Weekly FIVE! February 4, 2019

Monday, February 4, 2019 - 15:54 By Eric Olanowski

Reviewing results from the Indian Pro League, the Hentri Deglane, and Swedish Nationals. Also looking at this season's first set of rankings and Saturday's Ranking Series event, the Zagreb Open.

1. Haryana Hammers Nail Down 6-3 Win Against Punjab Royals in Indian Pro League Finals
The fourth edition of the Indian Pro League came to a close and the Haryana Hammers nailed down the 6-3 victory against the Punjab Royals in the finals. The Haryana Hammers won their second PWL title and made their fourth consecutive finals appearance.

The Haryana Hammers were defeated by the Punjab Royals in last years finals, 6-3, but returned their favor by flipping the script, winning six of the nine bouts at the Greater Noida Arena.

The Haryana Hammers jumped out to a 5-0 lead and sealed up the Season 4 team title after the first five matches. The NCR Punjab Royals tallied off three straight wins, cutting the Hammers lead to 5-3 before Tayana OMELCHENKO closed out the finals, dismantling Anita ANITA, 13-0. Omelchenko's win gave the Hammers their sixth win of the dual and their second team title in the last four years.

Finals Results
FS 125kg - Aleksander KHOTSIANIVSKI (Haryana Hammers) df. Korey JARVIS (NCR Punjab Royals), 3-0
FS 86kg – Ali SHABANOV (Haryana Hammers) df. Dato MARSAGISHVILI (NCR Punjab Royals), 8-4
WW 76kg – Kiran KIRAN (Haryana Hammers) df. Cynthia VESCAN (NCR Punjab Royals), 3-2
FS 57kg - Ravi KUMAR (Haryana Hammers)  df. NITIN RATHI (NCR Punjab Royals), 14-0
WW 57kg – Anastasia NICHITA (Haryana Hammers)  df. Mimi HRISTOVA (NCR Punjab Royals), 8-4
FS 65kg – Bajrang PUNIA (NCR Punjab Royals) df. Rajneesh RAJNEESH (Haryana Hammers), 15-0
FS 74kg – Amit DHANKAR (NCR Punjab Royals) df. Parveen RANA (Haryana Hammers), 7-2
WW 53kg – Anju ANJU (NCR Punjab Royals) df. Seema SEEMA (Haryana Hammers), 20-9
WW 62kg – Tayana OMELCHENKO (Haryana Hammers) df. Anita ANITA (NCR Punjab Royals), 13-0

Indian Pro League Champions
Season 4 - Haryana Hammers
Season 3 - NCR Punjab Royals
Season 2 - Haryana Hammers
Season 1 - Revanta Mumbai Garuda

2. United World Wrestling Releases January Rankings
United World Wrestling released January's rankings after the conclusion of the first Ranking Series event for freestyle and women’s wrestling, the Ivan Yariguin.

Most Notable Changes in Freestyle:
57kg - Thomas GILMAN (USA) (32 points) jumped 2018 world bronze medalists, Suleyman ATLI (TUR) (25 points) and Yuki TAKAHASHI (JPN) (25 points), after his bronze-medal performance in Krasnoyarsk.

65kg - Akhmed CHAKAEV (RUS) (41 points) took the No. 2 spot from 2018 world runner-up Bajrang BAJRANG (IND) (40 points) after winning the Yariguin gold medal.

86kg - Dauren KURUGLIEV (RUS) (36 points) commands the No. 3 spot after winning the 2019 Ivan Yariguin. Kurugliev jumped 2018 world bronze medalists Taimuraz FRIEV NASKIDAEVA (ESP) (25 points) and Hassan YAZDANICHARATI (IRI) (25 points).

97kg - Batzul ULZIISAIKHAN (MGL) (26 points) moves behind Abdulrashid SADULAEV (RUS) (60 points) and Kyle SNYDER (USA) (40 points) and takes over the third spot in the rankings after a fifth-place finish in Siberia.

125kg - Anzor KHIZRIEV (RUS) and Taha AKGUL (TUR) took over the third and fourth ranking after finishing first and second respectively at the Ivan Yariguin.

Most Notable Changes in Women’s Wrestling:
57kg- Grace BULLEN (NOR) (30 points) leaped 2018 world bronze medalists, Emese BARKA (HUN) (25 points) and Pooja DHANDA (IND) (25 points), after her bronze medal finish at the Yariguin.

59kg - Svetlana LIPATOVA (RUS) (32 points) takes over the third-ranking with her runner-up finish at the first Ranking Series event.

65kg - Mariia KUZNETSOVA (RUS) (26 points) moves up six spots to No. 4 after winning the Yariguin title at 65kg.

68kg - SORONZONBOLD Battsetseg (MGL) (32 points) moves from seventh to No. 3 in the rankings after her gold-medal performance at the Yariguin.

76kg - Hiroe MINAGAWA SUZUKI (JPN) (41 points) overtook the No. 2 spot from 2017 world champion and 2018 world runner-up Yasemin ADAR (TUR) (40 points) with her title-winner performance in Krasnoyarsk.

Click here for January's rankings

3. Hentri Deglane Concludes in France
The 45th Annual Hentri Deglane wrapped up in Nice, France and more than 300 wrestlers from 30 different nations competed in freestyle, Greco-Roman, and women’s wrestling.

In freestyle, six different nations claimed a gold medal, but Georgian wrestlers led the way, winning four of the ten gold medals. Six different nations also claimed a Greco-Roman gold medal, but Armenia, led by 2012 Olympic runner-up Arsen JULFALAKYAN (ARM), won four gold medals. In women’s wrestling, there were only six gold medals up for grabs. Kyrgyzstan and Azerbaijan won a pair of golds, while Argentina and Romania won the remaining two titles.

RESULTS
Freestyle
57kg - Otar GOGAVA (GEO)
61kg - Beka LOMTADZE (GEO)
65kg - Bekkhan GOIGEREEV (RUS)
70kg - Zurab IAKOBISHIVLI (GEO)
74kg - Thomas GANTT (USA)
79kg - Davit KHUTSISHVILI (GEO)
86kg - Samuel BROOKS (USA)
92kg - Istvan VEREB (HUN)
97kg - Valerii ANDRIITSEV (UKR)
125kg - Kamil KOSCIOLEK (POL)

Greco-Roman
55kg - Rudik MKRTCHYAN (ARM)
60kg - CHUNG Han Jae (KOR)
67kg – Karen ASLANYAN (ARM)
72kg - HRANT KALACHYAN (ARM)
77kg – Arsen JULFALAKYAN (ARM)
82kg - Hakim TRABELSI (TUN)
87kg - Alan OSTAEV (RUS)
97kg - Mélonin NOUMONVI (FRA)
130kg - Yasmani ACOSTA (CHI)

Women’s Wrestling Gold Medalists
50kg - Patricia BERMUDEZ (ARG)
53kg - Andrea Beatrice ANA (ROU)
57kg - Alyona KOLESNIK (AZE)
62kg - Aisuluu TYNYBEKOVA (KGZ)
65kg - Iryna NETREBA (AZE)
76kg - Meerim ZHUMANAZAROVA (KGZ)

Click here for full results

4. Swedish Nationals Wrap Up in Sundsvall
The Swedish Greco-Roman and Women’s Wrestling National Championships wrapped up in Sundsvall, Sweden last weekend, and the duo of Olympic bronze medalist Sofia MATTSON and Jenny FRANSSON claimed titles at 55kg and 72kg respectively.

For most nations, a national title means you've locked in your spot for the continental and world championships, but that's not the case for Sweden. According to Fransson, the results from this past weekend are essential, but the results from the Klippan Lady Open and the second women's wrestling Ranking Series event, the Dan Kolov - Nikola Petrov, will hold weight when it comes to the selection process for the 2019 European and World Championships.

In Greco-Roman, Sweden will use the Zagreb Open, the Hungarian Grand Prix and the Thor Masters as qualification tournaments for the 2019 European and World Championships.

RESULTS

Greco-Roman Champions
55kg - Abulfazeil HASHIMY
60kg - Niklas ÖHLEN
63kg - Ardit FAZLJIJA
67kg - Danielo DI FEOLA
72kg - Simon ERLANDSSON
77kg - Alex KESSIDIS
82kg - Bogdan KOURINOI
87kg - Zakarias BERG
97kg - Leon KESSIDIS
130kg - Albin SODERSTJERNA

Women’s Wrestling Champions
53kg - Fredrika PETTERSSON
55kg - Sofia MATTSON
57kg - Johanna LINDBORG
59kg - Emma JOHANSSON
62kg - Moa NYGREN
65kg - Elin FORSBERG
68kg - Henna JOHANSSON
72kg - Jenny FRANSSON
76kg - Denise MAKOTA STROM

Click HERE for full results.

5. Zagreb Open Begins Saturday
The first Greco-Roman Ranking Series event of the year, the Zagreb Open, kicks off this Saturday (February 9) in Zagreb, Croatia.

Right now, according to the unofficial pre-registration list, there are nearly 40 past age-level and senior-level world medalists that will be in action. Most notably, London Olympic champion KIM Hyeonwoo (KOR), two-time Olympic medalist and three-time world champion Riza KAYAALP (TUR), and Rio Olympic bronze medalist Elmurat TASMURADOV (UZB) are all set to compete.

The qualification and elimination rounds for all ten weight classes will be wrestled on Saturday, and the championship rounds will be on Sunday.

Schedule
Saturday (February 9)
8:00 - 1st-day Medical examination & Weigh-in, all weight categories (No weight tolerance!) Sport Hall
10:30 - Qualification and elimination rounds, all weight categories (on 3 wrestling mats)

Sunday (February 10)
8:00 - 2nd-day weigh-in, all weight categories (No weight tolerance!) Sport Hall
10:30 - Repechage bouts and bronze medal matches (all categories)
17:30 - Opening ceremony and Final matches (all categories)

Weekly FIVE! In Social Media

1. Big Move Monday -- PYSHKOV D. (UKR) -- 2018 Dan Kolov #grecoromanwrestling #ukrainian #wrestler #suplex #throw #takedown #olympic #wrestling
2. #SundaySmiles ?
3. @wrestlerviktor, the 2017 world champion, will wrestle at the first Greco-Roman Ranking Series event of the year, the Zagreb Open (February 9-10). He's entered at 77kg.
4. Miss the #Yariguin2019 finals? Don't stress. Here's every takedown from the freestyle finals. You’re welcome in advance ?!
5. How about the timing by @rasul_gazimagomedov70 on this outside trip? #Yarigyin2019 #ThursdayTrips

#JapanWrestling

Fujinami to move up to 57kg in quest for consecutive Olympic golds

Wednesday, November 27, 2024 - 12:12 By Ken Marantz

TOKYO (November 26) -- Akari FUJINAMI (JPN) won't be defending her Olympic gold at women's 53kg at the 2028 Los Angeles Games. That's bad news for anyone aiming to strike gold at 57kg.

Fujinami has announced that she will move up to the next Olympic weight class starting next year, the Japan federation website and Japan media widely recently reported.

Fujinami, who turned 21 on November 11, cited the difficulty of cutting weight for the decision, as well as the historic aspect that no woman wrestler has ever won a second straight Olympic gold after moving to a higher weight class.

"I have decided to move up to the 57kg weight class," Fujinami said after Sunday's East Japan Collegiate Women's League, a team tournament that marked her first competition since winning the gold at the Paris Olympics in August. "Considering my height and my normal weight, I think I can give my best performance at 57."

Fujinami competed at 59kg in the five-team league tournament (one school was a no-show), which was run in a round-robin, duel-meet format with only three weight classes -- 53kg, 59kg and 76kg.

She won both of her matches by fall, extending her current winning streak to 139 matches dating back to her junior high school days in September 2017.

The 1.64-meter Fujinami was actually wrestling near her natural weight, which she says is "about 61kg." But even against two opponents from higher weight classes -- Ikuei University's Ichika ARAI (JPN) was the 2023 world U20 silver medalist at 57kg -- her skills and speed were still overwhelming.

"It has been really hard to cut down to 53kg," Fujinami said. "I felt I lost muscle during the process. I feel I can give my best performance by going down three kilos from my natural weight."

Asked when she expects to make her full-fledged "debut" at the new weight, she replied in a text message, "It will be sometime next year. I haven't decided exactly when yet."

With a full schedule of post-Olympic TV appearances and local events curtailing her training, she has already ruled out appearing at next month's Emperor's Cup All-Japan Championships.

It is likely she will compete at the Meiji Cup All-Japan Invitational Championships in the spring, as that tournament, along with the Emperor's Cup, will serve as qualifiers for the 2025 World Championships.

The move up to 57kg will likely put her on a collision course with the reigning Olympic champion, Tsugumi SAKURAI (JPN). The two met last year at the East Japan Collegiate tournament, with Fujinami coming away with a 5-0 victory.

The challenge of possibly accomplishing a historic first appeals to Fujinami, who last year won her second career world title at 53kg in Belgrade.

"I heard that no [woman] has moved up a weight class and won another Olympic gold," Fujinami said. "It will difficult, but that's what makes it challenging. I hope I can become stronger at the next [Olympics] in Los Angeles."

Two Japanese women -- Saori YOSHIDA (JPN) and Kaori ICHO (JPN) -- have won an additional Olympic gold after going down a weight, but that was mainly because the number of weight classes was expanded from four to six, allowing them to compete more closely to their normal weight.

Among men, the legendary Aleksandr MEDVED (URS) won the freestyle 97kg gold in 1964, then triumphed again at 97+kg in 1968, while Levan TEDASHVILI (URS) won at freestyle 82kg in 1972 and 90kg in 1976. More recently, Abdulrashid SADULAEV claimed the freestyle 86kg gold in 2016, then won again at 97kg in 2021.

Fujinami said she doesn't expect to make any major alterations to her wrestling style at the heavier weight.

"I have no intention of making any big changes in my wrestling style," she said. "I will still try to keep the opponent from getting at my legs, and take the initiative to score points. Still, I can feel the extra weight of four kilos, so how I increase my weight could affect how I perform."

At this year's East Japan league tournament, Fujinami's Nippon Sport Science University was relegated to second by Ikuei University, which won 2-1 in their duel meet. Ikuei got victories from Moe KIYOOKA (JPN) and Ami ISHII (JPN), who both won gold medals at last month's Non-Olympic Weight Category World Championships.

Weekly FIVE! February 4, 2019

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Fujinami to move up to 57kg in quest for consecutive Olympic golds