wrestleOaxtepec

Venezuela Wins Two Junior Greco-Roman Titles on Day One of #WrestleOaxtepec

Thursday, June 10, 2021 - 00:48 By Taylor Miller

Share this article

Photo of Daniel BELLO VEGA (VEN). Photo by Osvaldo Aguilar. 

 

OAXTEPEC, Mexico – Venezuela’s Yonaiker MARTINEZ CRAVO (VEN) and Daniel BELLO VEGA (VEN) picked up Junior Greco-Roman titles at the Cadet and Junior Pan American Championships in Oaxtepec, Mexico, on Wednesday.

12 weight classes were contested between the Junior Greco-Roman and Cadet men’s freestyle divisions. For the Junior tournament, the top-eight athletes at each Olympic weight class will earn a bid to the Junior Pan American Games, set for December in Cali, Colombia.

Photo of Fernando FERRER CIPRIAN (DOM). Photo by Osvaldo Aguilar. 

 

Martinez Cravo won the 60 kg bracket with a pin over Jeremy PERALTA GONZALEZ (ECU) in the finals, and Bello Vega earned gold at 77 kg with a 9-1 technical superiority over Brandon CALLE PEREZ (COL). Both are Olympic weight classes. Claiming titles at the other two Olympic weights up for grabs today were Fernando FERRER CIPRIAN (DOM) at 67 kg and Tyler HANNAH (USA) at 87 kg.

At 55kg, Angel SEGURA TELLEZ (MEX) defeated Aizayah YACAPIN (USA) for the gold, while Antonio RUIZ MORA (ECU) won at 63 kg with a 10-2 victory over Payton JACOBSON (USA).

Photo of Luke LILLEDAHL (USA). Photo by Osvaldo Aguilar. 

In the Cadet men’s freestyle division, the USA won all six weight classes, all in round-robin action. The champions included Bowen BASSETT (USA) at 45 kg, Luke LILLEDAHL (USA) t 48 kg, Alan KOEHLER (USA) at 51 kg, Kael LAURIDSEN (USA) t 55 kg, Brock BOBZIEN (USA) at 60 kg and Pierson MANVILLE (USA) at 65 kg.

Action continues on Thursday at 9 a.m. live on uww.org.

En español
OAXTEPEC, Mexico – Dos venezolanos, Yonaiker MARTINEZ CRAVO (VEN) y Daniel BELLO VEGA (VEN) capturaron títulos en el estilo grecorromano juvenil en el Campeonato Panamericano de Cadetes y Juveniles en Oaxtepec, México.

Hoy, se disputaron doce categorías entre estilo libre masculino cadete y grecorromano juvenil. En el torneo juvenil, los ocho mejores luchadores en las clases de peso olímpico califican para los Juegos Panamericanos Juveniles en diciembre en Cali, Colombia.

Martinez Cravo ganó en 60 kg, derrotando a Jeremy PERALTA GONZALEZ (ECU) por puesta espalda, y Bello Vega ganó en 77 kg contra Brandon CALLE PEREZ (COL), 9-1. Ambos son clases de peso olímpico. Reclamando títulos en las otras categorías olímpicas fueron Fernando FERRER CIPRIAN (DOM) en 67 kg y Tyler HANNAH (USA) en 87 kg.

En 55 kg, Angel SEGURA TELLEZ (MEX) superó a Aizayah YACAPIN (USA) mientras Antonio RUIZ MORA (ECU) ganó en 63 kg.

En el estilo libre masculino cadete, USA ganó las seis categorías del día. Los campeones incluyen Bowen BASSETT (USA) en 45 kg, Luke LILLEDAHL (USA) en 48 kg, Alan KOEHLER (USA) en 51 kg, Kael LAURIDSEN (USA) en 55 kg, Brock BOBZIEN (USA) en 60 kg y Pierson MANVILLE (USA) en 65 kg. Todos ganaron en la competencia round robin.

Acción sigue mañana a las 9 a.m. CT en uww.org.

JUNIOR GRECO-ROMAN RESULTS

55 kg
GOLD - Angel SEGURA TELLEZ (MEX)
SILVER- Aizayah YACAPIN (USA)

60 kg
GOLD - Yonaiker MARTINEZ CRAVO (VEN)
SILVER- Jeremy PERALTA GONZALEZ (ECU)
BRONZE- Samuel GUTIERREZ DIAZ (CUB)
BRONZE - Uvaldo CAMACHO DIAZ (MEX)

63 kg
GOLD - Antonio RUIZ MORA (ECU)
SILVER- Richard FEDALEN (USA)
BRONZE- Alan SALAS ESQUIVEL (MEX)

67 kg
GOLD - Fernando FERRER CIPRIAN (DOM)
SILVER - Payton JACOBSON (USA)
BRONZE - Piero CRUCES PANAIFO (PER)
BRONZE - Yosbani NAPOLES MUSTELIER (CUB)

77 kg
GOLD - Daniel BELLO VEGA (VEN)
SILVER- Brandon CALLE PEREZ (COL)
BRONZE- Arlier LA O MENDOZA (CUB)
BRONZE - Franco CHIALANZA (ARG)

87 kg
GOLD - Tyler HANNAH (USA)
SILVER - Juan DIAZ BLANCO (VEN)
BRONZE - Jose MOSQUERA MURILLO (COL)
BRONZE - Pedro BELLO SOTO (MEX)

CADET MEN’S FREESTYLE RESULTS

45 kg
GOLD- Bowen BASSETT (USA)
SILVER- Samir MARCIAGA YAU (PAN)
BRONZE- Roger KANTUN KU (MEX)

48 kg
GOLD- Luke LILLEDAHL (USA)
SILVER- Jonathan MEZA RAYAS (MEX)
BRONZE- Abel SANCHEZ JUAREZ (PER)

51 kg
GOLD- Alan KOEHLER (USA)
SILVER- Jesse PEREZ VERASTEGUI (MEX)
BRONZE- Pedro TORIBIO TORRES (PER)

55 kg
GOLD- Kael LAURIDSEN (USA)
SILVER- Josue VILLAREAL MARTINEZ (MEX)
BRONZE- Jailson LEITE DA SILVA (BRA)

60 kg
GOLD- Brock BOBZIEN (USA)
SILVER- Fernando SALDARRIAGA VELASQUEZ (ECU)
BRONZE- Alan GOMEZ HERMOSILLO (MEX)

65 kg
GOLD- Pierson MANVILLE (USA)
SILVER- Paulo GONCALVES DA SILVA (BRA)
BRONZE- Marco FERNANDEZ CUBAS (PER)

2026 U20 Asian Championships

China's Yang Turns Weight-Loss Plan into Historic U20 Asian Gold

Tuesday, July 7, 2026 - 10:04 By Vinay Siwach

Share this article

PATTAYA, Thailand (July 6) -- Even Yuanchong YANG (CHN) could not help but appreciate the irony.

Yang was introduced to wrestling because he was overweight. His parents simply wanted their youngest son to lose a few kilos. Instead, he created history for China, becoming the country's heaviest-ever Asian Freestyle champion.

China won only one Freestyle medal at the 2026 U20 Asian Wrestling Championships in Pattaya, Thailand but Yang made sure it was a historic one.

The 97kg wrestler claimed the gold medal to become China's first-ever U20 Asian champion in Freestyle and only the sixth Chinese to win an Asian Freestyle title at any level. He also surpassed Ying WANG (CHN), who won the 84kg title at the 2008 Senior Asian Championships, as the heaviest Chinese Freestyle wrestler to capture an Asian gold medal.

"I was extremely fat in elementary school, so my parents sent me to a sports school [later] to exercise and become thinner and healthier," Yang told United World Wrestling. "My parents thought wrestling would help me lose weight faster."

Yuanchong YANG (CHN)Yuanchong YANG (CHN) celebrates after winning the gold medal in 97kg at the U20 Asian Championships in Pattaya, Thailand. (Photo: United World Wrestling / Amirreza Aliasgari)

When he first stepped onto the mat as a 12-year-old, Yang never imagined he would one day represent China. Wrestling was simply a way to shed the extra kilos.

"Following my training, I was deeply touched by the passion of my team, the teamwork and the charm of wrestling," he said.

Yang's first major breakthrough came in 2023 when he captured the U17 National Championships title. Later that year, he represented China at the East Asian Youth Games but returned home without a medal.

"I saw my older teammates winning medals consistently, so I set myself the goal of winning my own gold medal," he said. "After five years of training, I finally won the U17 title in 2023."

Yang competed at both the 2025 U20 and U23 World Championships but came up short in both after losing close bouts. When he returned home to Jinan, Shandong Province, he shifted his focus to the 2026 season.

Last week in Pattaya, Yang produced a dominant 11-0 technical superiority win over LACKY (IND) in the semifinals before defeating Samir DURSUNOV (KAZ), 8-2, in the final to complete his historic run.

Yang relied on strong underhooks to force pushouts and controlled the par terre exchanges with an effective gut wrench, leaving little room for his opponents to recover.

Yuanchong YANG (CHN)Yuanchong YANG (CHN) at the podium with the 97kg gold medal. (Photo: United World Wrestling / Amirreza Aliasgari)

As he stood atop the podium, Yang was emotional but he soon realised that this is just the beginning.

"When I received the gold medal, I was really happy," he said. "But while I was walking down from the podium, I realised there are higher goals waiting for me. I can't be satisfied with this. My next target is to win a medal at the Senior Asian Championships."