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Friday at the 2023 World Championships marked the first full day of Greco-Roman action. Three new weight classes got underway for the first time, 60 kg, 72 kg, and 97 kg. Unfortunately for the American contingent, two of those athletes; Ildar Hafizov (60) and Pat Smith (72) were eliminated from medal contention. Joe Rau (97 kg) still has an opportunity to bring home a medal as the opponent that defeated him, five-time World/Olympic champion Artur Aleksanyan (Armenia), advanced to Saturday’s gold medal match. Rau, along with Smith, both won their first bouts of the tournament before suffering a loss. Rau will have to win a pair of matches on Saturday to wrestle for a bronze medal and an Olympic quota. First up, is Romania’s Nicu Ojog, a 2018 U23 World silver medalist and a 2022 European runner-up. Should Rau get past Ojog, he’d face Artur Omarov (Czech Republic), a 2023 European bronze medalist. Speaking of repechage, the only American from yesterday’s action that made it to the second day of competition was Kamal Bey. Bey was facing an uphill battle to earn a bronze medal as he would need three repechage victories just to wrestle for a medal. Bey responded with a victory in his first repechage match. He downed Finland’s Jonni Sarkkinen 7-3. The key sequence in the contest took place with under :40 seconds remaining and Bey trailing 3-2. He bullied Sarkkinen to the edge, caught him off balance, and drove through him for a takedown. On the ensuing restart, Sarkkinen pushed the pace as he was now trailing. Bey was able to slip out of a Sarkkinen head and arm for an insurance takedown. In his second repechage match, Bey took on Moldova’s Alexandrin Gutu. The key sequence in this bout took place during the waning seconds of the opening period. Gutu had a chest lock and went for a big throw. Bey did not expose himself; however, he did give up a takedown, which brought the score to 3-2 in favor of Gutu. Bey would tie the score in the second period on a passivity point, but he still trailed since all of his scores were of the one-point variety. Despite a frantic effort from Bey in the last minute, he wasn’t able to add to his score and lost 3-3 on criteria. 55 kg Gold Medal Match - Eldaniz Azizli (Azerbaijan) over Nugzari Tsurtsumia (Georgia) 13-4 Bronze Medal Match - Poya Dad Marz (Iran) over Marlan Mukashev (Kazakhstan) 6-3 Bronze Medal Match - Artiom Deleanu (Moldova) over Mohamed Yacine Dridi (Algeria) Fall :44 77 kg Gold Medal Match - Akzhol Makhmudov (Kyrgyzstan) over Sanan Suleymanov (Azerbaijan) 1-1 Bronze Medal Match - Malkhas Amoyan (Armenia) over Demeu Zhadrayev (Kazakhstan) 9-7 Bronze Medal Match - Nao Kusaka (Japan) over Aram Vardanyan (Uzbekistan) 8-0 Olympic Quota Wrestle-Off - Aram Vardanyan (Uzbekistan) over Demeu Zhadrayev (Kazakhstan) 5-4 82 kg Gold Medal Match - Rafig Huseynov (Azerbaijan) over Alireza Mohmadipiani (Iran) 2-1 Bronze Medal Match - Aues Gonibov (AIN - Russia) over Burhan Akbudak (Turkey) 6-3 Bronze Medal Match - Yaroslav Filchakov (Ukraine) over Branko Kovacevic (Serbia) 9-0 130 kg Gold Medal Match - Amin Mirzazadeh (Iran) over Riza Kayaalp (Turkey) 2-2 Bronze Medal Match - Abdellatif Mohamed (Egypt) over Lingzhe Meng (China) 3-2 Bronze Medal Match - Oscar Pino Hinds (Cuba) over Romas Fridrikas (Lithuania) 5-1 Olympic Quota Wrestle-Off - Lingzhe Meng (China) over Romas Fridrikas (Lithuania) 1-1 American Results 60 kg Round of 32 - Mehdi Mohsen Nejad (Iran) over Ildar Hafizov 7-0 72 kg Qualification - Pat Smith over Kamil Czarnecki (Poland) Fall 4:08 Round of 16 - Ibragim Magomadov (Kazakhstan) over Pat Smith 5-1 77 kg Repechage - Kamal Bey over Jonni Sarkkinen (Finland) 7-3 Repechage - Alexandrin Gutu (Moldova) over Kamal Bey 3-3 97 kg Round of 32 - Joe Rau over Filip Smetko (Croatia) 4-1 Round of 16 - Artur Aleksanyan (Armenia) over Joe Rau 9-0

Final Results Team Scores 1) Japan 195 2) United States 135 3) Mongolia 80 4) China 65 5) Ukraine 59 50 kg Gold Medal Match: Yui Susaki (Japan) over Otgonjargal Dolgorjav (Mongolia) 10-0 Bronze Medal Match: Ziqi Feng (China) over Alisson Cardozo Rey (Colombia) 10-0 Bronze Medal Match: Sarah Hildebrandt (USA) over Evin Demirhan (Turkey) 5-0 Olympic Quota Wrestle-Off: Evin Demirhan (Turkey) over Alisson Cardozo Rey (Colombia) 4-1 53 kg Gold Medal Match: Akari Fujinami (Japan) over Vanesa Kaladzinskaya (Belarus) 10-0 Bronze Medal Match: Lucia Yepez Guzman (Ecuador) over Maria Prevolaraki (Greece) 10-3 Bronze Medal Match: Antim Panghal (India) over Emma Malmgren (Sweden) 16-6 Olympic Quota Wrestle-Off: Emma Malmgren (Sweden) over Maria Prevolaraki (Greece) Fall 2:11 55 kg Gold Medal Match: Haruna Okuno (Japan) over Jacarra Winchester (USA) 4-2 Bronze Medal Match: Mariana Dragutan (Moldova) over Karla Godinez Gonzalez (Canada) 3-2 Bronze Medal Match: Anastasia Blayvas (Germany) over Neha Sharma (UWW - India) 2-2 57 kg Gold Medal Match: Tsugumi Sakurai (Japan) over Anastasia Nichita (Moldova) 3-2 Bronze Medal Match: Helen Maroulis (USA) over Anhelina Lysak (Poland) 10-6 Bronze Medal Match: Odunayo Adekuoroye (Nigeria) over Elvira Kamaloglu (Turkey) 9-5 Olympic Quota Wrestle-Off: Anhelina Lysak (Poland) over Elvira Kamaloglu (Turkey) Fall 1:55 59 kg Gold Medal Match: Qi Zhang (China) over Yulia Tkach (Ukraine) 4-1 Bronze Medal Match: Jennifer Page (USA) over Alyona Kolesnik (Azerbaijan) Fall 1:40 Bronze Medal Match: Othelie Hoeie (Norway) over Elena Brugger (Germany) 5-1 62 kg Gold Medal Match: Aisuluu Tynybekova (Kyrgyzstan) over Sakura Motoki (Japan) 4-1 Bronze Medal Match: Grace Bullen (Norway) over Bilyana Dudova (Bulgaria) 3-0 Bronze Medal Match: Iryna Koliadenko (Ukraine) over Luisa Niemesch (Germany) 10-0 Olympic Quota Wrestle-Off: Luisa Niemesch (Germany) over Bilyana Dudova (Bulgaria) 3-2 65 kg Gold Medal Match: Nonaka Ozaki (Japan) over Macey Kilty (USA) 10-0 Bronze Medal Match: Mimi Hristova (Bulgaria) over Tatsiana Paulava (AIN - Belarus) Fall 1:51 Bronze Medal Match: Lili (China) over Kadriye Aksoy (Turkey) 3-2 68 kg Gold Medal Match: Buse Tosun (Turkey) over Delgermaa Enkhsaikhan (Mongolia) Fall 3:17 Bronze Medal Match: Koumba Larroque (France) over Emma Bruntil (USA) 10-0 Bronze Medal Match: Irina Ringaci (Moldova) over Ami Ishii (Japan) 8-8 Olympic Quota Wrestle-Off: Ami Ishii (Japan) over Emma Bruntil (USA) 2-0 72 kg Gold Medal Match: Amit Elor (USA) over Davaanasan Enkh Amar (Mongolia) 8-2 Bronze Medal Match: Zhamila Bakbergenova (Kazakhstan) over Natalia Strzalka (Poland) 4-1 Bronze Medal Match: Miwa Morikawa (Japan) over Kendra Dacher (France) 4-2 76 kg Gold Medal Match: Yuga Kagami (Japan) over Aiperi Medet Kyzy (Kyrgyzstan) Injury Default Bronze Medal Match: Tatiana Renteria (Colombia) over Catalina Axente (Romania) Fall 5:59 Bronze Medal Match: Adeline Gray (USA) over Milaimys Marin Potrille (Cuba) 10-6 Olympic Quota Wrestle-Off: Milaimys Marin Potrille (Cuba) over Catalina Axente (Romania) Fall :50

On the final day of the women’s freestyle competition at the 2023 World Championships in Belgrade, Serbia, the youngest member of the team brought home the first, and only, world title. 19-year-old Amit Elor went back-to-back and captured her second Senior world title in as many tries. Standing between Elor and a second world title was Mongolian Davaanasan Enkh Amar, a dangerous opponent that defeated Elor’s 2022 finals counterpart in the semifinals. Elor opened up the scoring with a step-out point halfway through the first period. Shortly after, Enkh Amar was put on the shot clock and unable to score during the :30 seconds that followed. Late in the first stanza, Elor locked up a front headlock and walked Enkh Amar out of bounds for another step-out point and a 3-0 lead. After the break, Elor got her first takedown of the contest, one that came after a snapdown. Enkh Amar was able to do what few have been able to and earned a pair of points via takedown after a throw-by. Elor wrestled through the position and ended up on top, which brought the score to 6-2. As the clock ticked under ten seconds in the final period, Enkh Aar tried for the home run and attempted a lateral drop. Elor was ready, countered, and got a takedown for good measure. The contest ended with the American on top and with an 8-2 advantage. In four matches at the 2023 World Championships, Elor outscored her competition by a 33-4 margin. Along the way, she notched wins over a U23 world champion and a returning Senior champion. This is also the second world title for Elor in 2023. She also won gold at the U20 World Championships in August. Next month, she’ll attempt to replicate her 2022 trifecta and also win the U23 tournament. The only other American woman in action on Thursday was Emma Bruntil at 68 kg. Bruntil made the semifinals yesterday, which dropped her into a bronze medal match-up today. There she met two-time world medalist Koumba Larroque (France), who made it number three with a 10-0 tech. Bruntil was not done, though. In the final match of the day, she met Ami Ishii (Japan) in an Olympic Quota Wrestle-Off. The winner would gain a berth for her country at the 2024 Olympic Games. Bruntil was never able to mount any offense against her stingy Japanese opponent and lost a 2-0 bout. The United States finished in second place (135 points) behind Japan (195) and ahead of Mongolia (80). For the second straight year, the US women put seven wrestlers on the medal stand. Also, Thursday was the first day of competition in Greco-Roman. None of the four Americans were able to advance past the Round of 16, but three did notch victories. Brady Koontz (55 kg), Kamal Bey (77 kg), and Cohlton Schultz (130 kg). Bey was pulled into repechage when Azerbaijan’s Sanan Suleymanov made the world finals. He’ll have a long path back to medal contention, as Bey will need to chart three wins before even wrestling for the bronze. He’ll also need four wins to lock up an Olympic berth. Final Results Women’s Freestyle 53 kg Gold Medal Match: Akari Fujinami (Japan) over Vanesa Kaladzinskaya (Belarus) 10-0 Bronze Medal Match: Lucia Yepez Guzman (Ecuador) over Maria Prevolaraki (Greece) 10-3 Bronze Medal Match: Antim Panghal (India) over Emma Malmgren (Sweden) 16-6 Olympic Quota Wrestle-Off: Emma Malmgren (Sweden) over Maria Prevolaraki (Greece) Fall 2:11 Women’s Freestyle 62 kg Gold Medal Match: Aisuluu Tynybekova (Kyrgyzstan) over Sakura Motoki (Japan) 4-1 Bronze Medal Match: Grace Bullen (Norway) over Bilyana Dudova (Bulgaria) 3-0 Bronze Medal Match: Iryna Koliadenko (Ukraine) over Luisa Niemesch (Germany) 10-0 Olympic Quota Wrestle-Off: Luisa Niemesch (Germany) over Bilyana Dudova (Bulgaria) 3-2 Women’s Freestyle 68 kg Gold Medal Match: Buse Tosun (Turkey) over Delgermaa Enkhsaikhan (Mongolia) Fall 3:17 Bronze Medal Match: Koumba Larroque (France) over Emma Bruntil (USA) 10-0 Bronze Medal Match: Irina Ringaci (Moldova) over Ami Ishii (Japan) 8-8 Olympic Quota Wrestle-Off: Ami Ishii (Japan) over Emma Bruntil (USA) 2-0 Women’s Freestyle 72 kg Gold Medal Match: Amit Elor (USA) over Davaanasan Enkh Amar (Mongolia) 8-2 Bronze Medal Match: Zhamila Bakbergenova (Kazakhstan) over Natalia Strzalka (Poland) 4-1 Bronze Medal Match: Miwa Morikawa (Japan) over Kendra Dacher (France) 4-2 American Results Women’s Freestyle 68 kg Bronze Medal Match: Koumba Larroque (France) over Emma Bruntil 10-0 Olympic Quota Wrestle-Off: Ami Ishii (Japan) over Emma Bruntil 2-0 Women’s Freestyle 72 kg Gold Medal Match: Amit Elor over Davaanasan Enkh Amar (Mongolia) 8-2 Greco-Roman 55 kg Qualification: Brady Koontz over Hyeokjin Jeon (South Korea) 7-3 Round of 16: Denis Florin Mihai (Romania) over Brady Koontz 9-0 Greco-Roman 77 kg Qualification: Kamal Bey over Fabio Dietsche (Switzerland) 4-1 Round of 32: Sanan Suleymanov (Azerbaijan) over Kamal Bey 8-0 Greco-Roman 82 kg Qualification: Stanislau Shafarenka (Belarus) over Spencer Woods 5-3 Greco-Roman 130 kg Qualification: Cohlton Schultz over Marcel Albini (Czech Republic) Fall 5:02 Round of 16: Romas Fridrikas (Lithuania) over Cohlton Schultz Fall :45

Men’s Freestyle was the first discipline to take the stage at the 2023 World Championships and, in turn, the first one that finished. Now that the final medals have been awarded, we have some sort of a picture as to how the 2024 Olympics will look. In addition to winning medals and titles, the wrestlers in Belgrade were also working towards Olympic qualification. At each Olympic weight, four wrestlers locked up Olympic quotas for their respective countries. Countries are the key word as they are tied to the country, not necessarily the wrestler. In most instances, the wrestler who secured the bid will also go to Paris; however, in highly competitive nations with deep talent pools (like the United States), that isn’t necessarily a given. For each weight class, we have a document with wrestlers who have already qualified and the other ways to qualify. Those tournaments are months away at this point. Below each chart are some of the notables that did not earn a quota this week, divided into continents, as that will be their next avenue to solidify Olympic participation. For now, we have only listed wrestlers/countries that participated in the 2023 World Championships. There may be other contenders that didn’t wrestle in Belgrade that will be a factor down the line (ex: Roman Bravo-Young: Mexico - 57 kg). Wrestlers from Africa haven’t been listed as it doesn’t have the depth, across the board, that other continents feature. Next to each wrestler is a key accomplishment for them, along with their record at the 2023 World Championships. 57 kg Notables That Didn't Qualify Asia Gulomjon Abdullaev (Uzbekistan) - 2x World 7th Place; 2-2 @ Worlds Aman Sehrawat (India) - 2022 U23 World Champion; 1-1 @ Worlds Meirambek Kartbay (Kazakhstan) - 2x World 5th Place; 3-3 @ Worlds Almaz Smanbekov (Kyrgyzstan) - 2023 Asian Silver Medalist; 1-1 @ Worlds Milad Valizadeh (Iran) - 2-1 @ Worlds Zanabazar Zandanbud (Mongolia) - 2022 World Bronze Medalist; 1-1 @ Worlds Wanhao Zou (China) - 2022 World 5th Place; 1-1 @ Worlds Europe Suleyman Atli (Turkey) - 2x World Medalist; 0-1 @ Worlds Vladimir Egorov (North Macedonia) - 2022 European Champion; 1-1 @ Worlds Aliabbas Rzazade (Azerbaijan) - 2023 European Champion; 1-1 @ Worlds Niklas Stechele (Germany) - 2023 European U23 Champion; 2-1 @ Worlds Georgi Vangelov (Bulgaria) - 2022 World 5th Place; 0-1 @ Worlds Pan-American Darian Cruz (Puerto Rico) - 2x Pan-Am Silver Medalist; 0-1 @ Worlds Zane Richards (USA) - 0-1 @ Worlds 65 kg Notables That Didn't Qualify Asia Umidjon Jalolov (Uzbekistan) - 2022 U20 World Champ, 1-1 @ Worlds Abdulmazhid Kudiev (Tajikistan) - 2023 Asian U23 Champion; 2-1 @ Worlds Adil Ospanov (Kazakhstan) - 1-2 @ Worlds Takuto Otoguro (Japan) - 2020 Olympic Gold Medalist; 2-1 @ Worlds Tulga Tumur Ochir (Mongolia) - 2021 World Bronze Medalist; 1-1 @ Worlds Europe Haji Aliyev (Azerbaijan) - 3x World Champion; 3-1 @ Worlds Erik Arushanian (Ukraine) - 2022 U23 World Bronze Medalist; 1-1 @ Worlds Edemi Bolkvadze (Georgia) - 2023 European Bronze Medalist: 1-1 @ Worlds Islam Dudaev (Albania) - 2022 European Bronze Medalist; 0-1 @ Worlds Mikyay Naim (Bulgaria) - 2023 European Silver Medalist; 0-1 @ Worlds Maxim Sacultan (Moldova) - 2023 World 5th Place; 4-3 @ Worlds Pan-American Agustin Destribates (Argentina) - 4x Pan-Am Bronze Medalist; 1-1 @ Worlds Austin Gomez (Mexico) - 1-1 @ Worlds Nick Lee (USA) - 3-1 @ Worlds Lachlan McNeil (Canada) - 0-1 @ Worlds Alejandro Valdes Tobier (Cuba) - 2x World Bronze Medalist; 1-1 @ Worlds 74 kg Notables That Didn't Qualify Asia Bekzod Abdurakhmanov (Uzbekistan) - 2020 Olympic Bronze Medalist; 1-1 @ Worlds Arsalan Budazhapov (Kyrgyzstan) - 2022 World Bronze Medalist; 2-1 @ Worlds Yones Emami (Iran) - 2x World Bronze Medalist; 2-2 @ Worlds Nurkozha Kaipanov (Kazakhstan) - 2019 World Silver Medalist; 2-2 @ Worlds Feng Lu (China) - 2023 Asian U23 Champion; 2-1 @ Worlds Naveen Malik (India) - 2022 World 5th Place; 1-1 @ Worlds Suldkhuu Olonbayar (Mongolia) - 2023 Asian Bronze Medalist; 0-1 @ Worlds Europe Hrayr Alikhanyan (Armenia) - 2x European 5th Place; 2-1 @ Worlds Turan Bayramov (Azerbaijan) - 2x World 5th Place; 3-3 @ Worlds Frank Chamizo (Italy) - 2x World Champion; 0-1 @ Worlds Soner Demirtas (Turkey) - 2016 Olympic Bronze Medalist; 2-1 @ Worlds Mitch Finesilver (Israel) - 2021 European Bronze Medalist; 1-1 @ Worlds Mahamedkhabib Kadzimahamedau (Belarus) - 2020 Olympic Silver Medalist; 0-1 @ Worlds Avtandil Kentchadze (Georgia) - 2018 World Silver Medalist; 1-2 @ Worlds Murad Kuramagomedov (Hungary) - 2020 European 5th Place; 1-1 @ Worlds Taimuraz Salkazanov (Slovakia) - 2x World Silver Medalist; 2-1 @ Worlds Ali Umarpashaev (Bulgaria) - 2023 European 5th Place; 0-1 @ Worlds Pan-American Cesar Alvan (Brazil) - 2x Pan-Am Bronze Medalist; 0-1 @ Worlds Shane Jones (Puerto Rico) - 2023 Pan-Am Bronze Medalist; 1-1 @ Worlds Anthony Montero (Venezuela) - 2020 Pan-Am Bronze Medalist; 0-1 @ Worlds Adam Thomson (Canada) - 2022 U23 World 8th Place; 1-1 @ Worlds Anthony Valencia (Mexico) - 2023 Pan-Am 7th Place; 0-1 @ Worlds 86 kg Notables That Didn't Qualify Asia Bat Erdene Byambasuren (Mongolia) - 2-1 @ Worlds Hayato Ishiguro (Japan) - 2023 Asian Bronze Medalist; 2-1 @ Worlds Dovletmyrat Orazgylyjov (Turkmenistan) - 2018 U23 World Bronze Medalist; 1-1 @ Worlds Magomed Shapirov (Bahrain) - 2023 Asian Bronze Medalist; 3-3 @ Worlds Lin Zushen (China) - 2023 Asian 5th Place; 2-1 @ Worlds Europe Abubakr Abakarov (Azerbaijan) - 2021 World Bronze Medalist; 1-1 @ Worlds Arslan Bagaev (Russia) - 2019 Cadet World Silver Medalist; 2-1 @ Worlds Matt Finesilver (Israel) - 2023 European 5th Place; 0-1 @ Worlds Taimuraz Friev (Spain) - 2018 World Bronze Medalist; 1-1 @ Worlds Osman Gocen (Turkey) - 2019 U23 World Bronze Medalist; 2-1 @ Worlds Sebastian Jezierzanski (Poland) - 2x European Bronze Medalist; 0-1 @ Worlds Boris Makoev (Slovakia) - 2x World Medalist; 1-1 @ Worlds Rakhim Magomedov (France) - 2x U20 World Champion; 3-1 @ Worlds Stefan Reichmuth (Switzerland) - 2019 World Bronze Medalist; 0-1 @ Worlds Pan-American Pedro Ceballos Fuentes (Venezuela) - 2x Pan-Am Silver Medalist; 0-1 @ Worlds Carlos Izquierdo Mendez (Colombia) - 2x Pan-Am Bronze Medalist; 1-1 @ Worlds Alexander Moore (Canada) - 2023 Pan-Am Silver Medalist; 0-1 @ Worlds Ethan Ramos (Puerto Rico) - 2022 World 5th Place; 1-1 @ Worlds Yureski Torreblanca (Cuba) - 4x Pan-Am Champ, 0-1 @ Worlds 97 kg Notables That Didn't Qualify Asia Sahil Ahlawat (India) - 2023 Asian U23 Bronze Medalist; 1-1 @ Worlds Mojtaba Goleij (Iran) - 2021 World Bronze Medalist; 2-1 @ Worlds Awusayiman Habila (China) - 2023 Asian Silver Medalist; 0-1 @ Worlds Magomed Ibragimov (Uzbekistan) - 2018 World 5th Place; 1-2 @ Worlds Takashi Ishiguro (Japan) - 2021 Asian Bronze Medalist; 1-1 @ Worlds Alisher Yergali (Kazakhstan) - 2022 U23 World Bronze Medalist; 2-1 @ Worlds Europe Vladislav Baitcaev (Hungary) - 2022 World 5th Place; 1-1 @ Worlds Zbigniew Baranowski (Poland) - 2019 World Bronze Medalist; 2-1 @ Worlds Ahmed Bataev (Bulgaria) - 2022 World 5th Place; 1-1 @ Worlds Aliaskandr Hushtyn (Belarus) - 3x European Silver Medalist; 0-1 @ Worlds Radu Lefter (Moldova) - 2021 U23 World Bronze Medalist; 1-1 @ Worlds Murazi Mchedlidze (Ukraine) - 2017 U23 World Bronze Medalist; 0-1 @ Worlds Magomedgadji Nurov (North Macedonia) - 2019 World Bronze Medalist; 0-1 @ Worlds Abdulrashid Sadulaev (Russia) - 7x World/Olympic champion; 3-1 @ Worlds Erik Thiele (Germany) - 2022 European 5th Place; 2-2 @ Worlds Pan-American Maxwell Lacey (Costa Rica) - 2020 Pan-Am Champion; 1-2 @ Worlds 125 kg Notables That Didn't Qualify Asia Zhiwei Deng (China) - 2x World Medalist; 2-1 @ Worlds Aiaal Lazarev (Kyrgyzstan) - 2015 Asian Champion; 2-1 @ Worlds Sumit Malik (India) - 2019 Asian Bronze Medalist; 1-1 @ Worlds Lkhagvagerel Munkhtur (Mongolia) - 2x World Medalist; 0-1 @ Worlds Europe Robert Baran (Poland) - 2x European Silver Medalist; 2-2 @ Worlds Abraham Conyedo Ruano (Italy) - 2020 Olympic Bronze Medalist, 1-1 @ Worlds Oleksandr Khotsianivskyi (Ukraine) - 2019 World Medalist; 2-1 @ Worlds Dzianis Khramiankou (Belarus) - 2x U23 World Medalist; 1-2 @ Worlds Daniel Ligeti (Hungary) - 2023 World 5th Place, 3-3 @ Worlds Georgi Meshvildishvili (Azerbaijan) - 2023 European Bronze Medalist, 1-1 @ Worlds Pan-American Jose Diaz Robertti (Venezuela) - 2016 Pan-Am Champ; FFT @ Worlds Catriel Muriel (Argentina) - 4x Pan-Am Bronze Medalist; 0-1 at Worlds

Ringgold

Below are the women's freestyle brackets for the 2023 Senior World Championships 55 kg 60 kg 63 kg 67 kg 72 kg 77 kg 82 kg 87 kg 97 kg 130 kg

Wednesday’s medal round matches at the 2023 World Championships in Belgrade, Serbia featured three of the most decorated women in American wrestling history. Each had the opportunity to add to their hard-to-fathom medal counts and each was successful in doing so. Sarah Hildebrandt (50 kg), Helen Maroulis (57 kg), and Adeline Gray (76 kg) each suffered close losses on Tuesday, but brushed themselves off and got the next best thing as they rebounded in bronze medal-winning performances. Hildebrandt had a ho-hum 5-0 victory over Evin Demirhan (Turkey) to get her hardware. Within the first minute and a half of the bout, Hildebrandt was on three takedown attempts but was stymied by Demirhan during each attack. She finally was able to break through and gain a takedown and added a shot clock violation point on Demirhan to lead 5-0 after a period. In the second period, Hildebrandt added an insurance takedown to make the score 5-0. That was more than enough, as Demirhan was never close to generating any offense against the American star. Hildebrandt’s bronze medal brings her career medal count up to five counting Olympic and World Championships. A medal from Hildebrandt also means that the United States has qualified for the 2024 Olympics at her 50 kg weight class. Next up was Maroulis, who appeared to be cruising like Hildebrandt. She led Anhelina Lysak (Poland) 2-0 at the break after converting a picturesque swing single. Maroulis added another in the second period and transitioned into a leg lace for a 6-0 advantage. As Maroulis appeared to be close to tacking on another takedown, Lysak was able to get on the scoreboard by exposing Maroulis. That wasn’t the only offensive attempt from Lysak, as she threw Maroulis to her back for four points during the last minute of the contest. Maroulis was able to stop the rally and added scores of her own to win, 10-6. The bronze medal for Maroulis now gives her nine total World/Olympic medals. Her latest came 11 years after her first at the 2012 World Championships. Maroulis’ finish also earns a quota for the United States at the 2024 Olympics. The last American to take the mat on Wednesday was Gray who was paired with fellow Pan-American wrestler Milaimys Marin Potrille (Cuba). Gray got on the board first, scoring with a snatch single, then quickly working into a pair of turns to grab a commanding 6-0 advantage. Marin Potrille wasn’t discouraged as she was able to get her first points by way of a huge double leg late in the first period. Each would add a pair of two-point scores in the second period which led to a 10-6 victory for Gray. For Gray, she now has 10 World/Olympic medals to her name. This most recent one may be her most impressive considering she gave birth to twins just over a year ago. Like Hildebrant and Maroulis, Gray has qualified the United States for the Olympics at 76 kg. In the first weight class contested during today’s medal round, Macey Kilty was in the 65 kg world finals opposite Nonoka Ozaki (Japan), a 2022 world champion at 62 kg. Ozaki got an early takedown and was able to pour it on and rolled to a tech fall in 60 seconds. For Kilty, she earned a silver medal in her first Senior World event and will get to advance to the Olympic Challenge Tournament semifinals at whichever weight she chooses. Today also saw the final four women’s team members take the mat for the first time. 2022 U20/U23/Senior world champion Amit Elor took another step towards the top of the podium by making the 72 kg finals opposite Davaanasan Enkh Amar (Mongolia). Enkh Amar downed Elor’s 2022 Senior finals opponent Zhamila Bakbergenova (Kazakhstan) in the semis. Elor scored a huge win in the quarters over 2022 World Champion (65 kg) Miwa Morikawa of Japan. Another first-time world team member, Emma Bruntil (68 kg), still has medal hopes alive. Bruntil defeated a pair of past world medalists in her first two matches (Alexandra Anghel - Romania and Feng Zhou - China). She then survived a 2-1 battle against Russian Vusala Parfianovich to make the semis. In the semis, Bruntil fell victim to Mongolia’s Delgermaa Enkhsaikhan via fall. She’ll have to await repechage to find her bronze medal opponent. In addition to her quest for a medal, Bruntil will have two opportunities to qualify the United States for the Olympics at 68 kg. The United States also had a pair of 2022 world medalists who lost early in the tournament and were eliminated. Dom Parrish (53 kg) was edged in her first bout by India’s Antim Panghal, 3-2. Kayla Miracle (62 kg) got to Romanian Kriszta Incze’s legs multiple times, but wasn’t able to finish often enough or avoid exposure points in the process. Miracle fell 6-3. Both Parrish and Miracle are at Olympic weights. They or another member of the team will head to the Pan-American Championships in early 2024 with the goal of placing top two and qualifying the US for the Olympics. Tomorrow will mark the final day of the women’s competition in Belgrade. Elor and Bruntil will wrestle for medals, while the Greco-Roman team starts their tournament. Final Results 50 kg Gold Medal Match: Yui Susaki (Japan) over Otgonjargal Dolgorjav (Mongolia) 10-0 Bronze Medal Match: Ziqi Feng (China) over Alisson Cardozo Rey (Colombia) 10-0 Bronze Medal Match: Sarah Hildebrandt (USA) over Evin Demirhan (Turkey) 5-0 Olympic Quota Wrestle-Off: Evin Demirhan (Turkey) over Alisson Cardozo Rey (Colombia) 4-1 57 kg Gold Medal Match: Tsugumi Sakurai (Japan) over Anastasia Nichita (Moldova) 3-2 Bronze Medal Match: Helen Maroulis (USA) over Anhelina Lysak (Poland) 10-6 Bronze Medal Match: Odunayo Adekuoroye (Nigeria) over Elvira Kamaloglu (Turkey) 9-5 Olympic Quota Wrestle-Off: Anhelina Lysak (Poland) over Elvira Kamaloglu (Turkey) Fall 1:55 65 kg Gold Medal Match: Nonaka Ozaki (Japan) over Macey Kilty (USA) 10-0 Bronze Medal Match: Mimi Hristova (Bulgaria) over Tatsiana Paulava (AIN - Belarus) Fall 1:51 Bronze Medal Match: Lili (China) over Kadriye Aksoy (Turkey) 3-2 76 kg Gold Medal Match: Yuga Kagami (Japan) over Aiperi Medet Kyzy (Kyrgyzstan) Injury Default Bronze Medal Match: Tatiana Renteria (Colombia) over Catalina Axente (Romania) Fall 5:59 Bronze Medal Match: Adeline Gray (USA) over Milaimys Marin Potrille (Cuba) 10-6 Olympic Quota Wrestle-Off: Milaimys Marin Potrille (Cuba) over Catalina Axente (Romania) Fall :50 American Results 50 kg Bronze Medal Match: Sarah Hildebrandt (USA) over Evin Demirhan (Turkey) 5-0 53 kg Qualification: Antim Panghal (India) over Dom Parrish 3-2 57 kg Bronze Medal Match: Helen Maroulis (USA) over Anhelina Lysak (Poland) 10-6 62 kg Qualification: Kayla Miracle over Subeen Jo (South Korea) 12-2 Round of 16: Kriszta Incze (Romania) over Kayla Miracle 6-3 65 kg Gold Medal Match: Nonaka Ozaki (Japan) over Macey Kilty (USA) 10-0 68 kg Qualification: Emma Bruntil over Alexandra Anghel (Romania) 2-2 Round of 16: Emma Bruntil over Feng Zhou (China) 6-3 Quarterfinals: Emma Bruntil over Vusala Parfianovich (AIN - Russia) 2-1 Semifinals: Delgermaa Enkhsaikhan (Mongolia) over Emma Bruntil Fall 2:45 72 kg Round of 16: Amit Elor over Nesrin Bas (Turkey) 7-0 Quarterfinals: Amit Elor over Miwa Morikawa (Japan) 6-0 Semifinals: Amit Elor over Kendra Dacher (France) 12-2 76 kg Repechage: Adeline Gray over Yuanyuan Huang (China) Fall 2:54 Bronze Medal Match: Adeline Gray over Milaimys Marin Potrille (Cuba) 10-6

Perrysburg

Bremerton

Final Results Team Scores 1) United States 133 2) Iran 104 3) Georgia 80 4) Kazakhstan 74 5) Azerbaijan 66 57 kg Gold Medal Match: Stevan Micic (Serbia) over Rei Higuchi (Japan) 7-4 Bronze Medal Match: Arsen Harutyunyan (Armenia) over Meirambek Kartbay (Kazakhstan) 11-0 Bronze Medal Match: Zelimkhan Abakarov (Albania) over Zavur Uguev (AIN - Russia) 4-4 Olympic Quota Wrestle-Off: Zavur Uguev (AIN - Russia) over Meirambek Kartbay (Kazakhstan) 4-0 61 kg Gold Medal Match - Vito Arujau (USA) over Abasgadzhi Magomedov (AIN - Russia) 10-9 Bronze Medal Match - Taiyrbek Zhumashbek Uulu (Kyrgyzstan) over Kodai Ogawa (Japan) 2-1 Bronze Medal Match - Shota Phartenadze (Georgia) over Valentyn Bliasetskyi (Ukraine) 5-5 65 kg Gold Medal Match: Iszmail Musukaev (Hungary) over Sebastian Rivera (Puerto Rico) 11-0 Bronze Medal Match: Shamil Mamedov (AIN - Russia) over Rahman Amouzadkhalili (Iran) 8-6 Bronze Medal Match: Vazgen Tevanyan (Armenia) over Maxim Sacultan (Moldova) 5-1 Olympic Quota Wrestle-Off: Rahman Amouzadkhalili (Iran) over Maxim Sacultan (Moldova) 10-0 70 kg Gold Medal Match - Zain Retherford (USA) over Amirmohammad Yazdani (Iran) 8-5 Bronze Medal Match - Ramazan Ramazanov (Bulgaria) over Ernazar Akmataliev (Kyrgyzstan) 8-6 Bronze Medal Match - Arman Andreasyan (Armenia) over Abhimanyou (UWW - India) 12-1 74 kg Gold Medal Match: Zaurbek Sidakov (AIN - Russia) over Kyle Dake (USA) 10-7 Bronze Medal Match: Daichi Takatani (Japan) over Georgios Kougioumtsidis (Greece) Fall 3:38 Bronze Medal Match: Khetig Tsabolov (Serbia) over Turan Bayramov (Azerbaijan) 6-4 Olympic Quota Wrestle-Off: Georgios Kougioumtsidis (Greece) over Turan Bayramov (Azerbaijan) 9-8 79 kg Gold Medal Match: Akhmed Usmanov (AIN - Russia) over Vladimeri Gamkrelidze (Georgia) 4-1 Bronze Medal Match: Mohammad Nokhodilarimi (Iran) over Orkhan Abasov (Azerbaijan) 10-0 Bronze Medal Match: Vasyl Mykhailov (Ukraine) over Bolat Sakayev (Kazakhstan) 3-1 86 kg Gold Medal Match - David Taylor (USA) over Hassan Yazdani (Iran) 5:57 Bronze Medal Match - Myles Amine (San Marino) over Javrail Shapiev (Uzbekistan) 8-5 Bronze Medal Match - Azamat Dauletbekov (Kazakhstan) over Magomed Sharipov (Bahrain) 5-3 Olympic Quota Qualifying - Javrail Shapiev (Uzbekistan) over Magomed Sharipov (Bahrain) 3-1 92 kg Gold Medal Match: Rizabek Aitmukhan (Kazakhstan) over Osman Nurmagomedov (Azerbaijan) 5-2 Bronze Medal Match: Feyzullah Akturk (Turkey) over Miriani Maisuradze (Georgia) 5-3 Bronze Medal Match: Zahid Valencia (USA) over Arash Yoshida (Japan) 11-0 97 kg Gold Medal Match: Akhmed Tazhudinov (Bahrain) over Magomedkhan Magomedov (Azerbaijan) Fall 2:50 Bronze Medal Match: Kyle Snyder (USA) over Abdulrashid Sadulaev (AIN - Russia) FFT Bronze Medal Match: Givi Matcharasvhili (Georgia) over Ibrahim Cift (Turkey) 6-2 Olympic Quota Wrestle-Off: Ibrahim Cift (Turkey) over Abdulrashid Sadulaev (AIN - Russia) FFT 125 kg Gold Medal Match - Amir Zare (Iran) over Geno Petriashvili (Georgia) 11-0 Bronze Medal Match - Taha Akgul (Turkey) over Daniel Ligeti (Hungary) 5-0 Bronze Medal Match - Mason Parris (USA) over Abdulla Kurbanov (AIN - Russia) 12-2 Olympic Quota Qualifying - Abdulla Kurbanov (AIN - Russia) over Daniel Ligeti (Hungary) 8-3

Punxsutawney

It didn’t take long for Princeton University to find its next head wrestling coach. And they didn’t have to look very far either. Just over a week after news broke that Stanford had hired Chris Ayres to be their new head coach, Princeton announced today that associate head coach Joe Dubuque is the 11th head wrestling coach in school history. Dubuque has been a member of the Princeton coaching staff for the last ten years. During that time, the Tigers have won an Ivy League title for the first time since 1986, they have put 10 wrestlers on the NCAA podium including two national finalists in 2022 and the program’s first NCAA champion since 1951 earlier this year. A college 125 lber himself, Dubuque worked closely with Princeton’s 125 lb NCAA champion Patrick Glory, who finished as one of the most decorated wrestlers in program history. Glory earned NCAA All-American honors on three occasions and was a three-time EIWA champion. Dubuque wrestled collegiately at Indiana where he was a three-time All-American and two-time national champion. He was famous for coming up big when the stakes were the highest, as Dubuque earned a pair of NCAA titles, yet never made the Big Ten finals. Dubuque was coaching at his alma mater before coming to Princeton to coach in his home state. He also spent time on the Hofstra coaching staff. The last few weeks have been wild on the collegiate coaching front. We’ve seen vacancies at North Carolina, Stanford, and Princeton; however, Dubuque’s hiring should bring this game of musical chairs to rest for now. With Dubuque being elevated to head coach, it should keep some stability with the Princeton program. While it’s not necessarily common for wrestlers to transfer from an Ivy League school like Princeton, there may have been some Class of 2024 recruits who would have reconsidered their options had the school hired a coach from the outside. That’s important as Princeton currently has six Big Boarder’s committed from the Class of 2024.

We’re right in the middle the 2023 Senior World Championships, so it’s time to wrap up our previews for the event. Our men’s and women’s freestyle previews have already been released, so it’s time to finish with the second part of our Greco-Roman preview. The 2023 Greco-Roman team is a good mix of grizzled veterans and new promising faces. This year’s team does not feature any past Senior world medalists, but what better time than now with Olympic qualification also on the line. Below are the entries at each of the last five weights, along with some of their notable achievements, pre-seeds, information on the American entry, and 2022 medalists. 77kg Pavel LIAKH (AIN - BLR) - 2x World 9th Place, 2017 European Silver Medalist Adlet TIULIUBAEV (AIN - RUS) Kevin KUPI (ALB) Abd OUAKALI (ALG) - 3x African Champion Francisco KADIMA (ANG) Malkhas AMOYAN (ARM) - 2021 World Champion, 2x World Medalist (1,2), 2022 U23 World Champion, 2x European Champion Sanan SULEYMANOV (AZE) - 2021 World Silver Medalist, 2019 U23 World Silver Medalist, 2020 European Champion Joilson RAMOS (BRA) Aik MNATSAKANIAN (BUL) - 2x World Bronze Medalist, 2x European Bronze Medalist Rui LIU (CHN) - 2023 Asian Bronze Medalist, 2022 World 9th Place Jair CUERO (COL) - 3x Pan-American Silver Medalist Antonio KAMENJASEVIC (CRO) - 2021 European Bronze Medalist Yosvanys PENA FLORES (CUB) - 3x Pan-American Champion, 2020(1) Olympic 10th Place Oldrich VARGA (CZE) Oliver KRUEGER (DEN) - 2023 European 5th Place Mohamed KHALIL (EGY) - 2x African Champion Marcos SANCHEZ (ESP) Jonni SARKKINEN (FIN) - 2023 European U23 Champion Johnny BUR (FRA) - 2018 European U23 Silver Medalist Iuri LOMADZE (GEO) - 2020 European Silver Medalist Deni NAKAEV (GER) - 2022 U20 World Champion Georgios PREVOLARAKIS (GRE) Zoltan LEVAI (HUN) - 2022 World Silver Medalist, 2020 European Silver Medalist Mohammadali GERAEI (IRI) - 3x World Bronze Medalist, 2020(1) Olympic 5th Place, 2x Asian Silver Medalist Riccardo ABBRESCIA (ITA) Amro SADEH (JOR) Nao KUSAKA (JPN) - 2022 U23 World Bronze Medalist, 2020 Asian 5th Place Demeu ZHADRAYEV (KAZ) - 2017 World Silver Medalist, 2018 Asian Silver Medalist Akzhol MAKHMUDOV (KGZ) - 2020(1) Olympic Silver Medalist, 2022 World Champion, 2x Asian Champion Daekun PARK (KOR) Paulius GALKINAS (LTU) - 2019 World 7th Place, 2019 European U23 5th Place Alexandrin GUTU (MDA) - 2022 U23 World Silver Medalist, 2023 European 5th Place Emmanuel BENITEZ (MEX) Per Anders KURE (NOR) Patryk BEDNARZ (POL) - 2022 European U23 5th Place Viktor NEMES (SRB) - 2022 World Champion, 2x World Medalist (1,3), 3x European Silver Medalist Fabio DIETSCHE (SUI) Per Albin OLOFSSON (SWE) - 2022 European 5th Place, 2021 U23 World Bronze Medalist Toyly ORAZOV (TKM) Yunus BASAR (TUR) - 2022 World Bronze Medalist, 2x European Silver Medalist Dmytro VASETSKYI (UKR) - 2x U23 World 5th Place Gurpreet SINGH (UWW) - 2019 Asian Silver Medalist Aram VARDANYAN (UZB) - 2019 World Silver Medalist, 2018 Asian Bronze Medalist Wuileixis RIVAS (VEN) - 2014 Pan-American Champion 77 kg Pre-Seeds #1 Zoltan LEVAI (HUN) #2 Yunus Emre BASAR (TUR) #3 Akzhol MAKHMUDOV (KGZ) #4 Malkhas AMOYAN (ARM) #5 Rui LIU (CHN) #6 Viktor NEMES (SRB) #7 Aik MNATSAKANIAN (BUL) #8 Iuri LOMADZE (GEO) Past World/Olympic Medalists (Senior Level Only): (10) Malkhas Amoyan (ARM), Sanan Suleymanov (AZE), Aik Mnatsakanian (BUL), Zoltan Levai (HUN), Mohammadali Geraei (IRI), Demeu Zhadrayev (KAZ), Akzhol Makhmudov (KGZ), Viktor Nemes (SRB), Yunus Basar (TUR), Aram Vardanyan (UZB) The American Entry: Kamal Bey 77 kg always tends to be one of the premier Greco-Roman weights and the 2023 crop doesn’t disappoint. On the American side, we have one of our most exciting Greco athletes in Kamal Bey. Bey is now a part of his third Senior world team and still seeking his first medal at this level. He was a Junior world champion in 2017 (beating the current, defending world champion in the finals), so Bey does have a history against some of the top contenders at this weight. Bey is back on the world team after an impressive spring/summer. At the US Open, 2009 World Bronze medalist Aliaksandr Kikiniou emerged as a potential threat to his spot on the world team. Bey, however, only needed :33 seconds to roll to a tech fall. The two would meet at Final X and Bey put together another 9-0 tech, combined with a 5-1 win in match two to take the series, Internationally, Bey has shined in 2023. Shortly after the Open, Bey claimed his first Senior Pan-American title. Two months later, Bey made the finals in Hungary after defeating the returning world silver medalist at this weight. 2022 World Championship Medalists Gold: Akzhol Makhmudov (KGZ) Silver: Zoltan Levai(HUN) Bronze: Malkas Amoyan (ARM) Bronze: Yunus Basar (TUR) 82kg Stanislau SHAFARENKA (AIN - BLR) - 2017 U23 World 5th Place, 2019 European U23 Bronze Medalist Aues GONIBOV (AIN - RUS) - 2019 Junior World Silver Medalist Samvel GRIGORYAN (ARM) - 2021 European U23 Bronze Medalist Aker SCHMID AL OBAIDI (AUT) - 2020(1) Olympic 8th Place Rafig HUSEYNOV (AZE) - 2021 World Champion, 3x World Medalist (1,2,3), 2x European Champion Halishan BAHEJIANG (CHN) Bozo STARCEVIC (CRO) - 2016 Olympic 5th Place, 2013 European Bronze Medalist Gela BOLKVADZE (GEO) - 2018 U23 World Champion, 2x U23 World Medalist (1,2), 2022 World 5th Place Idris Hanpasaevic IBAEV (GER) - 2021 U23 World Champion Erik SZILVASSY (HUN) - 2017 U23 World Champion, 2019 European Bronze Medalist Alireza MOHMADIPIANI (IRI) - 2023 Asian Bronze Medalist Sultan Ali Mohd Damen EID (JOR) - 2020 Asian 5th Place Shohei YABIKU (JPN) - 2020(1) Olympic Bronze Medalist, 2018 Asian 5th Place Dias KALEN (KAZ) - 2x Asian Silver Medalist, 2022 World 9th Place Beksultan NAZARBAEV (KGZ) - 2022 Asian U23 Champion Sejin YANG (KOR) Mihail BRADU (MDA) - 3x European 5th Place Jose Andres VARGAS RUEDA (MEX) - 2020 Pan-American Silver Medalist Branko KOVACEVIC (SRB) - 2021 U23 World Bronze Medalist, 2022 European U23 Bronze Medalist Kristoffer Zakarias BERG (SWE) - 2021 World 7th Place Burhan AKBUDAK (TUR) - 2022 World Champion, 2x World Medalist (1,2), 2023 European Champion Yaroslav FILCHAKOV (UKR) - 2022 World Bronze Medalist, 2023 European Silver Medalist Sajan BHANWALA (UWW) - 2022 U23 World Bronze Medalist, 2022 Asian 5th Place Mukhammadkodir RASULOV (UZB) - 2023 Asian 5th Place 82 kg Pre-Seeds #1 Burhan AKBUDAK (TUR) #2 Gela BOLKVADZE (GEO) #3 Yaroslav FILCHAKOV (UKR) #4 Rafig HUSEYNOV (AZE) #5 Dias KALEN (KAZ) #6 Alireza Azizkhoon MOHMADIPIANI (IRI) #7 Mihail BRADU (MDA) #8 Kristoffer Zakarias BERG (SWE) Past World/Olympic Medalists (Senior Level Only): (4) Rafig Huseynov (AZE), Shohei Yabiku (JPN), Burhan Akbudak (TUR), Yaroslav Filchakov (UKR) The American Entry: Spencer Woods 2022 saw Spencer Woods inserted as a late replacement for Ben Provisor, which accounted for his first Senior World experience. This year, Woods is “the guy” without any questions and has been able to prepare as such for the last three months. Woods put himself in the driver’s seat for another world team berth after he downed Provisor at the US Open, 4-3. Most assumed another round of Woods/Provisor; however, Provisor didn’t make it through the World Team Trials, Ryan Epps did. Woods and Epps split the first two bouts at Final X, but Woods came through and locked up the world team berth with a 5-0 victory in the rubber match. After winning the Open, Woods went to the Pan-American Championships and went unbeaten in his round-robin matches without surrendering a point. 2022 World Championship Medalists Gold: Burhan Akbudak (TUR) Silver: Jalgasbay Berdimuratov (UZE) Bronze: Tamas Levai (HUN) Bronze: Yaroslav Filchakov (UKR) 87kg Kiryl MASKEVICH (AIN - BLR) - 2021 World Silver Medalist, 2019 U23 World Bronze Medalist, 2021 European Silver Medalist Savelii BORISOV (AIN - RUS) Bachir SID AZARA (ALG) - 5x African Champion, 2020(1) Olympic 7th Place Gevorg TADEVOSYAN (ARM) - 2022 U23 World Silver Medalist, 2021 European U23 Bronze Medalist Lukas STAUDACHER (AUT) Islam ABBASOV (AZE) - 2x U23 World Bronze Medalist, 2019 European Silver Medalist Ronisson BRANDAO (BRA) - 2x Pan-American Bronze Medalist Semen NOVIKOV (BUL) - 2020 European Champion, 2x U23 World Champion Haitao QIAN (CHN) - 2019 World Bronze Medalist, 2019 Asian Bronze Medalist Carlos MUNOZ (COL) - 2020 Pan-American Silver Medalist Ivan HUKLEK (CRO) - 2020(1) Olympic 5th Place, 2017 U23 World Silver Medalist Daniel GREGORICH HECHAVARRIA (CUB) - 3x Pan-American Champion, 2020(1) Olympic 9th, 2x U23 World Medalist (2,3) Mohamed METWALLY (EGY) - 2020(1) Olympic 5th Place, 2x African Champion Andreas VAELIS (EST) Toni METSOMAEKI (FIN) - 2019 European U23 5th Place Lasha GOBADZE (GEO) - 2019 World Champion, 3x World Medalist (1,3 x2), 2019 European Silver Medalist Hannes WAGNER (GER) - 2021 World 9th Place, 2x European Bronze Medalist Ilias PAGKALIDIS (GRE) - 2023 European U23 5th Place David LOSONCZI (HUN) - 2022 World Bronze Medalist, 2021 U23 World Silver Medalist Naser ALIZADEH (IRI) - 2022 World 5th Place, 2021 U23 World Bronze Medalist, 3x Asian Champion Mirco MINGUZZI (ITA) - 2022 European 5th Place Masato SUMI (JPN) - 2018 Asian Silver Medalist Nursultan TURSYNOV (KAZ) - 2022 World 8th Place, 2014 Asian Champion John OMONDI (KEN) Azat SALIDINOV (KGZ) - 2020 Asian Silver Medalist, 2022 Asian U23 Silver Medalist Sanghyeok PARK (KOR) - 2019 World 14th Place Martynas NEMSEVICIUS (LTU) - 2018 U23 World 9th Place, 2018 European U23 Bronze Medalist Viorel BURDUJA (MDA) Daniel VICENTE (MEX) - 2022 Pan-American Champion Marcel STERKENBURG (NED) - 2022 U23 World Bronze Medalist, 2022 European U23 Champion, 2021 U20 World Champion Exauce MUKUBU (NOR) - 2022 U23 World Champion, 2023 European U23 Silver Medalist Arkadiusz KULYNYCZ (POL) - 2021 World Bronze Medalist Nicu OJOG (ROU) - 2022 European Silver Medalist Mario VUKOVIC (SRB) Ramon BETSCHART (SUI) - 2021 U23 World Silver Medalist Alex KESSIDIS (SWE) - 2019 World Silver Medalist, 2020 European Bronze Medalist Azym ANNAMAMMEDOV (TKM) Ali CENGIZ (TUR) - 2022 World 3rd Place, 2023 European Silver Medalist Zhan BELENIUK (UKR) - 2020(1) Olympic Champion, 2x Olympic Medalist (1,2), 2x World Champion, 4x World Medalist (1 x2, 2,3) Manoj KUMAR (UWW) Jalgasbay BERDIMURATOV (UZB) - 2x World Medalist (2,3), 2021 Asian Champion Luis AVENDANO (VEN) - 87 kg Pre-Seeds #1 Ali CENGIZ (TUR) #2 David LOSONCZI (HUN) #3 Alex KESSIDIS (SWE) #4 Naser Ghasem ALIZADEH (IRI) #5 Nursultan TURSYNOV (KAZ) #6 Semen Sergeevich NOVIKOV (BUL) #7 Jalgasbay BERDIMURATOV (UZB) #8 Kumar SUNIL (IND) Past World/Olympic Medalists (Senior Level Only): (9) Kiryl Maskevich (AIN - BLR), Haitao Qian (CHN), Lasha Gobadze (GEO), David Losonczi (HUN), Arkadiusz Kulynycz (POL), Alex Kessidis (SWE), Ali Cengiz (TUR), Zhan Beleniuk (UKR), Jalgasbay Berdimuratov (UZB) The American Entry: Zac Braunagel The NCAA star from Illinois gets his first crack at the Senior World level as Zac Braunagel emerged from an unpredictable 87 kg weight class domestically. Braunagel was a respectable third place at the US Open behind Olympic John Stefanowicz and returning World Team member Alan Vera. Braunagel clinched a spot in Final X after winning a pair of bouts at the Trials without surrendering a point. After going in the hole by losing a 10-0 tech to Vera in bout one at Final X, Braunagel battled back with a 6-5 win in match two. In that bout, Braunagel battered Vera to the point where he had to forfeit in match three. After winning the Final X spot, Braunagel competed in Hungary. Though he lost his only bout, it was a tight 2-1 affair against three-time World/Olympic medalist Rafig Huseynov of Azerbaijan. 2022 World Championship Medalists Gold: Zurabi Datunashvili (GEO) Silver: Turpal Bisultanov (DEN) Bronze: David Losonczi (HUN) Bronze: Ali Cengiz (TUR) 97kg Abubakar KHASLAKHANAU (AIN - BEL) - 2021 U17 World Champion Artur SARGSIAN (AIN - RUS) 2021 World Bronze Medalist, 2021 U23 World Champion Adem BOUDJEMLINE (ALG) - 4x African Champion Artur ALEKSANYAN (ARM) - 5x World/Olympic Champion, 3x Olympic Medalist (1,2,3), 9x World/Olympic Medalist Markus RAGGINGER (AUT) - 2021 U23 World Bronze Medalist, 2022 U23 European Silver Medalist Arif NIFTULLAYEV (AZE) - 2022 World Bronze Medalist Igor ALVES DE (BRA) - 2023 Pan-American Bronze Medalist, 2022 U23 World 5th Place Kiril Milenov MILOV (BUL) - 2x World Silver Medalist, 2022 European Champion Yiming LI (CHN) - 2023 Asian 5th Place Filip SMETKO (CRO) - 2022 U23 World 8th Place Gabriel ROSILLO (CUB) - 2x Pan-American Champion, 2019 World 9th Place, 2019 Junior World Champion Artur OMAROV (CZE) - 2023 European Bronze Medalist Mathias BAK (DEN) Mohamed GABR (EGY) - 2023 African Champion Richard KARELSON (EST) - 2022 U20 World Bronze Medalist Arvi SAVOLAINEN (FIN) - 2022 European Silver Medalist, 2021 U23 World Bronze Medalist, 2020(1) Olympic 5th Place Roberti KOBLIASHVILI (GEO) - 2x World Bronze Medalist, 2016 European Silver Medalist Peter OEHLER (GER) - 2021 World 5th Place Laokratis KESIDIS (GRE) Kevin MEJIA CASTILLO (HON) - 2x Pan-American Champion Tamas LEVAI (HUN) - 2022 World Bronze Medalist, 2x U23 World Medalist (1,3), 2022 European Bronze Medalist Mohammadhadi SARAVI (IRI) - 2021 World Champion, 2020(1) Olympic Bronze Medalist, 2x World Medalist (1,3), 2020 Asian Champion Nikoloz KAKHELASHVILI (ITA) - 2x World 5th Place Yuta NARA (JPN) - 2023 Asian Bronze Medalist Olzhas SYRLYBAY (KAZ) - 2023 Asian Bronze Medalist, 2019 Asian U23 Champion Beksultan MAKHMUDOV (KGZ) - 2021 Asian Bronze Medalist Seungjun KIM (KOR) - 2x Asian Silver Medalist Mindaugas VENCKAITIS (LTU) - 2023 European U23 5th Place Tyrone STERKENBURG (NED) - 2022 European U23 Bronze Medalist, 2021 U20 World Silver Medalist Felix BALDAUF (NOR) - 2022 European 5th Place Gerard KURNICZAK (POL) - 2021 World 5th Place Mihail KAJAIA (SRB) - 2x World Bronze Medalist, 2018 European Silver Medalist Aleksandar STJEPANETIC (SWE) Metehan BASAR (TUR) - 2x World Champion, 2017 European Silver Medalist Serhii OMELIN (UKR) Shailesh SHELKE (UWW) Rustam ASSAKALOV (UZB) - 2x World Medalist (2,3), 3x Asian Champion 97 kg Pre-Seeds #1 Kiril Milenov MILOV (BUL) #2 Artur ALEKSANYAN (ARM) #3 Mohammadhadi Abdollah SARAVI (IRI) #4 KAKHELASHVILI (ITA) #5 Arif NIFTULLAYEV (AZE) #6 Tamas LEVAI (HUN) #7 Rustam ASSAKALOV (UZB) #8 Felix BALDAUF (NOR) Past World/Olympic Medalists (Senior Level Only): (10) Artur Sargsian (AIN - RUS), Artur Aleksanyan (ARM), Arif Niftullayev (AZE), Kiril Milov (BUL), Roberti Kobliashvili (GEO), Tamas Levai (HUN), Mohammadhadi Saravi (IRI), Mihail Kajaia (SRB), Metehan Basar (TUR), Rustam Assakalov (UZB) The American Entry: Joe Rau Almost a decade after making his first world team (2014), Joe Rau is back for his third trip. That first time came at 80 kg and Rau’s 2019 appearance came at 87 kg. Shortly after a return at the US Open, Rau represented the United States at the Pan-American Championships and came away with his third title, all coming at different weights. A month after the Pan-Am’s was Final X and another set of matches against his Open finals opponent Christian DuLaney. After a close 2-1 victory in match one, Rau came out firing in match two and ended things in only :53 seconds. Rau tested the waters internationally at 97 kg in Hungary and went 1-1. He picked up a win over an Iranian opponent before getting blanked by European fifth-place finisher Felix Baldauf. 2022 World Championship Medalists Gold: Artur Aleksanyan (ARM) Silver: Kiril Milov (BUL) Bronze: Mohammadhadi Saravi (IRI) Bronze: Arif Niftullayev (AZE) 130kg Ilya YUDCHYTS (AIN - BLR) - 2019 U23 World 12th Place Sergei SEMENOV (AIN - RUS) - 2018 World Champion, 2x Olympic Bronze Medalist, 2019 European Bronze Medalist David OVASAPYAN (ARM) - 2021 U23 World Silver Medalist, 2021 European U23 Silver Medalist Daniel GASTL (AUT) - 2022 European Bronze Medalist Beka KANDELAKI (AZE) - 2022 European 5th Place, 2021 World 8th Place Eduard SOGHOMONYAN (BRA) - 2x Pan-American Silver Medalist, 2x Olympian Yasmani ACOSTA (CHI) - 2020(1) Olympic 5th Place, 2021 World 5th Place Lingzhe MENG (CHN) - 2023 Asian Silver Medalist, 2018 World 7th Place Oscar PINO (CUB) - 3x World Medalist (2,3 x2), 5x Pan-American Champion Marcel ALBINI (CZE) - 2022 U23 World 9th Place, 2023 European U23 5th Place Abdellatif MOHAMED (EGY) - 6x African Champion, 2018 U23 World 3rd Place, 2020(1) Olympic 9th Place Heiki NABI (EST) - 2013 World Champion, 2021 Olympic Silver Medalist, 4x World Medalist, Matti KUOSMANEN (FIN) - 2x European Bronze Medalist, 2017 U23 World Silver Medalist Iakobi KAJAIA (GEO) - 2020(1) Olympic Silver Medalist, 2x World Bronze Medalist, 2x European Silver Medalist Jello KRAHMER (GER) - 2020 European Bronze Medalist Dariusz VITEK (HUN) - 2022 U23 World Bronze Medalist Amin MIRZAZADEH (IRI) - 2022 World Silver Medalist, 2021 World 5th Place, 2020(1) Olympic 5th Place, 2x Asian Champion Sota OKUMURA (JPN) - 2021 Asian 5th Place Alimkhan SYZDYKOV (KAZ) - 2022 Asian Champion Seungchan LEE (KOR) Romas FRIDRIKAS (LTU) - 2021 World 5th Place Paul MORALES (MEX) Oskar MARVIK (NOR) - 2021 World Bronze Medalist, 2023 European Bronze Medalist Alin ALEXUC CIURARIU (ROU) - 2022 World Bronze Medalist, 2020 European Champion Boris PETRUSIC (SRB) Aybegshazada KURRAYEV (TKM) - 2023 Asian U23 Bronze Medalist Riza KAYAALP (TUR) - 3x Olympic Medalist (2, 3 x2), 5x World Champion, 8x World Medalist Oleksandr CHERNETSKYY (UKR) - 2015 World Bronze Medalist, 2016 European Silver Medalist Mehar SINGH (UWW) - 2015 World 5th Place Temurbek NASIMOV (UZB) - 2023 Asian 5th Place 130 kg Pre-Seeds #1 Riza KAYAALP (TUR) #2 Alin ALEXUC CIURARIU (ROU) #3 Amin MIRZAZADEH (IRI) #4 Iakobi KAJAIA (GEO) #5 Lingzhe MENG (CHN) #6 Dariusz Attila VITEK (HUN) #7 Oscar PINO HINDS (CUB) #8 Oskar MARVIK (NOR) Past World/Olympic Medalists (Senior Level Only): (9) Sergei Semenov (AIN - RUS), Oscar Pino Hinds (CUB), Heiki Nabi (EST), Iakobi Kajaia (GEO), Amin Mirzazadeh (IRI), Oskar Marvik (NOR), Alin Alexuc Ciurariu (ROU), Riza Kayaalp (TUR), Oleksandr Chernetskyy (UKR) The American Entry: Cohlton Schultz On a team with three first-time World Team members and another second-timer, Arizona State All-American Cohlton Schultz represents one of the veterans of the squad. Schultz has earned world medals at the Cadet and Junior levels, but hasn’t had that Senior level breakthrough…yet. Most assumed Schultz would be pushed domestically after the return of 2018 World silver medalist Adam Coon from the football world; however, Schultz greeted Coon rudely at the Open with a tech fall in just over two minutes. The two would meet again at Final X. The results weren’t quite as lopsided, in Schultz’s favor, but he still won the series without a significant threat. Schultz might represent the best chance for a medal on the US squad. But to do so, he’ll have to navigate through a loaded field. The heavyweight bracket is expected to include three past world champions and nine medalists in total. 2022 World Championship Medalists Gold: Riza Kayaalp (TUR) Silver: Amin Mirzazadeh (IRI) Bronze: Mantas Knystautas (LTU) Bronze: Alin Alexuc Ciurariu (ROU)

In her first Senior World team appearance, Macey Kilty was not phased at all and cruised her way into the world finals at 65 kg. Of the four women whose tournaments started on Tuesday, Kilty is the only one who advanced to Wednesday’s gold medal matches. On paper, Kilty’s toughest test was slated to come in the quarterfinals against Bulgaria’s Mimi Hristova, a fifth-place finisher at each of the last two World Championships and a European Champion earlier this year. While technically it was her stiffest competition, Kilty still prevailed 11-2. That was the only of her four matches that went the full six minutes. To clinch her spot in the gold medal finals, Kilty needed two and a half minutes to tech Tatsiana Paulava (AIN - Belarus). Kilty got on the scoreboard with a takedown from a snapdown and go-behind. From there, Kilty patiently worked a lace and got three turns to bring her lead to 8-0. Shortly after, Kilty converted a double leg at the edge to push the score into match termination criteria at 10-0. Tuesday also marked the final day of competition in men’s freestyle and the United States took the team title for the second straight year. Seven of the ten team members won medals, led by golds from Vito Arujau (61 kg), Zain Retherford (70 kg), and David Taylor (86 kg). Iran was a distant second with four medals including one gold. The men’s freestyle team also earned Olympic qualification at four weights (74/86/97/125 kg). The final member of the men’s freestyle team took the mat Tuesday, albeit very briefly. After injury defaulting out of his semifinal match with 20-year-old sensation, Akhmed Tazhudinov (Bahrain), Abdulrashid Sadualev (AIN - Russia) did not weigh in and forfeited a bronze medal match to Kyle Snyder. That marked the ninth world/Olympic medal for Snyder. He’s made the podium in every Senior World/Olympic he has entered. Medals were also awarded for the first time this tournament in women’s freestyle and the American team grabbed medals in both of the weight classes contested. Yesterday, Jacarra Winchester secured a place in the 55 kg gold medal match opposite fellow world champion Haruna Okuno. Okuno methodically scored on Winchester earlier and fended off frantic attacks from Winchester late in the bout to take a 4-2 victory. Winchester’s silver medal represented the second career medal for the California native. The other American who came away with a medal on Tuesday was Jennifer Page at 59 kg. Page was in her first Senior World event and found her way onto the team by dropping a weight after losing at the US Open. Page deftly fought off a single-leg attack from Azerbaijan’s Alyona Kolesnik to get a set of exposure points on the ensuing flurry. Later in the first period, Kolesnik took a half-hearted shot attack and was met with a vicious pancake from Page. With her opponent in danger, Page seized the moment and got the fall. Three other past world medalists started their tournaments on Tuesday, Sarah Hildebrandt (50 kg), Helen Maroulis (57 kg), and Adeline Gray (76 kg); however, each was defeated at one point during the tournament. Hildebrandt and Maroulis both lost to the same opponents that beat them in the 2022 tournament in the semifinals. Each will drop down to wrestle in a bronze medal match and has the opportunity to qualify their weight for the Paris Olympics. Gray was shut down in the quarterfinals but got pulled back into repechage when Japan’s Yuka Kagami made the finals. She’ll need to win two bouts to earn a bronze medal. Tomorrow, the final four women’s freestyle team members will get their tournaments underway. Also, of note for American fans, Northwestern and Rutgers All-American Sebastian Rivera (Puerto Rico) advanced to the 65 kg men’s freestyle finals in dramatic fashion Monday. Rivera was defeated 11-0 by Iszmail Musakaev (Hungary) in the gold medal match, 11-0. Rivera did secure a spot at the 2024 Olympics with his finish. Final Results 55 kg Women’s Freestyle Gold Medal Match: Haruna Okuno (Japan) over Jacarra Winchester (USA) 4-2 Bronze Medal Match: Mariana Dragutan (Moldova) over Karla Godinez Gonzalez (Canada) 3-2 Bronze Medal Match: Anastasia Blayvas (Germany) over Neha Sharma (UWW - India) 2-2 59 kg Women’s Freestyle Gold Medal Match: Qi Zhang (China) over Yulia Tkach (Ukraine) 4-1 Bronze Medal Match: Jennifer Page (USA) over Alyona Kolesnik (Azerbaijan) Fall 1:40 Bronze Medal Match: Othelie Hoeie (Norway) over Elena Brugger (Germany) 5-1 65 kg Men’s Freestyle Gold Medal Match: Iszmail Musukaev (Hungary) over Sebastian Rivera (Puerto Rico) 11-0 Bronze Medal Match: Shamil Mamedov (AIN - Russia) over Rahman Amouzadkhalili (Iran) 8-6 Bronze Medal Match: Vazgen Tevanyan (Armenia) over Maxim Sacultan (Moldova) 5-1 Olympic Quota Wrestle-Off: Rahman Amouzadkhalili (Iran) over Maxim Sacultan (Moldova) 10-0 97 kg Men’s Freestyle Gold Medal Match: Akhmed Tazhudinov (Bahrain) over Magomedkhan Magomedov (Azerbaijan) Fall 2:50 Bronze Medal Match: Kyle Snyder (USA) over Abdulrashid Sadulaev (AIN - Russia) FFT Bronze Medal Match: Givi Matcharasvhili (Georgia) over Ibrahim Cift (Turkey) 6-2 Olympic Quota Wrestle-Off: Ibrahim Cift (Turkey) over Abdulrashid Sadulaev (AIN - Russia) FFT American Results 50 kg Women’s Freestyle Round of 16: Sarah Hildebrandt (USA) over Miseon Kwon (South Korea) 10-0 Quarterfinals: Sarah Hildebrandt (USA) over Mariya Stadnik (Azerbaijan) 14-3 Semifinals: Otgonjargal Dolgorjav (Mongolia) over Sarah Hildebrandt (USA) 7-5 55 kg Women’s Freestyle Gold Medal Match: Haruna Okuno (Japan) over Jacarra Winchester 4-2 57 kg Women’s Freestyle Qualification: Helen Maroulis (USA) over Nes Rodriguez (Puerto Rico) 10-0 Round of 16: Helen Maroulis (USA) over Graciela Sanchez Dias (Spain) Fall 1:14 Quarterfinals: Helen Maroulis (USA) over Zhala Aliyev (Azerbaijan) 8-3 Semifinals: Tsugumi Sakurai (Japan) over Helen Maroulis (USA) 6-0 59 kg Women’s Freestyle Bronze Medal Match: Jennifer Page over Alyona Kolesnik (Azerbaijan) Fall 1:40 65 kg Women’s Freestyle Qualification: Macey Kilty (USA) over Valeriia Dondupova-Suvorova (AIN - Russia) 10-0 Round of 16: Macey Kilty (USA) over Albina Drazhi (Albania) Fall 2:28 Quarterfinals: Macey Kilty (USA) over Mimi Hristova (Bulgaria) 11-2 Semifinals: Macey Kilty (USA) over Tatsiana Paulava (AIN - Belarus) 10-0 76 kg Women’s Freestyle Qualification: Adeline Gray (USA) over Jimin Baek (South Korea) 10-0 Round of 16: Adeline Gray (USA) over Epp Mae (Estonia) 11-0 Quarterfinals: Yuka Kagami (Japan) over Adeline Gray (USA) 4-1 97 kg Men’s Freestyle Repechage: Kyle Snyder (USA) over Magomed Ibragimov (Uzbekistan) 10-6 Bronze Medal Match: Kyle Snyder (USA) over Abdulrashid Sadulaev (AIN - Russia) FFT

Morgan Kopitsky sits down with Grand View head coach Angelo Crinzi to discuss how the Grand View position came about, coaching at his alma mater, building a program from scratch, developing leaders, and the recruiting process. Interview with Coach Crinzi.mp4

What a rollercoaster of a day for American wrestling fans! There were some great moments and some shocking ones, as well. The last American wrestler to take the mat on Monday was Kyle Dake, who was searching for his fifth world title against Russian, Zaurbek Sidakov, who came into the match with three World/Olympic gold medals. Though they were both in the 2020 74 kg Olympic weight class, the two had never previously met. The first period was largely uneventful as Dake was put on the shot clock; however, he managed to push Sidakov out of bounds to take a 1-0 lead. That would be the score after the first period. The second period is where things started to go sideways. Dake was put on the shot clock for a second time and Sidakov immediately attacked. He would finish the takedown near the edge with :01 on the shot clock. Once that final second ticked off, Sidakov led 3-1. Shortly after that exchange, Dake got in on a single leg and finished quickly to retake the lead 3-3. With under a minute remaining in the contest, Sidakov got in on a deep shot and was close to finishing. He and Dake took turns exposing each other's backs in a wild sequence. After a review, the score was deemed to be 8-7 in favor of Sidakov. During the final seconds of the contest, Dake tried to expose Sidakov, who was in on a leg again. While he was close, Sidakov never gave up his back. After a review, Sidakov was given two points to make the final score 10-7 in favor of the Russian. Both wrestlers have earned slots at the 2024 Olympics, so a Sidakov/Dake rematch suddenly becomes one of the most anticipated bouts on the horizon in Paris. The other American wrestling in a medal match on Monday was Zahid Valencia at 92 kg. As he’s been known to do, Valencia shot quickly off the opening whistle. Shortly afterwards, his opponent Arash Yoshida, locked up a front headlock and Valencia drug out of it for a takedown. Yoshida quickly escaped and the Japanese corner buzzed to challenge the sequence. A quick replay confirmed the call and gave Valencia a 3-0 lead for the challenge loss. With a 3-0 lead, Valencia continued to attack and scored with one of his best weapons a low double leg. Valencia held onto both legs and was able to quickly transition into a turn with what looked to be a low gut wrench. He would move down to the ankles and lock up a leg lace in the same sequence. Two turns later the match was over, 11-0. Valencia would win a bronze medal in a weight class he originally did not plan to compete in. After a loss to Aaron Brooks in the US Open finals, Valencia moved up to 92 kg from 86 and won the World Team Trials and Final X. One of the best moments of the day came from a competitor not wrestling for the United States, but one that American fans are extremely familiar with. Northwestern and Rutgers All-American, Sebastian Rivera wrestling for Puerto Rico, pulled off one of the best comebacks of the tournament to make the world finals at 65 kg. Rivera was trailing Vazgen Tevanyan (Armenia) 6-0 with under two minutes remaining in the bout. He was never flustered and got on the board with four points after a high finish from a leg attack. Rivera got within a point with only :15 seconds remaining after getting a takedown after changing directions multiple times in a front headlock situation. For the bulk of those :15 seconds, Rivera furiously worked to set up a leg lace. As the final two seconds ticked off the clock, Rivera finally was able to turn Tevanyan for two points and an 11-10 win. Rivera’s win also locked up a spot in the 2024 Olympic Games for Puerto Rico. He’ll face Iszmail Musukaev (Hungary) for a world title tomorrow. Down at 57 kg, another former collegiate star had a huge day. Michigan All-American Stevan Micic became the first Serbian wrestler to win a gold medal in freestyle. Micic had quite the road to the gold medal with wins over three past world champions, including Japan’s Rei Higuchi in the finals. Micic struck first with an early takedown, but was matched by Higuchi late in the first period. The two exchanged takedowns in the second period before Micic went ahead for good. Higuchi was ever-so-close to a takedown at the edge of the mat with only four seconds in the bout. No takedown was ruled; however, the Japanese corner did challenge. The initial call was upheld and Micic added a point, which made the final score 7-4. Micic’s win gives the University of Michigan three world medalists at this tournament. Myles Amine (San Marino) and Mason Parris both earned bronze medals. Perhaps the most shocking match of the day came in the 97 kg quarterfinals as 20-year-old Akhmed Tazhudinov (Albania) handled the legendary Kyle Snyder, 11-0. Tazhudinov took a surprising 4-0 lead after chest-wrapping Snyder and taking him feet-to-back in the opening period. Later in the period, Snyder continued to attack but couldn’t finish against Tazhudinov and the Albanian continued to add to his score. Another four-pointer, late in the opening period, was challenged by Snyder and his corner, which wasn’t overturned making the final score 11-0. After beating Snyder, Tazhudinov also handily defeated another Olympic champion, Abdulrashid Sadulaev (AIN - Russia), before Sadulaev injury defaulted out. Most expected a Snyder/Sadulaev rematch in the semis, but now there’s a chance it could happen tomorrow for a bronze medal, provided Snyder advances and Sadulaev can wrestle. Monday also marked the first day of competition for two weight classes in women’s freestyle. Both Americans, Jacarra Winchester (55 kg) and Jennifer Page (59 kg), advanced to the semifinals. Winchester would lock up her second world medal and a second berth in the world finals with her 11-0 tech fall victory over Anastasia Blayvas (Germany). Page was impressive in the quarterfinals downing 2021 World bronze medalist Sae Nanjo (Japan) in the quarterfinals, before getting shut down by Zhang Qi (China), 5-1 in the semis. Winchester will have to contend with 2x world champion Haruna Okuno in the world finals. Page will await the winner of a repechage contest that takes place tomorrow morning. The other American in action today was Nick Lee at 65 kg. Lee posted three impressive victories before running into 2022 world champion Rahman Amouzadkhalili (Iran). Though Amouzadkhalili controlled most of the bout, Lee did toss the Iranian to his back late in the contest and was close to securing a fall. Lee would be eliminated when Amouzadkhalili lost on a buzzer-beater in the semifinals. In order to guarantee a 65 kg representative at the 2024 Olympics, an American will need to place in the top-two at the 2024 Pan-American Championships or be forced to finish top-three at a World Qualifier. Final Results 57 kg Gold Medal Match: Stevan Micic (Serbia) over Rei Higuchi (Japan) 7-4 Bronze Medal Match: Arsen Harutyunyan (Armenia) over Meirambek Kartbay (Kazakhstan) 11-0 Bronze Medal Match: Zelimkhan Abakarov (Albania) over Zavur Uguev (AIN - Russia) 4-4 Olympic Quota Wrestle-Off: Zavur Uguev (AIN - Russia) over Meirambek Kartbay (Kazakhstan) 4-0 74 kg Gold Medal Match: Zaurbek Sidakov (AIN - Russia) over Kyle Dake (USA) 10-7 Bronze Medal Match: Daichi Takatani (Japan) over Georgios Kougioumtsidis (Greece) Fall 3:38 Bronze Medal Match: Khetig Tsabolov (Serbia) over Turan Bayramov (Azerbaijan) 6-4 Olympic Quota Wrestle-Off: Georgios Kougioumtsidis (Greece) over Turan Bayramov (Azerbaijan) 9-8 79 kg Gold Medal Match: Akhmed Usmanov (AIN - Russia) over Vladimeri Gamkrelidze (Georgia) 4-1 Bronze Medal Match: Mohammad Nokhodilarimi (Iran) over Orkhan Abasov (Azerbaijan) 10-0 Bronze Medal Match: Vasyl Mykhailov (Ukraine) over Bolat Sakayev (Kazakhstan) 3-1 92 kg Gold Medal Match: Rizabek Aitmukhan (Kazakhstan) over Osman Nurmagomedov (Azerbaijan) 5-2 Bronze Medal Match: Feyzullah Akturk (Turkey) over Miriani Maisuradze (Georgia) 5-3 Bronze Medal Match: Zahid Valencia (USA) over Arash Yoshida (Japan) 11-0 American Results Men’s Freestyle 65 kg Round of 64: Nick Lee (USA) over Krzysztof Bienkowski (Poland) 6-0 65 kg Round of 32: Nick Lee (USA) over Austin Gomez (Mexico) 3:56 65 kg Round of 16: Nick Lee (USA) over Umidjon Jalolov (Uzbekistan) 4-3 65 kg Quarterfinals: Rahman Amouzadkhalili (Iran) over Nick Lee (USA) 7-4 92 kg repechage: Zahid Valencia (USA) over Denys Sahaliuk (Ukraine) 6-0 92 kg Bronze Medal Match: Zahid Valencia (USA) over Arash Yoshida (Japan) 11-0 97 kg Round of 32: Kyle Snyder (USA) over Nishan Singh Randhawa (Canada) 11-0 97 kg Round of 16: Kyle Snyder (USA) over Radu Lefter (Moldova) 12-1 97 kg Quarterfinals: Akhmed Tazhudinov (Albania) over Kyle Snyder (USA) 11-0 Women’s Freestyle 55 kg Round of 16: Jacarra Winchester (USA) over Neha Sharma (UWW - India) 7-2 55 kg Quarterfinals: Jacarra Winchester (USA) over Mariia Vynnky (Ukraine) 11-1 55 kg Semifinals: Jacarra Winchester (USA) over Anastasia Blayvas (Germany) 11-0 59 kg Round of 16: Jennifer Page (USA) over Anjli (UWW - India) 11-0 59 kg Quarterfinals: Jennifer Page (USA) over Sae Nanjo (Japan) 6-4 59 kg Semifinals: Zhang Qi (China) over Jennifer Page (USA) 5-1

Chris Ayres was appointed Stanford’s new head wrestling coach on Sept. 11, taking over for Rob Koll. “I always looked at Stanford as an amazing program,” Ayres said. Ayres heard Koll was leaving before the move to North Carolina was official. Therefore, Ayres began putting his name into the hat by reaching out to former assistant coach Ray Blake and Stanford’s administrators. Ayres described applying for the Stanford job as similar to Princeton 17 years ago. “Stanford has a great group of alumni and they really want this thing to be good,” Ayres said. “One of the administrators reached out to me and said it was open. I put in an application and within about a week I had the job.” The transition between Princeton and Stanford has been fairly easy since both schools are similar academically and in athletics. “It's actually pretty insane how you get in, how hard it is to get in, and the type of kids we have to recruit,” Ayres said. “It's funny, I recruited at least half of these kids to Princeton and about a quarter of those kids might've been Princeton or Stanford in the final mix. I've been telling them all to look at all the hoops I jumped through just to coach you.” In addition, Ayres understands how to balance the student-athlete's wrestling experience and academic experience. On the other hand, Ayres has to adapt to the ever-changing West Coast wrestling atmosphere. “The West Coast has been underutilized,” Ayres said. “You got a lot of kids from the West Coast going East or to the Midwest. I have a really strong desire to help California wrestling in general. I hope we are a centerpiece for the state and the West Coast.” Although Ayres is joining a West Coast school, he is excited to remain along the East Coast when the Cardinal head to the ACC next season. “I was just trying to learn as much as possible at Princeton about the realignment stuff, I just, it wasn't affecting me.” “I was on my interview when they figured out they're in the ACC,” Ayres said. “I was pumped about that. We're gonna get a lot of bang for our buck at the ACC. It's taken a huge jump. That helped make the decision.” Ayres believes the move to the ACC can help bring in more talent nationwide too. In addition, he will be able to face a familiar foe at Stanford and in the Ivy League. “Rob's been phenomenal in the transition,” Ayres said “There are things that he knows that the assistants just don't know. But it will be interesting because his guys have a little opportunity to make him hurt a little bit.” Even though his mindset is to claim gold at Stanford, he is easing into his role as the head coach. Currently, he moved near the campus and is learning the culture, names of his wrestlers and how the program runs. Even though he has been to a handful of practices, he has laid back and let both sides transition smoothly. However, Ayres is excited about his new journey. “I went out there with no Stanford gear,” Ayres said. They hooked me up with a bunch of gear now. I'm just looking forward to being in a new environment, working with some new kids and having a new situation.”

Day two for the US Men’s freestyle team at the 2023 World Championships had a bit of a rocky start but ended with a bang. Of the four weights that began competition on Sunday, only Kyle Dake at 74 kg made the World finals. Of the remaining three wrestlers, only Zahid Valencia is still alive in repechage. He’ll have to win two bouts tomorrow morning to secure a bronze medal at 92 kg. Zane Richards (57 kg) and Chance Marsteller (79 kg) were eliminated. Richards lost his only bout of the day, while Marsteller picked up a win before he was beaten. Sunday marked the first set of medals that were awarded and the Americans went four-for-four in those medal-round matches, including three with gold medals on the line. Vito Arujau got the medal madness started as he took on Abasgadzhii Magomedov (AIN - Russia), a 2021 world champion. Arujau got on the board first as he got in on a single leg and pushed Magomedov out of bounds for a point. Later in the first period, Magomedov got in on a low-leg attack and was chest-wrapped by Arujau. The two engaged in an extended scramble, one that saw each wrestler get exposed. The sequence was challenged by the Russian corner and Arujau was given three sets of exposure points, while Magomedov was given two sets. Leading 7-4 in the second period, the two were in another flurry on the edge of the mat. It was initially ruled that Magomedov got two points for exposure, however, Frank Perrelli hit the challenge buzzer on Arujau’s behalf. Although, it looked like the correct call to challenge, after a review, the initial call was upheld. That lost challenge knotted the bout at seven points; however, Magomedov held criteria. The Cornell national champion wasn’t worried and earned a takedown off of a snap down to lead 9-7. Arujau would add to his lead with a step out. During the waning seconds of the match, Arujau stepped out and was called for a caution and one, in addition to the step out. That only impacted the final score as Arujau fended off any further attacks from Magomedov to win 10-9. For the second consecutive year, Cornell has a wrestler with eligibility remaining who has captured a world medal. Yianni Diakomihalis was a world silver medalist in 2022. After a pair of bronze medal matches at 70 kg, Zain Retherford took the mat in search of his first world title. Retherford was a silver medal recipient in 2022. While Retherford broke the ice on the scoring front, his opponent, Amirmohammad Yazdani (Iran) locked up the first takedown to lead, 2-1. From that point, it was all Retherford, as he countered with a takedown of his own to go into the break, 3-2. Retherford added two more in the final stanza, along with a step out and got his hand raised in an 8-5 victory. Fellow Penn State great David Taylor was up next against another Yazdani, Hassan, a frequent opponent. The key sequence in the bout came late in the second period as Taylor got in on a double leg and as Yazdani was falling he locked up a chest wrap and flipped Taylor. The call on the mat was four points for Yazdani and a point for Taylor for a reversal. After Casey Cunningham and Taylor challenged, the call was overturned and Taylor was awarded four points and a point for the reversal, while Yazdani got two for exposure. Taylor extended his lead to 7-3 with another low double leg. There was no controversy this time as Taylor slowly built up for the finish. Late in the second period, Taylor continued to attack and got in on a swing single. Yazdani looked for the chest wrap again, but was not in position to finish and found himself on his back. Taylor took advantage and not only got the takedown, but also a fall in the waning seconds of the match. Taylor’s win puts him into rarified air with USA Wrestling. Taylor is now a four-time World/Olympic champion. The afternoon was capped off for the American team with a bronze medal-winning performance from heavyweight Mason Parris. Though he was a late replacement, Parris nearly knocked off three-time world champion Geno Petriashvili (Georgia) in the semifinals. In his bronze medal match, Parris wasted no time blitzing Abdulla Kurbanov (AIN - Russia) and rolling to a 12-2 tech. The 2023 Hodge Trophy winner blew the match open nearly midway through the first period when he tripped Kurbanov straight to his back for four points at the edge. Taylor and Parris, along with Kyle Dake who made the 74 kg finals, all have qualified the United States at the respective weights for the 2024 Olympics. Parris’ Michigan teammates Myles Amine (San Marino) and Stevan Micic (Serbia) both locked up medals and berths for their nation’s at the Olympics. Amine won a bronze medal match at 86 kg, while Micic upset 3x World/Olympic champion Zavur Uguev (AIN - Russia) in the semifinals. One of the highlights of tomorrow’s slate includes Dake against three-time World/Olympic champion Zaurbek Sidakov (AIN - Russia). The final two men’s freestyle team members (Nick Lee - 65 kg and Kyle Snyder - 97 kg) will also start their tournaments. Also, women’s freestyle will get underway with 55 kg (Jacarra Winchester) and 59 kg (Jennifer Page) hitting the mat. Final Results 61 kg Gold Medal Match - Vito Arujau (USA) over Abasgadzhi Magomedov (AIN - Russia) 10-9 Bronze Medal Match - Taiyrbek Zhumashbek Uulu (Kyrgyzstan) over Kodai Ogawa (Japan) 2-1 Bronze Medal Match - Shota Phartenadze (Georgia) over Valentyn Bliasetskyi (Ukraine) 5-5 70 kg Gold Medal Match - Zain Retherford (USA) over Amirmohammad Yazdani (Iran) 8-5 Bronze Medal Match - Ramazan Ramazanov (Bulgaria) over Ernazar Akmataliev (Kyrgyzstan) 8-6 Bronze Medal Match - Arman Andreasyan (Armenia) over Abhimanyou (UWW - India) 12-1 86 kg Gold Medal Match - David Taylor (USA) over Hassan Yazdani (Iran) 5:57 Bronze Medal Match - Myles Amine (San Marino) over Javrail Shapiev (Uzbekistan) 8-5 Bronze Medal Match - Azamat Dauletbekov (Kazakhstan) over Magomed Sharipov (Bahrain) 5-3 Olympic Quota Qualifying - Javrail Shapiev (Uzbekistan) over Magomed Sharipov (Bahrain) 3-1 125 kg Gold Medal Match - Amir Zare (Iran) over Geno Petriashvili (Georgia) 11-0 Bronze Medal Match - Taha Akgul (Turkey) over Daniel Ligeti (Hungary) 5-0 Bronze Medal Match - Mason Parris (USA) over Abdulla Kurbanov (AIN - Russia) 12-2 Olympic Quota Qualifying - Abdulla Kurbanov (AIN - Russia) over Daniel Ligeti (Hungary) 8-3 American Results 57 kg Qualification: Aliabas Rzazade (Azerbaijan) over Zane Richards (USA) 3-2 61 kg Gold Medal Match: Vito Arujau (USA) over Abasgadzhi Magomedov (AIN - Russia) 10-9 70 kg Gold Medal Match: Zain Retherford (USA) over Amirmohammad Yazdani (Iran) 8-5 74 kg Qualification: Kyle Dake (USA) over Magomet Evloev (Tajikistan) 12-2 74 kg Round of 16: Kyle Dake (USA) over Nurkozha Kaipanov (Kazakhstan) 9-4 74 kg Quarterfinals: Kyle Dake (USA) over Daichi Takatani (Japan) 6-4 74 kg Semifinals: Kyle Dake (USA) over Georgios Kougioumtsidis (Greece) 4-1 79 kg Round of 16: Chance Marsteller (USA) over Chems Fetairia (Algeria) 7-2 79 kg Quarterfinals: Orkhan Abasov (Azerbaijan) over Chance Marsteller (USA) 9-3 92 kg Round of 16: Zahid Valencia (USA) over Amirali Azarpira (Iran) 12-9 92 kg Quarterfinals: Osman Nurmagomedov (Azerbaijan) over Zahid Valencia 5-1 125 kg Bronze Medal Match: Mason Parris (USA) over Abdulla Kurbanov (AIN - Russia) 12-2

Below are the women's freestyle brackets for the 2023 Senior World Championships 50 kg 53 kg 55 kg 57 kg 59 kg 62 kg 65 kg 68 kg 72 kg 76 kg

The World Championships is difficult and prestigious enough as it is. The bragging rights and hardware awarded for winning or even making the podium are what wrestlers from around the world have trained for all of their lives. But, since we’re a year away from the 2024 Olympic Games, the World Championships carry an added significance. Not only do world medalists get tangible rewards for their hard work, but they also have earned their respective countries a slot at the 2024 Olympics. This year’s tournament is actually different from pre-Olympic year’s past. Instead of the top-five finishers automatically qualifying their country for the Olympics, the losers of the bronze medal matches will wrestle-off for that bid. Only five wrestlers per weight will earn quotes in Belgrade. Remember, the individual wrestlers themselves haven’t earned slots at the Olympics, they have earned them on behalf of their country. In many instances, those wrestlers will likely end up in Paris. Below are the countries that have earned Olympic quotas thus far. This list will be updated at the conclusion of each day for the remainder of this tournament. Men’s Freestyle 57 kg Albania, Armenia, Japan, Russia*, Serbia 65 kg Armenia, Hungary, Iran, Puerto Rico, Russia* 74 kg Greece, Japan, Russia*, Serbia, United States 86 kg Iran, Kazakhstan, San Marino, United States, Uzbekistan 97 kg Azerbaijan, Bahrain, Georgia, Turkey, United States 125 kg Georgia, Iran, Russia*, Turkey, United States Women's Freestyle 50 kg China, Japan, Mongolia, Turkey, United States 53 kg Belarus*, Ecuador, India, Japan, Sweden 57 kg Japan, Moldova, Nigeria, Poland, United States 62 kg Germany, Japan, Kyrgyzstan, Norway, Ukraine 68 kg France, Japan, Moldova, Mongolia, Turkey 76 kg Colombia, Cuba, Japan, Kyrgyzstan, United States Greco-Roman 60 kg China, Iran, Japan, Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan 67 kg Armenia, Azerbaijan, Cuba, Iran, Serbia 77 kg Armenia, Azerbaijan, Japan, Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan 87 kg Bulgaria, Hungary, Kazakhstan, Turkey, Ukraine 97 kg Armenia, Cuba, Czech Republic, Iran, Lithuania 130 kg China, Cuba, Egypt, Iran, Turkey *At this time it's unclear how UWW and the Olympic Committee will handle Belarusian/Russian participation at the 2024 Olympics. Until further notice, we will have this spot awarded to Belarus/Russia.

Day one is in the books at the 2023 World Championships. The United States men’s freestyle team flexed their muscles by winning their first 14 matches of the tournament (14-1 overall) and placing three of their four wrestlers into the world finals. The first American to make the finals first-time world team member Vito Arujau. Arujau needed just over two minutes to tech Asian champion Taiyrbek Zhumashbek of Kyrgyzstan. It was one of three techs in four matches for the Cornell star. Arujau appeared to have blown the match open with a feet-to-back exposure sequence against Zhumbashbek. The Kyrgyzstan staff challenged the sequence and it was overturned ruling that Arujau just should receive a set of exposure points and a 4-2 lead. That didn’t phase Arujau, who secured another takedown shortly thereafter and ended the bout with three leg laces. The win guarantees at least a silver medal for Arujau. Since 61 kg is not an Olympic weight, Arujau will get a bye to the semifinals of his Olympic Trials weight class; which we assume is 57 kg. Arujau’s closest match of the day was an 8-2 victory over Kodai Ogawa (Japan) in the quarters. A match prior, Ogawa knocked off the returning silver medalist Reza Atri (Iran). Arujau’s win eliminated Atri, which should help in the team race. Last year, Zain Retherford got over the hump and made the world finals, claiming a world medal in his third tournament. Now, Retherford is back in the finals and seeking to improve the color of his medal. Retherford has put together a rather workman-like tournament winning all three of his matches without an early match termination. All of the action in Retherford’s semifinal bout with two-time world fifth-place finisher Arman Andreasyan (Armenia) came within the first minute and a half of the bout. Retherford was able to get a takedown using a sweep single. Immediately, he transitioned into an arm bar, but was having difficulty scoring. Andresyan stood up, but Retherford never relinquished the bar and turned Andresyan to his back from his feet. The Armenia corner challenged the rule that Retherford deserved four points for the sequence; however, it was upheld. Those seven points were the only ones Retherford needed to tally during the bout. Like Arujau, Retherford’s medal at a non-Olympic weight will place him into the Olympic Trials semifinals, presumably at 65 kg. Fellow Penn State alum, David Taylor, is back in the world finals for the fourth time. Like his last two appearances (and the Olympic finals), Taylor will face rival Hassan Yazdani (Iran). Taylor left no doubt in any of his four matches with two falls and two techs. In his first bout, Taylor only needed :14 seconds to cradle and pin Morocco’s Sofiane Belmir. Since Taylor has clinched a medal at an Olympic weight, he’s earned the right to sit in the best-of-three finals at the Olympic Trials. Late replacement at 125 kgs, Mason Parris, nearly earned a spot in the world finals as he pushed three-time world champion Geno Petriashvili (Georgia) to the brink in the semifinals. Parris held a 6-4 lead with under a minute remaining in the contest. During the previous flurry, Parris was able to use a chest-wrap to nullify a Petriashvili scoring attempt and earn two points himself. He attempted that again, but was not successful and gave Petriashvili two points to go ahead on criteria. Needing a score to retake the lead, Parris was pushing the pace; however, he was caught off balance and muscled over to his back by the legendary Georgian. To get to the finals, Parris downed returning world medalists in the Round of 16 and quarterfinals. In the quarters against Zhiwei Deng (China), Parris seemed to have the match under control with under :30 left in the bout. Deng was able to expose Parris from his feet with a head pinch, taking a 4-3 lead. Almost immediately, Parris came back and finished a single leg for four points to retake the lead, for good. The Chinese corner challenged the sequence and, after a lengthy challenge, the call stood and Parris was awarded an additional point to win 8-4. Parris will drop down to a bronze medal match tomorrow. Should he win that match, he’ll lock up a spot in the Olympic Trials finals and earn an Olympic quota for the United States at 125 kg. If he loses, he’d drop into an additional match for Olympic quota purposes. Saturday’s American Results 61 kg Qualification: Vito Arujau over Ossimzhan Dastanbek (Kazakhstan) 10-0 Round of 16: Vito Arujau over Stilyan Iliev (Bulgaria) 10-0 Quarterfinals: Vito Arujau over Kodai Ogawa (Japan) 8-2 Semifinals: Vito Arujau over Taiyrbek Zhumashbek (Kyrgyzstan) 12-2 Finals: Abasgadzhi Magomedov (AIN - Russia) 70 kg Round of 16: Zain Retherford over Mustafo Akhmedov (Tajikistan) 4-0 Quarterfinals: Zain Retherford over Abhimanyou (UWW - India) 9-2 Semifinals: Zain Retherford over Arman Andreasyan (Armenia) 7-0 Finals: Amirmohammad Yazdani (Iran) 86 kg Qualification: David Taylor over Sofiane Belmir (Morocco) Fall: 14 Round of 16: David Taylor over Benjamin Greil (Austria) 10-0 Quarterfinals: David Taylor over Magomed Sharipov (Bahrain) 12-2 Semifinals: David Taylor over Azamat Dauletbekov (Kazakhstan) 4:36 Finals: Hassan Yazdani (Iran) 125 kg Qualification: Mason Parris over Yusup Batirmurzaev (Kazakhstan) 11-0 Round of 16: Mason Parris over Abraham Conyedo Ruano (Italy) 3-0 Quarterfinals: Mason Parris over Zhiwei Deng (China) 8-4 Semifinals: Geno Petriashvili (Georgia) over Mason Parris 8-6 Bronze Medal Match: Determined via repechage