USA Wrestling

Day One Wrap: Taylor, Retherford, Arujau reach World finals, Parris to go for bronze in Belgrade

BELGRADE, Serbia – It was an excellent day for the United States in men’s freestyle, as the 2023 Senior World Championships got started in Stark Arena on Saturday.

Winning their semifinals match and earning a spot in Sunday’s gold-medal finals were 2000 Olympic champion and two-time World champion David Taylor (86 kg), 2022 World silver medalist Zain Retherford (70 kg) and first-time World Team member Vito Arujau (61 kg).

With his victory in the semifinals, Taylor has clinched a berth for the United States at 86 kg in men’s freestyle for the 2024 Olympic Games in Paris.

Taylor was on fire today, winning two matches by pin and two by technical fall. In the semifinals, he put away Azamat Dauletbekov of Kazakhstan in 3:38. He will face his archrival Hassan Yazdanicharati of Iran in the finals. Taylor has beaten him in two of their three finals matches at either the Olympics or Worlds, including Taylor’s victory at the 2020 Olympic Games.

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Powerful USA team set for World Championships in Serbia, Sept. 16-24, with Olympic berths up for grabs

The United States is sending an experienced and talented team to the 2023 Senior World Wrestling Championships, set for Stark Arena in Belgrade, Serbia, September 16-24.

The United States is coming off one of its best Senior World Championships performances ever in 2022, with a total of 15 Senior World medals, including seven individual gold medalists, six silver medalists and two bronze medalists. The U.S. men’s freestyle team won the World Team Title in 2022 (its fourth ever), and the U.S. women’s freestyle team placed second in the final standings.

This event will serve as the first 2024 Olympic Games qualifying event for Paris, France. The top five athletes in each of the 18 Olympic weight classes will qualify their nation for Paris.

The event kicks off with men’s freestyle competition, which runs September 16-19. The USA team features a pair of Olympic champions, 2016 Olympic gold medalist Kyle Snyder (97 kg) and 2020 Olympic gold medalist David Taylor (86 kg). Snyder also boasts a 2020 Olympic silver medal. Both are also multiple Senior World champions, with Snyder owning three World titles and Taylor winning two World golds.

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Steveson will not wrestle at Senior World Championships; Parris to compete for USA at 125 kg in Belgrade

2020 Olympic champion Gable Steveson (Minneapolis, Minn./Gopher WC RTC) has notified USA Wrestling that he will not be competing in the 2023 Senior World Championships at 125 kg in Belgrade, Serbia in September.

Replacing Steveson in the 125 kg position in men’s freestyle at the World Championships is Final X runner-up Mason Parris (Ann Arbor, Mich./Titan Mercury WC/Cliff Keen WC). Parris, who is No. 2 on the 2023-24 U.S. Senior Men’s Freestyle National Team, will be competing in his first Senior World Championships for Team USA.

Steveson returned to freestyle wrestling for the first time since the Olympic Games in Tokyo when he won the 2023 U.S. Open in Las Vegas in April, then secured his position on the 2023 U.S. Senior World Team with his victory at Final X in Newark, N.J. in June. Continue reading at themat.com →