Injured Qassempour a doubt for Wrestling World Championships
Iranian freestyle wrestler Kamran Qassempour will face a race against time to be fit for September’s Wrestling World Championships after limping off with a groin injury during a training session on Monday.
The Iranian, who has been the dominant force of the 92kg weight class for the past two years with back-to-back world golds, will also miss the upcoming Ranking Series event – starting July 13 in Budapest.
This was the same injury that forced Qassempour out of the Kaba Uulu Kozhomkul & Raatbek Sanatbaev Ranking Series tournament in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan, earlier in June.
Mohsen Kaveh, the head of the Iranian national teams, said an MRI scan will determine the timeline for Qassempour’s return “within the coming days”, adding: “We’ll do all we can to make sure he will be a part of the team at World Championships.”
Kaveh named Mobin Azimi and Amirhossein Firouzpour as the two alternatives for the Iranian singlet at the World Championships in Belgrade in case Qassempour does not recover in time for the event.
Azimi stole the headlines in May’s Takhti Cup in Urmia, northwest Iran, by marching to the 92kg gold – thanks to a victory over Mohammad-Javad Ebrahimi in the final – while Firouzpour – an Asian champion and world U23 gold medalist in 2022 – was part of the Iranian team that won the silver in last December’s FS World Cup in the United States.
The two Iranians will join the six-man squad for the Ranking Series tournament in the Hungarian capital, as the wrestlers with the best result in each of the four weight divisions will be handed a berth at the World Championships.
Ahmad Mohammad-Javan and Milad Valizadeh will represent Iran in the 57kg category in Budapest, with Amir-Mohammad Yazdani – a world silver winner in 2021 – and Mohammad Bakhshi taking part in the 72kg contests.
Mohammad Nokhodi and Ali Savadkouhi will also decide who will be the Iranian 79kg wrestler in Belgrade.
Nokhodi had to settle for a silver in the last two editions of the World Championships after successive defeats against legendary American Jordan Burroughs, before Savadkouhi claimed a first victory in 15 attempts for the Iranian wrestlers against the seven-time world and Olympic champion at the FS World Cup.
Reza Atri (61kg) – a world silver winner last year – reigning world champion Rahman Amouzad (65kg), Younes Emami (74kg), eight-time world and Olympic medalist Hassan Yazdani (86kg), Mojtaba Goleij (97kg), and Amirhossein Zare’ (125kg) – a Tokyo Olympic bronze winner and world champion in 2021, who took the bronze last year – have already secured their spots in the World Championships.