To Our Friends in Wrestling Around the world
By William May
（Japan Amateur Wrestling Federation, Public
Information Committee
：wmay52@hotmail.com）
April wrestling news
NISHIMAKI WINS 6TH JOC CUP TITLE
YOKOHAMA (April 22-23) - Junior world champion Mio Nishimaki won her
sixth straight title at the JOC Cup junior wrestling national championships.
Nishimaki, the winner of the women's junior world championship at 59 kg
last year, had little trouble winning the 63-kg division crown at Yokohama
Bunka Gymnasium to give her a total of six cadet and junior titles in the
JOC Cup meet.
Meanwhile, at 59 kg, Mizuka Kajita upended 63-kg junior world champion
Kei Yamana for the title. Kajita was a runner-up in the 2005 Asian cadet
championships.
Asia cadet champions Fuyuko Mimura (48 kg) and Yoshiko Inoue (67 kg)
also prevailed in their debuts as junior wrestlers.
Mizuho Shibata, the winner at 55 kg, was named the outstanding wrestler in the women's junior division.
In the men's competition, collegiate national champion Shigeki Ozawa
of Yamanashi Gakuin won the freestyle crown at 60 kg and was named the
men's outstanding wrestler. In greco-roman, Kazuma Kuramoto of Takushoku
University won the 55-kg title for his third straight JOC Cup triumph.
------
Individual winners in the junior divisions:
Men's freestyle
50 kg - Musashi Nagao, Kinki University
55 kg - Yuhei Ishiyama, Nippon Sports Science University
60 kg - Shigeki Ozawa, Yamanashi Gakuin University
66 kg - Tatsuhiro Yonemitsu, Takushoku University
74 kg - Aoi Otsuki, Waseda University
84 kg - Naoki Monma, NSSU
96 kg - Tetsuro Asami, WU
120 kg - Nobuyoshi Arakida, Senshu University
Men's greco-roman
50 kg - Masaharu Kaji, Hyogo
55 kg - Kazuma Kuramoto, TU
60 kg - Ryutaro Matsumoto, NSSU
66 kg - Kazuhiko Naruse, NSSU
74 kg - Shuhei Kuraya, NSSU
84 kg - Norikatsu Saikawa, NSSU
96 kg - Yusuke Yamamoto, YGU
120 kg - Iori Yasuda, WU
Women,'s freestyle
44 kg - Yurie Sakamoto, Iwate
48 kg - Fuyuko Mimura, Kyoto
51 kg - Ai Maebara, Kansai University
55 kg - Mizuho Shibata, Chukyo Women's University
59 kg - Mizuka Kajita, CWU
63 kg - Mio Nishimaki, CWU
67 kg - Yoshiko Inoue, Aichi
72 kg - Kie Tanaka, CWU
E. SAKAMOTO TO MISS WORLD CUP WITH BROKEN LEG
NAGOYA (April 19) - National champion Eri Sakamoto will miss the upcoming
women's World Cup wrestling meet in Nagoya due to a fracture in the shin
of her left leg. The fracture occurred during a national team training
camp in preparation for the May 20-21 World Cup, featuring six of the top
female wrestling teams in the world.
National team head coach Kazuhito Sakae said the injury was not a compound
fracture, adding that he expected Sakamoto to be back on the mats soon.
Sakae said that team officials would monitor Sakamoto's progress at
future training camps and then decide on Japan's entry at 67 kg for the
world championships in China (September 25-October 1, Guangzhou).
JWF ANNOUNCES LINE-UP FOR WOMEN担 WORLD CUP
TOKYO (APRIL 29) - The Japanese Wrestling Federation announced its line-up
for the May 20-21 World Cup of women's wrestling in Nagoya. The Japanese
squad will feature six reigning or past world champions at seven of the
weight categories.
At 67 kg, where Japan does not have a senior world title holder, junior
world champion Mami Shinkai has been named in place of injured Eri Sakamoto.
Japan will be seeking its third straight and fifth overall World Cup crown.
Canada, China, Russia, Ukraine and the United States along with Japan
will be divided into two groups of three teams each for the round-robin
preliminaries.
The winners of each group will wrestle for the team championship, the
second-place finishers in each group for third-place overall with the remaining
two teams battling it out for fifth place.
In this year's meet, teams will need to secure wins in four of the seven
individual matches to secure the dual meet victory. In the past, it was
possible under the classification point scoring system to win the dual
meet with victories in only three of the individual matches.
Also, the order of bouts in the dual meets will be 51, 59, 67, 48, 55,
63 and 72 kg in contrast to the previous practice of starting at 48 kg
and progressing in order by weight category.
Japan's entries by weight:
48 kg - Chiharu Icho, Makiko Sakamoto
51 kg - Hitomi Sakamoto, Yuri Kai
55 kg - Saori Yoshida, Chikako Matsukawa
59 kg - Seiko Yamamoto, Mio Nishimaki
63 kg - Kaori Icho, Ayako Shoda
67 kg - Mami Shinkai, Yoshiko Inoue
72 kg - Kyoko Hamaguchi, Ayako Murashima
OLYMPIC, WORLD MEDALISTS LEAD CHARGE TO UNSEAT JAPAN
TOKYO (April 29) - Olympic and world medalists lead the charge for five
teams hoping to unseat Japan as women's World Cup champion on May 20-21.
The United States, which won the World Cup crown in 2003, is led by Olympic
silver medalist Sara McMann, bronze medalist Patricia Miranda and two-time
world champion Kristie Marano.
China brings world champion Ren Xueceng and world runners-up Su Lihui
and Jing Ruixue. Xu Haiyan owns a rare win over Japan's Kaori Icho at the
2002 Asian Games.
Russia's line-up will feature world bronze medal winner Natalie Golts
along with three other winners from this year's European championships.
A dangerous Canadian squad is led by Olympic silver medalist Tonya Verbeek
and world bronze medal winner Carol Huynh.
Ukraine has entered Olympic gold medalist Irina Melnik, but since countries
are limited to one entry per weight category, the European power may opt
to send newly crowned continental champ Mariya Stadnyk.Entries by country:
United States
48 kg - Clarissa Chun
51 kg - Patricia Miranda (04 Olympics, bronze)
55 kg - Sharon Jacobson
59 kg - Sally Roberts (05 worlds, 3rd)
63 kg - Sara McMann (04 Olympics, silver)
67 kg - Katie Dowing (05 worlds, 3rd)
72 kg - Kristie Marano (03 worlds, 1st-67 kg)
Canada
48 kg - Carol Huynh (05 worlds, 3rd)
51 kg - Belinda Chou
55 kg - Tonya Verbeek (04 Olympics, silver)
59 kg - Breanne Graham (05 Universiade, 3rd)
63 kg - Megan Dolan
67 kg - Megan Buydens
72 kg - Ohenewa Akuffo (05 Universiade, 1st)
Russia
48 kg - Liliya Kaskarakova (06 Europe, 2nd)
Lorisa Oorzhak
51 kg - Natalia Smirnova (06 Europe, 3rd)
Inga Karamchakova (02 worlds, 2nd)
55 kg - Natalia Golts (05 worlds, 3rd)
59 kg - Liubov Volosova (06 Europe, 1st)
63 kg - Alena Kartashova (06 Europe, 1st)
67 kg - Elena Perepelkina (06 Europe, 1st)
Natalia Kuksina
72 kg - Darya Nazarova
Alena Starodubtseva
China
48 kg - Liao Rong
51 kg - Ren Xueceng (05 worlds, 1st-48 kg)
55 kg - Su Lihui (05 worlds, 2nd)
59 kg - Wang Ying
63 kg - Xu Haiyan (02 Asian Games, 1st)
67 kg - Jing Ruixue (05 worlds, 2nd-63 kg)
72 kg - Xiao Li
Ukraine
48 kg - Irini Merleni (04 Olympics, 1st)
Mariya Stadnyk (06 Europe, 1st)
51 kg - Aleksandra Kohut (06 Europe, 3rd)
Viktoriya Yemelyanova
55 kg - Tatiana Lazareva (04 Europe, 2nd)
Mariyana Bavdyk
59 kg - Elena Komarova
Nataliya Synyshyn (05 Euro jr., 1st)
63 kg - Olga Butkevich
Anna Vasylenko (05 Euro jr., 1st)
Lyudmila Golovchenko
67 kg - Valeriya Zlatova
Maryana Kvyatkovska (05 Euro jr., 1st)
72 kg - Svitlana Saienko (05 worlds, 3rd)
Nadiya Sementsova
YGU WRESTLING CLUB SETS UP PANKRATION TEAM
ISAWA, Yamanashi Prefecture (April 12) - The wrestling club at Yamanashi
Gakuin University announced the launch of a pankration team in ceremonies
that included a demonstration of the ancient combination of wrestling and
boxing.
The YGU wrestlers selected for the squad will reportedly practice pankration
along with their regular freestyle and greco-roman techniques. The Japan
Wrestling Federation indicated in March that it plans to propose to FILA
that wrestling's international governing body adopt pankration as a fourth
style -- along with freestyle, greco-roman and women's freestyle.
SCHEDULE CHANGES IN MEIJI NYUGYO INVITATIONAL
TOKYO (April 6) - Organizers of the Meiji Nyugyo Cup men's national
invitational wrestling tournament announced changes in the June 3-4 meet.
Organizers originally planned to feature greco-roman on June 3 and freestyle
on June 4.
The new schedule will see greco-roman competition at 66, 74, 96 and
120 kg along with freestyle matches at 84, 96 and 120 kg. The remaining
weight categories in freestyle and greco-roman will be contested on June
4.
Competition in all of the men's categories will also include special
wrestle-offs for national team berths, if required. The final wrestle-off
for the women's national team at 59 kg between Ayako Shoda and Seiko Yamamoto
is scheduled for June 4.