Blaze Earns U20 World Bronze and Men's Freestyle Team Takes Title

Action from the U20 World Championships wrapped up Sunday from Pontevedra, Spain. Although the US men’s freestyle team day didn’t necessarily end well, the team outdistanced Iran for the team championship. The final five team members were in action and all wrestled in medal matches. Only one of them, Marcus Blaze, was victorious on the day. 

In the opening period of his 61 kg bronze medal match with Turkiye’s Tolga Ozbek, with the American on the shot clock, Blaze used a low single to lock up a take and seize an early 2-0 lead. He’d add to the lead in the second after Ozbek couldn’t score while on the shot clock. With time running out, Ozbek tried for a huge headlock and was unsuccessful resulting in another takedown for Blaze and a 5-0 win. 

Blaze now has a pair of age-group world medals. He was a U17 world champion last year. 

A trio of Americans competed in gold medal matches, but were ultimately beaten on Sunday with Ladarion Lockett, Josh Barr (86 kg), and Ben Kueter (125 kg). Lockett was leading the returning U20 world silver medalist, Ali Rezaei (Iran) 3-1, and took an errant shot, which Rezaei immediately countered for the go-ahead takedown. In the final minute of the contest, Lockett wasn’t able to lock up a winning score and would settle for silver. 

In his first world-level appearance, Barr fell to the returning U20 world champion Ibragim Kadiev (Russia), 8-2. Also facing a 2023 U20 champion was Kueter against Amirreza Valadi (Iran). In a battle between the last two U20 world champions at the weight, Valadi came out on top, 4-2. 

Valadi led 2-0 after the first period on the strength of a shot clock violation and a step-out point. In the second period, Valadi used a staple of the Iranian repertoire the underhook, which he violently threw by for a takedown. Late in the match, Kueter was able to catch Valadi off balance with a low-leg attack and converted it for two points. Kueter wasn’t able to get another and fell, 4-2. 

Also on Sunday, Connor Mirasola was the victim of a second-period barrage from Anar Jafarli (Azerbaijan) as he lost 6-2 in a bronze medal bout at 92 kg. 

When it was all said and done, the U20 men’s freestyle team hauled in nine medals (one gold, four silver, and four bronze). Second place Iran only had seven. In 2023, the team had eight medals.