#WrestleAmman

U20 World Championships entry list

By Vinay Siwach

AMMAN, Jordan (August 7) -- A week after the U17 World Championships ended in Istanbul, Turkiye, top wrestlers in the U20 age category will assemble in Amman, Jordan for the World Championships in that age group.

The Jordan capital, which hosted the U15 and U20 Asian Championships in July, will see 672 wrestlers in three different styles with Freestyle kicking off the championships on August 14. It will be live on uww.org and the UWW App from August 14 to 20. Freestyle wrestling will be followed by Women's Wrestling and Greco-Roman.

Iran will once again be the favorite to win the team title in Freestyle as it boasts of wrestlers including defending champion at 125kg Amirreza MASOUMI (IRI). The United States finished second last year and will look to upset Iran this time as it brings Luke LILLEDAHL (USA), Meyer SHAPIRO (USA), Mitchell MESENBRINK (USA) and Bennett BERGE (USA).

India finished third in Sofia and it will hope to better its position on the podium as it brings returning medalists Mohit KUMAR (IND) and Sagar JAGLAN (IND).

Iran will be the favorite to defend its team title in Greco-Roman as it has named Ali AHMADI VAFA (IRI), 2021 U20 world champ Amirreza DEHBOZORGI (IRI), Alireza ABDEVALI (IRI) and returning silver medalists Abolfazl CHOUBANI (IRI) and Fardin HEDAYATI (IRI).

The next best team was Azerbaijan as returning champion Kanan ABDULLAZADE (AZE) leads the team which has returning bronze Elmir ALIYEV (AZE), U20 European champ Ruslan NURULLAYEV (AZE) and Davud MAMMADOV (AZE).

No doubt the Individual Neutral Athletes will affect the podium finishes this year but Georgia, Armenia and Ukraine are also sending strong Greco-Roman squads to Amman.

In women's wrestling, Japan will be tested by the United States, India, China and Ukraine as all four countries are sending strong squads as they try to match the best in the world.

Japan had a star-studded line-up last year but only two defending champs feature in the squad for Amman. Moe KIYOOKA (JPN) and Ayona MORO (JPN) will look to defend their titles at 55kg and 76kg.

The United States will be led by senior world champion and defending champion Amir ELOR (USA) at 72kg and breakout star and 2021 U20 world champ Kennedy BLADES (USA) at 76kg. The team also has returning silver medalist Audrey JIMENEZ (USA) and two returning bronze medalists Katie GOMEZ (USA) and Adaugo NWACHUKWU (USA).

India managed second place last year and will look to close the gap with Japan as it banks on defending champ ANTIM (IND), U20 Asia champ NITIKA (IND), U17 world champs SAVITA (IND) and Harshita MOR (IND), and returning silver medalist Priya MALIK (IND).

Amirreza MASOUMI (IRI)Amirreza MASOUMI (IRI) is the defending champion at 125kg. (Photo: UWW / Assem Shalgumbayeva)

Freestyle

57kg
Herbert AKAPIAN (AIN)
Lev PAVLOV (AIN)
Edik HARUTYUNYAN (ARM)
Ruslan ABDULLAYEV (AZE)
Congbao XIE (CHN)
Luka GVINJILIA (GEO)
David KIEFER (GER)
SAGAR (IND)
Ahmad JAVAN (IRI)
Yuto NISHIUCHI (JPN)
Merey BAZARBAYEV (KAZ)
Bakytbek DUISHENBEKOV (KGZ)
Vasile MARCU (MDA)
Rafal SZEWC (POL)
Amir HAMAYUN (TKM)
Tolga OZBEK (TUR)
Ruslan SOLOVEI (UKR)
Luke LILLEDAHL (USA)
Nodirbek JUMANAZAROV (UZB)

61kg
Eldar AKHMADUDINOV (AIN)
Yahor RUDAUSKI (AIN)
Levik MIKAYELYAN (ARM)
Musa AGHAYEV (AZE)
Shehabeldin MOHAMED (EGY)
Marc ARIAS (ESP)
Tamazi SULAMANIDZE (GEO)
Dario DITTRICH (GER)
Milan MIZSEI (HUN)
Mohit KUMAR (IND)
Ali KHORRAMDEL (IRI)
Suhib ALMARAFI (JOR)
Rin SAKAMOTO (JPN)
Abdinur NURLANBEK (KAZ)
Akylbek URMATOV (KGZ)
Dmitri CARASTOIANOV (MDA)
Enkhbold ENKHBAT (MGL)
Besir ALILI (MKD)
Benjamin BOEJTHE (ROU)
Robert MESZAROS (SVK)
Nuryagdy BAYRAMDURDYYEV (TKM)
Emre CETIN (TUR)
Mykola TASHOHLO (UKR)
Nicholas BOUZAKIS (USA)
Azizbek NAIMOV (UZB)

65kg
Dalgat ABDULKADYROV (AIN)
Ilya RAHOZAU (AIN)
Andranik AVETISYAN (ARM)
Jakob SAURWEIN (AUT)
Ramik HEYBATOV (AZE)
Sikadaier KUERMANBAYI (CHN)
Said ELGAHSH (EGY)
Felipe FERRUSOLA (ESP)
Akseli ERKKOLA (FIN)
Seyfulla ITAEV (FRA)
Goga OTINASHVILI (GEO)
Marcel WAGIN (GER)
Jaskaran SINGH (IND)
Mohammad Reza SHAKERI (IRI)
Zaid MESLAH (JOR)
Kaiji OGINO (JPN)
Sanzhar MUKHTAR (KAZ)
Aden SAKYBAEV (KGZ)
Ion BERGHI (MDA)
Dominik JAGUSZ (POL)
Eligh RIVERA (PUR)
Doru DINCA (ROU)
Abdullah TOPRAK (TUR)
Mykyta ZUBAL (UKR)
Jesse MENDEZ (USA)
Kamronbek KADAMOV (UZB)

70kg
Magomed BAITUKAEV (AIN)
Mikita DZEMCHANKA (AIN)
Abderrahmane BENAISSA (ALG)
Hayk PAPIKYAN (ARM)
Muhamed BEKTEMIROV (AUT)
Javidan AHMADOV (AZE)
Bozhidar DZHOROV (BUL)
Saba KOBAKHIDZE (GEO)
Burak SALVIZ (GER)
Georgios IOAKEIMIDIS (GRE)
Marcell NAGY (HUN)
NARENDER (IND)
Ali REZAEI (IRI)
Daniel KORKIN (ISR)
Yuma TOMIYAMA (JPN)
Mukametali KABIDOLDANOV (KAZ)
Omurbek TAALAIBEK UULU (KGZ)
Viljams LUTKEVICS (LTU)
Constantin CHIRILOV (MDA)
Zelimkhan MUTSUKHAEV (POL)
Julian GEORGE (PUR)
Ibrahim YAPRAK (TUR)
Rostyslav PRUS (UKR)
Meyer SHAPIRO (USA)
Zafarbek OTAKHONOV (UZB)

74kg
Ihar SHALIMA (AIN)
Anton SUCHKOV (AIN)
Armen MUSIKYAN (ARM)
Mukhammad INSHAPIEV (AUT)
Namus ORUJOV (AZE)
Ivan STOYANOV (BUL)
Amaan GULACHA (CAN)
Feng LU (CHN)
Mohamed ABDELHADY (EGY)
Giorgi GOGRITCHIANI (GEO)
Stas WOLF (GER)
JAIDEEP (IND)
Hossein AGHAEI (IRI)
Raul CASO (ITA)
Orts ISAKOV (JOR)
Ryunosuke KAMIYA (JPN)
Yerkhan BEXULTANOV (KAZ)
Zhakshylyk BAITASHOV (KGZ)
Arturs PURINS (LAT)
Ion MARCU (MDA)
Batbayar BATSUKH (MGL)
Marcin STANEK (POL)
Tanner PEAKE (PUR)
Gigi SUBTIRICA (ROU)
Azymberdi SAPAROV (TKM)
Mevlut OZDEMIR (TUR)
Mykyta MORHUN (UKR)
Mitchell MESENBRINK (USA)
Asadbek KARIMOV (UZB)

79kg
Ibragim KADIEV (AIN)
Dzmitry LUKASHUK (AIN)
Narek GRIGORYAN (ARM)
Christopher BAKER (AUS)
Lukas LINS (AUT)
Ali TCOKAEV (AZE)
Radomir STOYANOV (BUL)
Connor CHURCH (CAN)
Matteo MONTEIRO (CPV)
Otari ADEISHVILI (GEO)
Gregor EIGENBRODT (GER)
Nandor HAJDUCH (HUN)
Sagar JAGLAN (IND)
Farzad SAFI (IRI)
Abdallah MAKOON (JOR)
Ryogo ASANO (JPN)
Magzhan ZHANYRBAY (KAZ)
Denizbek ULAN UULU (KGZ)
Paulius LESCAUSKAS (LTU)
Traian CAPATINA (MDA)
Demchigdorj TUMURBAATAR (MGL)
Mateusz PEDZICKI (POL)
Kimi KAEPPELI (SUI)
Soltan BEGENJOV (TKM)
Ahmet YAGAN (TUR)
Alim MIESUVIETOV (UKR)
Matthew SINGLETON (USA)
Steven RODRIGUEZ (VEN)

86kg
Vadzim BANDARKOU (AIN)
Mushegh MKRTCHYAN (ARM)
Tabriz BAYRAMOV (AZE)
Slavi STAMENOV (BUL)
Maiding YUEMAI (CHN)
Rakhim MAGAMADOV (FRA)
Tornike SAMKHARADZE (GEO)
Kiril KILDAU (GER)
Peter ZSIVNOVSZKI (HUN)
Mukul DAHIYA (IND)
Amirhossein ALIZADEH (IRI)
Gabriele NICCOLINI (ITA)
Fumiya IGARASHI (JPN)
Imangali KALDYBEK (KAZ)
Ulukbek SOOROMBEKOV (KGZ)
Davids PIROZNIKS (LAT)
Eugeniu MIHALCEAN (MDA)
Shakjir BISLIMI (MKD)
Filip BLASZCZYK (POL)
Noah SCHWALLER (SUI)
Orazmuhammet HOJALYYEV (TKM)
Harun KILIC (TUR)
Tien KUO (TPE)
Ivan CHORNOHUZ (UKR)
Bennett BERGE (USA)

92kg
Mustafagadzhi MALACHDIBIROV (AIN)
Aliaksei ZHORAU (AIN)
Knyaz IBOYAN (ARM)
Ravan MUSAYEV (AZE)
Sali SALIEV (BUL)
Samuel PEREIRA (CAN)
Giorgi ROMELASHVILI (GEO)
Daniel FISCHER (GER)
Grigorios SARIDIS (GRE)
Krisztian ANGYAL (HUN)
VINAY (IND)
Mohammadmobin AZIMI (IRI)
Issa KIKUCHI (JPN)
Rizabek AITMUKHAN (KAZ)
Nurbolot ADYL UULU (KGZ)
Wiktor HASA (POL)
Muhammed GIMRI (TUR)
Yaroslav LISNIAK (UKR)
Jack DARRAH (USA)

97kg
Uladzislau KAZLOU (AIN)
Islam KILCHUKOV (AIN)
Khachatur KHACHATRYAN (ARM)
Zafar ALIYEV (AZE)
Qikang XING (CHN)
Mohamed SALAHELDIN (EGY)
Nika PANTSULAIA (GEO)
Deepak CHAHAL (IND)
Abolfazl BABALOO (IRI)
Toyoki HAMADA (JPN)
Kamil KURUGLIYEV (KAZ)
Grigori TOMAILI (MDA)
Taron SHAHINYAN (POL)
Georgian TRIPON (ROU)
You WU (TPE)
Dogan UZUN (TUR)
Ivan PRYMACHENKO (UKR)
Camden MC DANEL (USA)

125kg
Said AKHMATOV (AIN)
Aliaksandr HRADOUKIN (AIN)
Yusif DURSUNOV (AZE)
Stefan SHAVKOV (BUL)
Karanveer MAHIL (CAN)
Zihao HUANG (CHN)
Roope KATAJA (FIN)
Levan LAGVILAVA (FRA)
Zurab ROMELASHVILI (GEO)
Rajat RUHAL (IND)
Amirreza MASOUMI (IRI)
Ryusei FUJITA (JPN)
Marlen KURLYSBEK (KAZ)
Younho HA (KOR)
Teodor GJORGIEV (MKD)
Ksawery KAMINSKI (POL)
Hakan BUYUKCINGIL (TUR)
Volodymyr KOCHANOV (UKR)
Christian CARROLL (USA)

Moe KIYOOKA (JPN)Moe KIYOOKA (JPN) will start as the favorite at 55kg. (Photo: UWW / Kostadin Andonov)

Women's wrestling

50kg
Sviatlana KATENKA (AIN)
Aleksandra KOPYLOVA (AIN)
Elvina KARIMZADA (AZE)
Serena DI BENEDETTO (CAN)
Yu ZHANG (CHN)
Karolina MUELLEROVA (CZE)
Maria CAZALLA (ESP)
Priyanshi PRAJAPAT (IND)
Miruko SAKANE (JPN)
Laura GANIKYZY (KAZ)
Julia MICHNIEWICZ (POL)
Georgiana ANTUCA (ROU)
Svenja JUNGO (SUI)
Reka HEGEDUS (SVK)
Yi LIN (TPE)
Zerda DEMIR (TUR)
Viktoriia SLOBODENIUK (UKR)
Audrey JIMENEZ (USA)
Mariana ROJAS (VEN)

53kg
Marta HETMANAVA (AIN)
Polina LUKINA (AIN)
Gultakin SHIRINOVA (AZE)
Nikol KRUMOVA (BUL)
Liuxuan CHEN (CHN)
Shaimaa MOHAMED (EGY)
Carla JAUME SOLER (ESP)
Amory ANDRICH (GER)
ANTIM (IND)
Noura TAAIBIN (JOR)
Nagisa HARADA (JPN)
Altyn SHAGAYEVA (KAZ)
Mihaela SAMOIL (MDA)
Khaliun BYAMBASUREN (MGL)
Nikola WISNIEWSKA (POL)
Ana ROTARU (ROU)
Khrystyna BASYCH (SVK)
Emine CAKMAK (TUR)
Mariia YEFREMOVA (UKR)
Katie GOMEZ (USA)
Dilshoda MATNAZAROVA (UZB)

55kg
Diana ANTROPOVA (AIN)
Aryna MARTYNAVA (AIN)
Asmar JANKURTARAN (AZE)
Sophia BECHARD (CAN)
Roza SZENTTAMASI (HUN)
JYOTI (IND)
Moe KIYOOKA (JPN)
Zeinep BAYANOVA (KAZ)
Aruuke KADYRBEK KYZY (KGZ)
Lina NITA (MDA)
Felicitas DOMAJEVA (NOR)
Georgiana LIRCA (ROU)
Milica SEKULOVIC (SRB)
Tuba DEMIR (TUR)
Albina RILLIA (UKR)
Amani JONES (USA)
Aysanem KURBANBAEVA (UZB)

57kg
Volha HARDZEI (AIN)
Tatiana ILEVA (AIN)
Gabriela CROSS (CAN)
Jin ZHANG (CHN)
Petra MRACKOVA (CZE)
Louji YASSIN (EGY)
Naemi LEISTNER (GER)
Gerda TEREK (HUN)
REENA (IND)
Ichika ARAI (JPN)
Shugyla OMIRBEK (KAZ)
Aitolkun MEDET KYZY (KGZ)
Bertha ROJAS (MEX)
Patrycja STRZELCZYK (POL)
Helena VAN AS (RSA)
Jana PETROVIC (SRB)
Pei Ying LIAO (TPE)
Sevval CAYIR (TUR)
Alina FILIPOVYCH (UKR)
Cristelle RODRIGUEZ (USA)
Ulmeken ESENBAEVA (UZB)

59kg
Alesia HETMANAVA (AIN)
Elena KUROVA (AIN)
Nawel BAHLOUL (ALG)
Camila AMARILLA (ARG)
Caitlin CLATNEY (CAN)
Lana NOGIC (CRO)
Farah HUSSEIN (EGY)
Mia OLIVIER (FRA)
Luna ROTHENBERGER (GER)
NITIKA (IND)
Aurora RUSSO (ITA)
Kanami YAMANOUCHI (JPN)
Madina AMAN (KAZ)
Kalmira BILIMBEKOVA (KGZ)
Gantsetseg BATSUKH (MGL)
Aleksandra WITOS (POL)
JOVANA RADIVOJEVIC (SRB)
Annatina LIPPUNER (SUI)
Sevim AKBAS (TUR)
Yuliia PAKHNIUK (UKR)
Alexis JANIAK (USA)
Sarbinaz JIENBAEVA (UZB)

62kg
Alina BORISOVA (AIN)
Yana TRETSIAK (AIN)
Mayara RAMOS (BRA)
Shuang HAN (CHN)
Iris THIEBAUX (FRA)
Vanja GERSAK (GER)
Yasmine SOLIMAN (HUN)
SAVITA (IND)
Suzu SASAKI (JPN)
Tynys DUBEK (KAZ)
Zharkynai NURLAN KYZY (KGZ)
Ana CRETU (MDA)
Melanie JIMENEZ (MEX)
Khulan BYAMBASUREN (MGL)
Olha PADOSHYK (POL)
Dunja LUKIC (SRB)
Selvi ILYASOGLU (TUR)
Iryna BONDAR (UKR)
Adaugo NWACHUKWU (USA)
Astrid MONTERO (VEN)

65kg
Zlatoslava STEPANOVA (AIN)
Kseniya TSIARENIA (AIN)
Gerda BARTH (GER)
Nikoleta BARMPA (GRE)
Eniko ELEKES (HUN)
ANTIM (IND)
Momoko KITADE (JPN)
Korlan AMANOVA (KAZ)
Tancholpon KYBALBEKOVA (KGZ)
Alicja NOWOSAD (POL)
Maria PANTIRU (ROU)
Pei Shan CHIEN (TPE)
Khadija JLASSI (TUN)
Duygu GEN (TUR)
Iryna BORYSIUK (UKR)
Madeline KUBICKI (USA)

68kg
Elizaveta PETLIAKOVA (AIN)
Alina SHAUCHUK (AIN)
Jia YANG (CHN)
Menatalla BADRAN (EGY)
Sophia SCHAEFLE (GER)
ARJU (IND)
Laura GODINO (ITA)
Ray HOSHINO (JPN)
Zhibekzhan SABYRZHANOVA (KAZ)
Gulnura TASHTANBEKOVA (KGZ)
Luciana BEDA (MDA)
Karolina JAWORSKA (POL)
Elif KURT (TUR)
Manola SKOBELSKA (UKR)
Isabella MIR (USA)
Gilbery GARCIA (VEN)

72kg
Viktoryia RADZKOVA (AIN)
Kseniia SAMUILOVA (AIN)
Vanesa GEORGIEVA (BUL)
Paige MAHER (CAN)
Milla ANDELIC (CRO)
Heba IBRAHIM (EGY)
Noemi OSVATH NAGY (HUN)
Harshita MOR (IND)
Yuka FUJIKURA (JPN)
Shamshiyabanu TASTANBEK (KAZ)
Kaiyrkul SHARSHEBAEVA (KGZ)
Emilia CRECIUN (MDA)
Tselmuun OTGONBAT (MGL)
Patrycja CUBER (POL)
Julia LOETSCHER (SUI)
Bukrenaz SERT (TUR)
Iryna ZABLOTSKA (UKR)
Amit ELOR (USA)
Mardona KADAMOVA (UZB)

76kg
Aliaksandra KAZLOVA (AIN)
Mariia SILINA (AIN)
Myah PHILLIPS (CAN)
Yuqi LIU (CHN)
Laura KUEHN (GER)
Veronika NYIKOS (HUN)
Priya MALIK (IND)
Ayano MORO (JPN)
Alina YERTOSTIK (KAZ)
Daniela TKACHUK (POL)
Lin JIANG (TPE)
Melisa SARITAC (TUR)
Mariia ZENKINA (UKR)
Kennedy BLADES (USA)

Kanan ABDULLAZADE (AZE)Kanan ABDULLAZADE (AZE) will look to defend his 67kg gold medal. (Photo: UWW / Kostadin Andonov)

Greco-Roman

55kg
Alibek AMIROV (AIN)
Dzianis VITAROI (AIN)
Armen GEVORGYAN (ARM)
Elmir ALIYEV (AZE)
Tamazi GLONTI (GEO)
Lukas BENZING (GER)
Ilias ZAIRAKIS (GRE)
Edmond DOMOKOS (HUN)
Anil MOR (IND)
Ali AHMADI VAFA (IRI)
Ahmad Khaled AHMAD (JOR)
Kohei YAMAGIWA (JPN)
Iskhar KURBAYEV (KAZ)
Nuristan SUIORKULOV (KGZ)
Hassan ALHARTHI (KSA)
Maxim SARMANOV (MDA)
Denis MIHAI (ROU)
Abduvali RAHIMBAYEV (TKM)
Emre MUTLU (TUR)
Marko VOLOSHYN (UKR)
Zachary SILVIS (USA)
Alisher GANIEV (UZB)

60kg
Bilal BERSANUKAEV (AIN)
Suren AGHAJANYAN (ARM)
Ilkin GURBANOV (AZE)
Yuetao LIU (CHN)
Jeremy PERALTA (ECU)
Gorka GRACIA (ESP)
Lucas LO GRASSO (FRA)
Anri KHOZREVANIDZE (GEO)
Daniel RAFAEL (HUN)
Sumit DALAL (IND)
Amirreza DEHBOZORGI (IRI)
Melkamu FETENE (ISR)
Koto GOMI (JPN)
Saifulla KURMAN (KAZ)
Emirlan DUISHENALIEV (KGZ)
Munthir JANDU (KSA)
Olivier SKRZYPCZAK (POL)
Mathias MARTINETTI (SUI)
Husein HASANOV (TJK)
Kemal SEVGILI (TUR)
Vladyslav LEVCHUK (UKR)
Maxwell BLACK (USA)
Kuvonchbek YAKHSHIBOEV (UZB)

63kg
Daniial AGAEV (AIN)
Yurik HOVEYAN (ARM)
Faraim MUSTAFAYEV (AZE)
Hristiyan IVANOV (BUL)
Matej REBIC (CRO)
Matous JANKOVIC (CZE)
Adham ELSAYED (EGY)
Rati KHOZREVANIDZE (GEO)
David MANYIK (HUN)
SANDEEP (IND)
Ahmadreza  MOHSEN NEZHAD (IRI)
Suhib ALHASANAT (JOR)
Komei SAWADA (JPN)
Dinislam SAGITZHAN (KAZ)
Zhantoro MIRZALIEV (KGZ)
Vitalie ERIOMENCO (MDA)
Bredi SLINKERS (NED)
Furkan ERKEN (TUR)
Vasyl MYSHANYCH (UKR)
Landon DRURY (USA)
Khusniddin OLIMBOEV (UZB)

67kg
Ilias IANDAROV (AIN)
Illia VALEUSKI (AIN)
Gaspar TERTERYAN (ARM)
Kanan ABDULLAZADE (AZE)
Dimitar GEORGIEV (BUL)
Ji LENG (CHN)
Luka IVANCIC (CRO)
Moustafa ALAMELDIN (EGY)
Artur JEREMEJEV (EST)
Nestori MANNILA (FIN)
Nika BROLADZE (GEO)
Zsolt TAKACS (HUN)
UMESH (IND)
Ahoura BOUVEIRI PIANI (IRI)
Gaith ODTALLA (JOR)
Kojiro HASEGAWA (JPN)
Aziz GASSYMOV (KAZ)
Mukhamed KOSHBAEV (KGZ)
Gyeongtae KIM (KOR)
Saud ALSUBAIE (KSA)
Arslanbek SALIMOV (POL)
Saya BRUNNER (SUI)
Kakabay KAKABAYEV (TKM)
Azat SARIYAR (TUR)
Izet BEKIROV (UKR)
Joel ADAMS (USA)
Ilyosjon ABDINAZAROV (UZB)

72kg
Imran ALIEV (AIN)
Zakhar YANEVICH (AIN)
Ashot KHACHATRYAN (ARM)
Muhamed BEKTEMIROV (AUT)
Ruslan NURULLAYEV (AZE)
Yehia ABDELKADER (EGY)
Kristo MERILAIN (EST)
Anri PUTKARADZE (GEO)
Aaron BELLSCHEIDT (GER)
Levente LEVAI (HUN)
Ankit GULIA (IND)
Seyedmohammadmahdi MIRI (IRI)
Ariell SOSUNOV (ISR)
Omar AL DARAGHMEH (JOR)
Hajime KIKUTA (JPN)
Yeldos KAMELOV (KAZ)
Imur TEMIRBEKOV (KGZ)
Gunhee LEE (KOR)
Kipras GVOZDAS (LTU)
Vasile ZABICA (MDA)
Michal PUCHALSKI (POL)
Ognjen JAKOVLJEVIC (SRB)
Nasimjon TURDIBEKOV (TJK)
Muhammed GOCMEN (TUR)
Irfan MIRZOIEV (UKR)
Braden STAUFFENBERG (USA)
Abdullo ALIEV (UZB)

77kg
ABDULMASIH (AIN)
Ramazan ARAPKHANOV (AIN)
Henrik GEVORGYAN (ARM)
Davud MAMMADOV (AZE)
Ibrahim TABAEV (BEL)
Martin DIMITROV (BUL)
Maihaimu MIREADILI (CHN)
Mihael LUKAC (CRO)
Michal ZELENKA (CZE)
Mahmoud AHMED (EGY)
Ekke LEITHAM (EST)
Tornike MIKELADZE (GEO)
Andreas VASILAKOPOULOS (GRE)
Dominik BOTOS (HUN)
Deepak PUNIA (IND)
Alireza ABDEVALI (IRI)
Isami HORIKITA (JPN)
Olzhas YERGALI (KAZ)
Erlan MARS UULU (KGZ)
Kasparas JUODELIS (LTU)
Alexandru SOLOVEI (MDA)
Mateusz BORYSEWICZ (POL)
Antal VAMOS (SRB)
Ilhan ALDI (TUR)
Ruslan ABDIIEV (UKR)
Derek MATTHEWS (USA)
Azimjon SOATULLAEV (UZB)

82kg
Imam ALIEV (AIN)
Uladzislau SLABADZINSKI (AIN)
Ruben GEVORGYAN (ARM)
Ismayil RZAYEV (AZE)
Andrey ATANASOV (BUL)
Antonio LUKAC (CRO)
Mahmoud IBRAHIM (EGY)
Jesper HAERKAENEN (FIN)
Yvan GUIADEM (FRA)
Data CHKHAIDZE (GEO)
Miklos KIRALYHAZI (HUN)
Rohit DAHIYA (IND)
Yasin YAZDI (IRI)
Reon KAKEGAWA (JPN)
Islam YEVLOYEV (KAZ)
Artykbek ALYMBEK UULU (KGZ)
Ilia CERNOVOL (MDA)
Christian MEDINA (MEX)
Wojciech IWANOWSKI (POL)
Nicolaos IGNATESCU (ROU)
Branko DUKIC (SRB)
Alperen BERBER (TUR)
Ivan CHMYR (UKR)
Michael ALTOMER (USA)
Dilshod MAMADAMINOV (UZB)

87kg
David ANDREASIAN (AIN)
Maksim MASIUKEVICH (AIN)
Vigen NAZARYAN (ARM)
Ali GULIYEV (AZE)
Ivaylo IVANOV (BUL)
Zichen YANG (CHN)
Tomislav BRKAN (CRO)
Kareem ELDESOUKY (EGY)
Robin USPENSKI (EST)
Elias LYYSKI (FIN)
Tourpal MAGAMADOV (FRA)
Achiko BOLKVADZE (GEO)
Nikolaos IOSIFIDIS (GRE)
Csaba  SZINAY (HUN)
Mohit KHOKHAR (IND)
Abolfazl CHOUBANI (IRI)
Daisei ISOE (JPN)
Nurassyl AMANALY (KAZ)
Asan ZHANYSHOV (KGZ)
Yongdae CHA (KOR)
Mahmoud HAWSAWI (KSA)
Damian MATVEIKO (LTU)
Patryk ROBASZEK (POL)
Patrik GORDAN (ROU)
Yhlas ABDURAZAKOV (TKM)
Erdem KETHUDA (TUR)
Ramazan PASHAIEV (UKR)
Wyatt VOELKER (USA)
Abdullokh ABDUMUTALIBOV (UZB)

97kg
Abubakar KHASLAKHANAU (AIN)
Magomed MUKHTAROV (AIN)
Arshak GEGHAMYAN (ARM)
Kaloyan IVANOV (BUL)
Tao WEI (CHN)
Kevin USPENSKI (EST)
Gor AYVAZYAN (GEO)
Darius KIEFER (GER)
SAHIL (IND)
Amirreza AKBARI (IRI)
Kyo KITAWAKI (JPN)
Iussuf MATSIYEV (KAZ)
Samagan ORMONOV (KGZ)
Donghyun YUN (KOR)
Igor KABADEICEV (LTU)
Rostislav COVALI (MDA)
Sebastian WARCHOL (POL)
Gean ALI (ROU)
Yusup BELLIYEV (TKM)
Muhittin HELVACI (TUR)
Vladyslav LUB (UKR)
Sawyer BARTELT (USA)
Damirkhon RAKHMATOV (UZB)
Juan DIAZ (VEN)

130kg
Daniil KAZLOU (AIN)
Aleksandr MELEKHOV (AIN)
Aramayis HARUTYUNYAN (ARM)
Leonhard JUNGER (AUT)
Mazaim MARDANOV (AZE)
Wenhao JIANG (CHN)
Fekry EISSA (EGY)
Eerik PANK (EST)
Rati TALIKISHVILI (GEO)
Achilleas CHRYSIDIS (GRE)
Laszlo DARABOS (HUN)
PARVESH (IND)
Fardin HEDAYATI (IRI)
Ayumu IWASAWA (JPN)
Jokhar UZAROV (KAZ)
Talip CIFTCI (TUR)
Artur BOICHUK (UKR)
Aden ATTAO (USA)

#WrestleParis

Paris 2024 Day 4 Wrestling Preview: FS 57kg and 86kg; WW 57kg

By Vinay Siwach

PARIS (July 25) -- After the Tokyo Olympics high, a possible David TAYLOR (USA) vs Hassan YAZDANI (IRI) bout was the most anticipated one for the Paris Olympics. But Aaron BROOKS (USA) had other plans. He defeated Taylor in the Olympic trials in the United States to book his spot at 86kg for the U.S.

Now, Yazdani is the favorite to win the gold. He can also become the first Iran wrestler to win two Olympic golds.

PARIS 2024 SCHEDULE | PARIS 2024 NEWS

The 86kg weight class on August 8 isn't the only one in which history can be created. Both the other two weight classes also have a chance to see some historic medals to be won.

The 57kg in Freestyle will have world champion Stevan MICIC (SRB) trying to win the first medal for Serbia in Freestyle at the Olympics. Zelimkhan ABAKAROV (ALB), also a world champion, has the same task for Albania.

In women's 57kg, Rio 2016 champion Helen MAROULIS (USA) has a chance to win the third Olympic medal for the U.S. while she tries to knock off world champion Tsugumi SAKURAI (JPN). Maroulis is no stranger to beating Japanese world champions at the Olympics.

Anastasia NICHITA (MDA) has a great chance to make history for Moldova by winning a medal even as the bracket has Kexin HONG (CHN), ANSHU (IND), Odunayo ADEKUOROYE (NGR) and Alina HRUSHYNA (UKR) among others.

FS 86kg: Over to Yazdani

Ever since his move to 86kg after winning the gold medal at 74kg in Rio, Yazdani has lost to only one wrestler -- Taylor. With the American not in Paris, Yazdani has his tail up.

Throughout the 2023 season, Yazdani wrestled with a shoulder injury and it became a headache for Iran when he underwent surgery. Iran contemplated having a wrestle-off between Yazdani and 92kg world champion Kamran GHASEMPOUR (IRI). But then Brooks beat Taylor.

Hassan YAZDANI (IRI)Hassan YAZDANI (IRI) trains in Mazandaran, Iran. (Photo: United World Wrestling / Jake Kirkman)

Yazdani won the Budapest Ranking Series and reignited his hopes of winning the gold.

"I thank God that I was able to get on the mat in international competitions after seven months and 13 days," Yazdani had said in Budapest. "I had a little preparation and it was around 60 percent. I hadn’t wrestled for a long time. I have some weaknesses that I hope I can fix before the Olympics so that I can wrestle better than these competitions and get the gold medal. I hope that until the Olympics, I can eliminate my weaknesses so I can win the best medal for my country and our good people."

Yazdani was winning the Tokyo final when Taylor scored a takedown in the final moments to claim the gold. A furious Yazdani walked off the mat, hitting anything that came his way. But two months after that loss, he defeated Taylor at the Oslo World Championships, his only win over the American. Taylor would rebound to beat him at the 2022 and 2023 World Championships.

Brooks, a four-time NCAA champion, defeated Taylor in a best-of-three series at the trials. Brooks has a U23 world title and is now the biggest threat to Yazdani's gold medal.

Aaron BROOKS (USA)Aaron BROOKS (USA) won the 2023 U23 world title in Tirana. (Photo: United World Wrestling / Kadir Caliskan)

Yazdani has a solid underhook and has improved his conditioning but Brooks' defense is top-notch as Taylor found out at the trials. A wait-and-watch counter-attacking bout can ensue if the two meet in Paris.

Brooks is unseeded and will be drawn at random in the 16-wrestler bracket which means he can face any of the top wrestlers in the first bout.

Myles AMINE (SMR), who won a historic bronze for San Marino in Tokyo, is returning, hoping to stand on the podium again. Dauren KURUGLIEV (GRE) is another master of defense and will be a tough case to crack for any wrestler. 

Osman NURMAGOMEDOV (AZE), Magomed RAMAZANOV (BUL), Vladimeri GAMKRELIDZE (GEO), Hayato ISHIGURO (JPN) and Azamat DAULETBEKOV (KAZ) are some other potential medal hopefuls in Paris.

FS 57kg: History on line

When Spencer LEE (USA) won the U.S. trials, he did not know if he was going to the Olympics. He still had to qualify the 57kg weight for the U.S. He did so at the World Olympic Qualifier in Istanbul, in dominating fashion, barring one bout. Lee, a former U17 and U20 world champion, has now set his sights on the gold medal.

But at 57kg, the bracket is among the toughest in recent times. World champions Stevan MICIC (SRB), Zelimkhan ABAKAROV (ALB) and Rei HIGUCHI (JPN) are trying to achieve the same. Add to the list the European and Asian champions in Arsen HARUTYUNYAN (ARM), Aliabbas RZAZADE (AZE), Vladimir EGOROV (MKD), AMAN (IND) and Gulomjon ABDULLAEV (UZB).

However, Lee has extra motivation to perform in France, his mother's native country.

"This is a big deal for me," Lee said in Istanbul. "My family lives in France. They live outside of Bordeaux. My grandmother has never seen me wrestle and it's a really big deal for me to compete in my mother's home country."

Rei HIGUCHI (JPN)Rei HIGUCHI (JPN) won the Budapest Ranking Series in June. (Photo: United World Wrestling / Kadir Caliskan)

Higuchi, a silver medalist from Rio 2016, has dabbled with 65kg but returned to 57kg to make the Tokyo Olympics. He missed the weight at the qualifiers. But a strict diet, planned weight cut and experience have helped Higuchi return to the Olympics. However, he doesn't think too much about the loss against Vladimir KHINCHEGASHVILI (GEO) in the final in Rio.

“I don't look back at my matches. I want to move on. Next match,” he told UWW last year. "I don't feel bad about missing the Tokyo Olympics. The day I lost the chance to represent at the Tokyo Games, I began preparing for Paris.”

In his preparation for Paris, Higuchi has taken to cooking special meals for himself to keep his weight under control, training with specific partners, and enjoying the journey. He also got married and has a kid.

But for Olympics, Higuchi's battle begins well before he steps on the mat as he reduces at least seven kilograms.

"The aim is to lose 2kg of body fat per month," Higuchi was quoted as saying by Yahoo. "In my case, it takes about three months to bring weight to 59kg, and then I think the best way to lose the last 2kg is to cut out water and lose it before the match. When losing weight, start with a low-fat diet, and when you can't lose any more weight, switch to a ketogenic diet [restricting carbohydrates and consuming fat]. Repeat this process. And it's important to consume carbohydrates from a low-fat diet before a match."

Another wrestler heading to Paris with a weight cut on his mind is the reigning world champion Stevan MICIC (SRB), who defeated Higuchi in a thrilling 57kg final in Belgrade. Micic is the first Serbian world champion in Freestyle and will look to add a historic Olympic medal.

Micic, however, has only competed once since winning the World Championships. He won the gold medal at the Dan Kolov tournament at 61kg.

"First time competing since the World Championships, up at 61kg," Micic said on his YouTube channel. "I would give myself 9/10 this time. In my first match against Iran, he was young and motivated, any match against Iran is tough. At this kind of tournament, you are not supposed to be perfect. It's getting yourself that feeling of competition out of the way."

Stevan MICIC (SRB)Stevan MICIC (SRB) won the world title at 57kg in Belgrade in 2023. (Photo: United World Wrestling / Kostadin Adonov)

In Paris, he wouldn't have to worry about an Iran wrestler though. Iran failed to qualify the 57kg weight class. However, it is yet to be seen if that will help Micic improve his 14th-place finish at Tokyo.

Also, Higuchi is hoping to avenge that loss in the final if the two meet in the final.

"I'll definitely pay them back in the real thing [Olympcis]," he said. "I know quite a bit about what technique my opponents will use and when. What are my weaknesses? I'm not that worried. I think that all I have to do is make small adjustments and corrections. I think I have to win the gold medal in Paris. After all, I love this sport and I've been doing it for a long time, so I have a strong desire not to lose."

Abakarov and Harutyunyan will look to end up on the podium as well. Harutyunyan had a high-scoring bout against Higuchi before going down in the World Championships semifinal. Abakarov, after suffering a loss to Micic, returned to win the bronze medal by beating Tokyo Olympic champion Zavur UGUEV (AIN). Then there are Asian hammers in Abdullaev and Aman. While Adbullaev is going to his second Olympics after finishing fifth in Tokyo, Aman will be making his debut.

WW 57kg: Three-way battle for supremacy

Will the 57kg Olympic gold medal stay with Japan? The country which has dominated women's wrestling ever since it was added to the Olympics is expected to continue it. It has won the 55-58kg gold medal at all editions. So can Tsugumi SAKURAI (JPN) keep it with Japan?

Sakurai, a three-time world champion, has a strong 2-on-1 attack to go with her defense. However, that did not work in the final of the Asian Championships this year as she lost 5-2 to Yongxin FENG (CHN). Fortunately for Sakurai, Feng is not the Chinese representative in Paris.

Tsugumi SAKURAI (JPN)Tsugumi SAKURAI (JPN) executes a 2-on-1 attack. (Photo: United World Wrestling / Amirreza Aliasgari)

Despite the loss and a wake-up call before Paris, Sakurai was composed in her assessment of the bout, saying that her opponents are coming in with plans against her,

"I think everyone knows my style of wrestling," Sakurai said after the Asian Championships. "I have to train so that even if I get stopped, I can still find a way to score points. No matter the tournament, my objective is always to win the title. When you lose, there has to be a reason for the loss. I will look at this as I'm glad it wasn't the Olympics, and I will practice hard up to August."

Undoubtedly, Hong too will be ready with her coaches to pull off an upset. Hong has been on a roll this year, winning the Zagreb Open and Budapest Ranking Series, apart from winning the Paris qualification in Bishkek. In Zagreb, she defeated Anastasia NICHITA (MDA) and then 59kg world champion and compatriot Qi ZHANG (CHN) in the final. She would once again beat Zhang in Budapest in the semifinal and win the gold with a win over ANSHU (IND).

But the world will be watching Maroulis, who made her third straight Olympics. She won the first-ever gold for the U.S. in Rio by beating the legendary Saori YOSHIDA (JPN). She won bronze in Tokyo after dropping the semifinal against Risako KINJO (JPN). And Maroulis looks good for a third medal at the Olympics.

She lost only to Sakurai at the World Championships but won the Pan-Am Championships and the Poland Open this year. Maroulis has the habit of peaking towards the second half of the season in which the World Championships or the Olympics are held.

Nichita, the world silver medalist, can surprise anyone on her day but a recent injury and her loss to Anshu in Budapest must have given her a wake-up call. Currently training in Italy, Nichita can create history by winning the first medal at Olympics in Women's Wrestling, given Irina RINGACI (MDA) doesn't to do on day one.