Team USA sends five to men’s freestyle semifinals at U20 World Championships

PONTEVEDRA, Spain – Team USA began men’s freestyle action at the 2024 U20 World Championships on Friday morning, going 14-0 in the first session and sending all five men’s freestyle athletes to the semifinals at the Pontevedra Municipal Sports Hall in Spain.

Luke Lilledahl, competing at 57 kg, had an explosive start in the morning session of the U20 World Championships. His first match was against Kabe Matjanov of Turkmenistan, and Lilledahl wasted no time, quickly scoring a takedown and transitioning to a leg lace that ended the bout in just 66 seconds with a 10-0 victory.

In his second match, Lilledahl faced a tougher challenge from Ankush Ankush of India, narrowly winning the match, 4-3. Lilledahl struck first and took a 2-0 lead, but Ankush responded with a takedown of his own to take the 2-2 lead on criteria heading into the break.

The second period saw Lilledahl take a 4-2 lead from an ankle pick. With seconds remaining, Lilledahl received a caution for fleeing, granting Ankush a point. Lilledahl held on for the 4-3 victory and returns to the semifinals at this event. He will face Hayko Gasparyan of Armenia in the semifinals, a two-time age-group European Championships medalist.

At 65 kg, Bo Bassett opened his tournament match against Valentyn Hryhoryshyn of Ukraine in a back-and-forth battle. After exchanging early points, Bassett found himself trailing 6-4 following a successful challenge from Ukraine. Bassett switched up the momentum, breaking Hryhoryshyn down for a 19-8 technical fall victory.

In his next bout against Dzmitry Shvarts, Bassett was in control from the start, scoring an early takedown and preventing a throw attempt by Shvarts to lead 5-0 before securing a pin at 2:03. Bassett faced Nikhil Pilanagoila of India in the quarterfinals. After a start that saw the score at 2-2, Bassett fought off another attack and locked up a cradle, pinning Pilanagoila at 3:45 to advance to the semifinals. Bassett will face Makoto Hosokawa of Japan, a three-time age-group Asian Championships medalist.

With a record of 3-0 in the morning session that included three technical falls, PJ Duke dominated his way to the semifinals at 70 kg. His morning began with a speedy performance against Zelimkhan Mutsukhaev of Poland, where he quickly scored a takedown and followed with a trapped arm gut wrench to end the match 10-0 in under a minute.

Duke’s second match was against Aden Sakybaev of Kyrgyzstan. After leading 4-0, Duke delivered a massive throw and another trapped arm gut to secure a 10-0 victory. In the quarterfinals, Duke faced Ankh Altangerel of Mongolia, opening with a step-out and a takedown to lead 6-0 at the break. Duke continued his unstoppable attack in the second period, adding a takedown and a turn to win 12-1 by technical fall.

In the semifinals, Duke will face 2021 U17 World Champion and 2023 U20 World bronze medalist Magomed Baitukaev.

At 79 kg, Zack Ryder put on a clinic in his morning matches, winning three consecutive technical falls to reach the semifinals. Ryder began his day against Jinju Li of China with a 10-0 victory. A double-leg takedown followed by a gut wrench gave Ryder a 4-0 lead. Another takedown and a leg lace quickly finished the match at 10-0.

His second bout against Leandro Araujo of Brazil was one-sided, winning 11-0. In his quarterfinal match against Paulius Lescauskas of Lithuania, Ryder broke down his opponent, scoring multiple takedowns and finishing with a leg lace for another 11-0 win.

He has outscored his opponents 32-0 in his first session of the tournament. Ryder’s semifinal opponent is Said Saidulov. Saidulov is a 2024 U20 European Championships gold medalist.

Justin Rademacher went 3-0 at 97 kg in the first session of the day. In his first bout, Rademacher faced Shakhman Nukhaev and used a mix of edge work and a double-leg takedown to secure an 8-0 victory. He defeated Genki Hoki of Japan, 10-0, in the second round of the tournament.

Rademacher’s quarterfinal match was against Ramini Gulitashvili of Georgia, where he patiently built a lead through two shot clock violations by his opponent and a double-leg takedown. In the semifinals, Rademacher will face Rizabek Aitmukhan of Kazakhstan. Aitmukhan has a good amount of experience on the international level, including a 2023 Senior World title.

Action continues at 10:45 a.m. ET at the Pontevedra Municipal Sports Hall in Spain. A full set of brackets and match-by-match results are available on UWW Arena. A live broadcast of the event is available for the U.S. market at FloWrestling.com.

Stay tuned to TheMat.com and USA Wrestling’s social media platforms for complete coverage of the U20 World Championships.

57 kg

Lev Pavlov (AIN) vs. Luka Gvinjilia (Georgia)

Luke Lilledahl (United States) vs. Hayko Gasparyan (Armenia)

65 kg

Bo Bassett (United States) vs. Makoto Hosokawa (Japan)

Adam Arkhiev (AIN) vs. Ali Khorramdel (Iran)

70 kg

Ali Karampour (Iran) vs. Ryoya Yamashita (Japan)

PJ Duke (United States) vs. Magomed Baitukaev (AIN)

79 kg

Said Saidulov (AIN) vs. Zack Ryder (United States)

Alp Begenjov (Turkmenistan) vs. Amit Amit (India)

97 kg

Justin Rademacher (United States) vs. Rizabek Aitmukhan (Kazakhstan)

Adam Jaksik (Slovakia) vs. Khetag Karsanov (Azerbaijan)

57 kg – Luke Lilledahl (St. Charles, Mo./Nittany Lion WC/Titan Mercury WC), in semifinals

WIN Kabe Matjanov (Turkmenistan), 10-0

WIN Ankush Ankush (India), 4-3

Vs Hayko Gasparyan (Armenia)

65 kg – Bo Bassett (Windber, Pa./Bishop McCort HS), in semifinals

WIN Valentyn Hryhoryshyn (Ukraine), 19-8

WIN Dzmitry Shvarts (AIN), pin 2:03

WIN Nikhil Pilanagoila (India), pin 3:45

Vs. Makoto Hosokawa (Japan)

70 kg – PJ Duke (Slate Hill, N.Y./KD Training Center), in semifinals

WIN Zelimkhan Mutsukhaev (Poland), 10-0

WIN Aden Sakybaev (Kyrgyzstan), 10-0

WIN Ankh Altangerel (Mongolia), 12-1

Vs. Magomed Baitukaev (AIN)

79 kg – Zack Ryder (Westtown, N.Y./Nittany Lion WC), in semifinals

WIN Jinju Li (China), 10-0

WIN Leandro Araujo (Brazil), 11-0

WIN Paulius Lescauskas (Lithuania), 11-0

Vs. Said Saidulov (AIN)

97 kg – Justin Rademacher (Corvallis, Ore./Beaver Dam RTC), in semifinals

WIN Shakhman Nukhaev (Individual Neutral Athlete), 8-0

WIN Genki Hoki (Japan), 10-0

WIN Ramini Gulitashvili (Georgia), 4-0

Vs. Rizabek Aitmukhan (Kazakhstan)