Jacobson Finishes Fifth on Day Four of Zagreb Open
by David Gerhart, USA Wrestling
Payton Jacobson competes at 2025 U23 World Championships in Novi Sad, Serbia
ZAGREB, Croatia – After a big opening session with a win over an Olympic bronze medalist, Payton Jacobson was unable to keep the momentum going in the evening session and finished fifth at 87 kg in the Zagreb Open.
In the bronze medal match, the 2025 U23 World bronze medalist took on 2024 World silver medalist Erik Szilvassy of Hungary. In a low-scoring affair, Jacobson and Szilvassy traded passivity penalties to start.
With the score tied at one, Szilvassy scored a step-out point against Jacobson to take the lead. The American tried to rally late with offensive attacks but was unable to score, and Szilvassy earned the 2-1 decision.
Zac Braunagel joined Jacobson at 87 kg and finished ninth. Kamal Bey represented the U.S. at 77 kg. Bey finished 0-2 but dropped a 7-0 decision to eventual gold medalist Ali Oskou. Bey’s decision against Oskou was one of two decisions Oskou faced throughout the tournament after winning by technical fall in three of his five contests.
Greco-Roman competition continues tomorrow at 10:30 a.m. local time / 4:30 a.m. ET. The final day of the Zagreb Open features the final six Greco-Roman weight classes (55-60-72-82-97-130 kg).
A live broadcast of the event is available to the U.S. market through FloWrestling.
Brackets and match-by-match results can be found on UWW Arena.
Reference Links
Gold – Ali Oskou (Iran)
Silver – Zoltan Levai (Hungary)
Bronze – Abdullo Aliev (Uzbekistan)
Bronze – Robert Fritsch (Hungary)
5th – Stoyan Kubatov (Bulgaria)
5th – Temuri Orjonikidze (Georgia)
7th – Tamerlan Shadukayev (Kazakhstan)
8th – Aram Vardanyan (Uzbekistan)
9th – Merey Maulitkanov (Kazakhstan)
10th – Levente Levai (Hungary)
Gold – Ali Oskou (Iran) tech. fall Zoltan Levai (Hungary), 9-1
Bronze – Abdullo Aliev (Uzbekistan) dec. Stoyan Kubatov (Bulgaria), 1-1
Bronze – Robert Fritsch (Hungary) dec. Temuri Orjonikidze (Georgia), 4-0
Gold – Ivan Takacs (Hungary)
Silver – Tamas Levai (Hungary)
Bronze – Mukhammadkodir Rasulov (Uzbekistan)
Bronze – Erik Szilvassy (Hungary)
5th – Matej Mandic (Croatia)
5th – Payton Jacobson (United States)
7th – Mahmoud Ibrahim (Egypt)
8th – Fares Ghaly (Egypt)
9th – Zach Braunagel (United States)
10th – Rahimjon Uzokov (Uzbekistan)
Gold – Ivan Takacs (Hungary) dec. Tamas Levai (Hungary), 3-1
Bronze – Mukhammadkodir Rasulov (Uzbekistan) dec. Matej Mandic (Croatia), 6-1
Bronze – Erik Szilvassy (Hungary) dec. Payton Jacobson (United States), 2-1
LOSS Ali Oskou (Iran), 7-0
LOSS Yehia Abdelkader (Egypt), 2-1
LOSS Istvan Takacs (Hungary), tech. fall, 9-1
WIN Rahimjon Uzokov (Uzbekistan), 10-6
LOSS Mukhmmadkodir Rasulov (Uzbekistan), 6-3
WIN Ivan Huklek (Croatia), 3-1
WIN Antonio Lukac (Croatia), tech. fall, 9-1
LOSS Tamas Levai (Hungary), 4-1
WIN Maksat Sailau (Kazakhstan), tech. fall, 8-0
LOSS Erik Szilvassy (Hungary), 2-1