Wrestling preview – 2 August
02 August 2002
Wrestling makes a welcome return to the Commonwealth Games, appearing for the first time since Victoria, Canada, in 1994.
The opening day of competition sees 39 wrestlers do battle in four weight categories in the elimination rounds.
In pool 1 of the 55kg division, young Indian wrestler Krishnan Kumar could spring a surprise, while Andy Hutchinson of England faces a stiff test in pool 2, grouped with two other medal hopefuls in Canada’s Mikheil Jaaparidze and Nigeria’s Jacob Isaac.
At 66kg the wrestlers are split into three groups, with England’s best medal hope, John Melling, up against Canada’s Graham Ewers in pool 1. Ramesh Kumar from India looks a good bet to take pool 2, while in-form New Zealander Ricardo Aryan is a strong contender in pool 3.
England’s Jatinder Singh has a good chance to progress after being drawn in pool 4 of the 84kg division alongside Linus Masheti from Kenya, and Gambia’s Badjie Hatabou and Abraham Vassallo of Malta.
In the heaviest category, 120kg, three of the four favourites – Eric Kirschner of Canada, England’s Amerjit Singh and Doug Thomson of Scotland - are grouped together in pool 2. The fourth, Mushtaq Abdullah, is in pool 1.
In a first for the Commonwealth Games, video technology will be used to clear up controversial incidents on the spot. There is no appeal process at Manchester 2002.
Wrestling preview - 3 August
03 August 2002
Day two of the Manchester 2002 wrestling competition sees Canada’s big names join the fray.
Current world champion Guivi Sissaouri (60kg) and the Sydney 2000 Olympic Games gold medallist Daniel Igali (74kg) will both be looking to add Commonwealth Games titles to their collections.
Sissaouri has been drawn in Pool 2 at 60kg, with the other likely medal contenders grouped in Pool 1.
Australia’s Cory O’Brien, an Olympian in 1996 and 2000, will be looking to maximise his experience, while Paul Stridgeon(ENG), who was born in Wigan, will certainly have the home crowd on his side.
There do not appear to be any major obstacles in Igali’s path to the semi-final at 74kg. Other medal hopefuls in the draw include the veteran South African Bennie Labuschagne in Pool 4 and five-time Oceania champion Rein Ozoline (AUS) in Pool 1.
At 96kg the two leading medal candidates stayed apart in the draw.
Canada’s Dean Schmeichel faces Johan Rossouw (ENG) and Muhammad Bashir Bhola of Pakistan in Pool 1.
In Pool 2 Igor Praporshchikov (AUS) should make his way past India’s Anil Kumar Mann and Victor Kodei (NGR).
The evening session on Saturday sees the medal matches from Friday’s elimination pools at 55kg, 66kg, 84kg and 120kg.
Melling's wrestling dream shattered
02 August 2002
England’s John Melling has had his dream of winning a gold medal in front of his home crowd shattered at the G-MEX.
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| Melling was devastated with defeat | |
Melling, a silver medallist at Kuala Lumpur, had been hoping to go all the way at Manchester 2002 but the 31-year-old was unexpectedly eliminated after just two fights.
Melling, who was originally from Wigan has been based in Canada for the last twelve years, but tonight was not the homecoming he had been hoping for.
The shock exit was made even harder for Melling to take because of it being in Manchester: “To be here and wrestle in front of my home crowd was something I was really looking forward to. I’m as confounded as anybody that I’m out after two matches,” he said.
The defeat has now left him contemplating retirement: “That might be it for me. You don’t want to finish on a bad note, but at the same time… I thought I had a great chance of a gold in this tournament.”
Melling lost his group matches against his training partner Canadian Graham Ewers and Fred Jessey of Nigeria
Indians prove wrestling prowess
03 August 2002
Canada and India held their own private Commonwealth Games duel on Saturday evening, with India coming out on top.
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| Kirschner of Canada takes silver medal | |
Each of the four weight category finals were contested by wrestlers from the two nations, with the Indians winning three golds to Canada’s one.
In the 55kg category, 2001 World Junior Champion Krishan Kumar of India showed he has the power to go all the way to the top of the senior scene, too, defeating the powerful Canadian Mikheil Japaridze to win the first wrestling gold of the Manchester Commonwealth Games.
Japaridze said afterwards: “It feels very good to have a silver medal. I was thinking I might be able to get the gold but he was too strong for me. I had a foot injury so I was not 100 per cent which is why I stopped for a little time in the fight.”
South Africa’s Shaun Williams took bronze after achieving Technical Superiority over Jacob Isaac of Nigeria.
Williams was optimistic about the effect the medal would have back in his homeland: “Wrestling in a small sport in my country but I definitely think there are enough people interested to enable us to produce more champions, especially in Commonwealth competition. Hopefully my achievement will produce more exposure and money for the sport.”
It was India who struck gold again in the 66kg final. Despite struggling with a leg injury through the latter stages, Ramesh Kumar pipped Canadian Neal Ewers in a closely fought match.
Nigeria were once again involved in the bronze medal contest, and Fred Jessey of Nigeria went one better than compatriot Isaac by beating New Zealand’s Ricardo Aryan to take third place.
Veteran, Aryan said: “I didn’t have enough competition before coming into the Commonwealth Games, so I just wasn’t tough enough.”
“I knew it was going to be hard, basically I stopped wrestling ten years ago and only started again just before the 2000 Olympic Games. I didn’t qualify for the Olympics, but I continued to train for this competition.”
Canada struck back in the 84kg competition, with double Canadian National Champion Nicolas Ugoalah ending a closely fought contest with a well executed pin seconds into overtime against India’s Anuj Kumar.
The host nation’s sole representative in the finals, Jatinder Singh from England was unable to prevent Sinivie Boltic earning a second Nigerian bronze on the night.
Palwinder Singh Cheema from India was in control throughout the 120kg final, and defeated Eric Kirschner of Canada by Technical Superiority.
Cheema commented: “I was confident coming into the competition that I would bring gold back to India. I am very pleased to have achieved my aim and this success is down to my coach Stanislav Haslo from Belarus.”
In the bronze medal final, Scotland’s Douglas Thomson, whose pre-match preparations had been disturbed by the arrival of a new baby boy at 3:00am on Saturday, lost out to Australia’s Mushtaq Rasem Abdullah.
Canadians march to wrestling finals
04 August 2002
Canada’s two big-name wrestlers remain on course for gold at the 2002 Commonwealth Games.
The Sydney 2000 Olympic gold medallist Daniel Igali (CAN) had already qualified for the semi-finals of the 74kg category before Sunday morning’s session, and he eased past Wynand Jacobs of Namibia to reach the final stage.
Igali will wrestle Sunday Opiah (NGR) for the gold after the athletic Nigerian saw off the challenge of Australia’s Rein Ozoline in the semi-final.
Opiah is hoping to become the first Nigerian to pick up a Commonwealth Games wrestling gold since Jacob Isaac won at light-flyweight in Victoria in 1994.
Canada’s other high-profile wrestler in Sunday’s finals is 60kg 2001 world champion Guivi Sissaouri.
With India leading the wrestling gold medal tally by three to Canada’s one after Saturday’s finals, Sissaouri has the opportunity to redress the balance as he takes on Shokinder Tomar (IND) in the final.
Cory O’Brien (AUS) and Nigeria Tebe Dorgu will contest the bronze.
In the 96kg division there is another Canada-Nigeria match up as Dean Schmeichel (CAN) takes on Nigeria’s Victor Kodei. Runners-up in the elimination pool were Pakistan’s Muhammad Bashir Bhola and Anil Kumar (IND) and they will wrestle off for bronze.
Wrestling concludes with Canadian triple gold
04 August 2002
The final three wrestling bouts are over bringing to a conclusion an amazing 10 days of sport at the historic G-MEX.
The first of the finals was the up to 60kg final between Canadian favourite Guivi Sissaouri and Indian Shokinder Tomar. In a bout lasting nine minutes Sissaouri eventually came out on top to beat Shokinder 3-1. Tebe Dorgu took bronze earlier.
Sissaouri said afterwards:
“India have some outstanding athletes and very experienced Russian coaches. But I showed great control in the six minutes. He had an unusual style for me but I was just waiting for the right moment and fortunately it went my way.”
“I am 36 now and mental preparation becomes more important. It can be tough at my age to compete.”
A disappointed Tomar was still upbeat:
“I am happy with the silver medal, this is what I was expecting. I’ve beaten Sissaouri before but that was at a heavier class and I feel a little weaker at this weight.”
In the up to 96kg final Canada picked up another gold when Dean Schmeichel beat Nigeria’s Victor Kodei 3-1.
Schmeichel said afterwards:
“It’s given me great confidence for the Worlds. This is a high pressure atmosphere. You can not substitute this kind of pressure even though you are not competing against all the top wrestlers.”
In the final bout of the competition red-hot favourite Daniel Igali destroyed Nigeria’s Sunday Opiah to claim a wrestling medal for his adopted country Canada .
Commonwealth Games - 2002 - RESULTS
