Wrestling U20 Worlds:
Iran wins Greco-Roman title, completes quadruple of youth crowns
A total of six medals – including triple golds – saw Iran claim the Greco-Roman title at the Wrestling U20 World Championships in Amman, Jordan.
The Greco-Roman glory came days after the Iranian under-20 team had celebrated the world freestyle crown for a third year in a row.
It also cemented Iran’s stature as the dominant force of the world age-group wrestling, rounding off a magnificent three weeks in the sport fort the country after both cadet squads had come out on top in the under-17 world event in Istanbul – bagging 10 medals, three of which were golds, between them.
The final day of the competitions in Amman, however, was one to forget for the Iranians as Yassin Yazdi suffered a 9-1 loss to Turkey’s Alperen Berber in the 82kg final, while Ahoura Bouveiri (67kg) and Mohammad-Mahdi Miri (72kg) left the Jordanian capital empty-handed after defeats in the third-place bouts of their respective weight classes.
Amir-Reza Dehbozorgi won Iran’s sole medal on Sunday when he outmuscled Kazakhstan’s Saifulla Kurman 9-0 for the 60kg bronze.
Still, a glorious run on the preceding night was enough for the country to lift the Greco-Roman trophy as Ahmadreza Mohsennejad (63kg), Alireza Abdevali (77kg), and Fardin Hedayati (130kg) grabbed three gold medals, with Abolfazl Choubani settling for the silver in the 55kg contests.
The Iranian squad stood on the top podium with a remarkable 162 points, followed by Georgia, which tallied 89 points – a single point clear of third-placed Armenia.
Sunday’s triumph followed an emphatic freestyle campaign in Amman, where Iran collected four golds, and double silvers, as well as a bronze across 10 weight categories.
Mohammadreza Shakeri (65kg), Mohammad-Mobin Azimi (92kg), Abolfazl Babalou (97kg), and Amir-Reza Masoumi (125kg) walked away with the ultimate prize of their classes to spearhead Iran’s title run-in, while Ali Rezaei (70kg) and Hossein Mohammad-Aqaei (74kg) added a couple of silvers to the medal haul.
Ali Khorramdel finished his campaign with a consolation bronze in the 61kg event as Iran picked up 165 points, with USA (152pts) and India (102pts) following Mohsen Kaveh’s team in the table.
Next for the Iranian wrestling is the seniors’ World Championships – starting September 16 in Belgrade, Serbia.