Release courtesy of Joe Wedra / USA Wrestling. Image courtesy of the USA Wrestling Twitter account (@USAWrestling).
BELGRADE, Serbia – The Greco-Roman draw has been announced for the 2021 U23 World Championships. The ten U.S. athletes have officially received their first opponents for the tournament.
Greco-Roman action begins Monday with Taylor Lamont (55 kg), David Stepanian (63 kg), Britton Holmes (77 kg), Spencer Woods (87 kg) and Brandon Metz (130 kg).
Lamont, who is now on his ninth age-group World team for the U.S., will open his competition with Aritom Deleanu of Moldova. Deleanu took third at the 2019 U23 European Championships.
Stepanian will begin his tournament wrestling Serbia’s Zolt Zonai, who has limited international results and took 14th at the Cadet European Championships. Stepanian is wrestling on his first age-group World team.
Holmes, also on his first World team, will wrestle Dilshod Omongeldiyev of Uzbekistan first. Omongeldiyev took third at the 2019 Junior Asian Championships and wrestled at the 2019 Junior Worlds.
At 87 kg, Spencer Woods opens up with Szymon Szymonowicz of Poland. Woods, who won both the U23 Nationals and the Senior Nationals this year, is wrestling for the first time at a World Championships. Szymonowicz took seventh at the U23 Worlds in 2019.
Metz, also on his first World team at 130 kg, will wrestle Ukraine’s Vlaydslav Kovalenko. In both 2018 and 2019, Kovalenko wrestled at the Junior World Championships.
At 60 kg, Dylan Gregerson will wrestle Mehdi Mohsen Nejad of Iran, who has won bronze twice previously at the U23 World Championships. Gregerson, on his first World team, won the U23 Nationals in both 2020 and 2021.
Alston Nutter at 67 kg will wrestle Georgia’s Joni Khetsuriani, a 2015 Cadet World silver medalist and second-place finisher at the 2018 Junior European Championships. Nutter was a 2019 Junior bronze medalist.
Wrestling at 72 kg, Nate Moore opens with Sheku Kassegbama of Sierra Leone. Kassegbama took third at the 2019 African Championships and sixth at the 2020 African Championships. Moore, who wrestles collegiately at Northern Colorado, is on his first World team.
Tommy Brackett, the U.S. representative at 82 kg and first-time World Championships team member, will first see Mukhammadkodir Rasulov of Uzbekistan. Rasulov recently finished ninth at the 2021 Junior World Championships.
At 97 kg, Nicholas Boykin will wrestle 2016 Cadet world champion Gerard Kurniczak of Poland. Boykin, an Ohio State wrestler, was on the 2019 U.S. Junior World team.
Wrestling begins each day at 10:30 a.m. local time, which is five hours ahead of U.S. eastern time (NOTE: daylight saving time occurs one week earlier in Belgrade than the U.S., which makes the time difference five hours).
UWW will update brackets and have full results, which can be found by clicking here.
U23 WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS
At Belgrade, Serbia
U.S. Greco-Roman draws
55kg: Taylor Lamont (Mapleton, Utah/Sunkist Kids WC)
Vs. Aritom Deleanu (Moldova), 7th at 2020 European Championships, 7th at 2019 Junior World Championships, 3rd at 2019 U23 European Championships
60kg: Dylan Gregerson (Bluffdale, Utah/Brunson UVRTC)
Vs. Mehdi Mohsen Nejad (Iran), Third at 2019 U23 Worlds, Third at 2018 U23 Worlds
63kg: David Stepanian (Macomb, Mich./New York AC)
Vs. Zolt Zonai (Serbia), 14th at Cadet European Championships
67kg: Alston Nutter (Fennimore, Wisc./Sunkist Kids WC)
Vs. Joni Khetsuriani (Georgia), Second at 2018 Junior European Championships, Second at 2015 Cadet World Championships
72kg: Nate Moore (Buckley, Wash./Northern Colorado WC)
Vs. Sheku Kassegbama (Sierra Leone), Third at 2019 African Championships, Sixth at 2020 African Championships
77kg: Britton Holmes (Peyton, Colo./Army WCAP)
Vs. Dilshod Omongeldiyev (Uzbekistan), 19th at 2019 Junior World Championships, 3rd at 2019 Junior Asian Championships 8th at 2017 Cadet World Championships
82kg: Tommy Brackett (Eads, Tenn./Gator Wrestling Club)
Vs. Mukhammadkodir Rasulov (Uzbekistan), 9th at 2021 Junior World Championships
87kg: Spencer Woods (Shungnak, Alaska/Army WCAP)
Vs. Szymon Szymonowicz (Poland), 7th at U23 World Championships, 5th at 2018 Junior European Championships
97kg: Nicholas Boykin (Murrfreesboro, Tenn./Sunkist Kids)
Vs. Gerard Kurniczak (Poland), 2016 Cadet World champion, fifth at 2019 Junior World Championships
130kg: Brandon Metz (West Fargo, N.D./Bison WC)
Vs. Vladyslav Kovalenko (Ukraine), 10th 2019 Senior European Championships, 17th at 2019 Junior World Championships
U.S. Greco-Roman Schedule
Belgrade is five hours ahead of U.S. eastern time.
Monday, Nov. 1
10:30 a.m. – Qualification rounds (GR 55 kg, 63 kg, 77 kg, 87 kg, 130 kg)
6:00 p.m. – Semifinals (GR 55 kg, 63 kg, 77 kg, 87 kg, 130 kg)
Tuesday, Nov. 2
10:30 a.m. – Qualification rounds (GR 60 kg, 67 kg, 72 kg, 82 kg, 97 kg)
11:00 a.m. – Repechage (GR 55 kg, 63 kg, 77 kg, 87 kg, 130 kg)
4:45 p.m. – Semifinals (GR 60 kg, 67 kg, 72 kg, 82 kg, 97 kg)
6:00 p.m. – Finals (GR 55 kg, 63 kg, 77 kg, 87 kg, 130 kg)
Wednesday, Nov. 3
10:30 a.m. – Repechage (GR 60 kg, 67 kg, 72 kg, 82 kg, 97 kg)
6:00 p.m. – Finals (GR 60 kg, 67 kg, 72 kg, 82 kg, 130 kg)
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