Tim Hands of Five Point Move recaps the Greco-Roman World Championships from Nur-Sultan, Kazakhstan.

Hope, the most important commodity. Invaluable to the human condition, it resides in a state of mind buttressed by the desire for a positive outcome. 

In wrestling, we like to think of hope as a shared experience. Incorrect. Fans may feel it, but athletes prepare as if to render hope inconsequential to the result. 

Sometimes that works, and sometimes not. This whole thing is often a gamble. But when a goal is not reached and a sense of desperation sets in, the hope for a better day is all anyone really has. 

The United States Greco-Roman Seniors will be exiting the 2019 World Championships without a medalist, and more importantly at the moment, without a single weight class qualified for next year’s Tokyo Olympic Games (yet). Were there flashes of brilliance and reasons for confidence? Sure, but there was also confusion, frustration, and the kind of dejection that has become all too familiar for a program constantly fighting to regain a foothold on the international level. 

No one wants to hear excuses, and to be fair, no one involved wants to make them. It doesn’t matter now, anyway, because once the spring hits and the next opportunity to qualify arrives, hope will reappear in all of its glory just like it did prior to this weekend. 

The Olympic Weights

60 kg: Ildar Hafizov (Army/WCAP), competing in front of immediate family members for the first time in several years, got off to a hot start by disposing of 2016 Junior World silver Etienne Kinsinger in the round-of-32. He was razor-sharp, Hafizov, prowling and darting for two-on-ones and checking angles. He was also dinged for passive -- but it didn’t matter. A takedown and lift combo that netted four points in the first period eventually carried Hafizov to victory 6-1. 

But in the proceeding round, ‘18 World bronze Lenur Temirov (UKR) ended Hafizov’s run to the tune of an 8-2 decision, with the last four points scored just as the buzzer sounded. The American’s tournament officially ended in the quarterfinal; that’s when returning champ Sergey Emelin of Russia soundly defeated Temirov to eliminate Hafizov from re-entry through the repechage round. 

And that is (nearly) exactly how it played out for every vanquished Team USA representative in an Olympic category. 

67 kg: No one had a more maddening conclusion to his tournament than Ellis Coleman (Army/WCAP), who started off by thrashing ‘18 World bronze and fourth-seeded Meirzan Shermakhanbet (KAZ). This was just the type of match an American has to get in order to have a shot, and Coleman did it by unleashing a booming headlock early in the first before adding four more points by countering a throw and reversing for exposure, respectively. A takedown soon into the second period ended the bout in Coleman’s favor via tech. 

The ride ended for Coleman in the proceeding match opposite Deyvid Dimitrov (BUL). Dimitrov landed a four-point arm throw in the first period. He went back to the well again after a reset only to have Coleman appear to counter by essentially cartwheeling over the top and covering, though it was ruled Coleman had stepped out. But it happened twice more, Dimitrov going for arm throws that Coleman had countered. Each time, a slip was called despite Dimitrov landing first on his knees instead of on his stomach, which signifies a bailout. To compound matters, passivity was never awarded in the bout, particularly to Coleman, even though a strong argument could be made it was warranted. 

77 kg: Patrick Smith (Minnesota Storm) fought valiantly against ‘19 European Championships silver Roland Schwarz (GER). That’s the tagline. The substance is that Smith gave Schwarz hell from whistle to whistle, drumming up three points over the course of the match from a passive and two step-outs (of course, those are a big part of Smith’s game). Schwarz, he scored, too. In the second period, the German used his passive chance to come up with a four-point lift. That proved to be the difference, as Smith fell 5-3. It should be noted that earlier this season in Denmark, Schwarz defeated Smith 9-0. The gap had been closed, just not enough on Monday morning.  

87 kg: Asian Championships silver Kumar Sunil (IND) was thought to provide a stiff test for Joe Rau (TMWC/Chicago RTC), but that wasn’t how this bout unfolded. Rau, making his first Senior Worlds appearance in five years, found little difficulty bullying Sunil in the ties to come away with a pair of step-outs. Even better was what took place right before the end of the first period. That’s when Rau hit a nice duck-under for a takedown and immediately converted to a gutwrench. The four-point sequence put the Chicago native ahead 6-0, and Sunil didn’t have much left to offer the rest of the way.

Against Mikalai Stadub (BLR), Rau wanted to keep a punishing pace and find underhooks that might lead somewhere. Stadub didn’t give much to work with, and he was rightfully hit for passive. From top par terre, Rau was very close to cranking a gutwrench. Stadub had almost succumbed to the lock. But he didn’t. In the second period, Stadub received his opportunity and did what Rau couldn’t. He got a run on a gut; Rau looked to hip out of danger; and after one more effort from Rau to possibly float the lock, Stadub rolled it over twice more to emerge victorious 9-1. 

97 kg: It was no secret that G’Angelo Hancock (Sunkist) entered the action on Saturday as one of the Team USA’s most convincing medal/Olympic qualifying candidates due to his extremely impressive season internationally -- as well as his very obvious talent that has been carefully cultivated over the past four years. Hancock did solid work against Nikolai Krysov (UKR) to open his tournament, assuming a 3-0 lead (passivity point and gutwrench) midway through the first period before adding a step-out before the break. The only other scoring that took place in this bout unfolded as the second period drew to a close. Krysov, clearly agitated, went for a cheap shot and was immediately penalized with a caution-and-two. 

The round-of-16 brought forth 2014 World champ Melonin Noumonvi of France. Hancock -- who just over the past year has notched dominant wins over former champs Artur Aleksanyan (ARM) and Balasz Kiss -- seized control against Noumonvi in the first thanks to a passive point. He was sharper, quicker, and determining the tempo. And when Noumonvi had his opportunity from top, Hancock defended the lock and nullified criteria by bullying the Frenchman out for a 2-1 lead. But then, catastrophe. With just over a minute remaining in the bout, Noumonvi caught Hancock in-between and zoomed a high dive that he used to execute a five-point bodylock. For all intents and purposes, it was over after that. Noumonvi expertly kept Hancock at bay and ran out the clock whilst simultaneously vacuuming all of the wind out the American program’s sails. 

130 kg: And then there was Adam Coon (NYAC/Cliff Keen) on Monday morning, who shouldered enormous expectations in Nur-Sultan and is perhaps the one U.S. athlete most vulnerable to public perception. Such is the price of owning a World silver after having enjoyed star status as a collegian. Every move Coon makes (on the mat and off) is slid under a microscope. For better or worse. He doesn’t mind the scrutiny, however. Coon knows full well what comes with the territory, and was more than willing to do whatever necessary to repeat or improve upon his result from a year ago. 

His #2 seed was nothing more than window dressing. An opening-round win would have put him against the second most decorated wrestler in the entire tournament, three-time World champion/two-time Olympic medalist Riza Kayaalp (TUR). It was a match everyone on the U.S. side wanted to see, of course, if only because you couldn’t help but imagine the contrast in styles, and what might happen if Coon managed to wrap the pushy-shovey Kayaalp up the same way he has done to so many others. 

Ironically, Coon’s first (and only) opponent on Monday was Lingzhe Meng of China -- who Coon pinned in his second match last year in Budapest. In that bout, Coon and Meng were neck-and-neck into the second period when the former Michigan Wolverine dumped Meng to the tarp. Meng wasn’t playing that game this time around. Rather, he avoided Coon’s clutches as best he could. Put down for passivity, Meng then reversed Coon and promptly converted a gutwrench. The contest was soon relegated to a plodding mess. Coon consistently tried digging into position -- and Meng went into survival mode for most of the second frame. That’s how it ended. No adrenaline, no last-gasp bomb to undo the narrative. Meng moved on, was decisioned by Kayaalp, and one of Greco’s best ambassadors was left searching for answers. 

Non-Olympic Weights

The United States was not without its bright spots. Max Nowry’s (55 kg, Army/WCAP) performance stood out above the rest, and not just because he advanced to a medal round. On Saturday, Nowry decimated recent rival Fabian Schmitt (GER), which was important in its own right. Schmitt and Nowry went 1-1 against each other last year at the German Grand Prix, and there was a bit of chippiness to be found between them. Saturday’s match saw Schmitt own a 1-0 lead into the second before Nowry took him down, and gutted him out. In his next match, Nowry was up 2-0 on the bracket’s best undercover stud (and eventual runner-up), Khorlan Zhakansha of the host country, until a gut from passive/par terre ruined the party. 

Still, Nowry recovered. The next morning, #4 seed Abdelkerim Fergat (ALG) was waiting in the wings and found himself on the wrong end of an 11-3 tech fall. That win put Nowry in the bronze match opposite ‘18 World champion Eldaniz Azizli (AZE). The ride ended there, as Nowry was unable to get his motor running. Azizli bottled a front headlock, spun behind, and it was gutwrench city after that. 

Ryan Mango (63 kg, Army/WCAP), a human bolt of lightning if there ever was one, easily rolled out Julinho Be Correia dju (POR) in the round-of-16. 2018 World bronze Rahman Bilici (TUR) came next, with Mango jetting out to a 4-0 lead only to have Billici emerge from a crazy exposure-laded scramble later in the first period ahead 5-4. The Turk tacked on two more points from double underhooks in the second and triumphed 7-4. 

Marine Ray Bunker (72 kg) brought the pressure early and often against Yogesh Yogesh (IND) and showed impressive poise throughout his first-ever World Championships showing. Against Yogesh, Bunker constantly pressed the issue and grabbed a 4-0 lead in the first to eventually prevail 6-5. ‘18 World bronze and top-seeded Aik Mnatakkanian (BUL) also experienced difficulty keeping up with Bunker early on. It was a sight to behold, watching Bunker move the Bulgarian around the mat. And it was the Marine who was in front 2-1, but that was the sum of his scoring. It was not for Mnatsakakanian. Following his passive chance in the second frame, he turned Bunker for two and emerged with victorious 6-2. 

A lot of eyes were on John Stefanowicz (82 kg, Marines), as well, and deservedly so. Not only has he established himself as a top competitor domestically, but he has also competed well against a few high-profile, World-medal-winning foreigners. So, there were reasons for confidence pertaining the Marine’s chances, even when matched up with ‘15 World bronze Lasha Gobadze (GEO) in the opening round. Unfortunately for Stefanowicz, Gobadze raced out to a 3-0 advantage in the first, received another par terre in the second, and a caution-and-two plus a denied U.S. challenge provided Gobadze with a comfy 7-0 lead he would not relinquish. 

But since Gobadze advanced to the final (and later won the tournament), Stefanowicz had another shot in the repechage greeted by Haito Quian (CHN). It was, to say, an atypical match for Stefanowicz. Qian scored on a step-out early in the first, took advantage of par terre with a gut, and rattled off six more points in the second (with one coming via failed U.S. challenge). Qian would win in the bronze round via fall over Nurbek Kashimbekov (KAZ). 

U.S. Notes

• Two U.S. wrestlers, besides Nowry, lost to eventual medalists (Bunker and Stefanowicz).

• At the Olympic weight classes, Hafizov and Rau are the only Americans to have lost to athletes who eventually qualified their nations for Tokyo (Temirov and Stadub, respectively). 

• For bookkeeping’s sake, the final individual record for Team USA Greco competitors at the 2019 World Championships was 8-12, with four victories earned via tech fall. 

What’s Next?

With all six Olympic weight classes still not qualified, the U.S. program has little choice other than to focus its attention on the month of March, which is when the Pan Am qualifier is scheduled to begin in Ottawa, Canda. Athletes have to make the final in Ottawa in order to lock down their weight classes. And it’s the same story for the “Last Chance” World Qualifier in April (Bulgaria), though there is one critical difference, as well. 

When it comes to the Pan American countries, the U.S. has traditionally looked up to Cuba. So, the (albeit strained) silver lining in this case is that Cuba qualified both 67 and 130 kilograms in Kazakhstan. Not that the U.S. wants to look at it this way, but with two Cubans out of the picture their chances are perceived to have increased related to these categories come March. 

Bulgaria in April will present a different set of challenges. It is dubbed the “last chance” for a reason. Each and every athlete from all over the planet who has yet to get the job done will be occupying bracket space. Since a verifiable cavalcade of prior World and Olympic medalists will likely be involved, it is understandable why this is a situation the United States would prefer to avoid. 

But before any of that happens, the Nationals/Olympic Trials Qualifier will take place in December. It promises to be a standout event. The elimination of the non-Olympic categories is expected to create six compelling brackets featuring tremendous domestic depth. This is something the country’s program currently needs in the worst way in order to guarantee its strongest possible representatives. 

A lot of work will be done before and after the National tournament, everyone knows that. The sense of urgency that now surrounds the Olympic objective is unlike that of perhaps any previous generation. Panic isn’t productive. Time heals. Distance influences perspective. The calendar will flip, and hope will return.