By Gary Abbott
USA Wrestling
CONSTANTA, Romania – History was made today at Neversea Beach, as Eliana Bommarito became to first U.S. Senior wrestler to win a gold medal at a United World Wrestling international Beach Wrestling event.

Bommarito won the Over 70 kg weight class in women’s Beach Wrestling at the UWW Beach World Series Constanta.

Bommarito scored a 3-0 decision in the championship finals over Cataline Axente of Romania. Bommarito scored a step out to lead 1-0, then forced Axente to touch a knee to make it 2-0. She closed out the win with a step out to win 3-0 in just 48 seconds.

She won three matches on Friday, and finished with a perfect 5-0 record for the two-day event. Friday morning, Bommarito defeated Liudmyla Pavlovets Tychnyna of Ukraine, 3-0 in her final Group B match to earn a spot in the semifinals. Her 3-0 victory over Aikaterini Pitsiava of Greece in the semifinals advanced her into the finals against Axente.

Bommarito came into the event with a No. 11 Beach World Series ranking for the year. Along the way, she defeated four higher ranked athletes, No. 3 Pavlovets Tychyna, No. 4 Axente, No. 5 Pitsiava and No. 2 Stefania Zacheila of Greece.

The United States has been attending Senior UWW Beach competitions going back to 2007. USA athletes competed in the Senior Beach World Championships from 2007-2018, then entered Beach World Series events from 2019 to the present. The USA also wrestled at the 2019 ANOC Beach World Games. Including today, the USA has won 22 UWW Senior Beach medals, and Bommarito became the first to claim a gold medal.

A native of Brighton, Mich., Bommarito was a 2023 U.S. Senior Beach Nationals champion. She was an NJCAA national champion for Indian Hills CC last year. Bommarito won two Junior National freestyle titles while in high school.

The USA has won only one other gold medal in major UWW Beach Wrestling history, when Amit Elor of California won the gold medal at Over 50 kg at the 2019 U17 Beach World Championships. Elor is the reigning Senior World champion in women’s freestyle wrestling.

The USA came home with a bronze medal at 90 kg in the men’s competition from Tyson Beauperthuy, who defeated Mahmut Ozkaya of Turkey, 4-0. Beauperthuy scored three one-point takedowns, and the Turkish athlete challenged the final score, which was denied, giving Beauperthuy one additional point.

Beauperthuy won his first two matches on Thursday. In his final Group B match on Friday morning, Beauperthuy lost to Ozkaya, 3-0. Ozkaya won Group B, and Beauperthuy was second. Beauperthuy was able to advance to the semifinals based upon classification points. He was defeated in the semifinals by Ibrahim Yusubov of Azerbaijan, which set him up with his bronze-medal rematch with Ozkaya.

Beauperthuy was a 2023 U.S. Senior Beach Nationals champion. A native of Colorado Springs, Colo., Beauperthuy was a 2020 Colorado state high school champion, and went on to become a 2021 NAIA national runner-up for Midland University.

Ty Loethen finished fourth at 80 kg. Unbeaten on Thursday, Loethen lost his final Group B match to Radu Huhulea of Romania, 3-0. Although he was second in Group B, Loethen advanced to the semifinals, where he was defeated by Traian Capatina of Moldova, 3-0. Loethen did not compete in his bronze-medal bout, taking an injury default loss.

Three U.S. wrestlers who were unbeaten after day one were beaten in their final Group match on Friday morning and did not advance to the semifinals, finishing with 2-1 records for the event. Mitch Cook (70 kg) placed fifth, with Justin Benjamin (70 kg) and Terrence Zaleski (90 kg) placing sixth.

The United States placed fifth in the women’s team standings and sixth in the men’s team standings.

“This was a total team effort, and everyone here contributed,” said Coach Timothy Box, who served as the Team Leader. “The team was supportive, positive and committed to the goal of fighting hard and representing our country well. In their medal matches, Eliana and Tyson both showed remarkable patience, poise, and controlled aggression beyond their years.”

The competition turns to the age-group levels on Saturday and Sunday. The U17 Beach World Championships are set for Saturday, and the U20 Beach World Championships follow on Sunday. Team USA will have athletes competing on both days.

BEACH WORLD SERIES

At Constanta, Romania, September 7-8, 2023

Men’s Medalists

70 kg

Gold – Oleksii Boruta (Ukraine)

Silver – Ramiz Hasanov (Azerbaijan)

Bronze – Valentin Seimetz (Germany)

80 kg

Gold – Traian Capatina (Moldova)

Silver – Denis Ioan Chirica (Romania)

Bronze – Nikolay Dimitrov (Bulgaria)

90 kg

Gold – Ibrahim Yusubov (Azerbaijan)

Silver – Oleksii Yakovchuk (Ukraine)

Bronze – Tyson Beauperthuy (USA)

Over 90

Gold – Fatih Yasarli (Turkey)

Silver – Oyan Nazariani (Azerbaijan)

Bronze – Mamuka Kordzaia (Georgia)

Women’s Medalists

50 kg

Gold – Ana Maria Pirvu (Romania)

Silver – Iryna Doroshenko (Ukraine)

Bronze – Emine Cataloglu (Turkey)

60 kg

Gold – Anastasiya Kravchenko (Ukraine)

Silver – Merve Karadeniz (Turkey)

Bronze – Daria Medvetska (Ukraine)

70 kg

Gold – Paula Rotaru (Romania)

Silver – Olena Nikitinska (Ukraine)

Bronze – Adina Irimia (Romania)

Over 70 kg

Gold – Eliana Bommarito (USA)

Silver – Catalina Axente (Romania)

Bronze – Liudmyla Pavlovets Tychyna (Ukraine)

U.S. Beach World Series results

U.S. Senior Men’s results

70 kg: Mitch Cook, Orland Park, Ill., 5th place

WIN Yonus Coskun (Turkey), 3-1 0:58

WIN Jamel Johnson (USA), 3-1, 1:07

LOSS Valentin Seimetz (Germany), 3-2, 0:53

70 kg: Jamel Johnson, Jacksonville, N.C., 10th place

LOSS Valentin Seimetz (Germany), pin 2:52

LOSS Mitch Cook (USA), 3-1, 1:07

LOSS Yunus Coskun (Turkey), injury dft.

70 kg: Justin Benjamin, St. Charles, Ill., 6th place

WIN Daniel Marian Sandu (Romania), 3-0 2:47

WIN Pavel Graur (Moldova), 3-2 2:39

LOSS Oleksei Boruta (Ukraine), 3-1, 2:08

80 kg: Ty Loethen, Columbia, Mo., 4th place

WIN Denis Ioan Chirica (Romania), 3-2, 2:51

WIN Wayne LaMont (USA), pin 0:33

LOSS Radu Huhulea (Romania), 3-0

LOSS Traian Capatina (Moldova), 3-0

LOSS Nikolay Dimitrov (Bulgaria), injury default

80 kg: Wayne Lamont, Corum, N.Y., 8th place

LOSS Radu Huhulea (Romania), 3-0, 0:49

LOSS Ty Loethen (USA), pin 0:33

LOSS Denis Ion Cirica (Romania), pin 1:00

90 kg: Tyson Beauperthuy, Colorado Springs, Colo., BRONZE MEDAL

WIN Georgios Tsaknakis (Greece), 3-0, 2:40

WIN Kevin Gremm (Germany), pin 3:00

LOSS Mahmut Ozkaya (Turkey), 3-0, 2:30

LOSS Ibrahim Yusubov (Azerbaijan), 3-0, 0:44

WIN Mahmut Ozkaya (Turkey), 4-0, 2:48

90 kg: Terrence Zaleski, Mechanicsburg, Pa., 6th place

WIN Eugeniu Mihalcean (Moldova), 3-0, 1:24

WIN Vasile Minzala (Romania), 3-0, 1:01

WIN Ibrahim Yusubov (Azerbaijan), 3-2, 1:23

Over 90 kg: Mingo Grant, Baltimore, Md., 9th place

LOSS Nicolae Stratulat (Moldova), 3-0, 2:23

U.S. Senior Women’s results

50 kg: Halley Wheeler, Bakersfield, N.C., 8th place

LOSS Emine Cataloglu (Turkey), 3-0, 0:20

LOSS Claudia Cabrera (Argentina), 3-0, 0:22

LOSS Nicoleta Bajan (Romania), 3-0, 0:34

60 kg: Josephine Wearmouth, Saint Charles, Iowa, 10th place

LOSS Gabriela Cuc (Romania), pin 0:09

60 kg: Taylor Colangelo, Peoria, Ariz, 11th place.

LOSS Andrea Grasruck (Germany), 3-0, 1:21

+70 kg: Eliana Bommarito, Brighton, Mich., GOLD MEDAL

WIN Katelyn Lewis (USA), 3-1, 0:36

WIN Stefania Zacheila (Greece), pin 0:20

WIN Liudmyla Pavlovets Tychnyna (Ukraine), 3-0, 0:58

WIN Aikaterini Pitsiava (Greece), 3-0, 1:14

WIN Catalina Axente (Romania), 3-0, 0:47

+70 kg: Katelyn Lewis, Great Falls, Mont., 8th place

LOSS Eliana Bommarito (USA), 3-1. 0:36

LOSS Liudmyla Pavlovets Tychnyna (Ukraine), 3-0, 0:30

LOSS Stefania Zacheila (Greece), 3-1, 1:27

Men’s Team standings

1. Azerbaijan, 65

2. Ukraine, 57

3. Moldova, 51

4. Romania, 46

5. Turkey, 43

6. United States, 41

(of 12 nations)

Women’s Team standings

1. Romania, 80

2. Ukraine, 80

3. France, 36

4. Turkey, 35

5. United States, 33

(of nine nations)

UWW Senior Beach World Series Medals from the USA

(Beach World Series held 2019-present)

Men

Tim Box, Oceanside, Calif. (2019 Silver at 70 kg, Odessa, Ukraine)

Reece Humphrey, Princeton, N.J. (2019 Bronze at 70 kg, Rio de Janiero, Brazil)

Michael Peters, Quincy, Ill. (2019 Bronze at 70 kg, Zagreb, Croatia)

Tyson Beauperthuy, Colorado Springs, Colo. (2023 Bronze at 90 kg, Constanta, Romania)

Women

Eliana Bommarito, Brighton, Mich. (2023 Gold at Over 70 kg, Constanta, Romania)

Laura White, Duanesburg, N.Y. (2022 Bronze at 50 kg, Saint Laurent du Var, France)

Kristal Betanzo, Hillsborough, Calif. (2019 Silver at 50 kg, Zagreb, Croatia)

Diana Betanzo, Hillsborough, Calif. (2019 Silver at 70 kg, Zagreb, Croatia)

ANOC Beach World Games Medals from the USA

(ANOC World Beach Games held 2019-present)

Women

Shauna Kemp, Jamestown, N.D. (2019 Bronze at 60 kg, Doha, Qatar)

UWW Senior Beach World Championships Medals from the USA

(Senior World Championships held 2007-2018)

Men

Jeff Funicello, Mesa, Ariz., 2 medals (2007 Bronze at Under 85 kg, 2008 Bronze at Under 85 kg)

Carlos Dolmo, Bronx, N.Y, 2 medals. (2007 Bronze at Over 85 kg, 2010 bronze at Over 85 kg)

Donovan DePatto, Camp Lejeune, N.C. (2011 Silver at 70 kg)

Jeff Jacobs, Belmar, N.J. (2016 Bronze at 80 kg)

Ike Okoli, Rome, Ga. (2014 bronze at Over 90 kg)

Ray Downey, Babylon, N.Y. (2006 bronze at Under 85 kg)

Angelo Borzio, Stroudsburg, Pa. (2006 bronze, Over 85 kg)

Women

Leigh Jaynes, Colorado Springs, Colo. (2006 bronze at Under 70 kg)

Bethany Harris, Valley Center, Calif. (2007 Bronze at Under 70 kg)

Tanya Miyasaki, Kaneohe, Hawaii (2007 Bronze at Under 70 kg)