Volodymyr YATEL (UKR)
Evan RESTIVO (USA)
Dostonbek YULDASHOV (UZB)

55kg
Aymene ZAGHDANE (ALG)
Davit BALEYAN (ARM)
Abbas SHAFIYEV (AZE)
Nabi ISMAYIL (BLR)
Mert MUSTAFOV (BUL)
Jovanni TOVAR (COL)
Temuri TUTARASHVILI (GEO)
Adrian AIRICH (GER)
Kyryl SHUMEIKO (HUN)
Prathmesh PATIL (IND)
Arman ELAHI (IRI)
Kyosuke IKEDA (JPN)
Temirlan MURAT (KAZ)
Mukhammadiasin IZZATILLAEV (KGZ)
Valentin DELEANU (MDA)
Edgar  BOCANEGRA (MEX)
Khusel Erdene PUREVBAATAR (MGL)
Przemyslaw MROZEK (POL)
Mustafa BERSANUKAEV (RUS)
Patrik VETRAK (SVK)
Yusuf KOCAK (TUR)
Kiril NAHIRNYI (UKR)
Chase KARENBAUER (USA)
Jakhongir TULKUNOV (UZB)

60kg
Santiago CHRISJOHN (ARG)
Grisha GEVORGYAN (ARM)
Eljan HASANOV (AZE)
Andrei KHARUZHY (BLR)
Mustafa FAHEL (CAN)
Adrian CANALES (ESA)
Davit MDZEVASHVILI (GEO)
Balazs HIDEG (HUN)
SITENDER (IND)
Mohammadtaha GANJEH (IRI)
Shai Beni SABAG (ISR)
Stefano GARCIA (ITA)
Shota FUJIWARA (JPN)
Mardan ORYNBASSAR (KAZ)
Mirlan NURMAMATOV (KGZ)
Victor VDOVII (MDA)
Arvinkhuslen ERDENEBAT (MGL)
Sufjan SINANI (MKD)
Witold PAWLIK (POL)
Andrew GOMEZ (PUR)
Stefan PUSCAS (ROU)
Sergei KARMRIAN (RUS)
Sami ODABASI (TUR)
Mykyta KUZMENKO (UKR)
Joseph BURKE (USA)
Bekzodbek IBROHIMOV (UZB)

65kg
Ihab BERGHOUCHE (ALG)
Erik PAPIKYAN (ARM)
Rashid NAZAROV (AZE)
Artsiom KAROTKI (BLR)
Alisson GONCALVES (BRA)
Petko SARAKOSTOV (BUL)
Ignacio FIGUEROA (CHI)
Dylan FERNANDEZ (ESA)
Sacha AUBERT (FRA)
Bidzina JINTCHARADZE (GEO)
Theodoros TSIRIPOV (GRE)
Vince LANG (HUN)
KRISHAN (IND)
Sam ARSHADGH (IRI)
Nikita KOZICH (ISR)
Minato WATATANI (JPN)
Zamir DANIYAR (KAZ)
Azamat AZYRANKULOV (KGZ)
Victor VEVERITA (MDA)
Enkhmunkh SAINKHUU (MGL)
Jovani SOLIS (PUR)
Istvan NAGY (ROU)
Janco BEZUIDENHOUT (RSA)
Magomed IBRAGIMOV (RUS)
Dario STADELMANN (SUI)
Kevin PETOCZ (SVK)
Abdumuqit NABIEV (TJK)
Noker GUVANJOV (TKM)
Beytullah BILGEN (TUR)
Tymur ABUMISLIMOV (UKR)
Arseni KIKINIOU (USA)
Shokhiddin ALIEV (UZB)

71kg
Benjamin CASAS (ARG)
Varuzhan ASLANYAN (ARM)
Yusuf BEKTEMIROV (AUT)
Tunar GULIYEV (AZE)
Vitali HARDZEI (BLR)
Nikolay ILIEV (BUL)
Mohamed HAFEZ (EGY)
Ibrahim BULGUCHEV (GBR)
Bohdan KVANTALIANI (GEO)
Ka Sing CHAN (HKG)
Matyas DERCSAR (HUN)
ANUJ (IND)
Reza SHAMSIPOUR (IRI)
Orel BENOGUEV (ISR)
Koichiro NAGAI (JPN)
Adilet RYSBAY (KAZ)
Abdumalik BAIZHIGITOV (KGZ)
Pavel MAVRODI (MDA)
Narantulga ENKHBAATAR (MGL)
Igor KACZMAREK (POL)
Joab CARRILLO (PUR)
Mokhmad BAISULTANOV (RUS)
Gergo BOTH (SVK)
Idris BAKHROMOV (TJK)
Mekan HUDAYBERENOV (TKM)
Cemal PURCU (TUR)
Dmytro KURSENKO (UKR)
Camryn HOWARD (USA)
Jaloliddin DJALALOV (UZB)

80kg
Vache ASLANYAN (ARM)
Nihad SULEYMANLI (AZE)
Mikhail CHAPAK (BLR)
Cassiano ZUSE PICOLOTTO (BRA)
Koen HURLBERT (CAN)
Yassin EZZAT (EGY)
Arshavir DARAKHSHANIFARA (FIN)
Rati REVAZASHVILI (GEO)
Zeteny TUGYI (HUN)
Deepanshu KHOKHAR (IND)
Amirali FERASATI (IRI)
Takahiro HAGINO (JPN)
Adilbek YERBOLATOV (KAZ)
Alii ZAKIRZHANOV (KGZ)
David PANFILI (MDA)
Layden ACEVEDO (PUR)
Kantemir ELMESOV (RUS)
Martin MOKRAS (SVK)
Ayubjon BOZORZODA (TJK)
Shaapbas ESGEROV (TKM)
Volkan BILGIN (TUR)
Salakhuddin ABDULAIEV (UKR)
Jayden OFARRILL (USA)
Abdukodir SARSENBAEV (UZB)

92kg
Johnson TSAKIRAKIS (AUS)
Elgun KARIMLI (AZE)
Anatoli TAMAROVICH (BLR)
Tyler LANGFORD (CAN)
Ali DADAEV (FRA)
Marshall EVERETT (GBR)
Nuradin MUSTAFAEV (GEO)
Sahibdeep SINGH (HKG)
Zsombor SIMON (HUN)
SAKSHAM (IND)
Reza ISAZADEH (IRI)
Shu YOSHIDA (JPN)
Nurislam AITUGAN (KAZ)
Kamil ONDURUSHOV (KGZ)
Arnas JOKIMCIUS (LTU)
Eugen DOHOTER (MDA)
Khuslen TSERMAA (MGL)
Maciej SLOWIANSKI (POL)
Alan GARCIA (PUR)
Abdurazak SHABANOV (RUS)
Emomali SAFARALIZODA (TJK)
Yasin ERTURK (TUR)
Artem ZALVOVSKYI (UKR)
Salah TSARNI (USA)
Amirbek FAZLITDINOV (UZB)

110kg
Hakim TAGHIYEV (AZE)
Daniil ZHYVULA (BLR)
Stefan STEFANOV (BUL)
Udaypartap BILLEN (CAN)
Murtaz BAGDAVADZE (GEO)
Sergko CHOUTSISVILI (GRE)
Arush RANA (IND)
Amirhossein ESMALI (IRI)
Hanto HAYASHI (JPN)
Sagyndyk TEMIRGALY (KAZ)
Ilias TAKIROV (KGZ)
Ernests STABINS (LAT)
Skomantas RIMKUS (LTU)
Alexei USANOV (MDA)
Serjbudee PUREVJAV (MGL)
Magomed OMAROV (RUS)
Adam KOSC (SVK)
Emomali SAFARALIZODA (TJK)
Yigit AKTAS (TUR)
Valerii PICHUHIN (UKR)
Peter MOCCO (USA)
Behruz ASHIROV (UZB)

Bunyod HASANOV (UZB)2025 world champion at 48kg Bunyod HASANOV (UZB) will be at 51kg in Baku. (Photo: United World Wrestling / Kadir Caliskan)

Greco-Roman

45kg
Vazgen VARDANYAN (ARM)
Ali JAVADLI (AZE)
Ognyan BURGAZOV (BUL)
Luka BOLKVADZE (GEO)
Sachin SHIROLE (IND)
Armin ESMAEILI (IRI)
Ryunosuke TANAKA (JPN)
Nurislam PAKHITZHAN (KAZ)
Baizhigit BAKIEV (KGZ)
Nelson VILLAFANE (PUR)
Arsan ALIEV (RUS)
Kerem DERMAN (TUR)
Rodion SVIRIDENKO (UKR)
Rylen WAX (USA)
Afruzbek IBRAGIMOV (UZB)

48kg
Houssem BOUHA (ALG)
Ararat AVETISYAN (ARM)
Omar SALMANOV (AZE)
Tzvetan NIKOLOV (BUL)
Giorgi CHKHIKVADZE (GEO)
Benedek TOMBOR (HUN)
Avinash CHETAKE (IND)
Ali ESMAEILI (IRI)
Ichia INAOKA (JPN)
Ali ALMAS (KAZ)
Abdyshukur DURUSALYEV (KGZ)
Hector AGUILAR (MEX)
Soltan IUSUPOV (RUS)
Mustafa KARAKOSE (TUR)
Tymur MAHARRAMOV (UKR)
Arav PANDEY (USA)
Javokhir SHARIFBOEV (UZB)

51kg
Lyes BOUMAZA (ALG)
Gevorg HARUTYUNYAN (ARM)
Abdurrahman HUSEYNLI (AZE)
Boris KRUMOV (BUL)
Jan BERAN (CZE)
Saba ABASHIDZE (GEO)
Georgios CHONDRONASIOS (GRE)
Sandor KURDI (HUN)
Dhiraj DAPHALE (IND)
Ahmad BADRADDINI (IRI)
Eito SATO (JPN)
Kuanyshbek ZHANGAZHOL (KAZ)
Azhybek MANAPOV (KGZ)
Vadim TARELUNGA (MDA)
Artem TKACHENKO (RUS)
Ali IPEK (TUR)
Denys KIRYK (UKR)
Wyatt DANNEGGER (USA)
Bunyod HASANOV (UZB)

55kg
Gegham YEGHIAZARYAN  (ARM)
Gurban MAJNUNOV (AZE)
Tsimafei SEMIANENKA (BLR)
Lavozier WADIK (BRA)
Danimir YORDANOV (BUL)
Timo MARCENKOV (CZE)
Abdullah AHMED (EGY)
Giorgi KEDELIDZE (GEO)
Samuel PUSCAS (GER)
Nikolaos ZINISA (GRE)
Keve KOVACS (HUN)
HARIOM (IND)
Vahid ASHIRI (IRI)
Hiroki TAZAWA (JPN)
Diyar AMANALI (KAZ)
Alikhan MIINAZAROV (KGZ)
Domantas MERKELIS (LTU)
Andrei SOCHIRCA (MDA)
Daniel JACOBO (MEX)
Abu Bakar SAGA (NOR)
Vlad TRIP (ROU)
Edem PAIZIEV (RUS)
Umarjon MUKHTOROV (TJK)
Muhammet KARATEKIN (TUR)
Illia VANZHUL (UKR)
Corey BROWN (USA)
Asilbek KARIMOV (UZB)
Haniel RODRIGUEZ (VEN)

60kg
Artush PETROSYAN (ARM)
Elmir CHARKAZOV (AZE)
Raman SHARKOU (BLR)
Vladislav IVANOV (BUL)
Roko CURIC (CRO)
Simon SEBECEK (CZE)
Mohamed AHMED (EGY)
Sultan KUSHT (FIN)
Giorgi CHACHUA (GEO)
Christiano LIEBZEIT (GER)
Pavlos TSENTIDIS (GRE)
Milan BUDAI (HUN)
Darpan CHAUDHARI (IND)
Amirreza TAHMASBPOUR (IRI)
Andrea DE MARZIO (ITA)
Hinata HANAMORI (JPN)
Nurali ASKAR (KAZ)
Ulan DZHANALIEV (KGZ)
Ronaldas POGOZELSKIS (LTU)
Vlad DANILA (MDA)
Alexandru LUNGU (ROU)
Mikhail STEPANOV (RUS)
Makhdi BAROTOV (TJK)
Osman OZDEMIR (TUR)
Rakhman GAMIDOV (UKR)
Cooper MATHEWS (USA)
Sadriddin TULKINBOEV (UZB)

65kg
Vazgen MNATSAKANYAN (ARM)
Orkhan HABIBLI (AZE)
Andrei MAYEUSKI (BLR)
Georgi MARKOV (BUL)
Lovro VIDOVIC (CRO)
Gaspar SANCHEZ (CZE)
Abdalla ABDELMAGEED (EGY)
Ramin Ram YOUSEFI (FIN)
Vasili LOMJARIA (GEO)
Dionysios BOULOUTIDIS (GRE)
Imre JUHASZ (HUN)
Kunal DAGAR (IND)
Armin GHOLI (IRI)
Tamirlan KHALIMOV (ISR)
Yuki UEDA (JPN)
Miras MAKHAMBET (KAZ)
Ramil BERDIKULOV (KGZ)
Mangirdas BRAZDZIUNAS (LTU)
Nicolae CERNOUS (MDA)
Raul CASTILLO MOLINA (MEX)
Raffaele HIGHT (NED)
Adam ELNAGAR (PLE)
Gabriel LUNGU (ROU)
Shamil LABAZANOV (RUS)
Bakhtovar PRIMQULOV (TJK)
Emirhan DOGAN (TUR)
Ibrahim NASIBOV (UKR)
Arseni KIKINIOU (USA)
Sardor MAKHMUDOV (UZB)

71kg
Janes NAZARYAN (ARM)
Houdaifa BOUTARFAYA (ALG)
Ali MAMMADOV (AZE)
Siarhei DOUHI (BLR)
Kristiyan KRASTEV (BUL)
Cristobal ALIAGA (CHI)
Luka SEVEREC (CRO)
Tanel LAISARV (EST)
Eeli OJALA (FIN)
Nikoloz KUTUBIDZE (GEO)
Dimitrios SARAPIS (GRE)
Ervin CZUCZOR (HUN)
Parnam SINGH (IND)
Esmaeil ZAHERDOUST (IRI)
Yehonatan NEMSADZE (ISR)
Nicolas DE GRECIS (ITA)
Soya AKASHI (JPN)
Alinur TOLEUGALI (KAZ)
Baiel NURALIEV (KGZ)
Dmitrijus PETROVICEVAS (LTU)
Bogdan TALMACI (MDA)
Martin LETVIK (NOR)
Julian IWASZKO (POL)
David MALDONADO (PUR)
Albert DEACU (ROU)
Aslan DZUEV (RUS)
Luka ZELIC (SRB)
Mahdi AZIZBOEV (TJK)
Resit YURUK (TUR)
Roman IVANYK (UKR)
Aiden ARNETT (USA)
Kodirjon FOZILOV (UZB)

80kg
Vahe HOVEYAN (ARM)
Isfahan HASANOV (AZE)
Yaraslau BLOTSKI (BLR)
Stoyan ZEBEKOV (BUL)
Toma JELENC (CRO)
Jalo KETONEN (FIN)
Luka BUIGLISHVILI (GEO)
Suraj SHARMA (IND)
Alireza REZAEI (IRI)
Yonatan LEONTYEV (ISR)
Koan VALENTINI (ITA)
Ryohei MARUYAMA (JPN)
Alikhan KUSHEV (KAZ)
Nurluutan KUBATOV (KGZ)
Benediktas BUBELEVICIUS (LTU)
Vitalii MADJAR (MDA)
Szymon TREDER (POL)
Layden ACEVEDO (PUR)
Ilias GADABORSHEV (RUS)
Arijan ALIJA (SRB)
Sheroz GHANIJONI (TJK)
Abdulhalik BAL (TUR)
Danyil MELNYCHUK (UKR)
Ivan IVANOV (USA)
Abdulaziz KHOLMIRZAEV (UZB)

92kg
Aleksan SHALJYAN (ARM)
Zohrab SAFAROV (AZE)
Mark KOT (BLR)
Filip DUREV (BUL)
Niko VIDOVIC (CRO)
Ahmed ELGENDI (EGY)
Shota TABATADZE (GEO)
Sascha SCHWAB (GER)
Polykarpos SERVETAS (GRE)
Sandor ANTALY (HUN)
Rajvardhan PATIL (IND)
Amirreza MEHRITALARPOSHTI (IRI)
Sagi MIREL (ISR)
Sarito KAMENAGA (JPN)
Ali BEKENGAZY (KAZ)
Sanjar STALBEKOV (KGZ)
Vladislav VASYLEVSKYI (MDA)
Jose ESPARZA (MEX)
Tomasz MITAL (POL)
Ionut PATRU (ROU)
Aslan KARDANOV (RUS)
Todor AKSENTIJEVIC (SRB)
Matti EICHMANN (SUI)
Yusuf AKSU (TUR)
Hlib YEVSIEIEV (UKR)
William ETU (USA)
Mirjalol SHOVKATOV (UZB)

110kg
Khachik KHACHATRYAN (ARM)
Mahammad MUSTAFAYEV (AZE)
Yahor SAVICH (BLR)
Luiz PINHEIRO (BRA)
Yoan DIMITROV (BUL)
Petr GRUBER (CZE)
Mohamed ELSAFY (EGY)
Osma TURUNEN (FIN)
Saba TAKIDZE (GEO)
Harsh DALAL (IND)
Aliakbar AKOO (IRI)
Mitsuyoshi URUSHIMA (JPN)
Arystan TEMERGALI (KAZ)
Elbek TURGUNOV (KGZ)
Viesturs KILKENS (LAT)
Mateusz TOMELKA (POL)
Eugen Florin POPA (ROU)
Fedor SUKHAREV (RUS)
Andrej SIMIC (SRB)
Kaan DONERTAS (TUR)
Tymofii PRYKHODKO (UKR)
Bruno PALLONE (USA)
Shokhjakhon ILKHOMOV (UZB)

#WrestleBudapest

World C'ships hopefuls battle it out in Budapest Ranking Series

By Vinay Siwach

BUDAPEST, Hungary (July 13) -- The Budapest Ranking Series, held at this time of year, serves as the primary team selection event for most countries heading into the World Championships. Rather than conducting domestic trials, nations use this international competition to identify their top wrestlers for each weight class.

Georgia, Hungary, Azerbaijan, Moldova, Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan will be among the top countries looking to finalize their Greco-Roman teams during the July 17-20 tournament in Hungary capital.

Azerbaijan, one of the strongest Greco-Roman nations, is bringing all three of its 2024 world champions. Eldaniz AZIZLI (AZE), the 55kg world champion, and Nihat MAMMADLI (AZE), the 63kg world champion, are both entered at 60kg. Ulvu GANIZADE (AZE), the 72kg world champion, will compete at 77kg alongside Sanan SULEYMANOV (AZE).

Mammadli is on a hot streak, having claimed European and world titles in 2024 before adding the 2025 European gold at 60kg. Meanwhile, Azizli, a European silver medalist at 55kg, enters the 60kg bracket for two key reasons: to challenge Mammadli and avoid a significant weight cut.

Ganizade and Suleymanov did not win medals at the European Championships but will battle it out at 77kg in Budapest to make the team.

Paris Olympic bronze medalist and European champion Hasrat JAFAROV (AZE) is at 72kg, up from his preferred 67kg as he prepares for the World Championships without forcing himself to reduce weight.

Similarly, hosts Hungary will have tough battles among local wrestlers. European 72kg champion Levente LEVAI (HUN) is moving up to 77kg and his brother Zoltan, a regular at 77kg, is now at 82kg. But so is world silver medalist Erik SZILVASSY (HUN) and it will be toss-up between the two to make the World Championships team.

The 87kg continues to be a heavily contested weight class as Tamas LEVAI (HUN), Istvan TAKACS (HUN) and European champion David LOSONCZI (HUN) are entered and the winner is likely to take the spot for the Zagreb Worlds.

At 130kg, Darius VITEK (HUN) and Koppany LASZLO (HUN) will fight it out for the spot.

The competition, however, won't be limited to these team selection battles. Many other top wrestlers are also entered, aiming for final preparations before the World Championships in Zagreb from September 13-21.

Here's the breakdown of each weight class:

55kg: European champion Emin SEFERSHAEV (UWW) will be the favorite in the bracket which also has 2024 European champ Artiom DELEANU (MDA), United States phenom Jayden RANEY (USA), Mongolia Ranking Series winner Anil MOR (IND) and world bronze medalist Jasurbek ORTIKBOEV (UZB).

The Budapest tournament will be a big test for teenagers Mor and Raney as they compete at the senior level.

60kg: Apart from Azizli and Mammadli, Pridon ABULADZE (GEO), world U20 medalist SUMIT (IND), Aidos SULTANGALI (KAZ), former world champion Victor CIOBANU (MDA), European silver medalist Georgij TIBILOV (SRB), Sadyk LALAEV (UWW), Anvar ALLAKHIAROV (UWW) and world U23 champion Alisher GANIEV (UZB) rack up a stacked bracket.

Mammadli will still be the favorite, coming in as the European champion. He will also be keen on avenging his Zagreb Open loss to Mehroj BAKHRAMOV (UZB). Azizli, who has tried to make 60kg before in his career, will have a big task as he has struggled to match up against bigger-sized wrestlers at this weight class.

Tibilov made the finals in Bratislava but lost to Mammadli. He will be keen on getting a rematch in Budapest. Lalaev, who lost to Tibilov, has a chance to avenge that loss to the Serbian. He also has to battle it out with Allakhiarov as both are fighting for a spot at the World Championships as UWW wrestlers in Zagreb.

Ganiev, who has impressed with world U23 gold and Asian Championships silver, can be a problem for others in the bracket.

63kg: Red-hot Kerem KAMAL (TUR) will try to maintain his winning streak of 2025 as he enters the fourth tournament of the year. He won gold in Tirana, Bratislava and Ulaanbaatar in dominant fashion. He will be in Budapest at 63kg as the favorite.

European silver medalist Karen ASLANYAN (ARM) has a chance to avenge his loss in the final to Kamal but a strong bracket means he has bigger hurdles as well.

World U23 champion Vitalie ERIOMENCO (MDA), Aref MOHAMMADI (QAT), Dinislam BAMMATOV (UWW) and Sergey EMELIN (UWW) are entered to gain ranking points in Budapest.

67kg: With Jafarov moving up to 72kg for this tournament, former world champions Leri ABULADZE (GEO) and Sebastian NAD (SRB) along with a few others can win the gold.

Abuladze needs to win gold to make the World Championships over European bronze medalist Joni KHETSURIANI (GEO) who will also look to beat his compatriot and earn his ticket to Zagreb.

Kazakhstan's world U23 champion Sultan ASSETULY (KAZ) has not shown the same form since winning the world gold in 2023. He has a chance to be in Zagreb with good performance in Budapest. He also has Din  KOSHKAR (KAZ) fighting for the same spot.

Add Ruslan BICHURIN (UWW) to the bracket as he can easily take the gold medal to surprise the field at 67kg.

Giorgi CHKHIKVADZE (GEO)Giorgi CHKHIKVADZE (GEO) is a world U23 champion at 72kg. (Photo: United World Wrestling / Amirreza Aliasgari)

72kg: Three Georgians are entered at 72kg -- Iuri LOMADZE (GEO), Otar ABULADZE (GEO), Giorgi CHKHIKVADZE (GEO). The winner will get the spot on the Georgian team for the World Championships but the challenge is to win the tournament.

Lomadze failed to win a medal at the European Championships which created an opportunity for world bronze medalist Abuladze and world U23 champion Chkhikvadze to enter the race for a spot on the team.

Former world champion Ali ARSALAN (SRB), who missed out on a medal at the Europeans, would be keen on getting back to winning ways before the World Championships where he won bronze last year.

Jafarov won't be too worried about his result here as he neither gains ranking points nor is his Azerbaijan team spot in danger.

77kg: Both Ganizade and Suleymanov have a chance to make the world team for Azerbaijan. Even if Ganizade misses the podium, he will most likely be back to 72kg. Still, it spices up the 77kg in Budapest.

Levai, who won 72kg European gold, will be challenging the 77kg field in Budapest as he prepares for the World Championships. His win in Bratislava has forced his brother Zoltan to move to 82kg. Levai has rock-solid defense and can score points from different positions.

But big-throwing wrestlers like Alexandrin GUTU (MDA), Sergei STEPANOV (UWW) and Sergei KUTUZOV (UWW) are entered in the competition.

Gutu missed the European Championships and his place was taken by Alexandru SOLOVEI (MDA). Now, both are fighting for the 77kg spot for Moldova. Asian champion Aram VARDANYAN (UZB) will be hoping to build on his gold, his first-ever in any championships. 

Other significant names include Ramaz ZOIDZE (GEO), Ahmet YILMAZ (TUR), Yunus BASAR (TUR) and Kamal BEY (USA).

82kg: European champion Gurban GURBANOV (AZE) will be challenged more than the Euros in Budapest. While he has mastered the European field, the Asian wrestlers can pose some unique challenges.

Jalgasbay BERDIMURATOV (UZB) and Samandar BOBONAZAROV (UZB) are the big names entered from Asia. Also add the two Kazakhstan wrestlers, Dias KALEN (KAZ) and Shamil OZHAEV (KAZ). World U23 silver medalist Beka MELELASHVILI (USA) will also be a tough competitor from the U.S.

Gela BOLKVADZE (GEO), Zoltan LEVAI (HUN), Erik SZILVASSY (HUN) and Burhan AKBUDAK (TUR) are some of the European stars.

87kg: Always regarded as the toughest weight class in Greco-Roman, the 87kg doesn't have a clear favorite. Turpal BISULTANOV (DEN) will only be at his third competition this year after he won the Zagreb Open early in the year and then the invitational Thor Masters last month. It remains to be seen how rusty he looks coming back from the break.

Hungarian trio -- Levai, Takacs and Losonczi -- are fighting it out for the spot on the team and Losonczi will be the favorite to win, like last year.

The biggest challenge will come from Milad ALIRZAEV (UWW), Alan OSTAEV (UWW) and Aues GONIBOV (UWW). Only one of the three can be at the World Championships and that will add motivation for them to win the tournament.

Marcel STERKENBURG (NED) and Exauce MUKUBU (NOR) are also entered as they look to earn some ranking points for World Championships.

Islam ABBASOV (AZE), Ivan HUKLEK (CRO), Islam YEVLOYEV (KAZ), Shamil OZHAEV (KAZ) and Aleksandr KOMAROV (SRB) are also in the bracket, making it even more unpredictable.

97kg: A mini-battle for Azerbaijan will be between Arif NIFTULLAYEV (AZE) and Murad AHMADIYEV (AZE), while Artur SARGSIAN (UWW) and Magomed MURTAZALIEV (UWW) will vie for UWW spots. Sargasian suffered a surprising loss at the European Championships but will hope to make the world team.

Arvi SAVOLAINEN (FIN) and Alex SZOKE (HUN) are other big names in the competition.

130kg: European silver medalist Hamza BAKIR (TUR) will be the favorite to win the gold medal at 130kg despite the presence of Beka KANDELAKI (AZE),  Heiki NABI (EST), Alimkhan SYZDYKOV (KAZ) among others.

Hungary has Darius VITEK (HUN) and Koppany LASZLO (HUN) competing for the 130kg spot for Hungary. 

Mihail KAJAIA (SRB) is a surprise entry at 130kg from Serbia as he seems to struggle to make the 97kg weight class

The United States has three entries -- Cohlton SCHULTZ (USA), Aden ATTAO (USA) and Courtney FREEMAN (USA).