To Our Friends in Wrestling Around the world

　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　

By William May
（Japan Amateur Wrestling Federation, Public Information Committee
Kyodo World Services, senior sports writer：wmay52@hotmail.com）

PREVIEW (2) ? JAPAN SQUARES OFF WITH TURKEY, INDIA IN WORLD C’SHIPS



HERNING, Denmark (September 20) ? Japanese wrestlers take on a pair of European bronze medal winners from Turkey on the second day of the world wrestling championships in Herning.

Shinya Matsumoto, wrestling at 84kg in men’s freestyle, squares off with Gohkan Yavaser (TUR) in a first-round bout, while at 120kg Nobuyoshi Arakida faces Recep Kara (TUR), also the European junior champion in 2002.

At 60kg, Shogo Maeda meets Hardeep Singh (IND) in his opening match. Singh was runner-up in the 2008 Asia junior championships. Maeda, along with Singh, find themselves on the same side of the bracket as European champion Zelimkhan Huseinov (AZE) and two-time world champion at 55kg Dilshod Mansurov (UZB).

Meanwhile, on the opposite side of the bracket at 60kg world champs and Olympic bronze medal winners Besik Khudukhov (RUS) and Seyed Mourad Mohammadi Pahnekalaei (IRI) loom large along with three-time European champion Vasyl Fedoroshin (UKR).

At 84kg, while Matsumoto and Yavaser are in the bottom quarter of the bracket, getting the finals will likely mean getting through 2008 junior world champ Abdulsalam Gadisov (RUS).

European silver medalist Ibragim Aldatov (UZB), the 74kg world champion in 2006, and Olympic silver medal winner Jousup Abdulsalomov (TJK) have drawn to the top half of the bracket.

At heavyweight, 2007 world champ Bilyal Makhov (RUS) sits on top of the 27-wrestler bracket with European champion Ali Issaev (AZE) and four-time Asia champion Fardin Masoumi Valadi (IRI) hold down the bottom half of the bracket.

60kg ? MAEDA, Shogo (32 entries)
R1 ? v. Hardeep Singh (IND)


84kg ? MATSUMOTO, Shinya (37 entries)
R1 ? Gokhan Yavaser (TUR)


120kg ? ARAKIDA, Nobuyoshi (27 entries)
R1 ? v. Recep Kara (TUR)

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