#WrestleBelgrade

World Championships WW 53kg, 62kg, 68kg and 72kg semis set

By Ken Marantz & Vinay Siwach

BELGRADE, Serbia (September 20) -- All women's wrestling day as the World Championships enters its fifth day. Three Olympic and one non-Olympic weight classes were in action on Tuesday and three more Olympic weight classes, 53kg, 62kg and 68kg, will be in action on Wednesday. One non-Olympic weight class in action is 72kg.

WATCH LIVE | MATCH ORDER | DAY 4 RESULTS

14:38: Aisuluu TYNYBEKOVA (KGZ) gains a first-period takedown, and that proves to be the minimum to get her over the line and into the 62kg semifinals with a 2-2 victory over Iryna KOLIADENKO (URK). Koliadenko scores a stepout with one second left on the activity clock, then Tynybekova comes back with a double-leg takedown. In the second period, Koliadenko gains another stepout, but it is not enough to keep Tynybekova from winning on criteria. The result was far different than their semifinal at the Tokyo Olympics, which Tynybekova won 10-0.  Tynybekova will next face Luisa NIEMESCH (GER), pulled off a last-second victory over Orkhon PUREVDORJ (MGL).

14:27: Grace BULLEN (NOR) is into the semifinals at 62kg! She blasts Kriszta INCZE (ROU) 10-0 in the quarterfinals. She will have to get through Sakura MOTOKI (JPN) in the semifinals after the Japanese beat Lias NUNES (BRA) 10-0.

14:22: Having taken one major scalp already, Bose CAVUSOGLU TOSUN (TUR) will get a chance for another after whipping Adela HANZLICKOVA (CZE) 8-0 in their 68kg quarterfinal. That puts Cavusoglu Tosun into the semifinals against Ishii. The Turk pulled off a major upset in the first round when she ousted Irina RINGACI (MDA)

14:22: A double 2-1 win at 68kg! Delgermaa ENKHSAIKHAN (MGL) takes out Koumba LARROQUE (FRA) while Emma BRUNTIL (USA) beats Vusala PARFIANOVICH (AIN). They both face each other

14:15: Ami ISHII (JPN) gets a free pass into the 68kg semifinals with a victory by injury default over Meerim ZHUMANAZAROVA (KGZ) who injured her knee in her previous bout

14:10: Teen star Amit ELOR (USA) proves too much for fellow 2022 world champion Miwa MORIKAWA (JPN), scoring a pair of takedowns and two activity points in a 6-0 victory to advance to the 72kg semifinals. Elor is the defending champion, while Morikawa triumphed at 65kg last year.

14:08: At 72kg, Davaanasan ENKH AMAR (MGL) beats Sofia GEORGIEVA (BUL) and she will now take on two-time silver medalist Zhamila BAKBERGENOVA (KAZ) in the semifinal. Bakbergenova defeated Kseniia BURAKOVA (AIN)    

13:58: Akari FUJINAMI (JPN) survives the biggest scare of her international career when Lucia YEPEZ GUZMAN (ECU) comes roaring out of the gate in their 53kg quarterfinal and tags the Japanese for five points. Fujinami recovers from the shock to notch three takedowns to go into the break up 6-5. In the second period, she gains a takedown and three lace-lock rolls to move one point from a technical fall, but Yepez Guzman fires back with a double-leg takedown. Fujinami responds with a barrel roll to the back, then gets a headlock and scores a fall. It was the most points ever scored against Fujinami by a non-Japanese opponent. Fujinami had beaten Yepez Guzman twice before, including a 10-0 win at this year's Zagreb Open in February.

13:55: Emma MALMGREN (SWE) with a big four over Vanesa KALADZINSKAYA (AIN) but the Tokyo bronze medalist comes back to score a takedown and a stepout to win 6-4. Kaladzinskaya is into the semifinals and she will take on ANTIM (IND). On Mat A, Maria PREVOLARAKI (GRE) is back in the semifinal with a 1-1 win over Andreea ANA (ROU).

13:45: Grace BULLEN (NOR) saved her big four-pointer for the second period. She hits Esther KOLAWOLE (NGR) with a big throw and confirms the fall to move into the 62kg quarterfinals.

13:40: Orkhon PUREVDORJ (MGL) uses her big throws to put Ana GODINEZ (CAN) on her back and secure a 13-7 win at 62kg. She moves into the quarterfinal and will face Luisa NIEMESCH (GER).

13:28: No wasting any time for Aisuluu TYNYBEKOVA (KGZ). The two-time champion gets a 4-point takedown right off the bat against Mariana CHERDIVARA (MDA), then stacks her up for a fall in 49 seconds that puts her into the 62kg quarterfinals.

13:25: At 62kg, Sakura MOTOKI (JPN) joins her Ikuei University teammate Ishii in the quarterfinals by also beating a Bulgarian opponent. Motoki, the 59kg champ last year, scores two takedowns in the first period and concedes nothing in a 4-0 victory over 2021 59kg gold medalist Bilyana DUDOVA (BUL).

13:20: Emma BRUNTIL (USA) takes on Feng ZHOU (CHN) at 68kg. She moves into the quarterfinals. Bruntil's 6-3 win over Zhou puts her against Vusala PARFIANOVICH (AIN) who just upset Tokyo Olympic silver medalist Blessing OBORUDUDU (NGR) with a late takedown and win 2-2

13:14: Ami ISHII (JPN) survives a late rally and a tenuous situation at the hands of European champion Yuliana YELEVA (BUL) to advance to the 68kg quarterfinals with an 8-4 victory. Ishii had gone up 8-0 in the second period with a takedown and a pair of gut wrenches, when Yeleva scored a takedown and was on the verge of turning Ishii over. But the Japanese managed to hold firm and squirm out of the predicament, enabling her to keep a big lead which came into play when Yeleva scored a late takedown.

13:02: Tokyo Olympic bronze medalist Vanesa KALADZINSKAYA (AIN) with a huge 9-2 win over Stalvira ORSHUSH (HUN) in the 53kg 1/16 finals. She will face Malmgren in the quarterfinals

12:55: Young Amit ELOR (USA) begins defense of her 72kg title by scoring three takedowns in a 7-0 victory over Nesrin BAS (TUR), the 2022 world U23 champion at 68kg. That sets up a final-worthy quarterfinal with Miwa MORIKAWA (JPN), the 65kg champion a year ago who held off QIANDEGENCHAGAN (CHN) 5-2 on the adjacent mat.

12:52: European champion Jonna MALMGREN (SWE) scores a second passivity point to see off Samantha STEWART (CAN) 2-1 and reach the 53kg semifinals. On Mat A, Andreea ANA (ROU) with a 9-0 shutout over Iulia LEORDA (MDA) to reach the semifinal against Maria PREVOLARAKI (GRE)

12:44: Lucia YEPEZ (ECU) with a fall over Christianah OGUNSANYA (NGR) and she moves into the quarterfinals at 53kg. She will have to beat Akari FUJINAMI (JPN) to book her spot to the semifinals.

12:33: Olympic silver medalist Qianyu PANG (CHN) becomes the latest victim of the upset bug. Maria PREVOLARAKI (GRE), a bronze medalist last year, scores a 4-point takedown in the final seconds to pull out an 8-4 victory.

12:32: Akari FUJINAMI (JPN) cruises into the 53kg quarterfinals, adding two lace-lock rolls to her third takedown in a 10-0 victory over Jeongbin OH (KOR) in 1:32. Her winning streak is now at 124.

12:31: Orkhon PUREVDORJ (MGL) hangs on for a 75- win over Jia LONG (CHN) in the 62kg 1/16 final. Purevdorj is an Asian silver medalist while Long was the champion at 65kg at the Asian event

12:25: Grace BULLEN (NOR) with a fall over Angelina RODRIGUES (CPV) at 62kg. Bullen was a silver medalist at 59kg last year. Rodrigues is the first-ever woman wrestler from Cape Verde

12:21: Olympic silver medalist Aisuluu TYNYBEKOVA, aiming for her third world title at 62kg, has her hands full with  Aleksandra WOLCZYNSKA (POL). Tynybekova leads 4-2 in the second period when she powers a double-leg takedown to the back for 4, then stacks up Wolczynska for a fall.

12:10: Quick win at 62kg for Sakura MOTOKI (JPN), the 59kg champion last year who moved up to the Olympic weight and beat out world champion Nonoka OZAKI (JPN) for the spot on the Japan team to Belgrade. A takedown to the back and three lace-lock rolls give Motoki a 10-0 win over Ariukhan JUMABAEVA (UZB) in 46 seconds. Next up is Bilyana DUDOVA (BUL) in a clash of the last two gold medalists at 59kg

12:09: Odunayo ADEKUOROYE (NGR) with a fall over Tokyo bronze medalist Evelina NIKOLOVA (BUL) after leading 14-7 in the 57kg repechage. Adekuoroye will now wrestle for bronze and an Olympic quota.

12:03: Adeline GRAY (USA) secures a fall at the first-period buzzer in her 76kg repechage match against Yuanyuan HUANG (CHN) to earn a place in the bronze-medal match later tonight. Not only will the six-time champion Gray be going for her ninth career world medal, and first bronze since 2011, but just as importantly the Paris Olympic quota that goes with it.

11:46: The first major shock of the day comes on Mat C, and Irina RINCACI (MDA) is the victim. Buse CAVUSOGLU TOSUN (TUR) takes Rincaci down with a half-nelson right to her back, then clamps down for a fall at 68kg. Rincaci had started off with a takedown, but paid the price for letting her guard down. Rincaci made history in 2021 when won the 65kg title to become Moldova's first-ever female world champion, and won a bronze last year at 68kg.

11:42: Ami ISHII (JPN) launches her bid to improve on her 68kg silver from last year by quickly dispatching Dieu Thuoug LAI (VIE). An ankle pick to the back and Ishii with the fall in 26 seconds.

11:36: Koumba LARROQUE (FRA), back at the Olympic weight of 68kg after winning her third world medal last year with a bronze at 65kg, gets a 4-point takedown to go up 10-0 but secures the fall anyway against Zsuzsanna MOLNAR (SVK).

11:30: Miwa MORIKAWA (JPN), last year's world champion at 65kg, begins her quest for a second world title, this year at 72kg, with a 3-0 win over Nurzat NURTAEVA (KGZ).

11:16: Dominique PARRISH (USA), who won the 53kg title last year in Fujinami's absence, has seen her reign end after one match. With Parrish on the activity clock, Asian silver medalist ANTIM (UWW) scores a takedown with 1:20 left and holds on for a 3-2 victory.

11:02: Tokyo Olympic silver medal Qianyu PANG (CHN) is up against Altyn SHAGAYEVA (KAZ) on Mat A. After they traded passivities, Pang with a stepout to win 2-1

10:55: A fall on Mat C for Iulia LEORDA (MDA), the losing finalist at 53kg in 2021 to Fujinami, over Sandy PARRA (COL). She and Fujinami could meet in the semifinals this time.

10:53: Akari FUJINAMI (JPN) gets off to a roaring start in her bid to regain the 2021 title at 53kg that she had to give up when she was injured last year. She scores an early single-leg takedown against Tuba DEMIR (TUR), then after a spin-behind takedown, applies the lace lock and spins three times for a 10-0 win in 1:19. The win runs her current winning streak to 123 matches.

10:30: Big day for women's wrestling as three more Olympic weight classes go on mat today. Wrestlers in 53kg, 62kg and 68kg will try to win a spot for the Paris Olympics.

#WrestleSamokov

U20 Worlds: After two heartbreaks, Kassimbek is world champ

By Vinay Siwach

SAMOKOV, Bulgaria (August 18) -- Yedige KASSIMBEK (KAZ) had lost two World U17 Championships finals, denying him the world champion tag.

He got his third chance to be a world champion on Monday at the World U20 Championships in Samokov and third time proved to be lucky for the Kazakhstan wrestler.

Wrestling a familiar opponent in Abolfazl MOHAMMAD NEZHAD (IRI) in the final, Kassimbek seemed in  no trouble during the six minute bout and captured the gold medal and his first world title with a 4-1 victory.

Yedige KASSIMBEK (KAZ)Yedige KASSIMBEK (KAZ) turns Abofazl MOHAMMAD NEZHAD (IRI) for match-winning two points in the 125kg final. (Photo: United World Wresting / Amirreza Aliasgari)

The 18-year-old had previously wrestled Mohammad Nezhad three times in his career and won all three. Kassimbek defeated the Iranian at the 2023 Asian U17 Championships, 8-1, in their first meeting. In 2024, he defeated him twice, in the semifinals at the World U17 and Asian U17 Championships, 4-3 and 2-2, respectively.

"I am very happy," Kassimbek said. "I have been waiting for this day for a long time, and I am glad [to win]. In the future, I will become an Olympic champion. I am already slowly preparing for this goal."

Mohammad Nezhad thought he may have a chance to change that record when he went up 1-0 in the final after Kassimbek failed to score after being put on the activity clock. But the second period was all about Kassimbek as he got a takedown and then turned the Iranian, wrapping Mohammad Nezhad's legs around his head, for two points.

The 4-1 lead and some defensive wrestling was enough for Kassimbek to win the final and claim his gold medal, making him the first wrestler to win the heaviest weight class at any World Championships.

Yedige KASSIMBEK (KAZ)World U20 champion at 125kg -- Yedige KASSIMBEK (KAZ). (Photo: United World Wrestling / Amirreza Aliasgari)

"Even though I have defeated the Iranian wrestler more than once, I take every opponent seriously," he said. "But when I stepped on the mat, I was confident in my victory."

While Kassimbek will have more age-group tournaments, he has ambitions to be at the senior level in quick time with some added strength and weight.

"I still have a lot of work ahead of me. I am still not strong enough," he said. "I need to work harder. I am eighteen years old, but I already want to compete at senior level, I just need to gain a little bit more weight."

PJ DUKE (USA)PJ DUKE (USA) celebrates after winning the 70kg gold medal in Samokov. (Photo: United World Wrestling / Amirreza Aliasgari)

U.S. wins 2 golds

Two returning bronze medalists from the U.S. -- PJ DUKE (USA) and Justin RADEMACHER (USA) -- upgraded their medals to gold.

Duke, a recent high school graduate, was the first world champion on Monday as he won a slugfest against Alexandr GAIDARLI (MDA), 7-5. Duke's gold comes a month he wrestles at the senior World Championships in Zagreb.

He scored the first five points against Gaidarli's one but the Moldovan a takedown and turn from Gaidarli made it 5-5 with him leading on criteria and 1:20 left on the clock.

Duke, however, remained composed and managed to get on a leg-attack and convert it into a takedown for a 7-5 match-deciding lead. Gaidarli's attempts to score at the end where easily negated  by Duke.

With the win, Duke denied Gaidarli a historic title which would have made him the first Freestyle world U20 champion since 1999 for Moldova.

PJ DUKE (USA)PJ DUKE (USA) scores a takedown over Alexandr GAIDARLI (MDA) in the 70kg final. (Photo: United World Wrestling / Kadir Caliskan)

"One thing I never really thought about, like obviously I've dreamed about winning a world title, but that feeling you get when you're on the podium when they're playing the national anthem. It's something I've never felt before and it's just so cool," Duke said.

Duke will have one month to rebound and wrestle in Zagreb, a competition much tougher than the U20 level.

"I got to definitely have a few things I need to tweak, easy fixes and minor technical changes," he said. "My body's is in good shape, I feel fine. I'm not too beat up on this."

Duke had to beat Yianni DIAKOMIHALIS (USA) in a best-of-three series to win the spot on the U.S. senior. While he celebrated his victory there, Duke had a subdued celebrations when he won in Samokov.

"The Final X was just a little different for me," he said. "I was definitely a bigger underdog there. It's just being on that senior team is my main goal. Coming from last year after losing the U20s. I just had to get that done. I tried not to show too much emotion but sometimes it's big deal, like final X, it comes out."

Justin RADEMACHER (USA)Justin RADEMACHER (USA) attempts a leg attack against Magomedgadzhi MAGOMEDOV (UWW) in the 97kg final. (Photo: United World Wrestling / Amirreza Aliasgari)

Rademacher had a rather straightforward final against Magomedgadzhi MAGOMEDOV (UWW) at 97kg. The match was majorly a one-move finish as Rademacher got on a leg attack and forced Magomedov towards the zone before throwing him in danger for four points.

From there on, Rademacher was happy to play the clock while Magomedov, struggling with his conditioning, never really got a chance to score until a late stepout to get on the board.

European U23 champion Ismail KHANIEV (UWW) got his world title to his name after he won the 74kg final against Adilet AKYLBEKOV (KGZ). Khaniev blanked Akylbekov, 11-0, with a series of takedowns.

In the first period, Khaniev had two takedowns, a turn and a stepout to lead 7-0. He finished the bout quickly in the second period with takedown and an exposure to win.

"This was my goal for the year," Khaniev said. "I needed to accomplish it, and I did. I rate my performance at this tournament 4 out of 5 because there is always room to grow, I still made some mistakes."

Khaniev had a tough bracket to go through, wrestling returning silver medalist Ladarion LOCKETT (USA) and European U20 champion Manuel WAGIN (GER), a wrestler he recently lost to at the European U20 Championships.

"Against Lockett, I was focused and really wanted to beat him, just like the German wrestler to whom I lost at the Europeans," he said. "I was very well prepared for the match [against Lockett], and I managed to win with full confidence."

Ismail KHANIEV (UWW)Ismail KHANIEV (UWW) won his first world title on Monday. (Photo: United World Wrestling / Amirreza Aliasgari)

Khaniev had lost to Wagin in Italy, 5-4, in a close semifinal but their rematch in Samokov followed a different storyline as Khaniev won via technical superiority.

"At the U20 European Championships I wasn’t fully prepared, I had injuries, although that is not an excuse," he said. "Here I really wanted to take revenge, I prepared very hard, did everything possible on my side, and it worked out."

Khaniev called the 74kg weight class as the "royal" one and wants to continue his career in it for the time being.

"I believe that if I continue to work hard, then even in such a competitive weight class I will be able to withstand the competition," he said. "This is considered the 'royal' weight. It will be very interesting for me to keep competing in this weight, unless my weight increases and I have to move up to a higher category."

RESULTS

70kg
GOLD: PJ DUKE (USA) df. Alexandr GAIDARLI (MDA), 7-5

BRONZE: Nurlan AGHAZADA (AZE) df. Goga OTINASHVILI (GEO), 4-0
BRONZE: Ebrahim ELAHI (IRI) df. Abdoullah NAKAEV (FRA), 6-4

74kg
GOLD: Ismail KHANIEV (UWW) df. Adilet AKYLBEKOV (KGZ), 11-0

BRONZE: Dosszhan KUL GAIYP (KAZ) df. Raul CASO (ITA), 6-3
BRONZE: Kanata YAMAGUCHI (JPN) df. Ladarion LOCKETT (USA), 10-0

97kg
GOLD: Justin RADEMACHER (USA) df. Magomedgadzhi MAGOMEDOV (UWW), 4-1

BRONZE: Konstantine PETRIASHVILI (GEO) df. Ibrahim BENEKLI (TUR), 8-3
BRONZE: Samir DURSUNOV (KAZ) df. VISHAL (IND), via fall

125kg
GOLD: Yedige KASSIMBEK (KAZ) df. Abolfazl MOHAMMAD NEZHAD (IRI), 4-1

BRONZE: Yusif DURSUNOV (AZE) df. Levan LAGVILAVA (FRA), 3-1
BRONZE: Cole MIRASOLA (USA) df. Narantulga DARMAABAZAR (MGL), 12-2