SOPHS SATO, MATSUMOTO REPEAT AT UNI FS NATIONALS
TOKYO (November 19) - Super sophomores Tsukasa Sato and Shingo Matsumoto repeated as individual champions while freshman Noriyuki Takatsuka claimed his first crown in the university freestyle national championships.
Matsumoto and Takatsuka, who wrestle for Nihon University, helped “Nichidai” claim its first team title in five years. It was Nichidai’s fifth team championship overall in the annual fall freestyle meet.
Takatsuka also became the 13th wrestler in the competition to win a championship as a freshman. Sato of Waseda University and Matsumoto along with champions Yosuke Kato (74 kg, Nippon Sports Science University) and Akihito Tanaka (120 kg, Senshu University) doubled up on national titles this year after winning at the
collegiate open this summer.
Team results:
Nihon University, 49 points; Takushoku University, 37; NSSU, 35; Senshu, 31;
Waseda, 25; Ritsumeikan, 20; Aoyama Gakuin, 19; Yamanashi Gakuin, 18
Individual finals results:
55 kg
F1 - Kohei Hasegawa (AG) df. Masashi Saito (N), 8-7
F3 - Shinichi Yumoto (T) df. Yashuhiro Inaba (S), 3-1
60 kg
F1 - Noriyuki Takatsuka (N) df. Kenta Oyama (S), 6-1
F3 - Takumi Nakamura (T) df. Shingo Araki (Daito Bunka) by TF, 11-0, 5:13
66 kg
F1 - Tsukasa Sato (W) df. Muneyuki Suzuki (R), 4-2
F3 - Takafumi Kojima (NS) df. Jugo Hayashida (S), 10-1
74 kg
F1 - Yosuke Kato (NS) df. Yuta Nakasuji (N), 2-1, OT 9:00
F3 - Yuta Isobe (Tokuyama) df. Taiki Nakano (YG), 10-8, OT 6:22
84 kg
F1 - Takao Isokawa (T) df. Sho Matsui (R), by TF, 11-0, 4:22
F3 - Yasuhiro Ando (Fukuoka) df. Kaito Takahashi (W), 14-5
96 kg
F1 - Shinya Matsumoto (NU) df. Nobuhiko Maeshima (T) by TF, 12-2, 4:50
F3 - Takuya Ito (W) df. Jun Aisawa (Chuo), 3-2
120 kg
F1 - Akihito Tanaka (S) df. Masahide Moriyama (NS) by fall, 1:36 (8-0)
F3 - Issei Sugiura (YG) df Takeshi Shinbori (Toyo), 3-0
TOMIYAMA TO HEAD NAT’L TEAM THRU BEIJING GAMES
TOKYO (November 18) - The Japan Wrestling Federation has decided that Hideaki Tomiyama will remain the head of the national team coaching staff through the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games. JWF directors further decided that Tomiyama will also oversee the direction of the Japanese women’s squad, which won two gold medals, a silver and a bronze at the Athens Olympics in August.
Previously, the Japan Female Wrestling Federation selected its own coaching staff, with the JFWF national team director serving as a deputy director on the JWF staff.
Following an extended term by Shozo Sasahara, national team directors served terms of 2-6 years between 1979 and the 1988 Seoul Olympics. National team directors now serve terms of four years.
With the success of the Japanese wrestlers at the Athens Olympics, however, the JWF decided to extend Tomiyama’s tenure for another four years.
National team coaching staff:
National team director - Hideaki Tomiyama
Deputy director - Masakazu Hijikata
FS head coach - Mitsuru Sato
Fs coaches - Takahiro Wada, Kosei Akaishi, Hajime Wakui, Hiroyuki Obata, Takumi Adachi
GR head coach - Hiromichi Ito
GR coaches - Takeshi Kukidome, Hiroshi Kado, Yasutoshi Motoki
LF head coach - Kazuhito Sakae
LF coaches - Ryo Kanahama, Shigeo Kinase, Kenji Fujikawa, Toshihiro Naritomi, Daisuke Hanahara
Past national team directors
Shozo Sasahara - through 1978
Itsuo Sasabushi - 1979-1984
Tomiaki Fukuda - 1985-1986
Tsutomu Hanahara - 1987-1988
Yuichiro Hirayama - 1989-1992
Hideo Fujimoto - 1993*
Shojiro Shimoda - 1993-1996
Yuji Takada - 1997-2000
Hideaki Tomiyama - 2001-present
(*Note - Fujimoto relinquished the post in 1993 in a disagreement with the JWF)
GARDNER TO FACE YOSHIDA IN NEW YEAR’S EVE SHOWDOWN
TOKYO (November 1) - Sydney Olympic gold medalist Rulon Gardner will face 1992 Olympic judo champion Hidehiko Yoshida in the Pride New Year’s Eve mixed martial arts festival at Saitama Super Arena outside Tokyo. Gardner won the gold medal in Sydney by upending greco-roman legend Alexander Karelin in the final at 130 kg. The 33-year-old American, who also won the 2001 world championship title, took the bronze medal at last summer’s Athens Games.
Yoshida, meanwhile, who also competed at the Sydney Olympics in 2000, defeated Royce Gracie in his mixed martial arts debut in 2002 and then followed up with a win over Don Frey. In August 2003, however, he lost by decision to Vanderlei Silva in the Pride middleweight title match.
ATHENS OLYMPIC CHAMP GABER IN K-1 NEW YEAR’S EVE
HONOLULU (November 21) - Olympic gold medalist Karam Gaber of Egypt will fight in the K-1 Dynamite event at Osaka Dome on New Year’s Eve, organizers announced. The 25-year-old greco-roman gold medalist at 96 kg will become the first Olympic champion to try his hand at the mixed martial arts immediately after an Olympic Games. In Athens, Gaber also indicated that he plans to continue wrestling greco-roman through the Beijing Olympics in 2008. K-1 organizers did not say who Gaber’s opponent in the Osaka event will be.
RITSUMEIKAN WINS 7TH STRAIGHT WESTERN COLLEGIATE CROWN
OSAKA (November 27-28) - Ritsumeikan University of Kyoto cruised to its seventh straight championship title in the semiannual West Japan collegiate wrestling championships. Ritsumeikan rolled 6-1 over Tokuyama University in the final at Osaka Prefectural Gymnasium for its ninth overall championship in the western regional competition.
Fukuoka University defeated Doshisha of Kyoto 6-1 for third place, while Minami Kyushu University won the Division Two championship.
248 ENTRIES FOR NAT’L C’SHIPS
TOKYO (November 26) - A total of 248 wrestlers are entered in the Japanese national championships, set for December 21-23 at Yoyogi National Gymnasium in Tokyo. The championships will be contested under the new rules set to be implemented by the international wrestling federation (FILA) in January.
Competition in each category will be completed in a single day, but will not include any repechage bracket for third place. Freestyle bronze medalist at 55 kg Chikara Tanabe is not entered in this year’s championships.
Female gold medalists Saori Yoshida and Kaori Icho are set to defend their titles at 55 and 63 kg, respectively. But, defending champion at 48 kg Chiharu Icho is entered at 51 kg, where she is expected to meet two-time world champion Hitomi Sakamoto.Four-time world champion Seiko Yamamoto will also be sitting out this year’s all-Japan meet.
By style, 102 wrestlers are entered in freestyle, 88 in greco-roman and 58 in the women’s competition.
The schedule of competition
December 21, Tuesday - Freestyle 96, 120 kg; Greco-Roman 66, 96, 120 kg; Women 59, 67 kg
December 22, Wednesday - Freestyle 55, 74, 84 kg; Greco-Roman 55, 74, 84 kg; Women 48 kg
December 23, Thursday - Freestyle 60, 66 kg; Greco-Roman 60 kg; Women 51, 55, 63, 72 kg
AYATA 3RD IN HENRI DEGLANE INT’L
NICE, France (November 27-28) - Results of Japanese entries in the Henri Deglane International:
60 kg - Yasuyuki Tanioka, Japan SDF (9th place)
1R - lost to Vornkin (UKR), 0-2 (0-1, 0-6)
r2 - df. Nowka (GER), 2-0 (1-0, 6-0)
r3 - lost to Warren (U.S.), 1-2 (3-0, 0-1, 0-2)
----
66 kg - Shinya Ayata, Japan SDF (3rd)
1R - bye
2R - df. Atanasov (BUL), 2-0 (6-0, 3-0)
3R - lost to Mazur (UKR), 0-2 (0-1, 0-3)
r4 - df. Lemerle (ROM), 2-0 (6-0, 7-0)
F3 - df. Kurqinyan (NED), 2-0 (3-1, 1-0)
74 kg - Atsushi Kano, Gifu (9th)
1R - df. Drisi (?),2-1 (0-3, 1-0, 3-0)
2R - lost to Guenot (FRA), 0-2 (0-1, 0-6)
r3 - lost to Rachiba (UKR), 0-2 (0-1, 0-6)
----
74 kg - Kawamukai Atsushi,Japan SDF (10th)
1R - df. Iua (ESP), 2-0 (2-0, 1-0)
2R - lost to Levezmann (GER), 0-2 (0-2, 0-1)
----
84 kg - Shinobu Komukai, Japan SDF
1R - lost to Schrade (GER), 0-2 0-1, 0-1)
