U23 Worlds: For Tevanyan, first title worth the wait

Sunday, October 23, 2022 - 00:21 By Vinay Siwach

PONTEVEDRA, Spain (October 22) -- Vazgen TEVANYAN (ARM) rarely expresses emotions on the mat. A rather calm personality during the bout, Tevanyan wore a worried look as the referees reviewed a challenge from Hamza ALACA (TUR).

With 20 seconds left in the 65kg gold medal bout at the U23 World Championships in Pontevedra, Spain, Tevanyan led 7-2 but Alaca got a gut wrench in which he spun Tevanyan 360 degrees hoping to get four points. The referees, however, awarded only two.

Even a successful challenge would only make it 7-6, Tevanyan did not want to be in a situation where the match can see more twists. And though there were no surprises at the end as Alaca lost the challenge and only got two points, it was a relief for Tevanyan than a celebration.

He thanked the small group of Armenian fans that were present in the Municipal Pavillion in Pontevedra before the victory lap as he captured his first-ever world title.

"Only at the end of the match, when there was a challenge, I was worried," Tevanyan said.

If you are wondering why it was such a big deal, Tevanyan remembers the last U23 World Championships in which he finished as the silver medalist. In the final 10 seconds, he gave up a takedown and then Ernazar AKMATALIEV (KGZ) spun him for two. And what Alaca did was similar to that.

Akmataliev won the gold last year at 70kg. Tevanyan did not want to finish with silver again.

"I have been waiting for so long to become the world champion," he said. "I was going to Belgrade to win the gold but seems like I wasn’t prepared enough. Last year I was wrestling at 70kg weight class."

Ever since bursting onto the scene for beating Iszmail MUSZUKAJAEV (HUN) in the 65kg final at the 2020 Individual World Cup in Belgrade, Tevanyan has shown the spark but he failed to light it on the big stage.

In March 2021 he defeated Haji ALIYEV (AZE) but failed to win at the Olympics and finished ninth at the 2021 World Championships. But is slowly working out for him in 2022. He won the prestigious Takhti Cup in Iran, and almost reached the bronze medal bout in Belgrade before capping off the season with a world title.

"I have been working hard together with the coaches," he said. "We corrected all the mistakes, and now you can see the result of our hard work."

In Pontevedra, he captured the 65kg gold with the win over Alaca to finally emerge as one of the wrestlers to take over 65kg. In the semifinals, he defeated Adlan ASKAROV (KAZ) 7-6 in an evenly fought bout. Japanese youngster Ryoma ANRAKU (JPN) also troubled Tevanyan but the Armenian managed to win 5-4.

Vazgen TEVANYAN (ARM) completes an attack on Hamza ALACA (TUR) in the 65kg final. (Photo: UWW / Kostadin Andonov)

In the final, he was leading 3-2 with a minute remaining when he got the arm trap and extended his lead to 7-2. But he still countered later in the bout. Luckily, it was only for two points and not four for Alaca.

"That was an interesting final," he said. "The opponent was very good. I wouldn’t say that the beginning of the match was intense but later during the challenge, I was worried if they will give 2 or 4 points."

The Tokyo Olympian will now try to qualify for the Paris Olympics at the 2023 World Championships next year.

"I will now go back to Armenia, get some rest and start training even harder for the next year because the next year is very important since there will be Olympic qualifying World Championships," he said.

Giorgi ELBAKIDZE (GEO) won the U23 World title at 70kg. (Photo: UWW / Kadir Caliskan)

While Tevanyan ended his title drought, it was yet another silver at World Championships for Amirmohammad YAZDANI (IRI) who lost the 70kg final against U23 European champion Giorgi ELBAKIDZE (GEO) in a dramatic manner.

The favorite Yazdani led 2-2 at the break and got involved in a bearhug with Elbakidze which ended in a disaster for him. Elbakidze never let off his grip and Yazdani landed on his back as he tried a big throw. Elbakidze led 6-2 and Yazdani looked desperate.

Elbakidze avoided contact and it was just over a minute left that Yazdani was able to score a takedown, cutting the lead to 6-4. Then he got a lifeline.

Elbakidze was put on the activity clock and Yazdani had to play out the 30 seconds and needed a takedown to win. But Elbakidze shot a double-leg which Yazdani defended for a while but ultimately fell to the pressure, canceling out the activity clock. Nothing worked for him and he ended with his third silver in as many World Championships finals.

Vladimeri GAMKRELIDZE (GEO) reacts after winning the 79kg final against Daulet YERGESH (KAZ). (Photo: UWW / Kostadin Andonov)

Georgia got its second world champion as Vladimeri GAMKRELIDZE (GEO) defeated Daulet YERGESH (KAZ), 5-3kg, in the 79kg final.

After getting a point for passivity, Gamkrelidze scored a takedown right before the break to lead 3-0. Yergesh was more active in the second period but Gamkrelidze did not want to engage and it was with just 35 seconds remaining that Yergesh got a stepout.

Yergesh needed two more points for criteria and went for a duck under but as he tried getting up, Gamkrelidze slammed him on the mat, earning himself two more points. He did give up a takedown but it was too little too late as the Georgian won 5-3.

Amirali AZARPIRA (IRI) defeated Tanner SLOAN (USA) in the 97kg final. (Photo: UWW / Kostadin Andonov)

Amirali AZARPIRA (IRI) successfully defended his 97kg gold with a tense 5-3 win over Tanner SLOAN (USA).

Azarpira got a single leg against Sloan and almost managed to take him down but Sloan defended, before scoring a takedown. But in the second period, Azarpira scored a stepout in the activity period before adding one more to take a 3-2 lead with a minute and 30 seconds remaining. He extended it to 4-2 with less than a minute remaining.

In the dying seconds of the bout, Sloan launched an attack and got hold of Azarpira's legs. But at no time did Azarpira make three-point contact with the mat and Sloan did not receive a point.

"The final match was a hard match," Azarpira said. "I pretty much knew it would be a tough match. I put in a lot of effort for this tournament after the U20 Worlds in Bulgaria. I had a bad experience in Bulgaria and couldn't get the medal that I wanted, I ended up in third place.

"After that, I tried very hard and was very organized in my preparation for this tournament and thank god I was successful."

At the U20 Worlds in Sofia, Azarpira suffered a surprising 6-4 loss to Rifat GIDAK (TUR) and returned home with a bronze. It was a wake-up call for Azarpira who went there thinking that he would return as a champion.

"Before Sofia, I went in thinking I was guaranteed the gold," he said. "I ended up not getting what I expected. After that, I gathered myself and trained hard and with discipline in order to get the gold here and thank god that happened."

Aman SEHRAWAT (IND) became India's first U23 world champion. (Photo: UWW / Kostadin Andonov)

India's first U23 champion

India entered only one wrestler in freestyle and he is returning home with a gold and history. Aman SEHRAWAT (IND) won the 57kg gold medal in Pontevedra, becoming the first Indian to be crowned a U23 world champion.

In the final, he faced Ahmet DUMAN (TUR) and started as the underdog as Duman enjoyed a field day Friday, winning all three of his bouts via technical superiority.

He began on a similar note, scoring a stepout in the first 15 seconds. Sehrawat was called passive as Duman led 2-0 at the break.

It all changed after the 30-second interval as Sehrawat's relentless attacks, with a shade of Olympic silver medalist Ravi KUMAR (IND) in them, stunned Duman.

Attack per attack, the two-time U17 world bronze medalist racked up points and led 6-2. Duman got an opportunity to turn it around but failed to get a lace going after scoring a takedown. Sehrawat never gave him a chance again.

A 12-4 win sealed the deal for the Indian, who was orphaned at the age of 11 years. He won the first gold after seven silver medals across all styles for the country.

RESULTS

57kg
GOLD: Aman SEHRAWAT (IND) df. Ahmet DUMAN (TUR), 12-4

BRONZE: Bekzat ALMAZ UULU (KGZ) df. Hansana GANEGODAGE (SRI), via walkover
BRONZE: Kamil KERYMOV (UKR) df. Giorgi GEGELASHVILI (GEO), 17-7

65kg
GOLD: Vazgen TEVANYAN (ARM) df. Hamza ALACA (TUR), 8-4

BRONZE: Ryoma ANRAKU (JPN) df. Adlan ASKAROV (KAZ), 7-7
BRONZE: Erik ARUSHANIAN (UKR) df. Kianhossein MAHMOUD (IRI), 11-8

70kg
GOLD: Giorgi ELBAKIDZE (GEO) df. Amirmohammad YAZDANI (IRI), 8-4

BRONZE: Kota TAKAHASHI (JPN) df. Yahya THOMAS (USA), 4-0
BRONZE: Kanan HEYBATOV (AZE) df. Orozobek TOKTOMAMBETOV (KGZ), 8-5

79kg
GOLD: Vladimeri GAMKRELIDZE (GEO) df. Daulet YERGESH (KAZ), 5-3

BRONZE: Carter STAROCCI (USA) df. Valentyn BABII (UKR), 11-0
BRONZE: Arman AVAGYAN (ARM) df. Georgios KOUGIOUMTSIDIS (GRE), 6-4

97kg
GOLD: Amirali AZARPIRA (IRI) df. Tanner SLOAN (USA), 5-3

BRONZE: Vasyl SOVA (UKR) df. Ertugrul AGCA (GER), 5-3
BRONZE: Islam ILYASOV (AZE) df. Andro MARGISHVILI (GEO), 7-0

Semifinals

61kg
GOLD: Arsen HARUTYUNYAN (ARM) vs. Taiyrbek ZHUMASHBEK UULU (KGZ)

SF 1: Arsen HARUTYUNYAN (ARM) df. Ramaz TURMANIDZE (GEO), 13-4
SF 2: Taiyrbek ZHUMASHBEK UULU (KGZ) df. Emrah ORMANOGLU (TUR), 5-0

74kg
GOLD: Mohmmadsadegh FIROUZPOUR (IRI) vs. Khadzhimurad GADZHIYEV (AZE)

SF 1: Mohmmadsadegh FIROUZPOUR (IRI) df. Temuri BERUASHVILI (GEO), via inj. def.
SF 2: Khadzhimurad GADZHIYEV (AZE) df. Vasile DIACON (MDA), 4-3

86kg
GOLD: Trent HIDLAY (USA) vs. Tatsuya SHIRAI (JPN)

SF 1: Trent HIDLAY (USA) df. Ivan ICHIZLI (MDA), 11-1
SF 2: Tatsuya SHIRAI (JPN) df. Evsem SHVELIDZE (GEO), 4-3

92kg
GOLD: Jacob CARDENAS (USA) vs. Amirhossein FIROUZPOUR (IRI)

SF 1: Jacob CARDENAS (USA) df. Miriani MAISURADZE (GEO), 8-0
SF 2: Amirhossein FIROUZPOUR (IRI) df. Feyzullah AKTURK (TUR), 17-6

125kg
GOLD: Amirreza MASOUMI (IRI) vs. Solomon MANASHVILI (GEO)

SF 1: Amirreza MASOUMI (IRI) df. Alisher YERGALI (KAZ),
SF 2: Solomon MANASHVILI (GEO) df. Yurii IDZINSKYI (UKR), 10-0

#WrestleHangzhou

Tumur Ochir's 'god's gift' lands Asian Games gold

Friday, October 6, 2023 - 18:43 By Vinay Siwach

LIN'AN, Hangzhou, China (October 6) -- Tulga TUMUR OCHIR (MGL) flips the medal a few times before claiming it as the "best medal and God gift."

The Mongolian has his Asian Games gold medal around his neck. He can't stop staring at it before finally agreeing to speak for the interview.

There is one more thing that he calls a God's gift to him -- underhook, the deadly move he has mastered to win wrestling bouts.

It's a move that needs timing, accuracy, and perfect execution, combined with power to be perfect. Tumur Ochir has performed the move numerous times in his career and won. But what he did on Friday in the Lin'an Sports Culture and Exhibition Center was perfection. An underhook that brought down Asian champion Rahman AMOUZAD (IRI) in the 65kg gold-medal bout was so clean that even Amouzad, who is equally good at it if not better, failed to defend himself.

Once he got the four points, Tumur Ochir continued to punish Amouzad for weak defense from par terre, getting three gut wrenches to win the 65kg gold medal 11-1. This is Tumur Ochir's first gold at a championship or Games at the senior level.

The activity point for Amouzad was the only point that Tumur Ochir gave up in five bouts in Hangzhou, winning other bouts by blanking his opponents. He won three of those 10-0 and the semifinal against Kwang Jin KIM (PRK) via fall.

"God gave me this [move]," Tumur Ochir said. "My body is for wrestling. This is the most important thing for me."

The final in Hangzhou was a rematch of the Asian Championships final from Astan which Amouzad won 3-1. While Tumur Ochir failed to break Amouzad's defense in Astana, he worked it out on Friday.

Once he got the underhook, Tumur Ochir positioned his left arm on Amouzad's biceps. A little adjustment and he launched the throw, using a little pull of Amouzad's left arm. He then transitioned it into a gut wrench and effortlessly turned Amouzad three times.

"In the second round, Amouzad was slowly getting tired and that is when I thought that I could perform this move. It was my chance to score," he said.

Tulga TUMUR OCHIR (MGL) scores against Rahman AMOUZAD (IRI) in the 65kg final. (Photo: UWW / Sachiko Hotaka)

Amouzad's conditioning was also in question at the World Championships in Belgrade where he was the defending champion. He finished fifth after suffering a loss to eventual champion Iszmail MUSZUKAJEV (HUN) and Shami MAMMEDOV (AIN).

In Hangzhou, Amouzad's first bout against Abbos RAKHMONOV (UZB) made it more evident that the weight loss could be hampering his performance on the mat. Amouzad fell behind against Rakhmonov thrice before putting up a 12-6 win using counters. Kaiki YAMAGUCHI (JPN) then pushed him to the brink but he held on for a 2-1 win and booked a spot in the semifinal against BAJRANG. The underhook defense worked perfectly against Bajrang who was returning to international competition for the first time in 13 months. Amouzad got a huge four and then added a double-leg lift for another four to win 8-1 to enter the final.

The World Championships were disappointing for Tumur Ochir as well. He was the returning bronze medalist but finished 19th this year after suffering a close loss to Haji ALIYEV (AZE). The loss impacted Tumur Ochir significantly but he recovered from it to push himself at the Asian Games.

"At the World Championships, I lost and it made me feel very bad for a long time," he said. "But in the 10 days after that, I recovered from everything and I got the gold medal and I am really happy. I felt extremely disheartened after the World Championships."

As he failed to win a medal or finish in the top five at the World Championships, Tumur Ochir will have to try an Olympic quota for Mongolia at the Asian Olympic Qualifiers in Bishkek next year. With no Asian country qualifying at the World Championships barring Iran, it would be a tough ask.

"I will train hard and try my best," he said. "I will need to prepare for the Asian Qualifiers in Bishkek. I am researching about everyone who will be there."

Toshihiro HASEGAWA (JPN) won the gold at 57kg, Japan's first in Freestyle. (Photo: UWW / Sachiko Hotaka)

The second Freestyle gold medal at the Asian Games on Friday was won by former U23 world champion Toshihiro HASEGAWA (JPN) as he defeated Chongsong HAN (PRK) in the final. The gold medal ended Japan's 13-year wait for an Asian Games champion in Freestyle. Tatsuhiro YONEMITSU (JPN) was the last Asian Games champion in 2010.

Yonemitsu, who was in Hasegawa's corner in Hangzhou, himself had ended Japan's 16-year-long wait for a gold medal in the Asian Games after the 1994 edition.

Hasegawa, 27, was in control of the final from the opening whistle and mostly kept Han under check in the 7-3 win. Han was close to scoring on a few occasions but Hasegawa managed to defend the attacks.

"At the end, there were many times I nearly gave up points," he said. "At that time, I panicked a bit. I could hear [my coach]. I'm the type who listens to the coach, when I hear him, it calms me down. [Hearing to the coach] is not the biggest reason [for the win], but it was a big plus for me."

However, Hasegawa remained unsatisfied with his performance despite winning the gold medal.

"I'm not really that happy," Hasegawa said. "My feeling is that if it weren't for the great deal of support I received, I wouldn't have been here at all. Every time coach {Kenichi] Yumoto is in my corner I can wrestle relaxed. He told me to stay calm. When things get tough, he would shout advice, like the opponent is getting tired, or give it all to the end. I could clearly hear him and that spurred me on."

Toshihiro HASEGAWA (JPN) defeated Asian champion AMAN 12-10 in the 57kg semifinal. (Photo: UWW / Sachiko Hotaka)

Yumoto's advice came in handy in the semifinal against Asian champion AMAN as Hasegawa won 12-10 despite building a 6-1 lead at the break.

Aman stormed back with a takedown and increased the pace of the bout which challenged Hasegawa. But the Japanese was up for the challenge and countered Aman's single-leg attacks with takedowns.

He had earlier beaten Minghu LIU (CHN) and Nodirjon SAFAROV (UZB) 7-0 and 10-0 in the opening bout and quarterfinals.

A product of the Nippon Sports Science University, Hasegawa is employed by San-Ei Transportation along with the World Championships bronze medalist in Greco-Roman 77kg Nao KUSAKA (JPN). Both train full-time at the NSSU campus despite being employed.

"Kusaka got the ball rolling by taking third at the World Championships," Hasegawa said. "Unlike other companies, they really watch out for us. The president is always available and people are calling us. I think I'm really blessed."

In the bronze medal bouts, Asian champion Aman scored a 11-0 technical superiority win over Minghu LIU (CHN) to claim his first Asian Games medal at just 19 years of age. The second bronze medal was won by Nasanbuyan NARMANDAKH (MGL) as he defeated Bekzat ALMAZ UULU (KGZ), 8-2.

At 65kg, Kaiki YAMAGUCHI (JPN) put up an impressive display against defending champion and four-time world medalist BAJRANG to win 10-0. The blanking meant that Bajrang will finish without a medal at an international tournament for the first time since 2017.

Kwang Jin KIM (PRK) claimed the other gold medal as he broke Sanzhar MUKHTAR (KAZ) to win 11-6.

The 65kg medalists at the Asian Games in Hangzhou. (Photo: UWW / Sachiko Hotaka)

RESULTS

57kg
GOLD: Toshihiro HASEGAWA (JPN) df. Chongsong HAN (PRK), 7-3

BRONZE: AMAN df. Minghu LIU (CHN), 11-0
BRONZE: Nasanbuyan NARMANDAKH (MGL) df. Bekzat ALMAZ UULU (KGZ), 8-2

65kg
GOLD: Tulga TUMUR OCHIR (MGL) df. Rahman AMOUZAD (IRI), 11-1

BRONZE: Kaiki YAMAGUCHI (JPN) df. BAJRANG, 10-0
BRONZE: Kwang Jin KIM (PRK) df. Sanzhar MUKHTAR (KAZ), 11-6

U23 Worlds: For Tevanyan, first title worth the wait

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Tumur Ochir's 'god's gift' lands Asian Games gold