USA Does it again! Congratulations to Team USA!LUCERNE, SWITZERLAND – The United States dominated the competition to capture the team title in the No-Gi style at the Grappling World Championships on Saturday, December 20.
The United States swept the gold medals in the five men’s weight classes, and added an individual champion in the women’s division to take the No-Gi team title. The USA scored 135 team points, well ahead of runner-up France with 53 points. Canada, Great Britain and Poland rounded out the top five teams.
Claiming individual gold medals in the men’s competition were:• Matt Sanchez (Sacramento, Calif./Alpha Male/Ultimate Fitness) at 62 kg/136.5 lbs.• Ricky Lundell (Ames, Iowa/Grappler’s Edge) at 70 kg/154 lbs.• Jacob Volkmann (White Bear Lake, Minn./Minnesota Martial Arts Academy) at 80 kg/176 lbs.• Raphael Davis (Lomita, Calif./Team Caique) at 92 kg/202.5 lbs.• Jeff Monson (Olympia, Wash./American Top Team) at 125 kg/275 lbs.
Sanchez had a dominant performance, winning all four of his matches by submission. He stopped Tom Barlow of Great Britain in the finals by submission.
All five of the individual champions from the United States were winners at the Dollamur U.S. Grappling World Team Trials in Rocklin, Calif. in September, and hold the No. 1 ranking in the United States.
Both Lundell and Monson won World gold medals in Grappling at the 2007 World Wrestling Games in Antalya, Turkey. Sanchez was second at the 2007 World Wrestling Games, as well.
Two of the men’s finals were all-American contests. At 96 kg/211.5 pounds, Davis defeated Ian Murphy (Fullerton, Calif./Alpha Male/Ultimate Fitness) in the finals by submission. At 120 kg/275 lbs., Monson stopped Brandon Ruiz (West Jordan, Utah/Grappler’s Edge) in the finals, 6-1. Both were rematches from the U.S. Grappling World Team Trials.
Lundell defeated Nicolas Renier of France in the finals by submission. Volkmann stopped Marcello Salazar Mousinho of Brazil in the finals, 4-1.
The U.S. won a total of nine medals in men’s Grappling. Along with the five champions and two silver medalists, the U.S. also brought home bronze medals by Brian Peterson, (Valencia, Calif./Big John McCarthy’s Ultimate Training Center) at 62 kg/136.5 lbs. and Tom LeCuyer (Plano, Ill./Atlas Xtreme Team, Torres Martial Arts) at 70 kg/154 lbs. The only losses by Peterson and LeCuyer were to their American teammates.
In the women’s division, the U.S. placed four athletes in the finals. Capturing a gold medal was Lisa Ward (Olympia, Wash./United Fight Team) at 48 kg/105.5 lbs., who defeated Lisa Newton of Great Britain in the finals by submission.
Ward was also a World champion at the 1997 World Wrestling Games in Antalya, Turkey.
Three U.S. women won silver medals: Felicia Oh (Valencia, Calif./Big John McCarthy’s Ultimate Fitness Center) at 55 kg/121 lbs., Molly Helsel (San Diego, Calif./North County Fight Club) at 63 kg/138.75 lbs. and Miesha Tate (Olympia, Wash./Victory Athletics) at 72 kg/158.5 lbs. All three were defeated by submission in the finals.
Complete information on the women’s results from the World Grappling Championships is not currently available and will be posted when received.
Grappling, also known as submission wrestling, was recognized as an international style of wrestling in 2006. FILA held its first major international event in Grappling in 2007 at World Wrestling Games in Antalya, Turkey. The United States swept all nine World titles in Antalya, with gold medals in the five men’s weight classes and four women’s weight classes.
This year, FILA will hold both a No-Gi and a Gi competition at the Grappling World Championships. The U.S. team qualified in No-Gi Grappling, and all of the team members competed in the No-Gi tournament on Saturday, December 20.
Many of the U.S. team members are also expected to enter the Gi tournament on Sunday, December 21.
For more information on the FILA Grappling World Championships, visit the official website at:http://www.d4-world.com/
2008 USA GRAPPLING WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPSAt Lucerne, Switzerland
62 kg/136.5 lbs.Gold – Matt Sanchez (USA)Silver – Tom Barlow (Great Britain)Bronze – Brian Peterson (USA)Bronze – John Louro (Canada)5th – Jose Zapater (Spain)5th – Fabian Brechetelle (France)
70 kg/154 lbs.Gold – Ricky Lundell (USA)Silver – Nicolas Renier (France)Bronze – Tom LeCuyer (USA)Bronze – Jose Fernando Ferreira (Spain)5th – Joao Catisti (Brazil)5th – Peter Mettler (Switzerland)
80 kg/176 lbs.Gold – Jacob Volkmann (USA)Silver – Marcello Salazar Mousinho (Brazil)Bronze – Tomasz Michalowski (Poland)Bronze – Davied Pierre-Louis (France)5th – Ivalo Andreeve Kemnov (Bulgaria)5th – Miguel Campos (Spain)
92 kg/202.5 lbs.Gold – Raphael Davis (USA)Silver – Ian Murphy (USA)Bronze – Takanori Kuno (Japan)Bronze – Nick Ring (Canada)5th – Piotr Baginski (Poland)5th – Stefan Osinski (Poland)
125 kg/275 lbs.Gold – Jeff Monson (USA)Silver – Brandon Ruiz (USA)Bronze – Ioannis Arzoumanidis (Greece)Bronze – Rodrigo Munduruca (Canada)5th – Svetoslav Samoilov Zahariev (Bulgaria)5th – Vlado Pilipovic (Croatia)
U.S. Men’s results
62 kg/136.5 lbs. – Matt Sanchez, Sacramento, Calif. (Alpha Male/Ultimate Fitness), 1stWIN Volkan Icki (Switzerland), submissionWIN John Louro (Canada), submissionWIN Jose Zapater (Spain), submission WIN Tom Barlow (Great Britain), submission
62 kg/136.5 lbs. – Brian Peterson, Valencia, Calif. (Big John McCarthy’s Ultimate Training Center), 3rdWIN Patrick Oppliger (Switzerland)LOSS Tom Barlow (Great Britain)WIN Herminio Garcia (Spain)WIN Fabien Brechetelle (France)
70 kg/154 lbs. – Ricky Lundell, Ames, Iowa (Grappler’s Edge), 1stWIN A. Panoussis (Canada)WIN Tom LeCuyer (USA)WIN Aleksandar Milicevic (Serbia)WIN Joao Catisti (Brazil)WIN Nicolas Renier (France), submission
70 kg/154 lbs. – Tom LeCuyer, Plano, Ill. (Atlas Xtreme Team, Torres Martial Arts), 3rd WIN Patrick Berisha (Kosovo)LOSS Ricky Lundell (USA)WIN A. Panoussis (Canada)WIN Aleksandar Milicevic (Serbia)
80 kg/176 lbs. – Jacob Volkmann, White Bear Lake, Minn. (Minnesota Martial Arts Academy), 1stPreliminary match results unavailableWIN Marcello Salazar Mousinho (Brazil), 4-1
80 kg/176 lbs. – Mike Kelly, Hebron, Ill. (Gilbert Grappling), dnp/22ndLOSS Hiroshi Tsuruya (Japan)
92 kg/202.5 lbs. – Raphael Davis, Lomita, Calif. (Team Caique), 1stWIN Takanori Kuno (Japan)WIN Kevin Webb (Great Britain)WIN Piotr Baginski (Poland)WIN Ian Murphy (USA), submission
92 kg/202.5 lbs. – Ian Murphy, Fullerton, Calif. (Alpha Male/Ultimate Fitness), 2ndWIN Kemal Tajic (Bosnia and Herzoginiva)WIN Stefan Osinski (Poland)WIN Nick Ring (Canada)LOSS Raphael Davis (USA), submission
125 kg/275 lbs. – Jeff Monson, Olympia, Wash. (American Top Team), 1stWIN Hermann Binek (Germany)WIN Vlado Pilipovic (Croatia)WIN Ioannis Arzomanidis (Greece)WIN Brandon Ruiz (USA), 6-1
125 kg/275 lbs. – Brandon Ruiz,West Jordan, Utah (Grappler’s Edge), 2ndWIN Svetoslav Samoilov Zahariev (Bulgaria)WIN Mohammed Cherif (France)WIN Rodrigo Munduruca (Canada)LOSS Jeff Monson (USA), 1-6
Women’s results (Incomplete at this time)
48 kg/105.5 lbs.Gold – Lisa Ward (USA)Silver – Lisa Newton (Great Britain)
55 kg/121 lbs.Gold – Laurence Fouillat (France)Silver – Felicia Oh (USA)
63 kg/138.75 lbs.Gold – Sheila Bird (Canada)Silver – Molly Helsel (USA)Bronze – Sara DeLuna (France)Bronze – Caolimhe McGill (Great Britain)5th – Sonia Raeber (Switzerland)5th – Rosa Wellenzhon (Italy)
72 kg/158.5 lbs.Gold – Romy Ruyssen (France)Silver – Miesha Tate (USA)
U.S. women’s performances
48 kg/105.5 lbs. – Lisa Ward, Olympia, Wash. (United Fight Team), 1st
55 kg/121 lbs. – Felicia Oh, Valencia, Calif. (Big John McCarthy’s Ultimate Fitness Center), 2nd
63 kg/138.75 lbs. – Molly Helsel, San Diego, Calif. (North County Fight Club), 2nd72 kg/158.5 lbs. – Miesha Tate, Olympia, Wash. (Victory Athletics), 2nd
55 kg/121 lbs. – Tara LaRosa, Philadelphia, Pa. (Philadelphia Fight Factory) results unavailable at this time
72 kg/158.5 lbs. – Angela Poe, Craig, Colo. (Grappler’s Edge) results unavailable at this time
Team Standings1 United States, 1352 France, 533 Canada, 434 Great Britain, 365 Poland, 346 Spain, 237 Brazil, 158 Switzerland, 149 Bulgaria, 1410 Germany, 13