To Our Friends in Wrestling Around the world

                    

By William May
(Japan Amateur Wrestling Federation, Public Information Committee
wmay52@hotmail.com


August wrestling news

3 JAPANESE WIN TITLES AT BELOGLAZOV INTL




    KALININGRAD, Russia (August 7) - Hidenori Taoka, Noriyuki Takatsuka and Takafumi Kojima won championships at the Beloglazov International and served notice that they will be contenders at this year’s world championships in China.

   Taoka led the Japanese gold rush by defeating 2005 world silver medalist Radoslav Velikov of Bulgaria in the final at 55 kg. Japan also got a silver medal from Kazuyuki Nakajima at 74 kg as well as bronze medal efforts from Tomohiro Matsunaga (55) and Kunihiko Obata (74).

   Asked about his triumph, Taoka remarked “To be honest, I was hoping that there would be more wrestlers here so I could gain some experience before the world championships. But, of the world’s top-ranked wrestlers, there was only one.”

   “The next competition will be the main event (the world championships), so I hope to give it everything I have,” said Taoka.

Results of matches involving Japanese entries:

55 kg - TAOKA, Hidenori (1st, 15 entries)
1R - df. Railian Vitaliy (GER), 2-1 (0-3, 5-0, 6-0)
2R - df. Dains Dolmnganov (RUS), 2-1 (2-3, 1-0, 4-0)
SF - df. Shamil Salihov (RUS), 2-0 (2-0, 2-1)
F1 - df. Radoslav Velikov (BUL), 2-0, 1-0, 2-1)

55 kg - MATSUNAGA, Tomohiro (3rd, 15 entires)
1R - df. Mihail Evoloev (KGZ), 2-0 (2-0, 3-0)
2R - df. Nikolay Ajanitov (RUS), 2-0 (6-1, 7-1)
SF - lost to Radoslav Velikov (BUL), 1-2 (1-0, 1-3, 1-2)
F3 - df. Ebagad Marsegb (GER), 2-0, 2-0, 2-0)

60 kg - TAKATSUKA, Noriyuki (1st, 9 entries)
1R - bye
2R - df. Mihail Evoloev (RUS) by fall, 2P=0:39
SF - df. Vadim Halitov (RUS)
F1 - df. Zalimhan Kutsaev (RUS)

66 kg - KOJIMA, Takafumi (1st, 14 entries)
1R - df. Aligagy Aliev (RUS) by fall, 2P=0:53
2R - df. Jan Safjan (BLR), 2-1 (0-1, 4-0, 6-0)
SF - df. Nasrula Zmoev (RUS), 2-0 (3-0, 1-0)
F1 - df. Bamzat Dgafarov (RUS), 2-0 (2-1, 3-0)

66 kg - YONEMITSU, Tatsuhiro (did not place, 14 entries)
1R - bye
2R - lost to Amir Berkov (RUS), 0-2 (1-3, 0-1)

74 kg - NAGASHIMA, Kazuyuki (2nd, 21 entries)
1R - bye
2R - df. Konstantin Petrov (RUS), 2-0 (6-0, 3-1)
3R - df. Mikhail Pahomov (RUS), 2-0 (1-0, 4-0)
SF - df. Sergei Killirov (RUS), 2-0 (3-1, 3-1)
F1 - lost to Inal Dzagurov (SVK), 0-2 (0-1, 0-1)

74 kf - OBATA, Kunihiko (3rd, 21 entries)
1R - lost to Inal Dzagurov (SVK), 0-2 (0-1, 0-1)
r1 - df. Amiran Atinashvili (RUS) by fall, 1P=1:23
r2 - df. Roman Panin (RUS), 2-0 (1-0, 6-1)
F3 - df. Ahmed Abdulaev (RUS), 2-0 (1-0, 6-1)

84 kg - MATSUMOTO, Shinya (5th, 14 entries)
1R - lost to David Bichinashivili (GER), 0-2 (0-3, 0-3)
r1 - df. Reman Abdasov (RUS)
F3 - lost to Yusup Abdsalamov (TJK)


NAITO, FUKUDA, SAITO SELECTED TO OFFICIATE AT WORLD C’SHIPS


   TOKYO (August 21) - Three Japanese referees, including the chairman of the officiating committee of the Japan Wrestling Federation, have been named to officiate at this year’s world championships in China.

   Yoshimitsu Naito, head of the JWF officiating committee, was named along with Koji Fukuda and Osamu Saito to the team of officials for the September 25-October 1 championships in Guangzhou.


SATO WINS 3RD STRAIGHT COLLEGIATE OPEN FS TITLE



   SAKAI, Osaka (August 26-27) - Waseda University junior Tsukasa Sato won his third straight freestyle collegiate open championships crown and was named the most outstanding wrestler from among the three styles contested at the summer wrestling classic.

   Meanwhile, three wrestlers who qualified for Japan’s world team in June -- Noriyuki Takatsuka (60 kg), Shinya Matsumoto (84) and Katsuya Kitamura (120) -- all fell to collegiate rivals in the championship finals.

Results of individual championship finals:
55 kg - Yasuhiro Inaba (Senshu) df. Naoki Tomioka (NSSU), 2-0
60 kg - Kenichi Yumoto (NSSU) df. Noriyuki Takatsuka (Nihon)
66 kg - Tsukasa Sato (Waseda) df. Kohei Fujimoto (Taku), 2-0
74 kg - Goki Kudo (Nihon) df. Naoki Akimoto (Nihon), 2-1
84 kg - Takao Isokawa (Taku) df. Shinya Matsumoto (Nihon), 2-0
96 kg - Eiji Azuma (Ritsumeikan) df. Kenzo Sakamoto (Nihon Bunri), 2-0
120 kg - Nobuyoshi Arakida (Sen) df. Katsuya Kitamura (Sen), 2-0


HASEGAWA, YAMAGUCHI REPEAT IN GR COLLEGIATE OPEN


   SAKAI, Osaka (August 24-25) - Kohei Hasegawa of Aoyama Gakuin University and Takushoku’s Ryuji Yamaguchi repeated as champions at the greco-roman collegiate open wrestling championships.

   Meanwhile, Hideo Kitaoka of Nippon Sports Science University denied NSSU teammate Ryutaro Matsumoto a second straight open crown with a 2-1 win in the 66-kg final. At 120 kg, Iori Yasuda gave Waseda University its first greco-roman collegiate open champion since 1971 when Yorihide Isogai won the heavyweight
(over 90 kg) title.

Results of individual championship finals:
55 kg - Kohei Hasegawa (AGU) df. Naoki Matsuhita (NSSU), 2-0
60 kg - Hideo Kitaoka (NSSU) df. Ryutaro Matsumoto (NSSU), 2-1
66 kg - Shinpei Fujiyama (NSSU) df. Kazuhiko Naruse (NSSU), 2-0
74 kg - Masanori Koeda (NSSU) df. Keiji Tosen (NSSU), 2-0
84 kg - Takao Isokawa (Takushoku) df. Masaaki Yano (Senshu), 2-0
96 kg - Ryuji Yamaguchi (Taku) df. Masaaki Aso (Taku) by fall, 2P=1:33
120 kg - Iori Yasuda (Waseda) df. Atsushi Nakamura (Taku), 2-0


3 DEFENDING CHAMPS REPEAT AT WOMEN’S COLLEGIATE OPEN


   SAKAI, Osaka (August 24) - Asia champions Yuri Funatsu and Chikako Matsukawa were among three wrestlers to repeat as winners at the women’s collegiate open wrestling championships.

   Funatsu of Toyo University and and Matsukawa of Nihon University, who won continental crowns in April, had little trouble nailing down titles at 48 kg and 55 kg, respectively. Matsukawa was later named the outstanding wrestler of the competition.

   The third repeat champion at Kaneoka Park Gymnasium was Kie Tanaka who wrapped up a fifth individual crown for Chukyo Women’s University wrestlers at 72 kg.

Results of championship finals:
48 kg - Yuri Funatsu (Toyo) df. Yuki Katafuchi (Doshisha), 2-1
51 kg - Yuri Kai (Chukyo) df. Yuna Sakae (Chukyo), 2-1
55 kg - Chikako Matsukawa (Nihon) df. Mizuho Shibata (Chukyo), 2-0
59 kg - Mio Nishimaki (Chukyo) df. Kayoko Shimada (Nihon), 2-0
63 kg - Kei Yamana (Chukyo) df. Akiko Maruyama (Aoyama Gakuin), 2-0
67 kg - Mami Shinkai (Chukyo) df. Mai Kurumaya (Kansai)
72 kg - Kie Tanaka (Chukyo) df. Mari Hiroto (Kansai)


EITA BAGS BACK-TO-BACK SPRING-SUMMER HS TITLES


  OSAKA (August 5) - Yuki Eita breezed to the national high school wrestling championship title at 84 kg as the Kyoto wrestler followed up his triumph at 74 kg last year and was named the meet’s outstanding wrestler.

  Eita of Amino high school claimed both the spring invitational and summer national championships titles for a second year in a row.

Results of individual championship finals:
50 kg - Masaharu Kaji, Ikuei (Hyogo) df. Masato Maruyama, Kojo (Yamaguchi), 2-0
55 kg - Yuta Uchimura, Kashima Jitsugyo (Saga) df. Ryohei Omata, Kasumigaura (Ibaraki), 2-0
60 kg - Yuji Okamoto, Hiryu (Shizuoka) df. Tomotsugu Ishida, Ritsumeikan-Uji (Kyoto), 2-0
66 kg - Hirohito Nakano, Imabara Kogyo (Ehime) df. Yoshiji Ono, Yaezu Suisan (Shizuoka), 2-0
74 kg - Takaki Yamana, Soejo (Nara) df. Daijiro Kato, Ikuei (Hyogo) by TF, 2-0
84 kg - Yuki Eita, Amino (Kyoto) df. Seiji Suzuki, Gifu Kogyo (Gifu), 2-0
96 kg - Yuya Takasago, Yamagata Shogyo (Yamagata) df. Yusuke Kaneko, Adachi Kodaifu (Tochigi)
120 kg - Yuto Aizawa, Sendai Ikuei (Miyagi) df. Shuichi Nishimura, Koryo (Nara)


AKITA SHOGYO WINS AT HS C’SHIPS, 1ST TITLE IN 33 YEARS


  OSAKA (August 3) - Akita Shogyo high school won its first team title in 33 years at the national high school wrestling championships with a string of 4-3 victories at Kishiwada municipal gymnasium.

   The championship final was a repeat of the invitational final in March, also won by Akita Shogyo, as the school won its second high school team title and first since 1973. Akita’s Kazuya Miura (60 kg) was named the outstanding wrestler of the team competition.

   Ginan Kogyo, which upended defending champion Kasumigaura (Ibaraki) 4-3 in the third round, and Tottori Chuo Ikuei took home the trophies for third-place.


KAJI, OKAMOTO, EITA WIN 3RD HS TITLES OF THE YEAR AT GR C’SHIPS


   TOKYO (August 17-18) - Masaharu Kaji, Yuji Okamoto and Yuki Eita claimed their third high school national championship titles of the year, adding the greco-roman jewel to their crowns at Komazawa Gymnasium in Tokyo.

   Okamoto of Hiryu high school in Shizuoka won for a second time at 60 kg, but last year’s champion at 50 kg Yuta Uchimura of Kashima Jitsugyo finished third at 55 kg.

   For Kaji, the winner at 50 kg, the greco-roman crown was his fourth age-group title of the year. The Hyogo high schooler also won the greco-roman championship at the junior national championships in April. Eita of Kyoto’s Amino high school, considered by many the top high school recruit this year, won at 84 kg after winning last year at 74 kg.

Results of championship finals:
50 kg - Masaharu Kaji, Ikuei (Hyogo) df. Kensuke Otani, Amino (Kyoto), 2-1
55 kg - Hiroki Makise, Saitama Sakae (Saitama) df. Yuzuru Osada, Shuzenji Kogyo (Shizuoka) by fall, 1P=1:29
60 kg - Yuji Okamoto, Hiryu (Shizuoka) df. Go Shiozaki, Toba (Mie) by TF, 2-0
66 kg - Ryo Izawa, Shuzenji Kogyo (Shizuoka) df. Ryuji Ozehara, Kanoya Chuo (Kagoshima), 2-0
74 kg - Kimihiro Eto, Fukushima (Miyazaki) df. Kazuo Tamura, Sendai Hokujo (Iwate), 2-0
84 kg - Yuki Eita, Amino (Kyoto) df. Yusuke Sato, Yonezawa Kogyo (Yamagata), 2-0
96 kg - Yoshitaka Tamada, Nihon Bunri Daifu (Oita) df. Shinya Arai, Saitama Sakae (Saitama)
120 kg - Kazunori Goto, Nagoya Kogyo (Aichi) df. Yukihiro Uchitani, TsurugaKehi (Fukui) by fall, 3P=0:22