Wrestling U17 Asian Championships:
Iranians dominate Day 1 with six golds in seven GR events
Iranian boys stole the show on the opening day of the Wrestling U17 Asian Championships in Da Nang, Vietnam, grabbing six gold medals across seven Greco-Roman classes on Thursday.
Ali-Akbar Akoo capped off an emphatic run for the Iranian squad by defeating Kazakhstan’s Arystan Temergali 8-1 in the 110kg final.
Armin Esmaeil had opened Iran’s account earlier in the day with an 8-2 victory over Uzbekistan’s Tokhirjon Karimov in the 45kg showdown.
Another final showdown featuring Iranian and Uzbek wrestlers saw Ali Esmaeili beat Javokhir Sharifboev 4-1 for the top prize in the 48kg event.
Vahid Ashiri claimed the 55kg gold at the expense of Kyrgyzstan’s Syimyk Askarov, who fell to a 3-1 loss against the Iranian.
Amirreza Tahmasbpour was in a league of his own in the 60kg, securing three victories without conceding a single point – including two by superiority – en route to the final, before making quick work of Kyrgyzstan’s Baiel Zhamalidinov with a 9-0 scoreline.
Amirreza Mehri added Iran’s fifth gold courtesy of a 3-1 win against South Korea’s Jongyeon Na in the 92kg final.
Ahmad Badraddini was the only Iranian to finish his campaign empty-handed on the first day of the competition, after his last-four 12-3 loss to eventual champion Kuanyshbek Zhangazhol of Kazakhstan was followed by a 7-0 defeat against Uzbekistan’s Bunyod Hasanov in the 51kg bronze-medal contest.
Thursday’s triumphs, coupled with the results in Friday’s morning session – which saw Esmaeil Zaherdoust advance to the 71kg final, and Hamed Dehqanzadeh (65kg) and Mahdi Gholamian (80kg) reach the bronze bouts in their respective events – were enough for the Iranian 10-man squad to secure the Greco-Roman team title even before the evening session at the Tien Son Sport Center.
The Greco-Roman competition will be followed by the women’s event, before the Iranian freestyle squad vies for a team title double for the country, starting with the 65kg, 71kg, and 80kg contests today.