Zagreb Open Ranking Series:
Yazdani stumbles in new weight class as Iran secures 10 medals
Iranian freestyle wrestler Hassan Yazdani was given a harsh reality check in his pursuit of an elusive second Olympic gold after being outclassed by low-profile American Stephen Buchanan in the 97kg final at the Zagreb Open on Friday.
Making his first international appearance since his 86kg final setback at the Paris Olympics 18 months ago, Yazdani – winner of a national-record 10 world and Olympic medals – appeared to be back to his familiar best as he cruised to three superiority victories in the morning session to reach the final in a new weight class.
His experience seemed to tell, with his trademark underhooks still evident, and his movement, despite the visible weight gain, appearing largely unaffected.
Yazdani scored through stepouts, takedowns and go-behinds in typical fashion, conceding just four points across his three bouts.
The Iranian great still appeared in control when he took a 2-1 lead against Buchanan at the break, but the American dominated the second period, opening with a four-point suplex.
Falling behind 5-2, Yazdani was forced to attack more aggressively, and that is where opportunities opened up for Buchanan, who scored three takedowns and two stepouts to seal a shock 13-3 victory.
It was only the 10th senior-level defeat of Yazdani’s career and his first loss to an American wrestler other than David Taylor. It also marked the first technical-superiority defeat of his storied career.
Iran still enjoyed a taste of glory through young prodigies Sina Khalili and Mobin Azimi at the opening Ranking Series event of the season.
A world U23 silver medalist last year, 19-year-old Khalili outscored his opponents 42-3 across four bouts, capping an emphatic 70kg campaign with a 10-0 win over Georgia’s Akaki Kemertelidze in the final.
Reigning world U23 champion Azimi, meanwhile, claimed gold in the 92kg category after senior world champion Trent Hidlay – who had beaten the Iranian on criteria (5-5) in their round-robin bout – forfeited the final.
Azimi rebounded from the loss to Hidlay by edging Abolfazl Rahmani 11-9 in an all-Iranian encounter, making amends for his final defeat at last December’s National Championships, before cruising past American Dustin Plott 11-0 in the semifinals.
Elsewhere across the two-day freestyle competition, Peyman Nemati settled for silver at 65kg after a 3–0 loss to Indian world U23 champion Sujeet Kalkal in the final.
Milad Valizadeh (57kg), Reza Momeni (61kg), Aliakbar Fazli (74kg), Adel Panahian (79kg), Ali Savadkouhi (86kg) and Morteza Janmohammadzadeh (130kg) added six bronze medals to Iran’s tally as the country finished runner-up in the team standings with 180 points – 45 behind the United States, which topped the table with five golds, three silvers and five bronzes.