FLASH: Perkins to compete in wrestle-off for Olympic berth at 66 kg at Olympics World Qualifier in Mongolia
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by Gary Abbott, USA Wrestling
ULAANBAATAR, Mongolia – RaVaughn Perkins (Omaha, Neb./New York AC) has had an amazing performance at 66 kg/145.5 lbs, at 1st Olympic Games World Qualifying Tournament, which is still going on Friday at the Buyant-Uhaa Sports Arena.
Athletes need to place in the top three of their weight class to qualify their nation to compete in that weight class at the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil in August.
Perkins has already won four matches and earned one of the two bronze medals. However, only three athletes can qualify their nation for Rio at each weight. There will be a special Qualification match between the two bronze medalists to determine which nation would send an athlete to the Olympics.
Perkins will face 2014 World bronze medalist Edgaras Venckaitis of Lithuania in this special Olympic Qualification bout. Since the tournament is already running behind schedule, we do not yet know when that match will be held.
Perkins seemed to gain strength as the day grinded on.
In the first round, Perkins was in control from the start in an 8-0 technical fall over Benedikt Puffer of Austria, Perkins opened with a takedown on the edge for a 2-0 lead. A counter takedown by Perkins on a headlock attempt from Puffer made it 4-0, but a challenge overturned the call, leaving it at 2-0. Perkins got on top after a passivity and turned Puffer with a gutwrench to get it back to 4-0 at the break. An early second period pushout made it 5-0. A counter takedown to a Puffer throw attempt made it to 7-0, and a pushout with time running out closed it out at 8-0.
In the second round, Perkins continued to control the positions on the way to an 8-0 technical fall over Mirambek Ainagulov of Kazakhstan. Perkins scored a pair of takedowns in the first period to lead 4-0 at the break. As time ran down in the second, Ainagulov attempted some throws, which Perkins countered for two more takedowns and a technical fall in the closing seconds of the bout. It was a big win, as Ainagulov was a 2015 World Military Games champion, third in the 2016 Asian Championships and a 2011 Cadet World champion.
In the quarterfinals, Perkins faced Tero Vaelimaeki of Finland, a four-time World Team member whose top effort was an eighth place in the 2014 European Championships. There was no score in the first period. When Perkins was put down after a passivity call in the second, Vaelimaeki hit a gutwrench to lead 2-0. He added another point when Perkins had his third passive call against him. Perkins scored after Vaelimaeki was hit with a caution and one, but he could not turn him on the mat. A pushout with one second left made it 3-2 for Vaelimaeki.
When Vaelimaeki won his semifinal match, he pulled Perkins back into the repechage. He drew veteran Hugo da Silva Passos of Portugal, who had won his first repechage bout. Perkins scored a takedown and a gut wrench in the first period to go ahead 4-0, then added a counter takedown in the final 15 seconds for a 4-0 win.
In his bronze-medal match, Perkins kept up the pressure to defeat Pavel Liakh of Belarus, 7-0.
Two other U.S. athletes dropped their first match of the tournament and when their opponents were unable to reach the finals, they were eliminated and not eligible for repechage.
At 59 kg/130 lbs., 2013 World Team member Jesse Thielke (Germantown, Wis./New York AC) jumped to a 5-0 lead, only to give up two throws late in the bout for a 5-6 loss to Gaurav Sharma of India in the first round. Sharma was a second in the 2014 Military Worlds and a 2013 Commonwealth Championships gold medalist.
Thielke got a throwby takedown and a pushout to lead 3-0 at the break. A second period go behind takedown extended it to 5-0. Sharma scored twice on double underhooks, first with a four-point throw, and then with a two-point takedown in the closing few seconds of the match. When Sharma was defeated in the next round, Thielke was not eligible for the repechage.
Joe Rau (Minneapolis, Minn./Minnesota Storm) opened against veteran Carl Fredrik Schoen of Sweden at 98 kg/215 lbs. After a second passivity on Schoen in the opening period, Rau was on top and attempted a turn, which Schoen countered for two points and when Rau came out back on top, he was trailing 2-1. In the second period, when Schoen got on top after a passivity call, he scored a gutwrench for the final 4-1 margin of victory. Schoen advanced all the way to the semifinals, where he was defeated by Revazi Nadareishvili of Georgia, which made Rau not eligible for repechage.
For these two other Greco-Roman weight classes, there will be only one more chance to earn a spot in the Rio Olympic Games, the 2nd Olympic Games World Qualifying Tournament set for Istanbul, Turkey, May 6-8.
The women’s competition will be held on Saturday, with four U.S. athletes competing. (see story on their draw on TheMat.com).
United World Wrestling will provide a live webstream and updated brackets on its official website.
Click Here for the UWW video and results page – Mongolian Qualifier
https://unitedworldwrestling.org/event/1st-og-world-qualifying-tournament
1st OLYMPIC GAMES WORLD QUALIFYING TOURNAMENT
At Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia, April 21
U.S. Greco-Roman performances so far
59 kg/130 lbs. – Jesse Thielke, Germantown, Wis. (New York AC/OTC),dnp
LOSS Gaurav Sharma (India), 5-6
66 kg/145.5 lbs. – RaVaughn Perkins, Omaha, Neb. (New York AC/OTC)
WIN Benedikt Sebastian Puffer (Austria), tech. fall 8-0
WIN Mirabek Ainagulov (Kazakhstan), tech. fall 8-0
LOSS Tero Vaelimaeki (Finland), 2-3
WIN Hugo da Silva Passos (Portugal), 6-0
Bronze Medal Bout - WIN Pavel Liakh (Belarus), 7-0
Olympic Qualification Bout – Vs. Edgaras Venckaitis (Lithuania)
98 kg/215 lbs. – Joe Rau, Minneapolis, Minn. (Minnesota Storm), dnp
LOSS Carl Fredrik Schoen (Sweden), 1-4
Finalists
59 kg/130 lbs. – Stig-Andre Berge (Norway) vs. Kim Seunghak (Korea)
66 kg/145.5 lbs. – Ion Panait (Romania) vs. Tero Vaelimaeki (Finland)
74 kg/163 lbs. – Peter Bacsi (Hungary) vs. Bin Yang (China)
85 kg/187 lbs. – Javid Hamzatau (Belarus) vs. Maksim Manukyan (Armenia)
98 kg/215 lbs. – Aliaksandr Hrabovik (Belarus) vs. Revazi Nadareishvili (Georgia)
130 kg/286 lbs. – Amir Ghasemimonjazi (Iran) vs. Qiang Meng (China)
Athletes need to place in the top three of their weight class to qualify their nation to compete in that weight class at the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil in August.
Perkins has already won four matches and earned one of the two bronze medals. However, only three athletes can qualify their nation for Rio at each weight. There will be a special Qualification match between the two bronze medalists to determine which nation would send an athlete to the Olympics.
Perkins will face 2014 World bronze medalist Edgaras Venckaitis of Lithuania in this special Olympic Qualification bout. Since the tournament is already running behind schedule, we do not yet know when that match will be held.
Perkins seemed to gain strength as the day grinded on.
In the first round, Perkins was in control from the start in an 8-0 technical fall over Benedikt Puffer of Austria, Perkins opened with a takedown on the edge for a 2-0 lead. A counter takedown by Perkins on a headlock attempt from Puffer made it 4-0, but a challenge overturned the call, leaving it at 2-0. Perkins got on top after a passivity and turned Puffer with a gutwrench to get it back to 4-0 at the break. An early second period pushout made it 5-0. A counter takedown to a Puffer throw attempt made it to 7-0, and a pushout with time running out closed it out at 8-0.
In the second round, Perkins continued to control the positions on the way to an 8-0 technical fall over Mirambek Ainagulov of Kazakhstan. Perkins scored a pair of takedowns in the first period to lead 4-0 at the break. As time ran down in the second, Ainagulov attempted some throws, which Perkins countered for two more takedowns and a technical fall in the closing seconds of the bout. It was a big win, as Ainagulov was a 2015 World Military Games champion, third in the 2016 Asian Championships and a 2011 Cadet World champion.
In the quarterfinals, Perkins faced Tero Vaelimaeki of Finland, a four-time World Team member whose top effort was an eighth place in the 2014 European Championships. There was no score in the first period. When Perkins was put down after a passivity call in the second, Vaelimaeki hit a gutwrench to lead 2-0. He added another point when Perkins had his third passive call against him. Perkins scored after Vaelimaeki was hit with a caution and one, but he could not turn him on the mat. A pushout with one second left made it 3-2 for Vaelimaeki.
When Vaelimaeki won his semifinal match, he pulled Perkins back into the repechage. He drew veteran Hugo da Silva Passos of Portugal, who had won his first repechage bout. Perkins scored a takedown and a gut wrench in the first period to go ahead 4-0, then added a counter takedown in the final 15 seconds for a 4-0 win.
In his bronze-medal match, Perkins kept up the pressure to defeat Pavel Liakh of Belarus, 7-0.
Two other U.S. athletes dropped their first match of the tournament and when their opponents were unable to reach the finals, they were eliminated and not eligible for repechage.
At 59 kg/130 lbs., 2013 World Team member Jesse Thielke (Germantown, Wis./New York AC) jumped to a 5-0 lead, only to give up two throws late in the bout for a 5-6 loss to Gaurav Sharma of India in the first round. Sharma was a second in the 2014 Military Worlds and a 2013 Commonwealth Championships gold medalist.
Thielke got a throwby takedown and a pushout to lead 3-0 at the break. A second period go behind takedown extended it to 5-0. Sharma scored twice on double underhooks, first with a four-point throw, and then with a two-point takedown in the closing few seconds of the match. When Sharma was defeated in the next round, Thielke was not eligible for the repechage.
Joe Rau (Minneapolis, Minn./Minnesota Storm) opened against veteran Carl Fredrik Schoen of Sweden at 98 kg/215 lbs. After a second passivity on Schoen in the opening period, Rau was on top and attempted a turn, which Schoen countered for two points and when Rau came out back on top, he was trailing 2-1. In the second period, when Schoen got on top after a passivity call, he scored a gutwrench for the final 4-1 margin of victory. Schoen advanced all the way to the semifinals, where he was defeated by Revazi Nadareishvili of Georgia, which made Rau not eligible for repechage.
For these two other Greco-Roman weight classes, there will be only one more chance to earn a spot in the Rio Olympic Games, the 2nd Olympic Games World Qualifying Tournament set for Istanbul, Turkey, May 6-8.
The women’s competition will be held on Saturday, with four U.S. athletes competing. (see story on their draw on TheMat.com).
United World Wrestling will provide a live webstream and updated brackets on its official website.
Click Here for the UWW video and results page – Mongolian Qualifier
https://unitedworldwrestling.org/event/1st-og-world-qualifying-tournament
1st OLYMPIC GAMES WORLD QUALIFYING TOURNAMENT
At Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia, April 21
U.S. Greco-Roman performances so far
59 kg/130 lbs. – Jesse Thielke, Germantown, Wis. (New York AC/OTC),dnp
LOSS Gaurav Sharma (India), 5-6
66 kg/145.5 lbs. – RaVaughn Perkins, Omaha, Neb. (New York AC/OTC)
WIN Benedikt Sebastian Puffer (Austria), tech. fall 8-0
WIN Mirabek Ainagulov (Kazakhstan), tech. fall 8-0
LOSS Tero Vaelimaeki (Finland), 2-3
WIN Hugo da Silva Passos (Portugal), 6-0
Bronze Medal Bout - WIN Pavel Liakh (Belarus), 7-0
Olympic Qualification Bout – Vs. Edgaras Venckaitis (Lithuania)
98 kg/215 lbs. – Joe Rau, Minneapolis, Minn. (Minnesota Storm), dnp
LOSS Carl Fredrik Schoen (Sweden), 1-4
Finalists
59 kg/130 lbs. – Stig-Andre Berge (Norway) vs. Kim Seunghak (Korea)
66 kg/145.5 lbs. – Ion Panait (Romania) vs. Tero Vaelimaeki (Finland)
74 kg/163 lbs. – Peter Bacsi (Hungary) vs. Bin Yang (China)
85 kg/187 lbs. – Javid Hamzatau (Belarus) vs. Maksim Manukyan (Armenia)
98 kg/215 lbs. – Aliaksandr Hrabovik (Belarus) vs. Revazi Nadareishvili (Georgia)
130 kg/286 lbs. – Amir Ghasemimonjazi (Iran) vs. Qiang Meng (China)
