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

#WrestleAmman

U20 Worlds: Elor keeps it simple to win third title

Saturday, August 19, 2023 - 10:03 By Vinay Siwach

AMMAN, Jordan (August 18) -- It's rare for a wrestler who has all the world titles on offer to return to a U20 World Championships. But then, Amit ELOR (USA) is a rarity.

Besides the 2019 U17 World Championships semifinal loss, Elor has gone on to win a U17 world title, three U20 world golds, a U23 world title and even a senior world gold. So why does a wrestler who has captured the imagination of the wrestling world, return to an age-group world championship for the third time?

She has a simple explanation to offer.

"You'll only be under 20 years for so long I am going to take advantage of getting to compete at as many world championships as I possibly can," Elor said. "The ultimate goal is to go to the Olympics and hopefully win the Olympic gold, so whatever I could do to challenge myself and give more experience. I will definitely take those opportunities."

The 19-year-old has competed in seven World Championships and managed to win seven medals (six golds, one bronze) in a short period of four years. Despite her credentials, Elor thinks every bout is a challenge in itself.

"I won the senior World Championships at 18," Elor said. "I believe that anybody up and coming can be a rising star. The U20 field can have just as challenging opponents as the senior level and I think it's a great preparation for the senior World Championships."

Elor perhaps is being respectful to her opponents. Fair enough. But when she steps on the mat for her bouts whether it's a team trial or world championships, Elor likes to demolish them.

On Friday in Amman, Elor won her third U20 world title, outscoring her opponents 36-0 in four bouts. It's not 40-0 or more because one win was a fall. The final was a 10-0 win over Bukrenaz SERT (TUR) after Elor got the leg lace.

While the secret to success could be different for different wrestlers, Elor likes to keep it simple.

"I think it's just discipline and consistency in my training," she said. "It's all the hard work over the years that adds up. It's believing in myself and having a great support system and pushing past hardships. On the competition day, all that hard work starts to pay off."

However, Elor does visit that day in Sofia when she lost to Honoka NAKAI (JPN). Lead 1-1 on criteria, Elor got hit by an arm spin by Nakai who converted it into a takedown to lead 3-1. Elor had 22 seconds to win but Nakai played the time.

"My first world championships, I got a bronze and I really think a lot of that was because of lack of experience," she said. "Ever since then, I'm like I have to compete as much as I can, as long as my body is healthy. These competitions are great stimulation for senior worlds and Olympics so I love them."

And what lessons she takes from Amman?

"I learned how powerful I can actually be and a lot of things are just your mindset and the feelings you have at the moment," she said. "Even if you feel things in those moments, you'll get past those feelings and you have to just believe in yourself that anything is possible."

USA The United States finished third in the team standings. (Photo: UWW / Kostadin Andonov)

Elor and her United States teammates not only battle their opponents but had to go through a few hardships off the mat as well.

A day after arriving in Amman, most of the Freestyle and women's team complained of food poising as they made at least one trip to the hospital every day. Kennedy BLADES (USA), who won a bronze medal at 76kg, had to be run to the hospital hours before her bout.

The U.S. still managed to finish third in the team race which was won by India and Japan finishing second. Elor credited the team for its performance and how it comes together for any big tournament.

"It's been challenging for the whole team and we had a lot of hardships," she said. "But we stayed strong and we are going to come back stronger after this. It's been a challenge for me as well and it's one of the hardest tournaments I have been to. It was a great experience for us to push through and still compete."

Eniko ELEKES (HUN) celebrates after winning the gold medal in the 65kg weight class. (Photo: UWW / Kostadin Andonov)

Elekes gives Hungary gold

Eniko ENEKES (HUN) may not have been the first Hungary wrestler to win the U17 world title in women's wrestling but she made sure she becomes the first from Hungary to win the U20 world title. In 2021, Elekes became the second woman wrestler from Hungary to win U17 world gold and two years later, she added a U20 world title in Amman on Friday.

Wrestling Antim KUNDU (IND) in the 65kg final, Elekes used her counters to great effect and came out on top 9-2.

"I won the U17 gold and last year was not the best for me. So I am glad this happened," she said.

Last year, Elekes finished 10th in Sofia after losing her opening round bout and later the repechage. But this year, Elekes made it to the final after some strong wins.

"My toughest match was the final against India," she said. "And the Turkiye bout was also strong as well."

Elekes defeated U17 world silver medalist Duygu GEN (TUR) 5-1 in her opening bout. Kundu tried making a stronger case but Elekes was up for the task, countering Kundu's attempted leg attacks.

"I don't like to think and plan what I would do," she said. "I like to go with the flow. My reaction is very fast so I don't like to plan."

Though she is the first world champion in her family, Elekes' father Endre represented Hungary at the 1992 Barcelona Olympics in 68kg Freestyle. The family tradition made it easier for Elekes to decide what sport she wanted to pursue.

"I grew up on the mat," she laughs.

Alina FILIPOVYCH (UKR) hits a clutch four to win against Ichika ARAI (JPN) in the 57kg final. (Photo: UWW / Amirreza Aliasgari)

At 57kg, Ichika ARAI (JPN) was stunned by Alina FILIPOVYCH (UKR) when the Ukrainian hit a four-pointer with 20 seconds on the clock. Arai worked hard for a 3-0 lead and had 20 seconds to survive the final. But Filipovych shot a double-leg from neutral and got four. Japan challenged but lost and Arai, despite a leg-hold, failed to score three points she needed to win.

The loss meant that Japan finish the U20 World Championships in Amman with only one gold, at 68kg, and second in the team title race that it won last year. Japan had won eight gold and a total of 10 medals in Sofia last year.

U23 Worlds: For Tevanyan, first title worth the wait

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U20 Worlds: Elor keeps it simple to win third title