Olympic Games preview in women's wrestling at 69 kg/152 lbs.
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by Gary Abbott, USA Wrestling
Natalia Vorobieva of Russia on the way to her 2015 World gold medal at 69 kg. Photo by Tony Rotundo, Wrestlers Are Warriors.
Date of competition: Wednesday, August 17
Natalia Vorobieva of Russia, the 2012 Olympic champion at 72 kg, is now the top star at 69 kg, after making the switch in 2014, when United World Wrestling changed the weight class structure. She won the 2015 World Championships gold medal and was third in 2014. Vorobieva boasts three World medals and three Junior World golds and is a very talented and popular wrestler worldwide.
This weight is loaded with past gold and silver medalists, all proven athletes capable of winning Olympic gold. 2014 World champion Aline Focken of Germany was also third in the 2015 World Championships and fifth in the 2013 World Championships. A two-time Junior World medalist, Focken has been consistent throughout this Olympic cycle.
2013 World champion Alina Makhinya of Ukraine was one of the last to qualify for Rio, winning the 2nd World Olympic Qualifier in Turkey. Although her gold in 2013 is her only World medal, she was fifth in the 2011 and 2012 World meets. She won two Junior World titles and a Junior World bronze as a top talent in the age-group pipeline.
Jenny Fransson won a World title in 2012 up at 72 kg, but like Vorobieva, dropped in weight in 2014 when the weight classes shifted. She has reached the medal round in the 2010, 2014 and 2015 Worlds, losing bronze bouts to place fifth. This will be her third Olympic Games, after placing ninth in both 2008 and 2012.
China’s Feng Zhou was the World silver medalist behind Vorobieva in 2015, her only World medal. She won a Junior World title in 2012, and added an Asian Games gold in 2014 and an Asian Championships gold in 2015. She also won the 2016 Olympic Test Event in Brazil, which included a number of the top competitors in Rio. UWW has her ranked No. 1 going into the Rio Games.
Japan’s Sara Dosho has won medals at the last three World Championships, a silver in 2014 and bronze medals in 2013 and 2015. Her resume is very impressive, with a 2014 Asian gold medal as well as titles at the 2013 World University Games and the 2011 Junior World Championships.
Canada’s Dorothy Yeats was a World silver medalist in 2012 and won the 2016 Pan American Olympic Qualifier to punch her ticket to Rio. Although she did not reach the medal rounds in her last two Senior World Championships, she has an impressive number of major wins, including the 2015 Pan American Games title, the 2014 Commonwealth Games title, and a pair of Junior World gold medals in 2012 and 2013.
Nasanburmaa Ochirbat of Mongolia has won three World bronze medals, in 2008, 2011 and 2013. She was fifth in the 2015 World Championships as well. A 2013 Asian champion, she won a pair of Junior World medals.
2008 Olympic bronze medalist Agnieszka Wieszczek-Kordus of Poland won the European Olympic Qualifier. She broke in on the major World circuit with a 2004 World University Championships silver medal, but has been unable to win a World Championships medal. She is quite tall for this weight, an advantage she has used often in tough bouts.
Elmira Syzdykova of Kazakhstan won the Asian Olympic Qualifier to qualify for Rio. An Asian silver medalist in 2015, Syzdykova also won a Junior World bronze medal in 2011.
Ilana Kratysh of Israel has come on strong in recent seasons. She won the 1st World Olympic Qualifier in Mongolia to qualify for Rio. She won silver medals at the 2013, 2014 and 2016 European Championships, plus a silver medal in the inaugural 2015 European Games.
Hannah Rueben of Nigeria won the Africa-Oceania Olympic Qualifier, and was second in the 2016 All-Africa Games.
Among the other qualifiers are Buse Tosun of Turkey, Maria Acosta of Venezuela and Wen-Ling Chen of Chinese Taipei. Tosun was recently a 2016 European U23 champion. Acosta was a 2015 Pan American Games silver medalist and a two-time Pan American Championships bronze medalist. Chen’s best previous achievement was a silver medal in the 2014 Asian Junior Championships.
PROJECTED OLYMPIC GAMES FIELD
Brazil - Gilda de Oliveira
Canada – Dorothy Yeats (World No. 12)
China - Feng Zhou (World No. 1)
Chinese Taipei - Wen-Ling Chen
Egypt - Enas Ahmed
Germany - Aline Focken (World No. 2)
Israel - IIana Kratysh (World No. 10)
Japan – Sara Dosho (World No. 5)
Kazakhstan - Elmira Syzdykova (World No. 9)
Mongolia - Nasanburmaa Ochirbat (World No. 13)
Nigeria - Hannah Rueben
Norway - Signe Marie Store (World No. 17)
Poland - Agnieszka Weiszczek-Kordus (World No. 8)
Russia - Natalia Vorobieva (World No. 4)
Sweden - Jenny Fransson (World No. 3)
Turkey - Buse Tosun (World No. 6)
Ukraine -Alina Makhinya (World No. 7)
Venezuela - Maria Acosta (World No. 16)
RECENT WORLD AND OLYMPIC RESULTS
2015 World Championships
69 kg/152 lbs. - Gold – Natalia Vorobieva (Russia); Silver – Feng Zhou (China); Bronze – Sara Dosho (Japan)
Bronze – Aline Focken (Germany); 5th – Nasanburmaa Ochirbat (Mongolia); 5th – Jenny Fransson (Sweden); 7th – Elmira Syzdykova (Kazakhstan); 8th – Enas Moustafa (Egypt); 9th – Martina Kuenz (Austria); 10th – Elena Pirozkhova (USA)
2014 World Championships
69 kg/152 lbs. - Gold – Aline Focken (Germany); Silver – Sara Dosho (Japan); Bronze – Natalia Vorobieva (Russia); Bronze – Laura Skujina (Latvia); 5th – Jenny Fransson (Sweden); 5th – Diana Gonzalez (Mexico); 7th – Alina Makhunia (Ukraine); 8th – Dorothy Yeats (Canada); 9th – Leidy Izquierdo (Colombia); 10th – Agnieszka Wieszczek-Kordus (Poland)
2013 World Championships
67 kg/147.5 lbs. - Gold – Alina Stadnik-Makhynia (Ukraine); Silver – Stacie Anaka (Canada); Bronze – Nasanburmaa Ochirbat (Mongolia); Bronze – Sara Dosho (Japan); 5th – Zhanting Zhou (China); 5th – Aline Focken (Germany); 7th – Laura Skujina (Latvia); 8th – Leidy Izquierdo Mendez (Colombia); 9th – Gozal Zutova (Azerbaijan); 10th – Veronica Carlson (USA)
2012 World Championships
67 kg/147.5 lbs. - Gold – Adeline Gray (USA); Silver – Dorothy Yeats (Canada); Bronze – Yan Hong (China); Bronze – Yoshiko Inoue (Japan); 5th - Alina Stadnik-Makhynia (Ukraine); 5th - Kaur Navjot (India); 7th - Darya Khamdiyeva (Kazakhstan); 8th - Nadya Sementsova (Azerbaijan); 9th - Irina Bogdanova (Russia); 10th - Ilana Kratysh (Israel)
2011 World Championships
67 kg/147.5 lbs. - Gold - Luozhuoma Xi (China); Silver - Oyunsuren Banzragch (Mongolia); Bronze - Yoshiko Inoue (Japan); Bronze - Adeline Gray (USA); 5th - Alina Makhynia (Ukraine); 5th - Burcu Orskaya (Turkey); 7th - Martine Dugrenier (Canada); 8th - Iryna Ysyrkevich (Belarus); 9th - Nadya Sementsova (Azerbaijan); 10th - Natalia Kuksina (Russia)
2010 World Championships
67 kg/147.5 lbs. - Gold – Martine Dugrenier (Canada); Silver – Elena Shalygina (Kazakhstan); Bronze – Ifeoma Iheanacho (Nigeria); Bronze –Alla Cherkosova (Ukraine); 5th – Mami Shinkai (Japan); 5th – Nadya Sementsova (Azerbaijan); 7th – Burcu Orskaya (Turkey); 8th – Maria Selmaier (Germany); 9th – Ying Chen (China); 10th – Yanira Morales (Cuba)
2009 World Championships
67 kg/147.5 lbs. - Gold - Martine Dugrenier (Canada); Silver - Julia Bartnovskaia (Russia); Bronze - Ifeoma Ihenacho (Nigeria); Bronze - Nadrakh Odonchimeg (Mongolia); 5th - Adeline Gray (USA); 5th - Yoshiko Inoue (Japan); 7th - Kateryna Burmistrova (Ukraine); 8th - Zumrud Gurganhajiyeva (Azerbaijan); 9th - Maher Hasan Salem Doaa Ahmed (Egypt); 10th - Ji-Eun Kim (Korea)
Date of competition: Wednesday, August 17
Natalia Vorobieva of Russia, the 2012 Olympic champion at 72 kg, is now the top star at 69 kg, after making the switch in 2014, when United World Wrestling changed the weight class structure. She won the 2015 World Championships gold medal and was third in 2014. Vorobieva boasts three World medals and three Junior World golds and is a very talented and popular wrestler worldwide.
This weight is loaded with past gold and silver medalists, all proven athletes capable of winning Olympic gold. 2014 World champion Aline Focken of Germany was also third in the 2015 World Championships and fifth in the 2013 World Championships. A two-time Junior World medalist, Focken has been consistent throughout this Olympic cycle.
2013 World champion Alina Makhinya of Ukraine was one of the last to qualify for Rio, winning the 2nd World Olympic Qualifier in Turkey. Although her gold in 2013 is her only World medal, she was fifth in the 2011 and 2012 World meets. She won two Junior World titles and a Junior World bronze as a top talent in the age-group pipeline.
Jenny Fransson won a World title in 2012 up at 72 kg, but like Vorobieva, dropped in weight in 2014 when the weight classes shifted. She has reached the medal round in the 2010, 2014 and 2015 Worlds, losing bronze bouts to place fifth. This will be her third Olympic Games, after placing ninth in both 2008 and 2012.
China’s Feng Zhou was the World silver medalist behind Vorobieva in 2015, her only World medal. She won a Junior World title in 2012, and added an Asian Games gold in 2014 and an Asian Championships gold in 2015. She also won the 2016 Olympic Test Event in Brazil, which included a number of the top competitors in Rio. UWW has her ranked No. 1 going into the Rio Games.
Japan’s Sara Dosho has won medals at the last three World Championships, a silver in 2014 and bronze medals in 2013 and 2015. Her resume is very impressive, with a 2014 Asian gold medal as well as titles at the 2013 World University Games and the 2011 Junior World Championships.
Canada’s Dorothy Yeats was a World silver medalist in 2012 and won the 2016 Pan American Olympic Qualifier to punch her ticket to Rio. Although she did not reach the medal rounds in her last two Senior World Championships, she has an impressive number of major wins, including the 2015 Pan American Games title, the 2014 Commonwealth Games title, and a pair of Junior World gold medals in 2012 and 2013.
Nasanburmaa Ochirbat of Mongolia has won three World bronze medals, in 2008, 2011 and 2013. She was fifth in the 2015 World Championships as well. A 2013 Asian champion, she won a pair of Junior World medals.
2008 Olympic bronze medalist Agnieszka Wieszczek-Kordus of Poland won the European Olympic Qualifier. She broke in on the major World circuit with a 2004 World University Championships silver medal, but has been unable to win a World Championships medal. She is quite tall for this weight, an advantage she has used often in tough bouts.
Elmira Syzdykova of Kazakhstan won the Asian Olympic Qualifier to qualify for Rio. An Asian silver medalist in 2015, Syzdykova also won a Junior World bronze medal in 2011.
Ilana Kratysh of Israel has come on strong in recent seasons. She won the 1st World Olympic Qualifier in Mongolia to qualify for Rio. She won silver medals at the 2013, 2014 and 2016 European Championships, plus a silver medal in the inaugural 2015 European Games.
Hannah Rueben of Nigeria won the Africa-Oceania Olympic Qualifier, and was second in the 2016 All-Africa Games.
Among the other qualifiers are Buse Tosun of Turkey, Maria Acosta of Venezuela and Wen-Ling Chen of Chinese Taipei. Tosun was recently a 2016 European U23 champion. Acosta was a 2015 Pan American Games silver medalist and a two-time Pan American Championships bronze medalist. Chen’s best previous achievement was a silver medal in the 2014 Asian Junior Championships.
PROJECTED OLYMPIC GAMES FIELD
Brazil - Gilda de Oliveira
Canada – Dorothy Yeats (World No. 12)
China - Feng Zhou (World No. 1)
Chinese Taipei - Wen-Ling Chen
Egypt - Enas Ahmed
Germany - Aline Focken (World No. 2)
Israel - IIana Kratysh (World No. 10)
Japan – Sara Dosho (World No. 5)
Kazakhstan - Elmira Syzdykova (World No. 9)
Mongolia - Nasanburmaa Ochirbat (World No. 13)
Nigeria - Hannah Rueben
Norway - Signe Marie Store (World No. 17)
Poland - Agnieszka Weiszczek-Kordus (World No. 8)
Russia - Natalia Vorobieva (World No. 4)
Sweden - Jenny Fransson (World No. 3)
Turkey - Buse Tosun (World No. 6)
Ukraine -Alina Makhinya (World No. 7)
Venezuela - Maria Acosta (World No. 16)
RECENT WORLD AND OLYMPIC RESULTS
2015 World Championships
69 kg/152 lbs. - Gold – Natalia Vorobieva (Russia); Silver – Feng Zhou (China); Bronze – Sara Dosho (Japan)
Bronze – Aline Focken (Germany); 5th – Nasanburmaa Ochirbat (Mongolia); 5th – Jenny Fransson (Sweden); 7th – Elmira Syzdykova (Kazakhstan); 8th – Enas Moustafa (Egypt); 9th – Martina Kuenz (Austria); 10th – Elena Pirozkhova (USA)
2014 World Championships
69 kg/152 lbs. - Gold – Aline Focken (Germany); Silver – Sara Dosho (Japan); Bronze – Natalia Vorobieva (Russia); Bronze – Laura Skujina (Latvia); 5th – Jenny Fransson (Sweden); 5th – Diana Gonzalez (Mexico); 7th – Alina Makhunia (Ukraine); 8th – Dorothy Yeats (Canada); 9th – Leidy Izquierdo (Colombia); 10th – Agnieszka Wieszczek-Kordus (Poland)
2013 World Championships
67 kg/147.5 lbs. - Gold – Alina Stadnik-Makhynia (Ukraine); Silver – Stacie Anaka (Canada); Bronze – Nasanburmaa Ochirbat (Mongolia); Bronze – Sara Dosho (Japan); 5th – Zhanting Zhou (China); 5th – Aline Focken (Germany); 7th – Laura Skujina (Latvia); 8th – Leidy Izquierdo Mendez (Colombia); 9th – Gozal Zutova (Azerbaijan); 10th – Veronica Carlson (USA)
2012 World Championships
67 kg/147.5 lbs. - Gold – Adeline Gray (USA); Silver – Dorothy Yeats (Canada); Bronze – Yan Hong (China); Bronze – Yoshiko Inoue (Japan); 5th - Alina Stadnik-Makhynia (Ukraine); 5th - Kaur Navjot (India); 7th - Darya Khamdiyeva (Kazakhstan); 8th - Nadya Sementsova (Azerbaijan); 9th - Irina Bogdanova (Russia); 10th - Ilana Kratysh (Israel)
2011 World Championships
67 kg/147.5 lbs. - Gold - Luozhuoma Xi (China); Silver - Oyunsuren Banzragch (Mongolia); Bronze - Yoshiko Inoue (Japan); Bronze - Adeline Gray (USA); 5th - Alina Makhynia (Ukraine); 5th - Burcu Orskaya (Turkey); 7th - Martine Dugrenier (Canada); 8th - Iryna Ysyrkevich (Belarus); 9th - Nadya Sementsova (Azerbaijan); 10th - Natalia Kuksina (Russia)
2010 World Championships
67 kg/147.5 lbs. - Gold – Martine Dugrenier (Canada); Silver – Elena Shalygina (Kazakhstan); Bronze – Ifeoma Iheanacho (Nigeria); Bronze –Alla Cherkosova (Ukraine); 5th – Mami Shinkai (Japan); 5th – Nadya Sementsova (Azerbaijan); 7th – Burcu Orskaya (Turkey); 8th – Maria Selmaier (Germany); 9th – Ying Chen (China); 10th – Yanira Morales (Cuba)
2009 World Championships
67 kg/147.5 lbs. - Gold - Martine Dugrenier (Canada); Silver - Julia Bartnovskaia (Russia); Bronze - Ifeoma Ihenacho (Nigeria); Bronze - Nadrakh Odonchimeg (Mongolia); 5th - Adeline Gray (USA); 5th - Yoshiko Inoue (Japan); 7th - Kateryna Burmistrova (Ukraine); 8th - Zumrud Gurganhajiyeva (Azerbaijan); 9th - Maher Hasan Salem Doaa Ahmed (Egypt); 10th - Ji-Eun Kim (Korea)
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