To Our Friends in Wrestling Around the world
By William May
(Japan Amateur Wrestling Federation, Public
Information Committee
Kyodo World Services, senior sports writer:wmay52@hotmail.com)
MIX OF OLD AND NEW AT EURO FS C'SHIPS
RIGA (May 3) - Olympic gold medalists
Namik Abdullaev and David Musulbes opened
and closed the men's finals with hard-fought
wins, but in between two new champions were
crowned at the European freestyle wrestling
championships. Abdullaev of Azerbaijan racked
up three points against Olympic bronze medalist
Amiran Kardanov of Greece with a takedown
and cross-ankle turn in the first 90 seconds
of the 55-kg championship at RTU International
Exhibition Center.
The 32-year-old law student from Baku made
it stand for a 3-1 victory despite four warnings
for passivity in the final four minutes of
the bout. It was Abdullaev's first continental
crown since back-to-back titles in 1994 and
1995. Russia's Mavlet Batirov took third
place at 55 kg, spinning behind Ramazan Demir
of Turkey for a third point and a 3-0 decision
at 1:50 of extra time.
In the championship finale at 120 kg, Musulbes
of Russia fashioned a workmanlike 4-0 win
against the tight defense of Ukraine's Sergey
Pryadun for his third straight Euro title
and fifth overall.
Alexander Modebadze of Georgia, No. 2 in
Europe a year ago, appeared headed for an
easy win over Daniel Chintoan Rares of Romania
with eight points in the opening two minutes
of the third-place match at 120 kg. But Rares,
a pudgy sixth-place finisher in the junior
world championships in 2001, made a fight
of it before falling 14-4 -- only three seconds
from regulation.
At 66 kg, Russia's Irbek Farniev prevailed
3-2 against world champion Elbrus Tedeev
of Ukraine in a furious final that saw a
handful of wild exchanges and ended with
Tedeev in a high-crotch and Farniev locked
up for a crotch lift. Tedeev had earlier
defeated Serafim Barzakov of Bulgaria out
of an overtime clinch in the semifinals with
a step-across trip that dumped the 2001 world
and European champion to his back.
Barzakov also lost to former junior world
runner-up Oemer Cubukcu of Turkey on criteria
in the match for third place. At 84 kg, Revaz
Mindorashvili of Georgia scored three points
on an inside trip out of second-period clinch
and claimed 5-1 win over Armenia's Mahmed
Agaev for his first European championship.
Russia's Vadim Laliev, 22, a junior world
champion in 1999, had little difficulty against
33-year-old Andre Backhaus of Germany, forging
a 4-1 win for third place.
In the remaining three weights in the men's
competition, reigning world champion Eldar
Kurtanidze of Georgia was eliminated in the
quarterfinals at 96 kg when he failed to
clinch properly against Russia's Khadshimourad
Gatsalov at the start of overtime.
At 60 kg, defending champion Arif Kama of
Turkey posted a pair of wins to advance to
the semifinals and Zaur Botaev of Russia,
the winner at 66 kg a year ago, notched a
pair of wins for a final four showdown with
Alexander Leipold of Germany.
In the women's competition, 17-year-old Natalia
Golts of Russia wrapped up Greece's Sofia
Poubouridou with a cradle and applied the
pin at 2:15 for the title at 55 kg. Golts
was the bronze medalist at last year's world
championships at 51 kg and Poubouridou was
the world champion at the same weight. Sylwia
Bilenska of Poland scored with an early fireman's
carry against Christina Oertli of Germany
and won third place with a 5-2 decision.
At 63 kg, Norwegian veteran Lene Aanes caught
five-time world champion Nikola Hartmann
of Austria with a headlock and nailed down
her first major international title with
a fall in just 22 seconds. Aanes, last year's
world bronze medalist and European runner-up,
has gone home with the silver or bronze medals
on 10 previous trips to the world or European
meets since 1995. Also at 63 kg, world silver
medalist Sara Eriksson of Sweden defeated
two-time defending champion Malgorzata Bassa
of Poland 3-0 for third place.
In the lightest weight category, 48-kg world
champion Brigitte Wagner landed on top of
Lilia Kaskarakova's attempt at an inside
trip and cruised to a 4-0 win against the
former junior Euro champion from Russia.
Angelique Berthenet-Hidalgo of France hit
a headlock right off the whistle to start
overtime for a 4-0 win over Norway's Nora
Lauvstad.
In the remaining female weights, Stanka Hristova
of Bulgaria dominated 67-kg world champion
Katerina Burmistrova of Ukraine to advance
to the semifinals at 72 kg against Germany's
Anita Schaetzle. Defending champion Lise
Legrand of France eked out a 1-1 win on criteria
over Ewelina Pruszko of Poland and appeared
headed for a finals berth at 67 kg. Anne
Deluntsch of France and Ukraine's Olga Krygina
won their repechage pools and advanced to
the semifinals of the 51-kg and 59-kg weight
categories respectively.