UWW announces All-World Team for Women’s Freestyle World Cup
by Taylor Gregorio, USA Wrestling
United World Wrestling has announced the 10-woman All-World Team for the 2022 Women’s Freestyle World Cup set for Dec. 10-11 in Iowa City, Iowa. The squad was selected based off performances of individuals at the 2022 World Championships in Serbia whose teams finished outside of the top-five in the team standings. The women’s all-star team features two 2022 World champions, one silver medalist and four bronze winners.
This year’s Senior World champions that are expected to compete for the all-star team are Anastasia Nichita of Moldova at 59 kg and Yasemin Adar of Turkey at 76 kg. Two-time World champion Aisuluu Tynybekova of Kyrgyzstan, who took fifth in Serbia, will be in the mix, wrestling at 62 kg. She is also a Tokyo Olympic silver medalist. Another past champ listed is Moldova’s Irina Ringaci at 68 kg, who was a 2021 gold medalist and 2022 bronze medalist. Ringaci lost in the 2022 semifinals to USA’s Tamyra Mensah Stock, a two-time World champion and Tokyo Olympic champion.
Kazakhstan’s Zhamila Bakbergenova is fresh off her second-straight World silver-medal performance and will head to the World Cup at 72 kg. She fell short of the 2022 title to USA’s Amit Elor, who, at 18 years old, is the youngest American in USA Wrestling history to win a Senior World gold.
In addition to Ringaci, other bronze medalists heading to Iowa City include Anna Lukasiak of Poland (50 kg), Maria Prevolaraki of Greece (53 kg) and Karla Godinez of Canada (55 kg).
Rounding out the team are fifth-place finishers Zhala Aliyeva of Azerbaijan at 57 kg and Mimi Hristova of Bulgaria at 65 kg.
The rest of the field will include the top-five teams from the World Championships: USA, Japan, China, Mongolia and Ukraine. Iowa City will play host to the Men’s Freestyle World Cup that same weekend.
Tickets are on sale now at xtreamarena.com.
2022 WOMEN’S FREESTYLE WORLD CUP
Dec. 10-11, 2022 | Iowa City, Iowa
All-World roster
50 kg: Anna Lukasiak (Poland), 2022 World bronze
53 kg: Maria Prevolaraki (Greece), 2022 World bronze, 2017 World bronze, 2012 World bronze
55 kg: Karla Godinez (Canada), 2022 World bronze
57 kg: Zhala Aliyeva (Azerbaijan), 2022 World 5th
59 kg: Anastasia Nichita (Moldova), 2022 World gold
62 kg: Aisuluu Tynybekova (Kyrgyzstan), 2022 World 5th, 2021 World gold, 2020 Olympic silver, 2019 World gold, 2017 World bronze
65 kg: Mimi Hristova (Bulgaria), 2022 World 5th
68 kg: Irina Ringaci (Moldova), 2022 World bronze, 2021 World gold
72 kg: Zhamila Bakbergenova (Kazakhstan), 2022 World silver, 2021 World silver
76 kg: Yasemin Adar (Turkey), 2022 World gold, 2020 Olympic bronze, 2018 World silver, 2017 World gold