#TurkiyeWrestling

UWW mourns death of nine wrestlers 

Friday, February 10, 2023 - 18:32 By United World Wrestling Press

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COSIER-SUR-VEVEY, Switzerland (February 11) -- Five days after multiple earthquakes hit the Kahramanmaraş province in southwest Turkiye, nine wrestlers were confirmed dead on Friday.  

In the aftermath of the earthquake which measured 7.8 on the Richter scale, people were stuck under the rubble and large-scale efforts are still continuing to save lives.

The following are the nine wrestlers that we have lost:

Mehmet ESKISARILI
Ahmet TAS
Ali GURSOY
Eray SIMSEK
Halil EDIRNE
Hasan SARITURK
Ozan TATLI
Ahmet DURMAN
Aslan EKIZ

United World Wrestling mourns their death.

"It is with a heavy heart to report we have lost nine wrestlers in the earthquakes that took place on February 6,” Nenad LALOVIC, UWW President, said “I ask that we remember these wrestlers, say their names aloud and pray for them and their families. The whole entire wrestling community is devastated by the loss of these young men who had a bright future ahead of them.”

More than 25,000 people have died so far as the earthquake hit Kahramanmaraş, affecting southwest Turkiye and northwest Syria.

A U20 wrestling tournament finished hours a night before the earthquake struck. Teams from France, Uzbekistan, Kosvo and Turkiye were participating in it. All the international wrestlers were sent home safely the next day. However, with the wrestling club demolished, a few Turkish wrestlers were stuck under the rubble.

On the first day, 21 wrestlers were saved immediately and others were subsequently rescued from under the rubble.

Olympic champion Taha AKGUL (TUR) was among the first ones to call for help and save the "30-40 wrestlers" stuck under the rubble. Four-time world champion Riza KAYAALP (TUR), Kerem KAMAL (TUR) and many others have volunteered and reached the earthquake-affected areas. They have joined hands to help and rescue the victims. The wrestling community around the world has shown support and donated to help Turkiye.

President of the Turkish Wrestling Federation Seref EROGLU, who belongs to Kahramanmaras, has been present at the site from the first day and joined the rescue operations.

#JapanWrestling

Tokyo silver medalist Fumita dealt setback on path to Paris Olympics

Tuesday, June 13, 2023 - 10:20 By Ken Marantz

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TOKYO (June 13) -- The path to the 2024 Paris Olympics just got a little bumpier for Tokyo silver medalist Kenichiro FUMITA.

Fumita, the runner-up in Tokyo and a two-time former world champion at Greco 60kg, has pulled out of the upcoming Meiji Cup All-Japan Invitational Championships, Japan's second domestic qualifying tournament for this year's World Championships.

Fumita revealed on his Twitter account that he suffered a torn hamstring and had withdrawn from the Meiji Cup, to be held June 15-18 in Tokyo. That means for him to make Japan's team to the Belgrade worlds, he will have to beat the Meiji Cup champion in a playoff on July 1.

The 27-year-old Fumita wrote that he had undergone treatment for the injury but had decided it was best to play it safe by pulling out of the Meiji Cup, and would "aim to earn a place at the World Championshps in the playoff."

Last December, Fumita won the title at the Emperor's Cup All-Japan Championships, the first of the two domestic qualifiers for the World Championships. He could have secured his ticket to Belgrade with a title at the Meiji Cup, but now will have to rely on a victory in the winner-take-all playoff.

For Japanese wrestlers in Olympic weight classes, getting to Belgrade takes on additional significance. The 2023 worlds offers the first qualifying spots for the 2024 Paris Olympics, and a medal in an Olympic weight class will earn a Japanese wrestler an automatic ticket to Paris.

Of course, should Fumita lose the playoff or not be recovered enough to take part, there is no assurance that the wrestler who earns the spot will win a medal in Belgrade. In that case, then Fumita would have another chance by representing Japan at the Olympic qualifiers in 2024.

But that means leaving his fate in others' hands. It seems likely he will be on the mat for the playoff, even if he is not at 100 percent.

The injury spoiled what had been a productive run for Fumita since the Tokyo Olympics, where he was left in tears after losing in the final to Luis ORTA SANCHEZ (CUB). After that, he won the title at the Wladyslaw Pytlasinski Cup in Warsaw in July 2022, then took a bronze medal the following September at the World Championships in Belgrade, adding to his golds from 2017 and 2019.

At the Emperor's Cup, the link to the Paris Olympics led to a funnelling of top wrestlers into the Olympic weight classes, and Fumita fended off all comers at 60kg to win his fourth national title and first since 2020.

The weight class includes Maito KAWANA and Ayata SUZUKI, Asian bronze medalists in 2023 and 2022, respectively, and Yu SHIOTANI, the Asian champion and world bronze medalist at 55kg in 2022. Also looking to fill the hole left by Fumita is Kaito INABA, who finished seventh at the world U23 in 2022 -- he threw Fumita for a rare 4 in a 7-4 quarterfinal loss at the Emperor's Cup.