Dlagnev to wrestle for bronze medal on first day of World Championships
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by Craig Sesker USA Wrestling
Tervel Dlagnev controls Azerbaijan’s Aslan Dzebisov in their heavyweight bout on Monday at the World Championships. Robbert Wijtman photo.
TASHKENT, Uzbekistan – American Tervel Dlagnev won a bronze medal in his first trip to the World Championships in 2009.
He has a chance to earn another bronze medal on Monday night.
Dlagnev defeated Aslan Dzebisov of Azerbaijan 3-1 to advance to the bronze bout in freestyle wrestling at 125 kg/275 lbs. on Monday afternoon at the Gymnastics Palace.
Dlagnev will face 2011 World champion Alexei Shemarov of Belarus in his bronze bout. Dlagnev lost to Shemarov in the 2011 World semifinals before beating him in the 2012 Olympic quarterfinals.
Dlagnev is in a bronze bout for the fourth straight year and fifth time in the last six years. He was fifth in the 2011 and 2013 Worlds, and fifth in the 2012 Olympics.
Three other U.S. wrestlers – Tony Ramos, Nick Marable and Ed Ruth – fell short of placing in their first trips to the Worlds.
Dlagnev opened with a quick 11-1 technical fall over Aleksandr Romanov of Moldova at 125 kg/275 lbs.
Dlagnev blanked Slovakia’s Soslan Gagloev 5-0 in the second round, taking control with a takedown late in the first period.
Dlagnev then dropped a controversial 4-2 decision to 2014 World bronze medalist and World No. 1 Taha Akgul of Turkey in the quarterfinals.
Down 3-0, Dlagnev shot in for a takedown and appeared to expose Akgul’s back for two more points just before time expired. U.S. coaches challenged the call, but it was upheld. Akgul gained an additional point since the American challenge was denied.
Akgul beat Dlagnev 3-0 in the 2013 World bronze-medal match.
“Tervel wrestled well,” U.S. coach Bruce Burnett said. “We thought he scored at the end against Turkey, but it didn’t go our way.”
Marable opened with a 2-1 win over 2012 Olympic bronze medalist Akzurek Tantarov of Kazakhstan at 70 kg/154 lbs. Marable scored a first-period point when Tantarov was put on the shot clock and then added a second-period pushout en route to the win.
Marable followed by scoring a late takedown near the edge of the mat to defeat Armenia’s Grigor Grigoryan in the second round.
Marable then dropped a 5-2 decision to 2013 World bronze medalist Ali Shabanov of Belarus in the quarterfinals. Shabanov scored a quick takedown and gut wrench early in the bout to take control.
Marable was eliminated when Shabonov fell short of the finals after losing in the semifinals.
“This was my first time at the World Championships and it was a great experience,” Marable said. “I can only learn from this and keep getting better. I feel each time I’ve wrestled at this new weight class that I’ve performed better. I need to keep working and come back strong next year.”
Ruth opened by earning a 12-2 technical fall over Yusup Melejaev of Turkmenistan at 86 kg/189 lbs.
Ruth then dropped a 7-4 decision to Iran’s Askari Mohammadian in the second round. Ruth closed to 5-4 late in the match before the Iranian scored a takedown on a leg attack with his counter offense to clinch the win.
Ruth was eliminated from his first World Championships when the Iranian failed to reach the finals.
“I could’ve done a lot of things differently and done a lot of things better,” Ruth said. “I need to find a way to turn this loss around and learn from it. I need to come back harder and come back better next year.”
Ramos suffered a 7-4 loss to Mongolia’s Bekhbayar Erdenebat in the first round at 57 kg/125.5 lbs.
Ramos trailed 2-0 early in the second period when he took Erdenebat down and then appeared to expose him to his back. The Mongolian then countered and flipped Ramos to his back for a 6-2 lead.
Ramos was inexplicably only given two points in the sequence. U.S. assistant coach Terry Brands threw the red challenge block onto the mat, but the referee ignored it and the sequence was not reviewed.
Ramos was eliminated when the Mongolian wrestler fell short of the finals.
“It wasn’t much of a day – I only had one match,” Ramos said. “It’s not what I came here for and it’s not what I’ve been training for. I didn’t make all these sacrifices and train this hard to only wrestle one match.
“You can’t put your head down. You’ve got to keep moving forward. I only came here for one thing and that was to win it all. That’s still the main goal.”
Burnett said the U.S. team had its chances on Monday.
“Our guys competed hard and we were in every match,” Burnett said. “It was a disappointing day to say the least. It’s tough at this level, but we’ve got to keep working and we need to get better.”
2014 World Championships
Sept. 8-14
Gymnastics Palace, Tashkent, Uzbekistan
Finals matchups
57 kg/125.5 lbs.
Kyong-Il Yang (North Korea) vs. Vladimir Khinchegashvili (Georgia)
70 kg/154 lbs.
Yakup Gor (Turkey) vs. Khetik Tsabolov (Russia)
86 kg/189 lbs.
Abdul Rashid Sadulaev (Russia) vs. Reineris Salas (Cuba)
125 kg/275 lbs.
Komeil Ghasemi (Iran) vs. Taha Akgul (Turkey)
U.S. freestyle results
57 kg/125.5 lbs. – Tony Ramos, Iowa City, Iowa (Titan Mercury WC/Hawkeye WC)
LOSS Bekhbayar Erdenebat (Mongolia), 4-7
70 kg/154 lbs. – Nick Marable, Morgantown, W.V. (Sunkist Kids)
WIN Akzurek Tantarov (Kazakhstan), 2-1
WIN Grigor Grigoryan (Armenia), 4-2
LOSS Ali Shabanov (Belarus), 5-2
86 kg/189 lbs. – Ed Ruth, State College, Pa. (Nittany Lion WC)
WIN Yusup Melejaev (Turkmenistan), 12-2
LOSS Askari Mohammadian (Iran), 4-7
125 kg/275 lbs. – Tervel Dlagnev, Columbus, Ohio (Sunkist Kids/Ohio RTC)
WIN Aleksandr Romanov (Moldova), 11-1
WIN Soslan Gagloev (Slovakia), 5-0
LOSS Taha Akgul (Turkey), 2-4
WIN Aslan Dzebisov (Azerbaijan), 3-1
vs. Alexei Shemarov (Belarus) in bronze-medal match
TASHKENT, Uzbekistan – American Tervel Dlagnev won a bronze medal in his first trip to the World Championships in 2009.
He has a chance to earn another bronze medal on Monday night.
Dlagnev defeated Aslan Dzebisov of Azerbaijan 3-1 to advance to the bronze bout in freestyle wrestling at 125 kg/275 lbs. on Monday afternoon at the Gymnastics Palace.
Dlagnev will face 2011 World champion Alexei Shemarov of Belarus in his bronze bout. Dlagnev lost to Shemarov in the 2011 World semifinals before beating him in the 2012 Olympic quarterfinals.
Dlagnev is in a bronze bout for the fourth straight year and fifth time in the last six years. He was fifth in the 2011 and 2013 Worlds, and fifth in the 2012 Olympics.
Three other U.S. wrestlers – Tony Ramos, Nick Marable and Ed Ruth – fell short of placing in their first trips to the Worlds.
Dlagnev opened with a quick 11-1 technical fall over Aleksandr Romanov of Moldova at 125 kg/275 lbs.
Dlagnev blanked Slovakia’s Soslan Gagloev 5-0 in the second round, taking control with a takedown late in the first period.
Dlagnev then dropped a controversial 4-2 decision to 2014 World bronze medalist and World No. 1 Taha Akgul of Turkey in the quarterfinals.
Down 3-0, Dlagnev shot in for a takedown and appeared to expose Akgul’s back for two more points just before time expired. U.S. coaches challenged the call, but it was upheld. Akgul gained an additional point since the American challenge was denied.
Akgul beat Dlagnev 3-0 in the 2013 World bronze-medal match.
“Tervel wrestled well,” U.S. coach Bruce Burnett said. “We thought he scored at the end against Turkey, but it didn’t go our way.”
Marable opened with a 2-1 win over 2012 Olympic bronze medalist Akzurek Tantarov of Kazakhstan at 70 kg/154 lbs. Marable scored a first-period point when Tantarov was put on the shot clock and then added a second-period pushout en route to the win.
Marable followed by scoring a late takedown near the edge of the mat to defeat Armenia’s Grigor Grigoryan in the second round.
Marable then dropped a 5-2 decision to 2013 World bronze medalist Ali Shabanov of Belarus in the quarterfinals. Shabanov scored a quick takedown and gut wrench early in the bout to take control.
Marable was eliminated when Shabonov fell short of the finals after losing in the semifinals.
“This was my first time at the World Championships and it was a great experience,” Marable said. “I can only learn from this and keep getting better. I feel each time I’ve wrestled at this new weight class that I’ve performed better. I need to keep working and come back strong next year.”
Ruth opened by earning a 12-2 technical fall over Yusup Melejaev of Turkmenistan at 86 kg/189 lbs.
Ruth then dropped a 7-4 decision to Iran’s Askari Mohammadian in the second round. Ruth closed to 5-4 late in the match before the Iranian scored a takedown on a leg attack with his counter offense to clinch the win.
Ruth was eliminated from his first World Championships when the Iranian failed to reach the finals.
“I could’ve done a lot of things differently and done a lot of things better,” Ruth said. “I need to find a way to turn this loss around and learn from it. I need to come back harder and come back better next year.”
Ramos suffered a 7-4 loss to Mongolia’s Bekhbayar Erdenebat in the first round at 57 kg/125.5 lbs.
Ramos trailed 2-0 early in the second period when he took Erdenebat down and then appeared to expose him to his back. The Mongolian then countered and flipped Ramos to his back for a 6-2 lead.
Ramos was inexplicably only given two points in the sequence. U.S. assistant coach Terry Brands threw the red challenge block onto the mat, but the referee ignored it and the sequence was not reviewed.
Ramos was eliminated when the Mongolian wrestler fell short of the finals.
“It wasn’t much of a day – I only had one match,” Ramos said. “It’s not what I came here for and it’s not what I’ve been training for. I didn’t make all these sacrifices and train this hard to only wrestle one match.
“You can’t put your head down. You’ve got to keep moving forward. I only came here for one thing and that was to win it all. That’s still the main goal.”
Burnett said the U.S. team had its chances on Monday.
“Our guys competed hard and we were in every match,” Burnett said. “It was a disappointing day to say the least. It’s tough at this level, but we’ve got to keep working and we need to get better.”
2014 World Championships
Sept. 8-14
Gymnastics Palace, Tashkent, Uzbekistan
Finals matchups
57 kg/125.5 lbs.
Kyong-Il Yang (North Korea) vs. Vladimir Khinchegashvili (Georgia)
70 kg/154 lbs.
Yakup Gor (Turkey) vs. Khetik Tsabolov (Russia)
86 kg/189 lbs.
Abdul Rashid Sadulaev (Russia) vs. Reineris Salas (Cuba)
125 kg/275 lbs.
Komeil Ghasemi (Iran) vs. Taha Akgul (Turkey)
U.S. freestyle results
57 kg/125.5 lbs. – Tony Ramos, Iowa City, Iowa (Titan Mercury WC/Hawkeye WC)
LOSS Bekhbayar Erdenebat (Mongolia), 4-7
70 kg/154 lbs. – Nick Marable, Morgantown, W.V. (Sunkist Kids)
WIN Akzurek Tantarov (Kazakhstan), 2-1
WIN Grigor Grigoryan (Armenia), 4-2
LOSS Ali Shabanov (Belarus), 5-2
86 kg/189 lbs. – Ed Ruth, State College, Pa. (Nittany Lion WC)
WIN Yusup Melejaev (Turkmenistan), 12-2
LOSS Askari Mohammadian (Iran), 4-7
125 kg/275 lbs. – Tervel Dlagnev, Columbus, Ohio (Sunkist Kids/Ohio RTC)
WIN Aleksandr Romanov (Moldova), 11-1
WIN Soslan Gagloev (Slovakia), 5-0
LOSS Taha Akgul (Turkey), 2-4
WIN Aslan Dzebisov (Azerbaijan), 3-1
vs. Alexei Shemarov (Belarus) in bronze-medal match
