#WrestleSofia

U20 World Championships day three semis set

By Vinay Siwach

SOFIA, Bulgaria (August 17) -- The U20 World Championships in Sofia enters day three with women's wrestling. Japan will be looking to win the team title after skipping last year's World Championships in Ufa. However, the USA would like to defend its title.

MATCH ORDER | WATCH LIVE

13:10: Here are the semifinals for the evening session

50kg
Audrey JIMENEZ (USA) vs. Natalia WALCZAK (POL)
Priyanshi PRAJAPAT (IND) vs. Umi ITO (JPN)

55kg
Albina RILLIA (UKR) vs. MANJU (IND)
Roza SZENTTAMASI (HUN) vs. Moe KIYOOKA (JPN)

59kg
Madina AMAN (KAZ) vs. Viktoria BORSOS (HUN)
Ebru DAGBASI (TUR) vs. Sakura MOTOKI (JPN) 

68kg
Nurzat NURTAEVA (KGZ) vs. Sophia SCHAEFLE (GER)
Ami ISHII (JPN) vs. Nesrin BAS (TUR) 

76kg
Daniela TKACHUK (POL) vs. Ayano MORO (JPN)
Veronika NYIKOS (HUN) vs. Priya PRIYA (IND)

13:07: The final bout of the morning session saw Nurzat NURTAEVA (KGZ) and Laura GODINO (ITA) at 68kg. Godino was put on the activity clock first but failed to score giving Nurtaeva a 1-0 lead at the break. A takedown for Nurtaeva to begin the second period. But Godino hits a double for two before Nurtaeva scores a reversal and leg laces Godino for a 12-2 win.

13:00: Absolute humdinger of a bout on Mat D. Priyanshi PRAJAPAT (IND) had built a 7-0 lead over Aida KERYMOVA (UKR) but the Ukraine wrestler scored a takedown and used a gut wrench to make it 7-4. Another takedown and fleeing by Prajapat gave Kerymova a 7-7 criteria lead. The Indian shot back with a takedown and then held her lead for the final 25 seconds to win 9-7

12:55: Nesrin BAS (TUR) with a solid win against Patrycja SLOMSKA (POL). She leg laces the Poland wrestler to win 10-0.

12:50: Ami ISHII (JPN) and ARJU (IND) are on Mat B for a place in the 68kg semifinal. Ishii takes just two minutes and 19 seconds to score a 10-0 win. 

12:47: At 50kg,  Audrey JIMENEZ (USA) took some time but once she got the takedown, she leg laced Gabija DILYTE (LTU) for an 11-0 win.

On Mat C, Umi ITO (JPN) and Sevval CAYIR (TUR) are battling it out for a place in the semifinal. Cayir was trying to make it a battle but Ito looks a class apart. She wins 14-4

12:40: The 55kg semifinals are set.

Albina RILLIA (UKR) vs. Manju MANJU (IND)
Roza SZENTTAMASI (HUN) vs. Moe KIYOOKA (JPN) 

12:27: In 76kg, Tristan KELLY (USA) and Ayano MORO (JPN) are on Mat C. Moro took a 2-0 lead but Kelly answered with a stepout and takedown to lead 3-2. Moro with another attack and gets the fall with an armbar.

12:22: Priya MALIK (IND) and Melisa SARITAC (TUR) are wrestling for a spot in the 76kg semifinals. A stepout for Malik during Saritac's activity period. She leads 2-0. Stepout for Saritac. Double leg for a takedown for Malik to extend her lead to 4-1 at the break. A takedown for Malik but a stepout and exposure for Saritac in the final 10 seconds but Malik will hold on for a 4-4 win.

12:17: Can Sophia SCHAEFLE (GER) go all the way at 68kg? She looks in good form and has secured a 10-0 win over Daniela BRASNAROVA (BUL)

12:10: Albina RILLIA (UKR) holds Tuba DEMIR (TUR) on the mat to secure the fall just in time before the break. Rillia makes it to the 55kg semifinals. 

11:55: U20 European champion Sevval CAYIR (TUR) rolls on to the quarterfinals with a 10-0 win over Karolina MUELLEROVA (CZE). She will face Umi ITO (JPN) next. 

11:38: At 76kg, Ana DOS SANTOS (BRA) is up against Tristan KELLY (USA). The USA wrestler is made to work hard but she has managed to lead 5-0. In the second period, she builds on the lead and wins 9-0

11:34: Japan's senior world team member Sakura MOTOKI (JPN) begins with a fall over Yuliia LESKOVETS (UKR) at 59kg. Japan has brought three of its senior world team members to Sofia.

11:30: Two-time U17 world champion Priya MALIK (IND) with a fall over Alina YERTOSTIK (KAZ). She is looking for her first U20 world title.

11:28: Moe KIYOOKA (JPN) with a fall over Pei LIAO (TPE) at 55kg. In the same weight class, MANJU (IND) beats Ainur ASHIMOVA (KAZ) 14-2

11:25: Women's wrestling qualification bouts at 55kg. Tuba DEMIR (TUR) and Immacolata DANISE (ITA) put on a show on Mat B. Demir ultimately prevailed 4-2 but the bout was full of scrambles

11:15: Quick update from the repechage rounds. Mykyta ABRAMOV (UKR) has beaten Nicholas BOUZAKIS (USA) 16-15 at 61kg. The loss hurts the USA's chances of winning the team title.  

11:00: The third day of the U20 World Championships in Sofia. Women's wrestling will see 50kg, 55kg, 59kg, 68kg and 76kg wrestlers on the mat and later in the day we will have freestyle medal bouts.

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Datunashvili Denies Rio champ Chakvetadze Ticket to Tokyo; Armenia Grabs 2 Greco spots

By Ken Marantz

SOFIA, Bulgaria (May 8) -- After appearing in two Olympics for his native Georgia, Zurabi DATUNASHVILI (SRB) will now get to represent his adopted country of Serbia. It took a victory over the defending Olympic champion to do it, and one that also spoiled Russia's perfect record in qualifying.

Datunashvili did what needed to be done to forge out a 1-1 victory on criteria over Rio 2016 gold medalist Davit CHAKVETADZE (RUS) in the semifinals at 87kg, earning his country one of the 12 Greco-Roman spots allocated at the final world Olympic qualifying tournament on Saturday night in Sofia, Bulgaria.

Both wrestlers were limited to a passivity point, but Datunashvili's came later to give him the victory as the semifinal winners in each of the six weight classes clinched tickets to Tokyo for their country.

In the last 10 seconds, the Georgian-born Chakvetadze got in on a body lock, but Datunashvili whizzered his way out of danger to give Serbia a third Greco spot at the Tokyo Games.

"It's been hard for me," said Datunashvili, who won his third career European championship this year and first for Serbia. "He is also a Georgian and I am, too. We wrestled in training when we were younger. This is the first time we met in a competition and I won."

Competing for Georgia, Datunashvili finished seventh at the London 2012 Olympics, then dropped to 18th four years later in Rio. He made his debut for Serbia last year.

"I had many problems in Georgia but Serbia adopted me," he said. "I say thanks to them."

For Russia, Greco 87kg will be the only weight class without an entry, after the country completed the sets in freestyle and women's wrestling on the first two days of the tournament.

In Greco, only Cuba will have the full six-member squad.

In the other 87kg semifinal, Ivan HUKLEK (CRO) stuffed a tiring Kristoffer BERG (SWE) on a back drop in the last 50 seconds for 2 points, then added a stepout for a 4-1 victory to give Croatia a second Olympic spot.

"I wrestled him in camp but this was the first time in competition," Huklek said. "This will be my first Olympics and I am going to take a medal from Tokyo."

Huklek added he was dedicating his triumph to his sister who died recently.

It was a good night for Armenia, which doubled its allotment of Greco places with victories by Armen MELIKYAN (ARM) at 60kg and Karen ASLANYAN (ARM) at 67kg. For both, the ability to convert in the par terre position became the difference between victory and defeat.

Melikyan coverted from the down position in the first period, then added a late takedown for a 5-2 victory over Hanjae CHUNG (KOR), one of just two Asians who appeared in the semifinals.

Both lost.

The other winner at 60kg was Victor CIOBANU (MDA), the 2018 world silver medalist who finally made it to the Olympics in his third try with a stunning victory by fall over Dato CHKHARTISHVILI (GEO).

Ciobanu used an arm throw to get behind, and when Chkhartishvili tried to escape by sitting out, the Moldovan sucked him back to put him on his back, then clamped down for a fall at 2:11.

"This was so hard but I kept on fighting," Ciobanu said. "I just thought to continue wrestling and thank God I won in this manner."

Aslanyan's victory at 67kg came at the expense of Mamadassa SYLLA (FRA), as he was able to convert in par terre after his opponent couldn't for a 3-1 victory.

In the other semifinal, 2018 world junior bronze medalist Parviz NASIBOV (UKR) scored a pair of four-point moves in the first period of a 10-3 victory that denied Shogo TAKAHASHI (JPN) a spot in the Olympics in his home country.

The Czech Republic became the 61st and last country to grab a ticket to Tokyo in wrestling when Artur OMAROV (CZE) secured one of the two places at 97kg.

Omarov, who finished third at at last December's Individual World Cup, outclassed Vilius LAURINAITIS (LTU) in an 8-0 technical fall in 5:12 that he capped with his third stepout point of the match.

A transplanted Georgian came out on the losing end in the other semifinal, in which Alex SZOKE (HUN) defeated Nikoloz KAKHELASHVILI (ITA) 6-1 after scoring a pair of two-point rolls from the par terre position.

"The scoreboard shows that it was an easy match but it was not easy," said Szoke, who finished second at the Individual World Cup. "It was hard but I was very strong mentally to win this and qualify."

Host Bulgaria came away with an Olympic spot at 77kg -- although there were no spectators at Arena Armeec Sport Hall to appreciate it -- when Aik MNATSAKANIAN (BUL) defeated Fatih CENGIZ (TUR) 3-2.

Mnatsakanian, a two-time world bronze medalist at 72kg, gave up a stepout and a passivity point before getting a takedown to go ahead on criteria. He received a passivity point in the second period then protected the lead to the end.

In the other 77kg semifinal, Rafig HUSEYNOV (AZE) scored a pair of takedowns in the first period and defeated former world champion Viktor NEMES (SRB) 4-1.

"This win is so hard for me because my opponent is a famous wrestler – world and European champion," said Huseynov, the 2020 European champion himself at 82kg and a former world silver medalist. "I am very happy to win this match.

"This is my first Olympics and I think I will be better there because after 2014 and after seven years, this is my first competition in this category."

For the 33-year-old Huseynov, much of the battle was with the scale in dropping to the lower weight.

"I reduced 12 kgs for this competition, but for the Olympics I will be good," he said. "I was very strong in March 2020 but then COVID happened. We had to wait. I was trying to go to 87kg, but we have strong wrestlers in that category. So I decided to drop to 77kg."

At 130kg, 2020 European champion Alin ALEXUC CIURARIU (ROU) earned his third trip to the Olympics by putting up a solid wall of defense to shut out Rafal KRAJEWSKI (POL) 5-0.

Alexuc Ciurariu scored his first two points on passivity calls, and even though he could not convert in the par terre position, he put the match out of reach with a spin-behind takedown. An unsuccessful challenge added the final point.

"Not many people believed in me but I always believed that I would qualify," Alexuc Ciurariu said. "The bouts were very hard but I wanted to win."

In the final bout of the night at 130kg, Matti KUOSMANEN (FIN) defeated Mykola KUCHMII (UKR) 1-1 on criteria, with both points allocated for passivity.

Interestingly, Kuosmanen opted to remain on his feet in lieu of the par terre position. In the end, it neither helped nor harmed him, as neither wrestler could launch an effective attack.

Day 3 Results: Greco-Roman

60kg (25 entries)
SEMIFINAL - Victor CIOBANU (MDA) df. Dato CHKHARTISHVILI (GEO) by Fall, 2:11 (2-1)
SEMIFINAL - Armen MELIKYAN (ARM) df. Hanjae CHUNG (KOR), 5-2

67kg (26 entries)
SEMIFINAL - Karen ASLANYAN (ARM) df. Mamadassa SYLLA (FRA), 3-1
SEMIFINAL - Parviz NASIBOV (UKR) df. Shogo TAKAHASHI (JPN), 10-3

77kg (30 entries)
SEMIFINAL - Rafig HUSEYNOV (AZE) df. Viktor NEMES (SRB), 4-1
SEMIFINAL - Aik MNATSAKANIAN (BUL) df. Fatih CENGIZ (TUR), 3-2

87kg (27 entries)
SEMIFINAL - Zurabi DATUNASHVILI (SRB) df. Davit CHAKVETADZE (RUS), 1-1
SEMIFINAL - Ivan HUKLEK (CRO) df. Kristoffer BERG (SWE), 4-1

97kg (21 entries)
SEMIFINAL - Alex SZOKE (HUN) df. Nikoloz KAKHELASHVILI (ITA), 6-1
SEMIFINAL - Artur OMAROV (CZE) df. Vilius LAURINAITIS (LTU) by TF, 8-0, 5:13

130kg (19 entries)
SEMIFINAL - Alin ALEXUC CIURARIU (ROU) df. Rafal KRAJEWSKI (POL), 5-0
SEMIFINAL - Matti KUOSMANEN (FIN) df. Mykola KUCHMII (UKR), 1-1