The first day of wrestling concluded at the Junior World Championships in Ufa, Russia. Five of the ten weights in men’s freestyle have been wrestled through the semi-final rounds. There is still a considerable amount of wrestling left, but the team race is starting to take shape. Read below to see the updated team score and who is still available to wrestle for a medal for Team USA.

Azerbaijan And Iran Setting The Pace

At the end of the first day of wrestling, Azerbaijan and Iran currently sit at first and second respectively. Azerbaijan has the team lead outright with 3 wrestlers sitting in the finals at 65kg, 70kg and 79kg. On top of their finalists, Azerbaijan’s 57kg wrestler lost in the semi-finals and will be going for bronze. Their 97kg wrestler is the only competitor for Azerbaijan out of medal contention.

After Azerbaijan, Iran and Russia are chasing in second and third with two finalists a piece. Iran is pacing slightly ahead of Russia with 2 other wrestlers in the bronze medal match (at 65kg and 97kg) compared to Russia’s one (at 70kg). Take a look below at the rest of the top teams at the end of the first day:

Still Hope For USA

Braxton Amos is Team USA’s lone finalist at the end of day 1. Amos opened up his day with a close, 6-4 win over Gafurov from Kazakhstan. Amos followed that win with two dominant wins over Korcsog (HUN-10-0) and Deepak (IND-9-1). 

Check Out Amos' opening round win over Gafruzov:

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After Amos for Team USA, Beau Bartlett at 65kg will wrestle for bronze after making the semi-finals but losing to Bayramov (AZE) 6-2. Though USA only has two in the medal matches right now, both Bryce Andonian (70kg) and Donnell Washington (79kg) are alive in the repechage and still able to win bronze. Only Richie Figueroa (at 57kg) was eliminated from medal contention when the competitor who defeated him (Ali Gholi from Iran) lost in the quarter-finals.

USA also has 5 more wrestlers beginning their tournament tomorrow (Tuesday, August 17) - Jesse Mendez, Keegan O’Toole, Colton Hawks, Rocky Elam and Wyatt Hendrickson. In order to keep pace with the top teams, USA needs multiple wrestlers to make the finals and win medals. Wrestling begins at 2AM (EST) - we will continue to keep you posted on every change in the team race.

To view full results for the Junior World Championships with video links to each match check out FloArena HERE.