Weekly FIVE! December 3, 2019

Tuesday, December 3, 2019 - 14:10 By Eric Olanowski

Previewing the Canadian Wrestling Trials and Alans Tournament. Also looking at the results from the Alrosa Cup and Indian National Championships.

1. Russia Dominates Alrosa Cup, Takes Down World, 11-1
Russia’s star-studded squad closed out the Alrosa Cup in Moscow by winning 11 of 12 matches against an all-star world team that featured wrestlers from seven different nations.

Roman VLASOV (RUS) edged his London Olympic finals opponenet Arsen JULFALAKYAN (ARM), 3-2, in the headlining match of the dual, which came at 77kg (Greco-Roman).

Vlasov, the two-time Olympic champion, scored his three points from an inactivity then tacked on two additional points with a right-side gut wrench and commanded the 3-0 lead. Julfalakyan made it a match with under a minute left, as he picked up a late second-period takedown and closed the Russian’s lead to one point. But, it wasn’t enough to avenge his Olympic finals loss, as Vlasov hung on to edge the Armenian, 3-2.

On the freestyle side of the dual, arguably the most impressive performance of the night came at 97kg when Alikhan ZHABRAILOV (RUS) scored a 5-2 upset victory over Olympic champion, Sharip SHARIPOV (AZE).

In addition to Zhabrailov’s win, another significant victory for the Russian Federation came at 125kg, where Bilyal MAKHOV (RUS) continued his quest to improve his Olympic silver medal with a 2-0 shutout win over an undersized Elizbar ODIKADZE (GEO), who was wrestling up from his Nur-Sultan weight of 97kg.

Azerbaijan’s three-time world champion Haji ALIYEV (AZE) was the lone non-Russian wrestler to seize a win in the 12-match dual. Aliyev scored a last-second takedown to move past Nachyin KUULAR (RUS), 5-4, in the 65kg matchup.

Russia df. World, 11-1
Freestyle (5-1)
57kg – Ramis GAMZATOV (RUS) df. Giorgi EDISHERASHVILI (AZE), 8-4
65kg – Haji ALIYEV (AZE) df. Nachyin KUULAR (RUS), 5-4
74kg – Timur BIZHOEV (RUS) df. Avtandil KENTCHADZE (GEO), 2-1
86kg – Magomed RAMAZANON (RUS) df. Ahmad BAZRI (IRI), 3-2
97kg – Alikhan ZHABRAILOV (RUS) df. Sharip SHARIPOV (AZE), 5-2
125kg – Bilyal MAKHOV (RUS) df. Elizbar ODIKADZE (GEO), 2-0

Greco-Roman (6-0)
60kg – Sergey EMELIN (RUS) df. Victor CIOBANU (MDA), 7-0
67kg – Artem SURKOV (RUS) df. Atakan YUEKSEL (TUR), 6-1
77kg – Roman VLASOV (RUS) df. Arsen JULFALAKYAN (ARM), 3-2
87kg – Alexander KOMAROV (RUS) df. Metehan BASAR (TUR), 2-1
97kg – Nikita MELNIKOV (RUS) df. Ibrahim TIGCI (TUR), 8-3
130kg – Vitali SCHUR (RUS) df. Nurmakhan TINALIEV (KAZ), 3-1

2. Wiebe’s Quest for Second Olympic Gold Kicks off Friday at Canadian Wrestling Team Trials
Erica WIEBE (CAN) has been on the record saying she thought chasing her first Olympic gold was the hardest thing she’d ever do. But after winning gold in Rio, the Canadian’s tone changed, saying pursuing her second Olympic title is a more difficult task.

The future hall of famer’s quest to become the first non-Japanese woman to win two Olympic gold medals officially begins this Friday at the two-day Canadian Wrestling Team Trials in Niagara, Ontario, Canada.

The process for Wiebe to make it to the Tokyo Olympic Games is relatively simple, but it'll be no easy task to do so. First, she has to win the Canadian Wrestling Team Trials. Then, she has to qualify the weight at the Pan-American Olympic Qualifier (March 13-15).

Wiebe's first step in repeating her run to an Olympic gold begins this week in Ontario, where she’s entered at 76kg. Her weight class will feature five other wrestlers, including Canada’s last two world team representatives at 72kg, who are moving up to the Olympic weight of 76kg.

Wiebe’s strongest competition this week will be 2019 Pan-American champion Dejah SLATER and her biggest domestic rival, Justina DI STASIO, a 2018 world champion.

Wiebe and Di Stasio met earlier this year in the finals of the Canada Cup in Calgary, where Wiebe scored the 7-5 come-from-behind win. In that June meeting, Wiebe trailed 3-2 heading into the closing period, but the Olympic champion outscored the world champion, 5-2, and secured the gold medal with the 7-5 victory.

Outside of the massive storyline at 76kg, another weight to follow will be 57kg. Linda MORAIS, the reigning world champion at 59kg, will make her descent down to the Olympic weight with hopes is chasing Olympic gold in Tokyo. Morais will be met at 57kg by Hannah TAYLOR and Alexandra TOWN. Taylor is fresh off a bronze-medal finish at the U23 World Championships, while Town is a year removed from handing Canada their first-ever women's wrestling U23 world gold medal.

The Canadian Wrestling Team Trials begin Friday and can be followed live on www.wrestling.ca and CBC Sports! You can also follow Wrestling Canada Lutte on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram for live updates.

Kyle SNYDER (USA) will lead Team USA to Vladikavkaz, Russia, for the Alans International Tournament. (Photo: Tony Rotundo)

3. Snyder Leads Experienced USA Squad Headed to Russia for Alans International Tournament
Kyle SNYDER (USA) is set to lead a highly experienced American team to Vladikavkaz, Russia, for the Alans International Tournament. The Menezh Sports Palace will host the three-day tournament from December 5-8.

Thomas GILMAN, James GREEN and Nick GWIAZDOWSKI are the trio of world medalists that'll join Snyder, the two-time world and Olympic champion, in Vladikavkaz over the weekend. In total, the American team that's entered combines for nine world medals and an Olympic title.

Gilman, a 2017 world silver medalist, will wrestle in Russia for the third time in the last three months. In October, Gilman went 5-0 and won the 57kg gold medal at the Yusup Abdulsalamov Tournament in Dagestan, Russia. He followed that up a week later with a bronze-medal finish at the Intercontinental Cup in Khasavyurt, Russia.

Green, a two-time 70kg world medalist, will try to improve his bronze medal from last year’s Alans Tournament. But, he won’t be doing so at his normal weight of 70kg. Green will make his first appearance at the Olympic weight of 74kg, where he’ll look to challenge teammate Jordan BURROUGHS for the Tokyo Olympic spot.

The fourth world medalist on USA’s team is two-time world bronze medalist Nick GWIAZDOWSKI, who’ll wrestle at 125kg.

Zain RETHERFORD and Mike MACHIAVELLO round out the six-man roster for the United States. Retherford, a two-time world team representative, will compete at 65kg, while Machiavello will wrestle at 92kg.

USA Alans Teams
57kg – Thomas GILMAN ('18 silver)
65kg – Zain RETHERFORD
74kg – James GREEN ('17 silver, '15 bronze)
92kg – Mike MACHIAVELLO
97kg – Kyle SNYDER ('15 and '17 gold, '18 silver, '19 bronze) ('16 Olympic gold)
125kg – Nick GWIAZDOWSKI ('17 and '18 bronze)

Prize Money
GOLD - $5000 $ + $1000 to the coach
SILVER - $2000
BRONZE - $1000 (each bronze medalist)

Vinesh VINESH (IND) (Photo: Tony Rotundo)

4. Vinesh and Malik Shine at Tata Motors Indian National Championships
Indian stars Vinesh VINESH and Sakshi MALIK shined bright over the weekend, winning gold medals in their respective weight classes at the 64th Annual Tata Motors Indian National Championships in Punjab’s northern city, Jalandhar.

Vinesh, India’s most prominent women’s wrestling star, followed up her bronze-medal finish at the World Championships with a gold medal at the Indian National Championships. Vinesh, who qualified India for the Olympic Games at 53kg, downed Anju ANJU, 7-3, in the 55kg gold-medal match.

Sakshi Malik was the second superstar to win a national title over the weekend. Malik, the Rio Olympic bronze medalist, got back to her winning ways after a disappointing 17th-place finish at the World Championships. Malik defeated Radhika RADHIKA, 4-2, in the finals at 62kg.

In freestyle, India’s two 2019 world medalists, Bajrang PUNIA and Deepak PUNIA, elected to sit out of the competition. Bajrang, who medaled at his second straight World Championships, is preparing for the 2020 Toyko Olympics, while Deepak, the world silver medalist at 86kg, is nursing the same injury that kept him from wrestling Hassan YAZDANI (IRI) in the 86kg world finals.

The winners of the Tata Motors Indian National Championships will now travel to Nepal to compete in the South Asian Games. Wrestling at the South Asian Games begins on December 6.

Women’s Wrestling
50kg – Sheetal TOMAR df. Nirmal NIRMAL, 7-3
53kg – Pinki PINKI df. Ankush ANKUSH, 7-3
55kg – Vinest VINESH df. Anju ANJU, 7-3
57kg – Sarita MOR df. Neetu NEETU, via default
59kg – Anshu ANSHU df. Lalita SHERAWAT, 4-4
62kg – Sakshi MALIK df. Rashika RADHIKA, 4-2
65kg – Nisha DAHIYA df. Navjot KAUR, 4-1
68kg – Anita Sheoran df. Divya KAKRAN, 5-1
72kg – Kiran KIRAN df. Naina NAINA, 4-1
76kg – Gursharan PREET KAUR df. 4-2 POOJA, 4-2

Freestyle
57kg – Rahul RAHUL df. Abasaheb ABASAHEB, 7-6
61kg – RAVINDER Sonaba df. Tanaji TANAJI, 12-2
65kg – Amit KUMAR df. Rahul RAHUL, 12-2
70kg – Naveen NAVEEN df. Vishal VISHAL, 2-1
74kg – Gourav BALIYAN df. Praveen RANA, 5-3
79kg – Sandeep MANN df. Jutender JITENDER, 7-4
86kg – Pawan KUMAR df. Deepak SAROHA, 4-1
92kg – Monu MONU df Sunil SUNIL, 10-2
97kg – Satyawart KADIAN df. Kapil Chaudhary, 9-0
125kg – Sumit MALIK df. Abhijut ABHIJIT, 5-0

Shinobu OTA (JPN) (Photo: Tony Rotundo)

5. Rio Silver Medalists Ota, Higuchi Take Drastic Measures in Quest to Make Tokyo 2020
A pair of Japanese silver medalists from the Rio 2016 Olympics, denied during their preferred routes to Tokyo 2020, will be trying desperate measures in last-ditch efforts to make Games in their host country---which presents a weighty problem for both.

Shinobu OTA, the Rio 2016 silver medalist at Greco-Roman 60kg, has moved up to two divisions to 67kg for the upcoming All Japan Championships, which will serve as the final qualifier for either filling an Olympic berth that Japan has already secured, or earning the chance to win a spot at the Asian Olympic qualifying tournament in March.

Conversely, Rei HIGUCHI, who failed to gain an Olympic ticket at freestyle 65kg, has gone the other way, dropping two weight classes down to 57kg, the division in which he won the silver in Rio, according to the list of entries recently released by the Japan federation for the tournament to be held Dec. 19-22 in Tokyo.

Click here for Ken Martantz' full breaks down of the All Japan Championships.

Weekly FIVE! In Social Media
1. Big Move Monday -- Islamova V.
2. Mijain LÓPEZ is a three-time Olympic champion, is on a quest to become the first-ever male to win four Olympic titles.
3. The most dominant wrestling nation in the world, Russia ??.
4. Happy Friday, wrestling fans! ‬
5. World Champion Spotlight: Abuiazid MANTSIGOV (RUS) outscored his four #WrestleNurSultan opponents 29-0 and captured his first world title. The 26-year-old scored a 53 second 9-0 technical superiority victory over Aram VARDANYAN (UZB) in the finals.

#wrestlebishkek

Asian Championships Day 5 Greco-Roman Finals Set

Monday, April 15, 2024 - 05:34 By Ken Marantz & Vinay Siwach

BISHKEK, Kyrgyzstan (April 15) -- The Asian Championships moves on to Greco-Roman with five weight classes in action. All eyes will be on world champion and birthday boy Akzhol MAKHMUDOV (KGZ) who won his first Asian title in 2018 at the same arena.

WATCH LIVE | LIVE MATCH ORDER | DAY 4 REPORT

The finals for the five Greco-Roman weight class

55kg: Poya DAD MARZ (IRI) vs. Yu Chol RO (PRK)

63kg: Ayata SUZUKI (JPN) vs. Yerzhet ZHARLYKASSYN (KAZ)

77kg: Nao KUSAKA (JPN) vs. Akzhol MAKHMUDOV (KGZ)

87kg: Naser ALIZADEH (IRI) vs. Nursultan TURSYNOV (KAZ)

130kg: Amin MIRZAZADEH (IRI) vs. Lingzhe MENG (CHN)

14:30: Minseok KIM (KOR) denies Lingzhe MENG (CHN) a shot against Amin MIRZAZADEH (IRI) as he wins the 130kg semifinals 1-1. Kim got the par terre advantage in the second period to lead 1-1 on criteria. Kim was warned for passivity but Meng asked to resume in standing. Meng failed to score despite Kim's extreme passive wrestling.

14:24: Once again, Amin MIRZAZADEH (IRI) showed the perils of allowing him the first shot at par terre. Erlan MANATBEKOV (KGZ) seemed helpless as the defending champion reeled off four rolls in succession to win their 130kg semifinal 9-0 in 1:44.

14:20: Naser ALIZADEH (IRI) sets up last year's final rematch with Nursultan TURSYNOV (KAZ) after beating Masato SUMI (JPN) 1-1 in the 87kg semifinals. Alizadeh got the par terre advantage in the second period to take the criteria win.

14:13: Nursultan TURSYNOV (KAZ), still going strong at 33, will get a chance to win an Asian gold at 87kg a decade after his last after executing two big throws from par terre for a 9-0 victory over Rahimjon UZOKOV (UZB). He will see in a few minutes if he will get a rematch with Naser ALIZADEH (IRI), who beat him in last year's final.

14:05: Nao KUSAKA (JPN) was surprised by Yeonghun NOH (KOR) with a headlock throw for four but he kept his calm and scored nine points via stepouts and fleeing and two takedowns to win 13-4 and set up a final against Akzhol MAKHMUDOV (KGZ).

14:04: Reigning champion Akzhol MAKHMUDOV (KGZ) gave the packed crowd what they came to see, spectacularly tossing Amir Ali ABDI (IRI) twice for 5 points in a 12-2 victory to make the 77kg final. Makhmudov was trailing 2-0 and in the bottom of par terre when he turned it all around, stepping over on a reverse body lift attempt by Abdi. From there he gained a reverse lock himself, and tossed the Iranian like a rag doll not once, but twice.

13:59: After taking home two bronze medals in 2021 and 2022, Ayata SUZUKI (JPN) will get a chance to fight for a gold after knocking off defending champion Iman MOHAMMADI (IRI) with a come-from-behind 11-4 victory in the 63kg semifinals. With Mohammadi leading 2-0, Suzuki attempts a front headlock throw, but Mohammadi isn't fooled and lands on top for 2 to take a 4-0 lead into the second period. Suzuki gets his chance at par terre and takes advantage, scoring three rolls. He later adds a takedown and a stepout, with a fleeing point tacked onto the latter.

13:50: A big arm throw from Yerzhet ZHARLYKASSYN (KAZ) to take a 4-0 lead against Chan KIM (PRK) and he adds a stepout in the second period to make it 5-0. Kim with a par terre and roll to cut it to 5-3 but fails to stop Zharlykassyn from winning.

13:42: Defending champion Poya DAD MARZ (IRI) with a gut wrench late in the second period to claim a 3-2 win over Taemin KIM (KOR). The first two par terre were awarded to Kim but Dad Marz got the third which has no points but an advantage on top.

13:39: Yu Chol RO (PRK) manhandles two-time world bronze medalist Jasurbek ORTIKBOEV (UZB) 10-1 to earn a place in the 55kg final.

The semifinals for the session begin at 13:30

13:17: Nursultan TURSYNOV (KAZ), the losing finalist at 87kg last year to Alizadeh, makes short work of Seunghwan LEE (KOR), storming into the semifinals with a 9-0 win in 1:31.

13:16: Two reigning champions from Iran post wins on adjacent mats to advance to the semifinals. World champion Amin MIRZAZADEH (IRI) scored three quick rolls from par terre to finish off an 8-0 victory Islomjon RAKHMATOV (UZB) in just under two minutes at 130kg, and a few minutes later, Naser ALIZADEH (IRI) topped Atabek AZISBEKOV (KGZ) 8-1 at 87kg.

13:08: Chan KIM (PRK) knocks off world 60kg bronze medalist Islomjon BAKHRAMOV (UZB) 3-1 to advance to the 63kg semifinals. Kim gets the gut wrench from par terre, then doesn't budge when he is put on the bottom.

12:58: World bronze medalist Poya DAD MARZ (IRI) moves a step closer to a second straight gold at 55kg, scoring three rolls with a front headlock from par terre in the first period, then hanging on for a 7-2 win when Sajjad ALBIDHAN (IRQ) tries the same technique in the second.

12:52: Lingzhe MENG (CHN), the losing finalist at 130kg last year, begins his campaign with a 6-0 victory over Ali AL SHARUEE (IRQ).

12:52: Minseok KIM (KOR) with a 5-1 victory over Ganzolboo BUYANTOGTOKH (MGL) to advance to the 130kg semifinals. He will face second seed Lingzhe MENG (CHN) for a spot in the final.

12:47: World 77kg bronze medalist Nao KUSAKA (JPN), aiming to eventually avenge a close semifinal loss to Makhmudov at the World Championships, finishes off a 10-0 victory over Doniyorkhon NAKIBOV (UZB) with a 4-point front body lock throw.

12:42: World champion Akzhol MAKHMUDOV (KGZ) dodges a bullet and Kyrgyzstan breathes a sigh of relief! In a battle of Asian champions from 2023, Makhmudov scores 2 with a lift in his second time in par terre to pull off a 3-3 victory over Ibragim MAGOMADOV (KAZ) in the 77kg quarterfinals. Makhmudov couldn't budge Magomadov, the 72kg champion last year, in par terre in the first period, while Magamadov got a gut wrench when it was his turn.

12:40: Yu Chol RO (PRK) got a huge throw over Ulan MURATBEK UULU (KGZ) for a 10-2 win at 55kg but Kyrgyzstan challenged for a leg four. A review confirms it but Ro ultimately gets a takedown and gut to win 10-2.

12:36: Asian Games silver medalist Ayata SUZUKI (JPN) powers to a 9-0 victory over Asian U23 champion Haodong TAN (CHN) to advance to the 63kg semifinals. Suzuki gets four points from par terre to take a 5-0 lead into the second period, where he scores a takedown and gut wrench to end it.

12:30: World bronze medalist Jasurbek ORTIKBOEV (UZB) starts his 55kg campaign with a 10-1 against Nurzat KABDYRAKHIMOV (KAZ). A solid show of gut wrenches from par terre in the second period.

12:29: Iman MOHAMMADI (IRI) gets the defense of his 63kg title off to a good start, defeating Karrar ALBIDHAN (IRQ) 9-0 to advance to the semifinals. Mohammadi scores a takedown and gut wrench, a stepout and another takedown to lead 7-0 in the first period. He finishes it off with a takedown in the second.

12:23: Amir Ali ABDI (IRI) with six stepouts in his 8-0 win over SAJAN (IND) at 77kg. Relentless from Abdi!

12:23: Mansur SHADUKAYEV (KAZ) hits a nice lateral drop for such a big man, and comes out a 5-2 winner over Aybegshazada KURRAYEV (TKM) to advance at 130kg.

12:12: 40-year-old Eduard BABENOSHEV (TJK) managed to be on the mat and even lead 9-8 against Ganzolboo BUYANTOGTOKH (MGL) but he injured his foot and was ruled ineligible to continue at 130kg.

12:11: Islomjon BAKHRAMOV (UZB), looking to repeat a golden sibling double with brother Ilkhom that they accomplished in 2019, gives up the lead, but comes back with a takedown and stepout in the final minute to beat Dastan KADYROV (KGZ) 8-5 at 63kg. Bakhramov was leading 5-0 when Kadyrov scored a pair of gut wrenches to go ahead 5-5 on criteria.

12:09: Atabek AZISBEKOV (KGZ), a three-time medalist aiming for his first gold, rolls to a 9-0 victory over Turbold GANBOLD (MGL) at 87kg.

12:07: Dokyung JUNG (KOR) got two points from par terre in the first period and Yerzhet ZHARLYKASSYN (KAZ) managed to throw Jung from par terre in the second for which he got four points. However, Jung challenged the call but lost as the judges confirmed the four-point move. Zharlykassyn led 6-4 with under two minutes left and he held on to that lead till time expired.

11:57: Sajjad ALBIDHAN (IRQ) storms to a quick 8-0 victory over two-time bronze medalist Arjun HALAKURKI (IND) at 55kg. He will next face defending champion Poya DAD MARZ (IRI).

11:55: Nurzat KABDYRAKHIMOV (KAZ) scores all of his points countering throws in a 8-7 victory over Kagetora OKAMOTO (JPN) at 55kg. That included a 4-pointer that played a role as it was the key criteria when the Japanese came back from an 8-2 deficit but needed more than a stepout to win.

11:43: Yu Chol RO (PRK) comes out all guns blazing in his 55kg qualification bout against Baosheng HUANG (CHN) and gets a 10-2 win. He uses front headlock exposure to score his points

11:41: Ibragim MAGOMADOV (KAZ), the 2023 champion at 72kg, has the opening match on Mat B at 77kg. He fights off a headlock throw by Temuulen ENKHTUYA (MGL) for a takedown, then rolls twice for a 6-0 lead. The Mongolian challenges for a missed throw, but it is denied. There is no score in the second period, and Magamodov wins 7-0 to earn a place in the quarterfinals against defending champion Akzhol MAKHMUDOV (KGZ).

11:30: After a memorable day with Aisuluu TYNYBEKOVA (KGZ) winning the gold medal, the Kyrgyzstan fans will be cheering for Akzhol MAKHMUDOV (KGZ) as Greco-Roman kicks off at the Asian Championships.

Weekly FIVE! December 3, 2019

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Asian Championships Day 5 Greco-Roman Finals Set