By Richard Immel
USA Wrestling
PONTEVEDRA, Spain – Californian Cristelle Rodriguez powered to a 58-second pin, becoming the first U20 World champion for Team USA this year, highlighting an action-packed day of women’s wrestling at Pontevedra Municipal Sports Hall.

It was the second age-group World final for Rodriguez, who finished with a silver medal at the U17 level in 2019. This time around, she emerged on top as she catapulted Mongolia’s Khaliun Byambasuren with an overhook toss to get an emphatic pin to win gold.

Rodriguez dominated the 55 kg division with two pins and two technical falls across her four matches. She grew stronger as the event progressed, with her pins coming in the semis and finals against elite competition. In addition to her fall over Byambasuren, who is a U20 Asian bronze medalist, she stuck two-time age-group World medalist and reigning U20 European champion Tuba Demir of Turkey in 4:08 to qualify for the finals. Rodriguez outscored her opponents by a whopping 36 points while only surrendering a single takedown.

The script was unfortunately flipped for the other U.S. finalist of the day. After looking sharp during a 3-0 outing yesterday, Alexis Janiak was caught in an ankle pick-to-leg lace combination early in the 59 kg finals by Japan’s U17 World champion Sakura Onishi, falling by technical fall,10-0. Onishi defeated all four of her opponents by the same score.

With the silver medal now in her bag, Janiak became a two-time medalist at the U20 level. She collected bronze at last year’s event held in Amman, Jordan. Janiak keeps good company with the distinction as the last women to earn back-to-back U20 World medals were Amit Elor, now an Olympic champion, and Audrey Jimenez, who is currently No. 2 on the U.S. Senior National Team.

Both Rodriguez and Janiak are coming off highly successful seasons at the college level. Rodriguez was a NAIA champion as a sophomore for Doane University and named outstanding wrestler of the championships. Janiak finished in third place at the NCWWC championships for Aurora University.

University of Iowa incoming freshman Naomi Simon battled back for a bronze medal with a dominant nine-point win over U17 World champion Chisato Yoshida of Japan. Simon notched three takedowns and a turn, completely owning the pace of the bronze medal match.

The U.S. now holds three medals entering the last day of women’s freestyle wrestling in Spain. Two more U.S. women still in the running for a medal, giving the U.S. a chance to match its five-medal count from last year’s championships.  

Texas product Jasmine Robinson wrecked the 72 kg bracket with three falls in three matches to qualify for the gold medal bout. She notched pins over Senior Pan American silver medalist Edna Jimenez Villalba of Mexico, individual neutral athlete Kristina Bratchikova, and U17 World bronze medalist Noemi Osvath Nagy of Hungary, logging a combined match time of two minutes and 46 seconds.

Robinson’s finals opponent is U20 Asian runner-up Yuqi Liu of China. Liu notched a 10-0 technical fall over Elvira Ersson of Sweden in the opposite semifinal. Robinson was a U17 World bronze medalist one year ago.  

Four Americans entered the semifinal session with repechage hopes following losses in the preliminary rounds. Unfortunately, just one was pulled into the wrestle-backs. Carissa Qureshi advanced to the 57 kg repechage where she will face Neha Neha of India for a place in a bronze medal match.

Not qualifying for the repechage were Brianna Gonzalez at 53 kg, Cadence Diduch at 62 kg, and Reese Larramendy at 65 kg.

The U20 World Championships continue tomorrow at 10 a.m. local time with the women’s freestyle group two (53-57-62-65-72 kg) repechage and the qualification rounds for men’s freestyle group one (57-65-70-79-97 kg). Pontevedra, Spain, is located six hours ahead of U.S. Eastern Time.

A full set of brackets and match-by-match results is 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. 

2024 U20 World Championships | Sept. 5, Pontevedra, Spain 

Women’s Freestyle Results 

Final Results (Group One) 

50 kg 

Gold – Yu Zhang (China)

Silver – Haruna Morikawa (Japan)

Bronze – Svenja Jungo (Switzerland)

Bronze – Aida Kerymova (Ukraine)

5th – Laura Ganikyzy (Kazakhstan)

5th – Muskan Muskan (India)

7th – Anaya Falcon (United States)

8th – Maria Cazalla Torres (Spain)

9th – Yorlenis Moran Sanchez (Panama)

10th – Fatma Kizmaz (Turkey)

Gold – Yu Zhang (China) dec. Haruna Morikawa (Japan), 7-6

Bronze – Svenja Jungo (Switzerland) dec. Laura Ganikyzy (Kazakhstan), 7-4

Bronze –Aida Kerymova (Ukraine) fall Muskan Muskan (India), 1:55

55 kg 

Gold – Cristelle Rodriguez (United States)

Silver – Khaliun Byambasuren (Mongolia)

Bronze – Tuba Demir (Turkey)

Bronze – Nargiz Samadova (Azerbaijan)

5th – Ekaterina Chikanova (Individual Neutral Athlete)

5th – Karina Honda (Japan)

7th – Aliaksandra Bulava (Individual Neutral Athlete)

8th – Dhanshri Fand (India)

9th – Liuxuan Chen (China)

10th – Madisyn Grof (Canada)

Gold – Cristelle Rodriguez (United States) fall Khaliun Byambasuren (Mongolia), 0:58

Bronze – Tuba Demir (Turkey) tech. fall Ekaterina Chikanova (Individual Neutral Athlete), 12-2

Bronze – Nargiz Samadova (Azerbaijan) fall Karina Honda (Japan), 3:58

59 kg 

Gold – Sakura Onishi (Japan)

Silver – Alexis Janiak (United States)

Bronze – Anna Tieliegina (Lithuania)

Bronze – Komal Komal (India)

5th – Uladzislava Kudzin (Individual Neutral Athlete)

5th – Ruzanna Mammadova (Azerbaijan)

7th – Sevim Akbas (Turkey)

8th – Yifan Zhu (China)

9th – Viktoria Borsos (Hungary)

10th – Luna Rothenberger (Germany)

Gold – Sakura Onishi (Japan) tech. fall Alexis Janiak (United States), 10-0

Bronze – Anna Tieliegina (Lithuania) fall Uladzislava Kudzin (Individual Neutral Athlete), 5:22

Bronze – Komal Komal (India) dec. Ruzanna Mammadova (Azerbaijan), 6-1

68 kg 

Gold – Alina Shevchenko (Individual Neutral Athlete)

Silver – Ayse Erkan (Turkey)

Bronze – Karolina Domaszuk (Poland)

Bronze – Srishti Srishti (India)

5th – Emilija Jakovljevic (Serbia)

5th – Viktoryia Radzkova (Individual Neutral Athlete)

7th – Gulnura Tashtanbekova (Kyrgyzstan)

8th – Yan Ju Jiang (Chinese Taipei)

9th – Seia Mochinaga (Japan)

10th – Caitlyn Davis (United States)

Gold – Alina Shevchenko (Individual Neutral Athlete) tech. fall Ayse Erkan (Turkey), 12-2

Bronze – Karolina Domaszuk (Poland) fall Emilija Jakovljevic (Serbia), 5:59

Bronze – Srishti Srishti (India) dec. Viktoryia Radzkova (Individual Neutral Athlete), 7-0

76 kg 

Gold – Jyoti Berwal (India)

Silver – Mariia Orlevych (Ukraine)

Bronze – Naomi Simon (United States)

Bronze – Elmira Yasin (Turkey)

5th – Chisato Yoshida (Japan)

5th – Tuvshinjargal Tarav (Mongolia)

7th – Sofiia Bubnova (Individual Neutral Athlete)

8th – Veronika Nyikos (Hungary)

9th – Meile Zhang (China)

10th – Patrycja Cuber (Poland)

Gold – Jyoti Berwal (India) dec. Mariia Orlevych (Ukraine), 5-0

Bronze – Naomi Simon (United States) dec. Chisato Yoshida (Japan), 9-0

Bronze – Elmira Yasin (Turkey) dec. Tuvshinjargal Tarav (Mongolia), 8-2

Semifinal Results (Group Two) 

53 kg 

Jin Zhang (China) fall Nethmi Poruthotage (Sri Lanka), 2:06

Carla Jaume Soler (Spain) dec. Jyoti Jyoti (India), 4-3

57 kg 

Bertha Rojas Chavez (Mexico) dec. Alina Filipovych (Ukraine), 8-4

Sowaka Uchida (Japan) tech. fall Gerda Terek (Hungary), 10-0

62 kg 

Iryna Bondar (Ukraine) dec. Melanie Jimenez Villalba (Mexico), 4-3

Nitika Nitika (India) dec. Nagisa Ito (Japan), 7-3

65 kg 

Beyza Akkus (Turkey) tech. fall Margarita Salnazarian (Individual Neutral Athlete), 10-0

Nana Ikehata (Japan) tech. fall Zaixue Rui (China), 10-0

72 kg 

Yuqi Liu (China) tech. fall Elvira Ersson (Sweden), 10-0

Jasmine Robinson (United States) fall Noemi Osvath Nagy (Hungary), 1:23

U.S. Women’s Freestyle Group One Results 

50 kg – Anaya Falcon (Yorba Linda, Calif./Walnut HS Wrestling), 7th place

WIN Shahreen Gulacha (Canada), tech. fall, 10-0

LOSS Laura Ganikyzy (Kazakhstan), 6-5

55 kg – Cristelle Rodriguez (Fresno, Calif./Tiger WC), gold medal

WIN Amelia Tomala (Poland), tech. fall, 11-0

WIN Ekaterina Chikanova (Individual Neutral Athlete), tech. fall, 13-0

WIN Tuba Demir (Turkey), fall, 4:08

WIN Khaliun Byambasuren (Mongolia), fall, 0:58

59 kg – Alexis Janiak (Plainfield, Ill./Titan Mercury WC), silver medal

WIN Anna Tieliegina (Lithuania), 9-4

WIN Viktoria Borsos (Hungary), 11-3

WIN Uladzislava Kudzin (Individual Neutral Athlete), 10-2

LOSS Sakura Onishi (Japan), tech. fall, 10-0

68 kg – Caitlyn Davis (Hilton Head Island, S.C./Southern Oregon RTC), 10th place

LOSS Gulnura Tashtanbekova (Kyrgyzstan), tech. fall, 18-7

76 kg – Naomi Simon (Decorah, Iowa/Iowa Women’s WC), bronze medal

LOSS Mariia Orlevych (Ukraine), 9-8

WIN Chisato Yoshida (Japan), 9-0

U.S. Women’s Freestyle Group Two Results 

53 kg – Brianna Gonzalez (Baldwin, Calif./Iowa Women’s WC), eliminated

LOSS Jyoti Jyoti (India), 3-1

57 kg – Carissa Qureshi (Irvine, Calif./Surfside RTC), in repechage

LOSS Sowaka Uchida (Japan), tech. fall, 10-0

VS Neha Neha (India)

62 kg – Cadence Diduch (Freeport, Ill./Iowa Women’s WC), eliminated

WIN Seoyeon Bae (Korea), fall, 4:11

LOSS Melanie Jimenez Villalba (Mexico), fall, 5:38

65 kg – Reese Larramendy (Reno, Nev./Iowa Women’s WC), eliminated

LOSS Margarita Salnazarian (Individual Neutral Athlete), 10-7

72 kg – Jasmine Robinson (Allen, Texas/Army WCAP), in gold medal match

WIN Edna Jimenez Villalba (Mexico), fall, 0:28

WIN Kristina Bratchikova (AIN), fall, 0:55

WIN Noemi Osvath Nagy (Hungary), fall, 1:23

VS Yuqi Liu (China)