Iran Greco-Roman coach Rangraz facing selection dilemma in triple classes
Iran’s Greco-Roman head coach Hassan Rangraz will face a tough decision on three weight classes when naming his 10-man squad for September’s Wrestling World Championships in Zagreb.
While five wrestlers – including Olympic champions Saeid Esmaeili and Mohammad-Hadi Saravi – have already booked their Zagreb ticket, and the 82kg and 130kg slots will be decided at the International Takhti Cup in Shiraz this week, question marks swirl around the 55kg, 60kg, and 63kg classes after a run of poor results for the Iranians in recent international tournaments.
World silver medalist Pouya Dadmarz and Armin Shamsipour, a gold medalist at last year’s U17 Worlds, are the two frontrunners for the 55kg spot. However, both suffered comprehensive defeats against low-profile Armenian opponents at the Benur Pashayan Tournament in Yerevan last week, leaving Rangraz with a selection headache just over three months before the World Championships.
The two wrestlers may now have to compete in July’s Ranking Series event in Budapest before the Iranian coaching staff makes a final decision, while the Takhti Cup gold medalist could also emerge as a new contender for the UWW Worlds spot.
Ali Ahmadi Vafa’s gold-winning campaigns at last year’s World U23 and Junior Championships convinced Rangraz in March to select him for the showpiece in the Croatian capital, but his spot now hangs in the balance after a first-round fall defeat in Yerevan.
The same applies to Mohammad-Madi Keshtkar in the 63kg class. The Iranian had secured a place in the world event thanks to double silver medals at the Zagreb Open and Asian Championships earlier this the year. However, Rangraz may reconsider his selection following Keshtkar’s below-par performance at the Ulaanbaatar Open less than a fortnight ago.
Having limped to the semifinals, Keshtkar fell to a 2-1 loss to South Korean Hanjae Chung before suffering a 6-1 defeat against Iranian-born Aref Mohammadi of Qatar in the third-place bout.
Shiraz showdowns
Iranian wrestling fans could be treated to some thrilling bouts in the 82kg and 130kg weight divisions when the Takhti Cup gets underway on Thursday.
Asian champion Mohammad Naqousi and Alireza Farrokhi – gold medalist in February’s Zagreb Open – will go head-to-head in the 82kg contests, with the winner taking on world champion Mohammad-Ali Geraei for the national team spot.
A single win will be enough for Geraei to punch his Zagreb ticket, while his opponent will have to come out victorious twice to be named in the squad.
The same selection process will apply to the 130kg category, as Asian and world under-23 champion Fardin Hedayati and former world gold medalist Ali-Akbar Yousefi, who dominated the superheavyweight contests at the Zagreb Open, will lock horns in the morning session on Friday to decide who will face reigning world champion and Olympic bronze medalist Amin Mirzazadeh later in the day.
Joining Esmaeili and Saravi in the Iranian Greco-Roman team are Asian gold medalist Danial Sohrabi (72kg), two-time world under-20 champion Alireza Abdevali (77kg), and Alireza Mohamadi (87kg), who will be chasing a first world gold medal in Zagreb, having grabbed impressive silvers at the 2023 UWW Worlds and Paris Olympics.