U20 Worlds: First day, USA and Iran show

Monday, August 14, 2023 - 20:43 By Vinay Siwach

AMMAN, Jordan (August 14) -- The United States and Iran set the stage for a thrilling team title race at the U20 World Championships after putting three wrestlers each in the gold medal bouts on the first day of the tournament.

The U.S. ended the day just ahead of Iran as it has two wrestlers in bronze medal bouts while Iran has one wrestler in the repechage and another won't get a chance to wrestle for a medal.

Japan, Individual Neutral Athletes, India and Ukraine sent a wrestler each in the final as the competition got underway in Amman, Jordan.

Luke LILLEDAHL (USA) pins Ruslan ABDULLAYEV (AZE) in the 57kg semifinal. (Photo: UWW / Amirreza Aliasgari)

The start of the evening session could not have been more dramatic for the U.S. as former U17 world champion Luke LILLEDAHL (USA) shocked U20 European champion Ruslan ABDULLAYEV (AZE) with a pin with seven seconds left in the semifinal.

Lilledahl was leading 3-1 at the break but Abdullayev got on his shots in the second period and scored a takedown before getting two turns to lead 7-3. Lilledahl added a takedown to close the gap and as he tried again, Abdullayev scored two points using a cradle and lead 9-5.

In a desperate attempt for a win, Lilledahl got a fake attack to which Abdullayev threw himself back. As Lilledahl tried to go behind, Abdullayev stuck his hand out which Lilledahl caught and used to pin Abdullayev.

He will have to produce another top performance if wants to win his second age-group gold medal as he wrestles Yuto NISHIUCHI (JPN) who won the gold medal at 61kg last year.

Nishiuchi, who won a silver medal at the Zagreb Open this year, cruised to the final as he beat SAGAR (IND) 10-0, using a leg lace.

Another former U17 world champion for the U.S. hoping to win a U20 world title is Meyer SHAPIRO (USA) who was at the top of his game to reach the final at 70kg.

In his four bouts on Monday, Shapiro gave up points only in the quarterfinals bout against Mirjavad NABIYEV (AZE) who managed to score four on the U.S. wrestler.

Shapiro's defense and crafty attacks were too much for his opponents including 2021 U17 world champion Magomed BAITUKAEV (AIN) who got to Shapiro four times but failed to convert once.

In the semifinals against Julian GEORGE (PUR), Shapiro began with takedown, exposure, and three more takedowns to win 11-0 with a lost challenge for George adding a point.

Trying to stop Shapiro in the final will be Ali REZAEI (IRI) who stood with a bronze medal on the same podium as Shapiro in Budapest in 2021.

Rezaei warmed up with a 9-6 win over Ibrahim YAPRAK (TUR) in his opening bout before blanking Zelimkhan MUTSUKHAEV (POL) and Pavel GRAUR (MDA) in his next two bouts. In the semifinals, he struggled a little against Omurbek TAALAIBEK UULU (KGZ) but won 6-4 using his underhooks to keep Taalaibek Uulu under check.

Mohammad Reza SHAKERI (IRI) celebrates after beating Dalgat ABDULKADYROV (AIN) in the 65kg semifinal. (Photo: UWW / Amirreza Aliasgari)

The U.S. and Iran will go head-to-head in the 65kg final as well with Jesse MENDEZ (USA) and Mohammad Reza SHAKERI (IRI) winning their sides of the bracket.

Shakeri has already improved on his ninth-place finish from last year by reaching the final. He had to dig deep in the semifinals against Dalgat ABDULKADYROV (AIN) for a win.

Abdulkadyrov began with a takedown but Shakeri scored a reversal before scoring a four-pointer to lead 8-2. The two scrambled with all their energies but Shakeri somehow managed to keep Abdulkadyrov to an 11-8 score.

Mendez will fancy his chances after a solid run on Monday which included wins over U20 European champion Mykyta ZUBAL (UKR), U23 Asian silver medalist Aden SAKYBAEV (KGZ), Ion BERGHI (MDA) and Abdullah TOPRAK (TUR) in the semifinals.

Warned for inactivity in the first period, Mendez did give up a point before scoring a stepout on a counter. Toprak was called for fleeing as well which gave Mendez a 2-1 lead. An inactivity point against Toprak made it 3-1 which was also the final score of the bout.

Abolfazl BABALOO (IRI) defeated Camden MC DANEL (USA) 5-1 in the 97kg semifinal. (Photo: UWW / Kostadin Andonov)

Iran's third finalist of the night was U20 Asian champion Abolfazl BABALOO (IRI) who stepped up and made it to the 97kg gold medal bout.

A month ago, Babaloo lost two bouts in Amman to finish fifth at the U20 Asian Championships. However, he avenged his loss to Kamil KURUGLIYEV (KAZ) 6-1 before beating Camden MC DANEL (USA) 5-1 in the semifinals.

For a gold medal, Babaloo will have to overcome Ivan PRYMACHENKO (UKR) who scored a takedown in the final minute of the semifinal to win 5-3 against Uladzislau KAZLOU (AIN).

Leading 3-1, Kazlou set out to defend his lead but Prymachenko went for single leg to score a takedown. While Kazlou tried regaining the lead, Prymachenko locked him and scored another takedown to win 5-3.

Sagar JAGLAN (IND) reached the 79kg final after winning 16-6 against Matthew SINGLETON (USA). (Photo: UWW / Kostadin Andonov)

The only final which does not feature either the U.S. or Iran is 79kg as U20 Asia champion Sagar JAGLAN (IND) and Ibragim KADIEV (AIN) reached the gold medal bout.

Jaglan, who won the bronze medal at 74kg last year, defeated Matthew SINGLETON (USA), 16-6, in the semifinals while Kadiev beat Ali TCOKAEV (AZE) 8-4 in the other semifinal.

Singleton opened the scoring with a single-leg for four. But Jaglan went all out with his pressure and broke Singleton as time progressed. Jaglan scored five stepouts, a takedown and got a point for fleeing in the first period to lead 8-4 at the break.

The American wrestler was cautioned for not engaging before Jaglan scored a takedown to make it 11-4. Singleton pulled off a takedown but Jaglan return with four points to win the semifinal 16-6.

In Kadiev, Jaglan gets an opponent who will frustrate him with his defense. Kadiev brought his top game for the semifinals as he began with a four-pointer and added a turn to lead 6-0. Tcokaev scored a takedown to cut the lead to 6-2 but Kadiev scored two stepouts to make it 8-2 which seemed a little too much for Tcokaev to cover despite him scoring a late takedown.

RESULTS

57kg
GOLD: Yuto NISHIUCHI (JPN) vs. Luke LILLEDAHL (USA)

SF 1: Yuto NISHIUCHI (JPN) df. SAGAR (IND), 10-0
SF 2: Luke LILLEDAHL (USA) df. Ruslan ABDULLAYEV (AZE), via fall (7-9)

65kg
GOLD: Jesse MENDEZ (USA) vs. Mohammad Reza SHAKERI (IRI)

SF 1: Jesse MENDEZ (USA) df. Abdullah TOPRAK (TUR), 3-1
SF 2: Mohammad Reza SHAKERI (IRI) df. Dalgat ABDULKADYROV (AIN), 11-8

70kg
GOLD: Meyer SHAPIRO (USA) vs. Ali REZAEI (IRI)

SF 1: Meyer SHAPIRO (USA) df. Julian GEORGE (PUR), 11-0
SF 2: Ali REZAEI (IRI) df. Omurbek TAALAIBEK UULU (KGZ), 6-4

79kg
GOLD: Ibragim KADIEV (AIN) vs. Sagar JAGLAN (IND)

SF 1: Ibragim KADIEV (AIN) df. Ali TCOKAEV (AZE), 8-4
SF 2: Sagar JAGLAN (IND) df. Matthew SINGLETON (USA), 16-6

97kg
GOLD: Ivan PRYMACHENKO (UKR) vs. Abolfazl BABALOO (IRI)

SF 1: Ivan PRYMACHENKO (UKR) df. Uladzislau KAZLOU (AIN), 5-3
SF 2: Abolfazl BABALOO (IRI) df. Camden MC DANEL (USA), 5-1

#development

Wrestling Australia Hosts Education Week prior to Youth Nationals

Tuesday, October 25, 2022 - 15:23 By United World Wrestling Press

SYDNEY, Australia (October 25) – Wrestling Australia and Combat Australia organized an Education Week prior to their Youth Nationals. During the week, the participants had an opportunity to participate in a Level 1 Coaching Course and the Introduction to Referee Course. The coaching course was held on 17-19 October and the referee course was on 20-21 October. On 22 October, Wrestling Australia hosted their Youth National Competition at the Whitlam Leisure Centre.

The Level 1 Coaching Course was conducted by Mr. Zach Errett (USA) – UWW Education Manager. This course had 11 participants (8 men and 3 women). The coach participants focused on many topics that would improve their coaching skills. The areas of emphasis included: implementing discovery games, identifying key factors in a technique, introducing new skills, improving coaching skills, checking for comprehension, risk management, age group characteristics, athlete safeguarding and anti-doping. “We all learned a lot in a short period of time - the quality of teaching was great and very professional.” said Aryan Negahdari. The coaches also participated in practical assessments on many of these areas. They were asked to demonstrate the coaching skills that they were learning. They ended the course with a technical session that covered various areas on different wrestling techniques and drills. “This group of coaches was great! They were eager to learn and had a great effort each day. It was great to see them grow as coaches during the course.” said Zach Errett.

AUS Participants of the Level 1 Coaching Course and the Introduction to Referee Course host their certificates after completing the course in Sydney. (Photo: United World Wrestling)

The Introduction to Referee Course was conducted by Mr. Stefan Rudevics (AUS) – UWW Referee Educator. This course had 14 participants (11 men and 3 women). The referee participants focused on skills that would provide a solid foundation as a referee. The areas they focused on were evaluation of holds, starting and ending matches, referee mechanics, positioning, safety of the athletes, and controlling the bout. “"It was fun, and the days went quick. We learnt by doing; pre- and post-course film sessions and putting it all into action on the youth Nationals with close senior referee support. Stefan was supportive, patient and very knowledgeable. He gave us feedback throughout the whole event and discussed multiple sequences of us refereeing on video, both simulated and live.” said Luke Massey. During their course, they were asked to referee simulated matches. This allowed them to use the skills that they were learning. Many of these referees also participated in the Youth Nationals after the course. “The course is a fantastic starting point for a refereeing journey, especially to complete it with a competition which helped us gain confidence, humility and insights.” Said Jackie Hattingh. During the event, they were evaluated and given feedback during the sessions. “Throughout the course, the participants were able to build on their knowledge of wrestling and learn how to referee matches. They expanded their knowledge of the rules and understood new and different philosophies of wrestling they had not contemplated before. As an educator, it makes me so proud to see such development of my students. From little to no refereeing knowledge, to confidently and competently calling challenging matches and feeling good about it shows UWW's development program works.” said Stefan Rudevics.

AUS
Stefan RUDEVICS (AUS) (middle) leads the Introduction to Referee Course. (Photo: United World Wrestling)

Wrestling Australia and Combat Australia are actively looking to grow the sport and improve their workforce. Since they began these referee courses, their national referee enrollment has risen from 7 to 41. This is almost a 500% growth in referees since we started, including 11 female officials. “We would like to thank Zach Errett, Stefan Rudevics & UWW for the fantastic opportunity they provided our emerging coaches and referees. The training that Zach and Stefan provided throughout the week was of very high value and incredibly important for the growth of our sport here in Australia. The people they trained this week can now go out to practice their new skills and plant the seeds for future. The feedback we received from all attendees was that they learnt so much and have already started to apply these new skills within days. We look forward to repeating this type of training on a regular basis as it is so important for the growth of our great sport of Wrestling.” said Andrew Kanatli – President of Wrestling Australia

U20 Worlds: First day, USA and Iran show

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Wrestling Australia Hosts Education Week prior to Youth Nationals