#WrestleCoralville

When Yianni vanished in thin air against Amouzad

Wednesday, January 11, 2023 - 06:00 By Vinay Siwach

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CORALVILLE, Iowa (January 10) -- If one had to go through the competitions in 2022 and pick the moves to make a highlight reel, not many would come to mind.

Meiirzhan SHERMAKHANBET (KAZ) with a 360 degree at the Asian Championships, Jasurbek ORTIKBOEV (UZB) wonderous hand spinning in the 55kg bronze bout at the World Championships, Kyle DAKE (USA) thumping Sagar JAGLAN (IND) at the World Championships and Katarzyna KRAWCZYK (POL) pulling off the suplex on Jacarra WINCHESTER in Istanbul.

But Yianni DIAKOMIHALIS (USA) triumphed all towards the end of the year.

"I tore my MCL watching this," Jordan BURROUGHS (USA), a six time world champ, wrote on UWW's Instagram.

At the World Cup, Diakomihalis was wrestling world champion Rahman AMOUZAD (IRI) at 65kg in the final. It was a rematch from the World Championships final which Amouzad won. Both wrestlers knew each other's style. But the pressure was on Diakomihalis to pull one back. Amouzad had built a 2-0 lead at the break before Diakomihalis answered with a takedown in the second period to lead on criteria. The crowd was behind the local star, pushing him as Amouzad tried to find his underhooks.

Before going to Diakomihalis' explanation of the move, the 65kg wrestler has been known as someone who is more than the conventional way. He has got scrambles that can upset his opponent's rhythm, scores points from unfavorable positions and makes the viewers gasp in awe. The U.S. wrestling circles in always abuzz about the craft of Yianni.

Amouzad, like most Iran wrestlers, has a strong underhook. He controlled the World Championships final with it and even shut Diakomihalis down with it. He grips it so tight that most wrestlers fail to find an opening for six minutes. But Diakomihalis had already done that once.

The wrestlers were in the center for a restart after Diakomihalis scored a takedown. Amouzad was just about to get his underhook when the Xtreme Arena erupted. At 3:30 in the bout, Amouzad tries to settle, pushing forward. He isn't fully committed to it yet and that's when Diakomihalis goes low and pulls off a duck under like no other. It was lightning quick. Amouzad did not know what hit him. It seemed he was trying to lean on Diakomihalis but the American vanished. Amouzad tamely gave up a takedown for two points.

"One of the things that we talked about is that Amouzad wrestles really hard and pushes a lot, really hard," Diakomihalis said. "We were trying to think about different ways that I can wrestle when he's pushing me and we were playing around with a bunch of different techniques, maybe like a fireman's carry, or a duck under, or a single, a bunch of different things that you could do."

But Diakomihalis did not hit the conventional moves that he was working on. He relied on a move that he was always good at.

"When I was younger I used to hit duck-under a lot," he said. "Then I got away from it just because they're hard to hit.

"In the match, Amouzad pressured me and just that the pressure felt right and I hit it. My muscle memory took over and hit it and timed it really well. He didn't have his hook super tight, he was pushing really hard and then I hit my duck-under and it came out very clean."

It was so clean that there was no defense from Amouzad. He accepted that he has been outplayed by his opponent and got into a par terre position so as to not give up any more points.

"A lot of people around said that was so cool and that was good," he said. "So I liked it, I thought it was really good and we worked a lot of technique and we also wrestled really hard, so it's really cool when all of the work that we do, comes out in the match and you wrestle well.

Diakomihalis did everything right in the bout but Amouzad showed by he is the world champion in just his second year as a senior. The 20-year-old won 5-4 despite Diakomihalis' brilliance on the mat. Diakomihalis respects Amouzad's quick adjustment when he tried hitting the same move a minute later.

"That time he felt it and he got up to his feet and ran out of the way," he said. "Somebody who is very skilled, when you hit a move, they'll recognize what happened and make an adjustment. His adjustment was that instead of leaning on me, he got up and ran away. That's his adjustment to stop my move. So now it's up to me to figure out what I'm going to do next."

Diakomihalis has now got two chances to wrestle Amouzad and both are primed to be 65kg new blood. The bout in Belgrade ended 13-8 in Amouzad's favor with him controlling the bout for most of the time. However, his American opponent did not let the same happen in Iowa and made it much closer as the 5-4 scoreline suggests.

The two can now meet at the 2023 World Championships, again in Belgrade, which will also offer Paris Olympics quotas. Diakomihalis has already taken lessons from the two meetings against Amouzad.

"In the World Championships match, he scored from when I was underneath him, maybe 3 or 4 times," he said. "We had to really work on my wrestling when he has an underhook and I'm underneath, which was a big change. In the world finals, I shot a lot of really bad shots very far away and it allowed him to get to his underhook, allowed to reshoot and he controlled the match from that. That was really when it got away from me in the second period.

"If you look at the world Cup match, I was able to like keep my composure. I didn't take any really sloppy shots. Everything was a little cleaner and I was able to get in there, putting some pressure on him. I think the biggest difference was in the World Championships, he was able to pressure and control. The whole match was underhook and I couldn't really do anything. At the World Cup, I was able to stay out of the hook and I could put a lot of pressure on him with my hand-fighting. I got a little more patient and got a little bit smarter in how to wrestle in those underhook positions."

There were a few moments when Diakomihalis could have scored more points. When he scored the first takedown, he tried to transition into a quick gut wrench but could not get the turn. Or when he kept trying to score a point to win on criteria but Amouzad would keep him locked.

"When I scored that takedown, he bellied out quickly and I got a position where I could have gotten my gut wrench and he did a good job defending," he said. "I just think moving forward, I need to develop my par terre so that whenever I get taken I can quickly get to my gut wrench before he can get ready to defend.

"We still spent more of the match in underhook than I would have liked. I need to get better at hand-fighting and pushing him, not letting him stand, underhook and waste time. I need to start to clear that and create more offense. This match was a lot better than the last one. Now I have to go back and keep working and then hopefully the next one will be even better."

Diakomihalis also feels that he needs to prepare for everyone at 65kg and not just Amouzad as every opponent comes with a different style. And with the 2024 Olympics coming closer, he would be happy to wrestle more internationally and be ready for the World Championships.

"These upper body throws, I don't usually feel against people in America," he said. "As I continue to wrestle against these international opponents, I need to be a more complete wrestler, not just in America. We do a lot of shooting and reattacks but with these [international] guys, they wrestle a lot of upper body ties. I need to be able to feel those as well and get really proficient. I want to be able to wrestle against any style."

#WrestleAmman

Masoumi: Young star's quest for wrestling glory

Wednesday, March 19, 2025 - 15:56 By Vinay Siwach

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AMMAN, Jordan (March 18) — Amirreza MASOUMI (IRI) already has his eyes set on next week’s Asian Championships in Amman. His goal is clear: gold. But the path to the podium runs through two opponents he knows all too well — Lkhagvagerel MUNKHTUR (MGL) and BUHEEERDUN (CHN).

Two years ago at the Asian Championships in Astana, the then 18-year-old Masoumi suffered his only international losses to non-Iranian wrestlers. A semifinal defeat to Munkhtur was followed by a bitter loss to Buheeerdun in the bronze-medal bout at 125kg. Now, as a more focused and confident 20-year-old, Masoumi is eager to avenge those setbacks.

Masoumi has grown immensely since then. He is now a six-time world champion in various age groups, with two more titles added in 2024. In those competitions, he didn’t allow a single point to be scored against him. He continued his flawless form at the 2025 Zagreb Open, outscoring his opponents 42-0 in four matches. His elbow, which had once been a source of discomfort, is now fully healed, and Masoumi shows no signs of slowing down.

"I hope to use this experience and return to win the World Championships in Zagreb," he says after claiming gold in the Croatian capital.

Masoumi is on phone with his family, showing them the new sneakers he has bought in Zagreb. Not one but three pairs.

He loves shoes.

"I have a sneaker collection myself, and I really love shoes," he said. "I always carry a lot of them with me. For example, in this tournament alone, I brought five pairs. I mostly try to wear special brands and new collections. I think I have around 100 pairs of shoes."

That's where he spends most his money.

"I don't have to spend money on my face because it's perfect."

That is one way of easing off before the interview. Masoumi settles down with a big bar of chocolate which he finishes by the first two questions into the interview.

Masoumi has just won the Zagreb Open gold medal in a dominating manner and began the new Olympic cycle with a bang.

"The ultimate dream for every athlete is definitely an Olympic gold, and that’s mine as well," he says. "I want to stand on the podium in Los Angeles in four years."

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

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Masoumi is the most exciting heavyweight wrestling on the planet. He isn't your regular teenager of 125kg. Masoumi is a very quick for 125kg who destroys his opponents with a smile. He has six age-group world titles in three years.

He can gut-wrench, switch to the typical Iranian underhook pushouts and even wore down the opponents with his heavy-hands.

Masoumi was 16 when made his international debut at the 2021 U17 World Championships in Budapest at 110kg. He outscored his opponents 35-1 in four bouts and won gold. Then came the U20 World Championships next year. He won gold at 125kg and followed it with a gold medal at the U23 Worlds the same year. He was 17.

His senior debut came in 2022 at the World Cup in Coralville, Iowa, where he won all three of his bouts as Iran finished second to the United States.

The year 2023 wasn’t as fruitful, with Masoumi suffering losses at the Asian Championships and domestically. However, he was given the chance to challenge Zare for a spot in the Iranian team for the Paris Olympics. The match-up took place at the 2024 Zagreb Open, but Masoumi came up short.

Since then, he has bounced back with gold medals at five international tournaments, and now he is aiming for a sixth in Amman.

So, how did a wrestler from Gilan, a province not traditionally known for freestyle wrestling, rise to prominence so quickly?

“There’s no rivalry between us and Mazandaran,” Masoumi says. "It feels good to beat a province known for producing many wrestlers like Mazandaran, but I don’t feel good about defeating a specific city or village. There’s no animosity."

Amirreza MASOUMI (IRI)Amirreza MASOUMI (IRI) with his father Fardin. (Photo courtesy Amirreza Masoumi) 

Masoumi was born in Masal village of the Gilan town in northern Iran. His father, Fardin, is a two-time World Championships medalists and the one who pushed him into wrestling.

"When I was three or four years old, when my father wrestled and I went to the competition hall to watch his practice, my childhood was intertwined with wrestling right there," he says. "I was able to get to know the wrestling environment much better in my childhood."

But it was a third-place finish, Masoumi's first medal at a national tournament, which resulted in congratulatory message and reception for Masoumi which he loved.

"I was 12 or 13 years old at the time," he said. "When I came third, I saw everyone come to our house and congratulate me, and I saw what a good feeling it was. So I tried to continue this process until now that I am here."

Standing tall at two metres, Masoumi is lanky for 125kg. More Geno than Zare. But he has to continuously monitor his weight which he does not want to go too high.

"My mother is almost 180cm tall and my father is 186cm," he said. "We're a tall family overall. However, I still control myself a lot to keep my weight down, especially since my mom tries not to feed me too much. I'm right on the edge for the 125 kg weight class, and if I gain any more weight, I'll have to cut it. That's why I'm very careful. My physique is also more similar to my mom and dad's."

Fardin was his first coach and Masoumi would watch his father's bouts against different competitors. While he kept a few techniques of his father, Masoumi was impressed with the others as well. Like the double underhooks he uses to drive his opponents out-of-bounds. Masoumi says he picked that from former world champion Bilyal MAKHOV (RUS).

"I mostly learned this from Makhov and his techniques in the World Championship final -- how he would get under his opponent’s armpit and drive them backward," he said. "I really liked how he was always moving forward. He was physically huge and kept attacking non-stop."

Amirreza MASOUMI (IRI)Amirreza MASOUMI (IRI) with former world champion Reza YAZDANI (IRI). (Photo courtesy Amirreza Masoumi)

As he kept putting Gilan on the wrestling map, Masoumi was now being known. People will come to his home, farm and his father's business to congratulate. Being a successful Iran has its share of challenges. Growing up in Gilan and around wrestling, Masoumi wasn't unaware of the pressure it brings. There are fans who become your coach from stands, or even warm-up partners. Iran wrestlers are in the public eye most of their lives.

"I don't know about other countries, but in Iran, it's like that," Masoumi says. "It's the love."

Masoumi's first experience of "stardom" came after he former Asian champion Yadollah MOHEBI (IRI) at the selection trials in Iran.

"When I came out [of the stadium], there was a huge crowd, and a lot of spectators had come for the wrestling," Masoumi recalls ."I noticed many fans were coming up to take pictures with me. That’s when I felt like I was slowly entering an environment with a lot of pressure, and I realized I was growing in this kind of atmosphere."

Masoumi's personality clicks with the fans. He is humble yet celebrates his wins, he acknowledges the fans and doesn't shy away from being cheeky with his opponents after winning the bouts. He also witty.

"I think this comes down to my personality. I’m a bit hyperactive and always try to have my own unique style without being afraid," he says.

He expects them in Amman as well.

For Masoumi, the Asian Championships hold major significance -- not just for this year, but for his entire career. While world champion and Olympic silver medalist Amir Hossein ZARE (IRI) holds the top spot for Iran at 125kg, Masoumi is gunning for that position.

A gold medal in Amman would give Masoumi the chance to challenge Zare for a spot on Iran team for the 2025 World Championships.

"My opponent, Zare, is a tough competitor," Masoumi says. "I’ve been wrestling against him in Iran’s national team trials for three years now. I believe I can secure my spot on the national team this year and win gold at the World Championships."

Amirreza MASOUMI (IRI)Amir Hossein ZARE (IRI) defeated Amirreza MASOUMI (IRI) in the 125kg final at the Zagreb Open in 2024. (Photo: United World Wrestling / Kostadin Andonov)

Zare is also in top form, having won gold at the Muhamet Malo Ranking Series in similar dominant fashion. The world waits for their third meeting, likely at the Takhti Cup, Iran’s premier tournament, at the end of April. The winner of the best-of-three series will secure a spot at the World Championships.

"I need to compete in the Asian Championships," Masoumi says. "Any wrestler who wants to start in Iran should begin with the Takhti Cup and then move on to the 2025 World Championships."

Masoumi believes his unique wrestling style will give Zare trouble.

"I feel that match will be a great one for all wrestling fans. I think my wrestling style in the heavyweight category is quite unique. I don’t think there’s anyone in Iran’s heavyweight division with a six-pack. Naturally, in my mind, I aim to defeat Amirhossein to make up for my two previous losses."