Toronto, Pan American Games

U.S. Advances Three to Gold Medal Finals in Pan Am Games Wrestling

By William May

TORONTO, Canada (July 14) – World bronze medalist Andrew BISEK (USA) notched a pair of one-sided wins in the opening session of Greco-Roman wrestling at the Pan American Games on Wednesday while leading a trio of 2014 Pan American finalists into the evening’s gold medal bouts.

Bisek stopped Juan ESCOBAR (MEX) by technical fall in the semifinals at 75kg to advance to the championship match against Alvis ALMENDRA (PAN), who finished seventh at the Pan American championships in April.

Bisek, last year’s winner at the Pan American championships, will be joined by fellow Pan American champ Jon ANDERSON (85kg) and 2014 silver medalist Bryce SADDORIS (66kg).

Saddoris will square off with Wuileixis RIVAS (VEN), the Pan American champ last year at 71kg, while Anderson is slated to meet Querys PEREZ (VEN) in the evening’s finale at 85kg. Rivas reached the 66kg final with a 2-1 win over last year’s Pan Am champ Miguel MARTINEZ (CUB).

 

For the Cubans, the opening session was a disaster as three-time Pan Am champ Ismael BORRERO (CUB) fell to Spenser MANGO (USA), 3-3, on a last-second force-out in the 59kg quarterfinals.

At the same time, Alan VERA (CUB) was stunned early in the semifinals with a duck-behind to back-arching throw by Anderson, who rolled into the gold medal final with an 8-0 technical fall.

In the first gold medal final of the evening at 59kg, 2013 Pan Am bronze medalist Ali SOTO (MEX) will square off with 2012 silver medal winner Andres MONTANO (ECU).

Montano advanced to the final with a 9-1 win over Mango, countering the U.S. wrestler’s front headlock with a duck-under and short back arch that dropped Mango on his back for four points.

 

Greco-Roman
59kg

GOLD: Ali SOTO (MEX) v Andres MONTANO (ECU)

BRONZE: Dylan WILLIAMS (CAN) v Cristobal TORRES (CHI)

BRONZE: Jansel RAMIREZ (DOM) v Spenser MANGO (USA)

66kg

GOLD: Wuileixis RIVAS (VEN) v Bryce SADDORIS (USA)

BRONZE: Jair Alexis CUERO (COL) v Miguel MARTINEZ (CUB)

BRONZE: Mario MOLINA (PER) v Jefrin MEJIA (HON)

75kg

GOLD: Alvis ALMENDRA (PAN) v Andrew BISEK (USA)

BRONZE: Maximiliano PRUDENZANO (ARG) v Carlos MUNOZ (COL)

BRONZE: Luis AVENDANO (VEN) v Juan ESCOBAR (MEX)

85kg

GOLD: Querys PEREZ (VEN) v Jon ANDERSON (USA)

BRONZE: Alfonso LEYVA (MEX) v Cristian MOSQUERA (COL)

BRONZE: Oscar MARTINEZ (HON) v Alan VERA (CUB)

#development

UWW raises awareness around 'Safe Sport' with Belgrade booth

By United World Wrestling Press

BELGRADE, Serbia (October 4) --- United World Wrestling established a 'Safe Sport' booth in the warm-up area at the 2023 World Championships, to raise awareness on crucial subjects related to Anti-Doping and Safeguarding Athletes.

Athletes, coaches, and physicians had the opportunity to scan a QR code and complete a 20-question quiz available in four languages: English, French, Spanish, and Russian. Upon completing the quiz, participants received a small gift branded with empowering messages like 'Empower, Protect, Wrestle with Respect' or 'We Wrestle Clean.'

This initiative proved to be a tremendous success, with more than 300 athletes participating in the online quiz. This figure represents approximately one-fourth of the total number of athletes present at the event.

Arsen JULFALAKYAN, Chair of the UWW Athletes Commission, played a crucial role in emphasizing the significance of creating a safe environment for all individuals engaged in wrestling. He stressed the importance of Athletes Safeguarding and asserted that it should be a shared concern for everyone involved in our sport. Mr. Julfalakyan also emphasized that we bear the responsibility of educating and empowering athletes with the ultimate goal of establishing a secure and inclusive environment in which all participants in the world of wrestling are respected, valued, and protected.