Following an impressive start to the 2019 CISM World Military Games, Ildar Hafizov (60 kg, Army/WCAP) found himself in position to earn a bronze medal, which is precisely what he did earlier today.
Greco-Roman at the World Military Games began at 10:00am in Wuhan City, China (+12 hours ET).
Hafizov, who was making his second appearance at a CISM event after placing fifth in 2017, began with a round-of-16 drubbing of Abdennour Laouni (ALG). That put the 31-year-old in the quarters opposite ’18 World bronze Sailike Walihan (CHN), an explosive opponent who is expected to be in contention for China’s Olympic Team. Hafizov scored four points in the first period to Walihan’s one, and it was enough to hold on for a 4-1 decision victory.
In the semifinal, Hafizov fell 7-1 to Ri Se-Ung (PRK) and was deposited into the bronze round. There he met up with 2018 Junior World runner-up Tigran Minasyan (ARM). Hafizov went untouched, piling on en-route to an 8-0 tech that provides him with a World Military bronze medal.
With the win, Hafizov becomes the first US athlete since Harry Lester in 2015 to capture CISM hardware. Four years ago, Lester — a two-time World bronze medalist at Senior — took second at 75 kilograms. The year prior, Bryce Saddoris (66 kg) placed second along with Jon Anderson (Army/WCAP) while David Arendt (130 kg) earned bronze.
Also competing on Wednesday was Ellis Coleman (67 kg, Army/WCAP, world no. 14). Coleman triumphed in his first bout against Pang Jin-Chol (PRK) via tech but was ousted in the next round by Joilson de Brito Ramos (BRA) 4-3. de Brito Ramos is currently seen as one of Coleman’s most prevalent obstacles when it comes to qualifying 67 kilos at March’s Pan Am Olympic Qualifier.
Next up for the US will be Daniel Miller (97 kg, Marines) and Toby Erickson (130 kg, Army/WCAP). Both athletes take the mat this evening (ET) and we will have entry lists available for perusal later in the day.
Notes:
- As noted earlier, a stream for the 2019 CISM World Military Games is hard to come by in the US, although the event is being broadcast on China Central Television.
- Results and entries can be found by navigating this link.
2019 CISM WORLD MILITARY GAMES
October 23-24 — Wuhan City, China
TEAM USA DAY 1 RESULTS
60 kg — Ildar Hafizov (Army/WCAP) — bronze
WON Abdennour Laouni (ALG) 11-1, TF
WON Sailike Walihan (CHN) 4-1
LOSS Ri Se-Ung (PRK) 7-1
WON Tigran Minasyan (ARM) 8-0, TF
67 kg — Ellis Coleman (Army/WCAP) — 8th
WON Pang Jin-Chol (PRK) 9-0, TF
LOSS Joilson de brito Ramos (BRA) 4-3
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