RIO DE JANEIRO (January 30-31) – Former junior Asia champion Yui SAKANO (JPN) cobbled together four wins at the Rio 2016 Olympic Games wrestling arena to claim the 58kg title at the United World Wrestling OG test event in Rio de Janeiro.
Sakano opened with the first of three falls against two-time junior world champion Lyubov OVCHAROVA (RUS) and closed with a 4-1 triumph over 2015 Spanish Grand Prix winner LI Qian (CHN).
The victory was Sakano’s seventh in international competition since 2010 and her first senior title since winning the Golden Grand Prix Final in Baku in 2012. Her wins also include a pair of junior Asian crowns in 2013 and 2014.
Japan’s other three entries – Shiori ITO (48kg), Anna IWAMURE (53kg) and Ayana GEMPEI (63kg) – all lost in the opening bouts and did not have a chance to wrestle in repechage.
Results of bouts involving Japanese entries:
Women's wrestling
48kg – ITO, Shiori (8th, 8 entries)
R1 – lost to Jasmine MIAN (CAN) by TF, 11-0, time not recorded
53kg – IWAMURE, Anna (8th, 10 entries)
R1 – lost to Alyssa LAMPE (USA), 4-6
58kg – SAKANO, Yui (1st, 12 entries)
R1 – df. Lyubov OVCHAROVA (RUS) by Fall, TNR (2-4)
R2 – df. Joice SILVA (BRA) by Fall, TNR (3-2)
SF – df. Ramona GALAMBOS by Fall, TNR (4-3)
F1 – df. LI Qian (CHN), 4-1
63kg – GEMPEI, Ayana (7th, 8 entries)
R1 – lost to Valeria LAZINSKAIA (RUS) by TF, 1-11, TNR
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