Iran names freestyle squad for Yasar Dogu tournament
Iran have named an 11-man wrestling squad for the freestyle competition at the Yasar Dogu, Vehbi Emre & Hamit Kaplan International Tournament, which gets under way on Thursday in Antalya, Türkiye.
The two-day event will form part of Iran’s selection process for major international competitions over the next 12 months, including September’s Senior World Championships in Manama, Bahrain, and the Aichi–Nagoya 2026 Asian Games in Japan.
Reza Mo’meni, who claimed the national title in late December, will be joined by world U20 silver medalist Ahoura Khateri in the 61kg weight class. Morteza Hajmollamohammdi will compete in the 65kg division despite suffering a final defeat to Peyman Ne’mati at the National Championships in Tabriz.
Ali Rezaei – a gold medalist at the 2024 U20 World Championships – will feature in the 74kg category alongside Ali Karampour, who won a world junior bronze medal two years ago in Pontevedra, Spain.
Erfan Alizadeh, a silver medalist at last year’s Ranking Series event in Tirana, Albania, and former world U20 champion Abolfazl Babalou will represent Iran in the 97kg division. Abolfazl Mohammadnejad will compete at 125kg as he looks to build on his world U23 gold medal from October.
Amir Parasteh (57kg), Mohammadhossein Norouzian (86kg), and Javad Fat’hkhani complete the Iranian roster across eight weight categories.