#Bishkek2018

Yang Stuns Geraei to Give China 1st Greco-Roman Gold Since 2012

Tuesday, February 27, 2018 - 18:20 By Ken Marantz

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YANG Bin gave China its first Greco-Roman gold medal at an Asian Championships in six years with a stunning victory, while host Kyrgyzstan's vocal fans were twice denied a title to highlight the opening night of finals in Bishkek.

Yang surprised favorite and Paris 2017 world bronze medalist Mohammadali GERAEI (IRI) in the 77kg final by grinding out a hard-fought 7-6 win.

"I was very confident, and I thought I was the best in this category," said Yang, a bronze medalist a year ago in New Delhi.

The match that began and ended with flurries of action was decided when Yang scored with a step-out with :13 left in which Geraei went sprawling awkwardly into the referee.

That tied the match at 6-6 and would have given the Chinese the win on criteria, but he received another point when Geraei's challenge that Yang had grabbed his singlet was rejected.

"At the very end, I used my technique and got the point, and I believed that the referee would give a fair judgement," Yang said of the call.

That made Yang the first Chinese to win an Asian gold in Greco-Roman since Zheng Pan took the 66kg title at Gumi 2012.

"Actually we have been working so many years to get an Asian champion," Yang said. "Sometimes, we had second or third, we just need some luck, because they are similar levels. Today we are happy to see this result."


Kyrgyzstan had wrestlers in the first two finals of the night, and neither could come away victorious, much to the chagrin of the packed house of 3,000 at the Kozhomkul Sports Palace.

First, teenager Zholaman SHARSHENBAKOV's late rally in the 55kg came up just short in a 5-4 loss to Shota TANOKURA (JPN). Then Urmalbek AMATOV was overwhelmed by veteran Elmurat TASMURADOV (UZB), who ended their 63kg final with an 8-0 technical fall with 1:49 remaining.

Despite Geraei's defeat, Iran still came away with two golds, as New Delhi 2017 champions Hossein NOURI (87kg) and Behnam MEHDIZADEH (130kg) both posted tepid yet solid victories. Mehdizadeh had also won in 2014.

Nouri, the Paris 2017 world bronze medalist, notched a 3-0 victory over unheralded Masato SUMI (JPN), while Mehdizadeh followed by beating Muminjon ABDULLAEV (UZB) 3-1.

Japan's Tanokura took an unusual path to a continental crown. An Asian medalist in both 2012 and 2013, he struggled to find success when the 55kg weight class was eliminated and he had to face naturally bigger opponents. Two years ago, he retired to become a high school physical education teacher.

But when the lighter weight class was reinstated, his college coach and current Japan national team coach Shingo Matsumoto persuaded him to return during nights out for Korean barbecue.

His victory at the Japan championships in December vindicated his decision and put him on the team to Bishkek, where he added the gold medal to the silver and bronze medals he had previously won. It also makes him eye bigger things.

"Of course, my goal is to be world champion," Tanokura said. "In Asia, the level is high in the lighter weights, so to win the Asian title this time is a step ahead. There is still progress to be made."

Against Sharshenbekov, Tanokura used a front headlock throw and a penalty point to build up a 5-0 lead going into the second period. But the Krygyz wrestler gradually whittled away at the gap, cutting it to one with a takedown with :40 remaining. But with the deafening crowd urging his opponent on, Tanokura managed to hold on for the win.

"It was something else," Tanokura said of the crowd noise. "It's unusual for the Asian Championships to draw such a big crowd. I knew it wouldn't be easy to win. But I stayed aggressive and that led to coming away with the victory."

At 63kg, Rio 2016 Olympic bronze medalist Tasmuradov quieted the crowd with his one-sided win over Amatov, scoring with push-outs, rolls and a takedown for his fourth Asian title overall and first since 2015. He also has three world bronze medals.

Meanwhile, Kazakhstan, which had been shut out of the finals, came away with three bronze medals from Khorian ZHAKANSHA (55kg), Mirambek AINAGULOV (63kg) and Maxat YEREZHEPOV (77kg).

It was the fifth Asian medal for Yerezhepov, who last year defeated Yang in the semifinals en route to the 75kg gold.

Kyrgyzstan and China both claimed two bronzes, while India, South Korea, and Turkmenistan had one each.

Greco-Roman
55kg (10 entries)
Gold - Shota TANOKURA  (JPN) df. Zholaman SHARSENBEKOV (KGZ), 5-4

Bronze –  Khorian ZHAKANSHA (KAZ) df. CAO Liguo (CHN), 7-4
Bronze – Kumar RAJENDER (IND) df. Javokhir MIRAKHMEDOV (UZB), 3x-3

63kg (9 entries)
Gold - Elmurat TASMURADOV (UZB) df.  Urmalbek AMATOV (KGZ) by TF, 8-0, 1:44

Bronze –  Mirambek AINAGULOV (KAZ) df. Vikram KURADE  (IND) by TF, 9-0, 3:39
Bronze –  JUNG Dokyung (KOR) df. Takayuki INOGUCHI (JPN), 2-0

77kg (12 entries)
Gold - YANG Bin (CHN) df.  Mohammadali GERAEI (IRI), 7-6

Bronze –  Shermet PERMANOV (TKM) df. Jalgasbay BERDIMURATOV (UZB), 7-3
Bronze – Maxat YEREZHEPOV (KAZ) df. Shohei YABIKU (JPN), 3-2

87 kg (10 entries)
Gold - Hossein NOURI (IRI) df. Masato SUMI (JPN), 3-0

Bronze –  PENG Fei (CHN) df. Husham THAALEBI (IRQ), 3-0
Bronze – Azai BEISHEBEKOV (KGZ) df. Khussein MUTSOLGOV (KAZ), 5-2

130 kg (10 entries)
Gold - Behnam MEHDIZADEH (IRI) df. Muminjon ABDULLAEV (UZB), 3-1 

Bronze – Murat RAMONOV (KGZ) df. Anton SAVENKO (KAZ), by Fall, 4:24 (4-0)
Bronze – NIE Xiaoming (CHN) df. Naveen NAVEEN (IND) 3-1

#WrestleTirana

European Championships 2026 Greco-Roman Preview

Thursday, April 16, 2026 - 09:14 By Vinay Siwach

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TIRANA, Albania (April 15) -- When Aleksandr KARELIN won his 12th European gold in 2000, it seemed like one of the most impregnable records in wrestling. In 2023, Riza KAYAALP (TUR) equaled that accomplishment but his hopes of going past Karelin came to naught after he was pinned in the final at Bucharest in 2024. [Kayaalp’s 12 golds include the 2025 European Games gold medal since no European Championships was held in that year].

Two years later, Kayaalp will take another shot at history when he steps onto the mat in Tirana next week for the European Championships in the 130kg weight class.

DOWNLOAD FULL PREVIEW HERE | European Championships 2026 Schedule | European Championships 2026 Freestyle Preview | European Championships 2026 Women's Wrestling Preview

Kayaalp began this season with a gold medal at the Zagreb Open Ranking Series to set the stage for an epic European comeback. Apart from breaking the record, a win in Tirana will give Kayaalp much-needed confidence as the 36-year-old continues his comeback after missing two years of action.

The field in Tirana includes Muhamet Malo Ranking Series winner and perhaps Kayaalp's biggest threat Marat KAMPAROV (UWW). 2025 European bronze medalists Jello KRAHMER (GER) and Darius VITEK (HUN) are returning with an aim to change the color of their medals.

Among other contenders are former U23 world champion Pavel HLINCHUK (UWW), former U20 world champion Mykhailo VYSHNYVETSKYI (UKR) and Beka KANDELAKI (AZE) who once pinned Kayaalp in Istanbul.

Turkiye will be hoping to win more golds than just Kayaalp's.

Defending champion at 63kg Kerem KAMAL (TUR) will look to find the same form he did in the first half of 2025, winning three gold medals in a span of four months.
 
Trying to stop Kamal from winning a second straight gold medal will be returning silver medalist Karen ASLANYAN (ARM) who fell short in a one-sided final last year. Also in the mix are U23 world champion Ziya BABASHOV (AZE) and world bronze medalist Vitalie ERIOMENCO (MDA). Babashov defeated Eriomenco in the final of the U23 World Championships but both can make a run for gold in Tirana.

Veteran Sergey EMELIN (UWW) enters with hopes of winning his third European gold and first since in 2021.

Malkhas AMOYAN (ARM)Malkhas AMOYAN (ARM) is a four-time European champion. (Photo: United World Wrestling / Kostadin Andonov)

Amoyan's World
There is no Greco-Roman wrestler who can be considered as dominant as Malkhas AMOYAN (ARM) among current wrestlers. The defending champion will land in Tirana in a bid to win his fifth straight European title. He last lost at the European Championships in 2021, dropping his 72kg final.

But since then, Amoyan has been untouched at the continental level. He never looked in trouble during his golden run in 2025 and is unlikely to suffer any upsets this year as well.

Lining up to challenge him are returning silver medalist Ramaz ZOIDZE (GEO) and former champion Robert FRITSCH (HUN). Joining them will be U23 world champion Alexandrin GUTU (MDA), Sergei STEPANOV (UWW) and world bronze medalist Ahmet YILMAZ (TUR).

Hasrat JAFAROV (AZE)Hasrat JAFAROV (AZE) is one of the three defending Greco-Roman champions for Azerbaijan. (Photo: United World Wrestling / Kostadin Andonov)

Azerbaijan's Defending Champs
Azerbaijan is bringing all three of its 2025 champions as it looks to defend the team title. Olympic bronze medalist and world silver Hasrat JAFAROV (AZE) leads the charge at 67kg and is the favorite to win gold.

A possible rematch of last year's final is on the cards as Abu AMAEV (BUL) returns to maintain his 100 percent record of winning a medal at the European Championships. Amaev has two bronze and a silver at the tournament.

Two young stars who can pose a threat are U23 world silver medalist Diego CHKHIKVADZE (GEO) and former U20 world champion Erzu ZAKRIEV (UWW). Chkhikvadze began this year with two silver medals at the Zagreb Open and Muhamet Malo Ranking Series events.

Zakriev made his senior debut at the Muhamet Malo in Tirana and finished with a bronze medal.

Returning at 60kg is Nihat MAMMADLI (AZE) who began this season with a gold medal at the Muhamet Malo Ranking Series. He would like to forget the medalless campaigns at World Championships and Islamic Solidarity Games and regain the form he was at last year's Europeans, winning three out of four bouts via technical superiority.

The only wrestler who troubled Mammadli was Georgij TIBILOV (SRB) who will be returning with the hope of changing his silver to gold this year. Tibilov's defense can be hard to penetrate but he has not been able to stop Mammadli's par terre offense, from where he lost the final last year.

Gurban GURBANOV (AZE) is the third returning champion for Azerbaijan as he looks to defend his 82kg gold medal. Apart from the two technical points he gave up, Gurbanov was unscored upon as he won four bouts to win the gold medal.

He blanked Gela BOLKVADZE (GEO), 4-0, in the semifinals but the Georgian will be keen on avenging that loss. The world silver medalist was not awarded the par terre position in the semifinals last year which could have changed the result of the bout.

Zoltan LEVAI (HUN), silver medalist at 77kg at Zagreb Open, is moving up to 82kg and will be among the medal contenders in Tirana along with Muhamet Malo Ranking Series silver medalist Adlet TIULIUBAEV (UWW).

Return of Novikov, Milov
After missing the entire 2025 season after the European Championships, Olympic champion Semen NOVIKOV (BUL) and European champion Kiril MILOV (BUL) will be back in action in Tirana with an aim to win gold medals at 87kg and 97kg respectively.

Novikov was stunned in the 87kg final last year by David LOSONCZI (HUN) but he will like to make amends and win his second European gold. At the recent Dan Kolov tournament in Bulgaria, Novikov suffered a 7-3 in the semifinal against Yaroslav FILCHAKOV (UKR) who had troubled Novikov at the European Championships last year as well.

Filchakov will be in Tirana to challenge Novikov again along with several other stars including world champion Aleksandr KOMAROV (SRB) who picked up a bronze medal last year. Paris bronze medalist Turpal BISULTANOV (DEN), who skipped the tournament last year, will also be returning to action for the first time this year.

Returning bronze medalist Islam ABBASOV (AZE), former world champion Lasha GOBADZE (GEO), former European champion Istvan TAKACS (HUN) and Alan OSTAEV (UWW) are also in the hunt for medals at this weight class.

Kiril MILOV (BUL)Kiril MILOV (BUL) defeated Artur ALEKSANYAN (ARM) for the first time in his career and went on to win the 97kg gold. (Photo: United World Wrestling / Kostadin Andonov)

For Milov, the path to gold should be much simpler than Novikov. Milov stunned Artur ALEKSANYAN (ARM) last year, handing the Armenian legend his first European loss since 2017, before winning his second European gold medal. In Tirana, he will be joined by the three other medalists from the 2025 edition -- silver medalist Lucas LAZOGIANIS (GER), and bronze medalists Alex SZOKE (HUN) and Kiryl MASKEVICH (UWW).

But Milov's biggest threat will be world silver medalist Artur SARGSIAN (UWW) who suffered a shocking loss to Tyrone STERKENBURG (NED). Sargsian has an explosive offense from par terre and can defend as well as he did during the World Championships, winning four bouts by the score of 1-1 before losing the final.

At 55kg, it can well be the passing of the baton as world champion and returning bronze medalist Vakhtang LOLUA (GEO) takes on defending champion Emin SEFERSHAEV (UWW). These are the only two returning medalists but Lolua is primed to upset Sefershaev.

At 72kg, world silver medalist Ibrahim GHANEM (FRA), who had to share the gold medal with Levente LEVAI (HUN), will be the sole favorite this year. He has one of the most effective defenses in the world.

Among the few challengers will be Krisztian VANCZA (HUN), U20 world champion Gaspar TERTERYAN (ARM) and former U23 European champion Ruslan NURULLAYEV (AZE).