Weekly FIVE!

Weekly FIVE! January 21, 2019

Monday, January 21, 2019 - 15:22 By Eric Olanowski

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In a Russia-heavy week, we review the Mindiashvili Grand Prix and Russian Greco-Roman National Championship results. We also review this week's first Ranking Series event of the year, the Ivan Yariguin. 

1. Final Yariguin Qualification Tournament, Mindiashvili Concludes in Krasnoyarsk 
In order to qualify for the Ivan Yariguin as a Russian wrestler, you had to be a 2018 world team member, an Alany Tournament champion or a Mindiashvili finalist. 

This weekend, the final qualification tournament for the Ivan Yariguin, the Mindiashvili Grand Prix, concluded in Krasnoyarsk, Russia, just three days before the first Ranking Series event begins in Siberia. The Mindiashvili finalists locked up their spot at the Yariguin and placed heavy importance on the Ranking Series event later this week, only wrestling four of the ten finals matches. The four matches that were wrestled  were the 61kg, 65kg, 74kg, and 86kg gold-medal bouts. 

Of the four finals matches, the most notable match came at 65kg. Nachyin KUULAR (RUS), the 2017 U23 world champion and 2018 U23 world runner-up, avenged his 2-1 loss Alay loss to Kurban SHIRAEV (RUS) and grabbed the Mindiashvili gold medal with a 3-2 victory. 

RESULTS
57kg – Aryian TYUTRIN df. Amirkhan GUVAZHOKOV, via forfeit 
61kg –  Eduard GRIGOREY df. DONGAK, 6-1 
65kg – Nachyin KUULAR df. Kurban SHIRAEV, 3-2 
70kg – Razambek ZHAMALOV df. Anzor ZAKUEV, via forfeit 
74kg – Nikita SUCHKOV df. Arslan BUDAZHAPOV, 5-3 
79kg – Alan ZASSEEV df. Khalil AMINOV, via forfeit 
86kg – Soslan KTSOEV df. Omar ZIYAUTDIOV, 10-0 
92kg – Alikhan ZHABRAILOV df. Magomed KURBANOV, via forfeit 
97kg – Magomedov df. Tamerlan RASUEV, via forfeit 
125kg – Pavel KRIVTSOV df. Zelimkhan KHIZRIEV, via forfeit 

2. Olympic Champions Vlasov and Chakvetadze win Russian Greco-Roman Nationals 
The Russian Federation wrapped up their 2019 Russian Greco-Roman National Championships in Kaliningrad, Russia, and the pair Olympic champions, Roman VLASOV and Davit CHAKVETADZE, inched closer to regaining their top position on the Russian Greco-Roman ladder after winning the 77kg and 87kg gold medals respectively. 

The six current Greco-Roman world champions, Sergey EMELIN, Stepan MARYANIAN, Artem SURKOV, Alexander CHEKHIRKIN, Musa EVLOEV, and Sergey SEMENOV, were exempt from the Russian Greco-Roman National Championships and will take on last weekend's winners at a later date for a trip to the 2019 World and European Championships. 

For Vlasov to regain the 77kg spot, he’ll have to defeat reigning world champion Alexander Chekhirkin, while 87kg didn’t have a world medalist, so Chakvetadze will represent Russia at the World and European Championship. 

Another interesting note coming out of the Greco-Roman National Championships, Alexander KOMAROV, the four-time age-level world champion, made his domestic debut on the senior-level and beat Vaah MARGARYAN, 8-1 in the 82kg gold-medal bout. 

RESULTS 
55kg – Vitaly KABALOEV df. Victor VEDERNIKOV, 5-1 
60kg – Zambolat Lokyaev df. Dmitry Lyustrickski, 7-3
63kg – Marat GARIPOV df. Alexey TADYKIN, 10-3 
67kg -  Alexey KIANKIN df. Saur KABALOEV, 4-2 
72kg – Abuazid MANCIGOV df. Adam KURAK, 7-1 
77kg – Roman VLASOV df. Islam OPIEV, 8-0 
82kg – Alexander KOMAROV df. Vaah MARGARYAN, 8-1 
87kg – Davit CHAKVETADZE df. Sosruko KODZOKOV, via fall
97kg – Alexander GOLOVIN df. Nikita MELNIKOV, 1-1 
130kg – Vitaly SHCHUR df. Rafael Tsistuashvili, 2-0 

The first Ranking Series event of the year, the Ivan Yariguin, begins Thursday. (Photo: Max Rose-Fyne) 

3. Ivan Yariguin Begins Thursday 
The 30th Annual Ivan Yariguin, United World Wrestling's first freestyle and women's wrestling Ranking Series event of the year, begins this Thursday in Krasnoyarsk, Russia. 

This will be the first Ranking Series event where the revamped point structure will be used. This tournament is especially important because the seeding process at the 2019 Astana World Championships takes into account the number of points competitors accumulate from last year's World Championships, along with the Continental Championships and the Ranking Series events.  

2019 Ranking Series Point Structure
GOLD - 8 points  
SILVER - 6 points 
BRONZE - 4
Fifth - 2 

*The number of points awarded at a competition will also be impacted by the number of wrestlers entered in each bracket. For weight categories with 10 or fewer entries, an additional six (6) points will be added. For categories with 11-20 wrestlers entered an additional eight (8) points will be added. Ten (10) points will be added to any weight category with more than 20 entries.

SCHEDULE (Local time) 

January 23 (Wednesday)
08.00 - Arrival of delegations
15.30 - Referees clinic
15.30 - Press conference with the Organizing Committee representatives, main referees body, team leaders and coaches
16.30 - Draw: Women: cat: 50,55,59,65 kg Men: cat: 57,61,70 kg

January 24 (Thursday)
08:30 - Medical examination and weigh-in cat: Women: 50,55,59,65 kg Men: 57,61,70 kg
11.00 - Elimination rounds cat: Women: 50,55,59,65 kg Men: 57,61,70 kg
16.00 - Draw cat: Women: 53,57,62,68 kg Men: 65,79,125kg
17.00 -1⁄2 finale cat: Women: 50,55,59,65 kg Men: 57,61,70 kg

January 25 (Friday)
08:15 - Weigh-in cat: Women: 50,55,59,65 kg Men: 57,61,70 kg
08:30 - Medical examination and weigh-in cat: Women: 53,57,62,68 kg Men: 65,79,125kg
11.00 - Elimination rounds and 1⁄2 finale cat: Women: 53,57,62,68 kg Men: 65,79,125kg  - Repechage cat: Women: 50,55,59,65 kg Men: 57,61,70 kg
16.30 - Draw cat: Women: 72,76 kg Men: 74,86,92,97 kg
16.00 - Opening ceremony
17.00 - Finals cat: Women: 50,55,59,65 kg Men: 57,61,70 kg

January 26 (Saturday)
08:15 - Weigh-in cat: Women: 53,57,62,68 kg Men: 65,79,125kg
08:30 - Medical examination and weigh-in cat: Women: 72,76 kg Men: 74,86,92,97 kg
11.00 - Elimination rounds and 1⁄2 finale cat: Women: 72,76 kg Men: 74,86,92,97 kg - Repechage cat: Women: 53,57,62,68 kg Men: 65,79,125kg
18.00 - Finals cat: Women: 53,57,62,68 kg Men: 65,79,125kg

January 27 (Sunday)
09:00 - Weigh-in cat: Women: 72,76 kg Men: 74,86,92,97 kg
11.00 - Repechage cat: Women: 72,76 kg Men: 74,86,92,97 kg
13.00 - Finals cat: Women: 72,76 kg Men: 74,86,92,97 kg

January 28 (Monday)
Until 12.00 - Departure of delegations 


China's 2018 world champion RONG Ningning kicked off her year by winning the Ivan Yariguin. (Photo: Gabor Martin) 

4. Yariguin Rewind: Chinese Women Claim Five Gold Medals
United World Wrestling's first Ranking Series event of 2019 kicks off in three days with the Ivan Yariguin Grand Prix. While women's wrestling was featured in 2018, it was not a Ranking Series event. Fast forward a year and the 2019 edition will see women's wrestlers competing for sought after ranking points. 

Four different nations claimed a women’s wrestling gold medal at last year’s Ivan Yariguin, but the Chinese women made the best of their trip to Krasnoyarsk and put seven wrestlers in the finals and finished with five champions. Of the five Chinese champions, Asian champion ZHOU Qian was the only Yariguin champion who didn’t represent China at the 2018 World Championships. 

Rising star RONG Ningning captained the Chinese success in Krasnoyarsk. The 2018 Ivan Yariguin was a coming out party for Rong, who was relatively unknown coming into last year’s tournament. Rong, the Yariguin rookie, kick-started her year by knocking off reigning world runner-up Allison RAGAN (USA), 10-0 in the 59kg gold-medal bout. She later dropped down to 57kg and continued her dominance, winning the Asian Championships, the China and Poland Opens, and the 2018 Budapest World Championships. In addition to her title-winning performances at the above-mentioned tournaments, Rong was also a U23 world runner-up and an Alexander Medved Prizes bronze medalist.

Japan, Mongolia, and the United States were the other nations who had at least one wrestler reach the top of the podium at the 2018 Ivan Yariguin. 

Japan, who had five finalists, grabbed gold medals from Yuki IRIE, Yu MIYAHARA, and Andoriahanako SAWA (JPN), while Mongolia's PUREVDORJ Orkhon and the United States' Tamyra MENSAH-STOCK gave their nation a solo gold medalist. 

With just four days left to register, Mensah-Stock is the only returning champion registered to wrestle in Krasnoyarsk, where she'll be looking for her third Ivan Yarigiun title.

2018 WOMEN'S WRESTLING RESULTS 
50kg – Yuki IRIE (JPN) df. Sonhyang KIM (PRK), 9-8 
53kg – Yu MIYAHARA (JPN) df. Stalvira ORSHUSH (RUS), 4-4
55kg – Andoriahanako SAWA (JPN) df. Mengyu XIE (CHN), 10-8 
57kg – ZHANG Qi (CHN) df. Gantuya ENKHBAT (MGL), 6-4 
59kg – RONG Ningning (CHN) df. Allison Mackenzie RAGAN (USA), 10-0 
62kg – PUREVDORJ Orkhon (MGL) df. Kiwa SAKAE (JPN), 10-0
65kg – TANG Chuying (CHN) df. Yulia PRONTSEVITCH (RUS), 4-1 
68kg – Tamyra MENSAH-STOCK (USA) df. HAN Yue (CHN), 3-3 
72kg – WANG Juan (CHN) df. Masako FURUICHI (JPN), 4-1 
76kg – ZHOU Qian (CHN) df. Ekaterina BUKINA (RUS), via injury default 

David Taylor was one of three wrestlers to win the Ivan Yariguin and the World Championships. (Photo by Tony Rotundo) 

5. Yariguin Rewind: Six Yariguin Medalists Eventually Won Budapest World Titles
The 30th Annual Ivan Yariguin, United World Wrestling’s first Ranking Series event of the year, begins 8 days from today (on January 24),  in Krasnoyarsk, Russia. Seven eventual world champions made the trip to Siberia twelve months ago to compete at the “Toughest Tournament in the World,“ but only six left with a medal.  

The seven Budapest gold medalists who competed at the 2018 Ivan Yariguin were Zaur UGUEV (RUS) (57kg), Yowles BONNE RODRIGUES (CUB) (61kg), Magomedrasul GAZIMAGOMEDOV (RUS) (70kg), Zaurbek SIDAKOV (RUS) (74kg), Kyle DAKE (USA) (79kg), David TAYLOR (USA) (86kg), and Abdulrashid SADULAEV (RUS) (97kg). 

Takuto OTOGURO (JPN) (65kg), J’den COX (USA) (92kg), and Geno PETRIASHVILI (GEO)(125kg) were the three world champions who missed last year's Yariguin. 

Uguev, Taylor, and Sadulaev were the only three wrestlers to win gold medals at both the Yariguin and World Championships. Uguev and Taylor won their Yariguin titles at their World Championship weights, while Sadualev won his Yariguin title at 92kg and his world title at 97kg.

Zaurbek Sidakov, Magomedrasul Gazimagomedov, and Kyle Dake were the trio of Yariguin silver medalists who traveled to Budapest and claimed world titles. 

On the flip side, Gadzhimurad Rashidov and Kyle Snyder won titles in Krasnoyarsk but fell short in the Budapest World Championship finals.

Cuba’s Yolwes Bonnes Rodrigues was the only 2018 world champion to depart the 2018 Yariguin empty-handed. It should be noted that Bonne competed at 65kg, 4kg heavier than his Budapest World Championship weight of 61kg. 

Bonne went 1-1 and lost to Mongolia’s BATCHULUUN Batmagnai, who fell to Ilias BEKBULATOV (RUS) and Nachyn KUULAR (RUS) and finished in fifth-place. 

Early registration for the 2019 Ivan Yariguin closed last week but has since reopened. The updated deadline for registrations is January 21.

Results 
57kg -  Zavur UGUEV (RUS) df. Azamat TUSKAEV (RUS), 4-1 
61kg - Gadzhimurad RASHIDOV (RUS)df. Ismail MUSUKAEV (RUS), 3-2 
65kg -  Ilias BEKBULATOV (RUS)df. Akhmed CHAKAEV (RUS), 3-3
70kg - Magomed KURBANALIEV (RUS)df. Magomedrasul GAZIMAGOMEDOV (RUS), 2 - 2
74kg - Khetik TSABOLOV (RUS)df. Zaurbek SIDAKOV (RUS), 3-1
79kg - Akhmed GADZHIMAGOMEDOV (RUS) df. Kyle DAKE (USA), 8-2
86kg - David TAYLOR III (USA) df. Fatih ERDIN (TUR), via fall. 
92kg - Abdulrashid SADULAEV (RUS) df. Anzor URISHEV (RUS), 6-0 
97kg - Kyle Frederick SNYDER (USA) df. Rasul Magomedovitch MAGOMEDOV (RUS), 4-1 
125kg - Muradin KUSHKHOV (RUS) df. Anzor Ruslanovitch KHIZRIEV (RUS), 1-1 

*2018 world champion are in bold.

Weekly FIVE in Social Media 

1. Big Move Monday -- BONNE Y. (CUB) -- 2018 Ivan Yariguin #wrestling #wrestler #monday #motivation#throw #takedown #mma
2. Yariguin Rewind: Akhmed GADZHIMAGOMEDOV (RUS) used a six-point opening-period and a second-period takedown to defeat eventual world champion Kyle DAKE (USA), 8-2 in the 79kg finals.
3. Thanks for the #SundaySmiles, @pascal.eisele.
4. #ScoreThat - Before watching, who do you think comes out on top of this exchange? Was it red or was it blue? ?: @krakatauf
5. Yariguin Rewind: In the All-Russian 74kg finals, 2017 world runner-up Khetik TSABOLOV (RUS) stopped eventual 74kg world champion @zaurbek_sidakov from winning his second Yariguin title. 

#WrestleTirana

Ghasempour buries ghosts of past to win Tirana gold; Yoshida stuns Snyder

Thursday, February 27, 2025 - 20:14 By Vinay Siwach

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TIRANA, Albania (February 27) -- "Today when I was standing on the podium, I remembered it."

Kamran GHASEMPOUR (IRI) replays the match in his mind as he speaks. He remembers the move and the loss clearly. At the World Championships in October last year, Ghasempour was four seconds away from upsetting Abdulrashid SADULAEV (UWW) but the latter pulled off an incredible move to beat Ghasempour in the semifinal. While Sadulaev won the gold, Ghasempour returned empty-handed after losing his bronze-medal bout to David TAYLOR (USA).

Ghasempour may not be able to completely erase the memories of that loss with the Muhamet Malo Ranking Series gold medal he won on Thursday, but he says it will help him move on.

"Last year, in this very hall, it was a very bad scene for me," Ghasempour said. "Even today when I was standing on the podium, I remembered it. I should have gone to the Championship podium [at the World Championships]. The regret remained. But well, it's wrestling, and that's part of the events in sports. I tried to forget it and continue on my path."

On Thursday, Ghasempour returned to Tirana at 92kg and showed once again why he is one of the best at 92kg in the world. Wrestling in three bouts, he did not give up a single point [28-0], and scored two technical superiority wins including the final.

"The competition went well," he said. "I was able to wrestle with three good opponents in this tournament and fortunately, I managed to achieve first place. The wrestler [in the final] was a good competitor. I had watched his matches beforehand and planned well. My goal was to put on a good performance, and thankfully, I succeeded."

Kamran GHASEMPOUR (IRI)Kamran GHASEMPOUR (IRI) sees off Alan BAGAEV (UWW) in the 92kg final. (Photo: United World Wrestling / Kadir Caliskan)

In his first bout against world silver medalist Miriani MAISURADZE (GEO), Ghasempour ran to an 8-0 lead before moving to defense. He then gut-wrenched Feyzulla AKTURK (TUR) and in the final, he broke Alan BAGAEV (UWW) with ease to win with two minutes remaining.

"I've been wrestling in the 92 kg weight class for several years," he said. "Despite that unfortunate result [last year], this arena was a good field for me. I'm trying to increase my readiness and participate in the next competitions."

Amir Hossein ZARE (IRI)Amir Hossein ZARE (IRI) defeated Zelimkhan KHIZRIEV (UWW) 10-0 in the 125kg final. (Photo: United World Wrestling / Kostadin Andonov)

Paris Olympic silver medalist Amir Hossein ZARE (IRI) added a second gold medal to Iran's tally on Thursday as he defeated Zelimkhan KHIZRIEV (UWW) in the 125kg final.

Leading up to the final Zare, who had his elbow tapped, looked shaky in his movements on the mat but come the final, he made sure Khizriev wasn't much of a problem.

Zare scored a step out to open the final and then got a point for Khizriev's passivity. A takedown and turn later, Zare was up 6-0 and by the break, Zare had Khizriev struggling with conditioning. As soon as the second period began, Zare was not having any of Khizriev's flamboyance and scored a takedown and a gut to finish it in no time.

Arash YOSHIDA (JPN)Arash YOSHIDA (JPN) blocks an attack from Erfan ALIZADEH (IRI) in the 97kg final. (Photo: United World Wrestling / Kostandin Andonov)

A third Iranian wrestler could have won gold medal but Arash YOSHIDA (JPN), who had perhaps his biggest day in international wrestling, denied Erfan ALIZADEH (IRI) in the 97kg final.

Yoshida led 1-1 on criteria at the break in the final after he scored the stepout after Alizadeh's stepout. In the second period, Yoshida got the point for Alizadeh's passivity and then scored a stepout to lead 3-1 with 90 seconds left on the clock.

Alizadeh managed to score a stepout with seven seconds on the clock but Yoshida closed it out to win 3-2 to cap off a remarkable day of wrestling for him.

"I can say that it was a great day because I won at 97kg category," Yoshida said.

Arash YOSHIDA (JPN)Arash YOSHIDA (JPN) scores a takedown against Kyle SNYDER (USA). (Photo: United World Wrestling / Amirreza Aliasgari)

This final, however, was not Yoshida's biggest win of the day. Earlier in the semifinals, he defeated former world and Olympic champion Kyle SNYDER (USA) 5-5, his biggest win of the career.

Yoshida, however, dismissed that.

"That was kind a win by luck," he said. "Good technique at good timing but it was by chance I think."

Yoshida, who seems small for 97kg, was in all sorts of trouble for five minutes and 30 seconds of the match. Snyder clearly overpowered Yoshida and scored a takedown on the edge and as Yoshida was trying to sneak out of the hold, Snyder scored a pushout, all while Yoshida was on activity time.

Snyder led 4-0 before giving up a stepout and as both wrestlers maintained the intensity in the second period, Snyder's strength and positioning didn't let Yoshida get his on his attacks.

However, Yoshida managed to get a cut-back and a turn to lead 5-5 on criteria with 30 seconds on the clock. Despite Snyder's efforts, Yoshida managed to remain in contact and not get scored on to complete a top-class win.

"I compete in Bulgaria. I tried my best to prepare perfectly for this tournament also, but yeah I can say I still have tiredness from that," he said.

Despite the win over Snyder, Yoshida will continue training in his usual style to remain calm for big tournaments.

"I train like I always do," he said. "When I’m preparing for tournaments I become nervous but I think it’s important to do usual things to keep calm"

 

At 79kg, Gadzhimurad ALIKHMAEV (UWW) managed a perfect final to beat Paris Olympian Vladimeri GAMKRELIDZE (GEO), 4-1, and claim the gold medal.

Alikhmaev as wrestling only at the his second Ranking Series event of the career, having wrestling last at the Yasar Dogu in 2022. Since, he has been out of action for three years.

Japan dominated Women's Wrestling as usual winning two golds on offer on Thursday.

Umi ITO (JPN), who suffered her first international loss at the U23 World Championships in Tirana last year, made sure she took home better memories, winning the gold medal at 50kg.

Wrestling Paris Olympian Oksana LIVACH (UKR) in the final, Ito needed just 33 seconds to get a 10-0 technical superiority win, her fourth of the day.

Barring the quarterfinal against Nadezha SOKOLOVA (UWW) who threw Ito for a four-pointer using a headlock, the Japanese was in complete control of her bouts.

"In October, I lost at the U23 World Championships in Tirana and I felt extremely frustrated," Ito said. "But I'm very happy to be able to talk about that frustration on the same stage. After the U23s ended, I learned that I make small mistakes and give chances to my opponents, and that those kind of mistakes can affect the outcome of a match."

Despite her impeccable record internationally, Ito has not representated Japan at the senior World Championships as she is stuck behind Yui SUSAKI (JPN) and Remina YOSHIMOTO (JPN).

"Both Sasaki and Yoshimoto are opponents I have to defeat in order to participate in the Olympics," she said. "I believe that if I don't win at home first, we won't be able to win at the World Championships. So even after I return to Japan, I'll continue to practice and overcome the challenges so that I can win the Meiji Cup next June."

Haruna MURAYAMA (JPN)Haruna MURAYAMA (JPN) defeated Olga KHOROSHAVTSEVA (UWW) in the 55kg final. (Photo: United World Wrestling / Kadir Caliskan)

Japan won its second gold medal in Women's Wrestling through three-time world champion Haruna MURAYAMA OKUNO (JPN) defeated Olga KHOROSHAVTSEVA (UWW) 5-0 in the 55kg final.

She opened the day on a slow note, winning only 2-0 against Karla GODINEZ (CAN) but blanked former world silver medalist Oleksandra KHOMENETS (UKR) 10-0.

In the final, Khoroshavtseva was cautioned when Maruyama scored a stepout. With a 2-0 lead, Maruyama was content to keep the lead but Khoroshavtseva used open hands on the face and was cautioned again which gave one more point to the Japanese. A takedown late in the bout made it 5-0 for Maruyama.

RESULTS

Freestyle

79kg
GOLD: Gadzhimurad ALIKHMAEV (UWW) df. Vladimeri GAMKRELIDZE (GEO), 4-1

BRONZE: Ahmad MAGOMEDOV (MKD) df. Evan WICK (USA), via inj. def.
BRONZE: Khidir SAIPUDINOV (BRN) df. Hayk PAPIKYAN (ARM), 5-2

92kg
GOLD: Kamran GHASEMPOUR (IRI) df. Alan BAGAEV (UWW), 11-0

BRONZE: Michael MACCHIAVELLO (USA) df. Ahmed BATAEV (BUL), 3-1
BRONZE: Feyzullah AKTURK (TUR) df. Miriani MAISURADZE (GEO), via inj. def.

97kg
GOLD: Arash YOSHIDA (JPN) df. Erfan ALIZADEH (IRI), 3-2

BRONZE: Kyle SNYDER (USA) df. Dato PIRUZASHVILI (GEO), 10-0
BRONZE: Magomedgadji NUROV (MKD) df. Batyrbek TSAKULOV (SVK), 4-0

125kg
GOLD: Amir Hossein ZARE (IRI) df. Zelimkhan KHIZRIEV (UWW), 10-0

BRONZE: Kamil KOSCIOLEK (POL) df. Givi MATCHARASHVILI (GEO), 4-0
BRONZE: Dzianis KHRAMIANKOU (UWW) df. Hakan BUYUKCINGIL (TUR), via inj. (8-6)

Women's Wrestling

50kg
GOLD: Umi ITO (JPN) df. Oksana LIVACH (UKR), 10-0

BRONZE: Nadezhda SOKOLOVA (UWW) df. Katie DUTCHAK (CAN), 10-0
BRONZE: Erin GOLSTON (USA) df. MEIDUOLAJI (CHN), 4-2

55kg
GOLD: Haruna MURAYAMA (JPN) df. Olga KHOROSHAVTSEVA (UWW), 5-0 

BRONZE: Ekaterina VERBINA (UWW) df. Mariana DRAGUTAN (MDA), 10-0
BRONZE: Oleksandra KHOMENETS (UKR) df. Karla GODINEZ (CAN), 3-1