Ukrainian wrestler Iryna Koliadenko reached the 62 kg weight division finals at the Olympic Games in Paris on Aug. 9.
Koliadenko faced the current world-ranking leader, Aisuluu Tynybekova of Kyrgyzstan, in the semifinals, winning 9-2.
At the 2021 Tokyo Olympics, Koliadenko lost her only match against Tynybekova in the semifinals, after which she won a bronze medal in the repechage.
Koliadenko will compete for the gold medal with Japan's Sakura Motoki, the world vice-champion and world number two. The women's 62 kg freestyle wrestling final will take place on Aug. 10.
Martin Fornusek
Another Ukrainian wrestler, Oleksandr Khotsianivskyi, will compete for a bronze medal in the 125 kg freestyle wrestling category.
Khotsianivskyi lost 0-11 to the second-seeded Geno Petriashvili of Georgia in the semifinals, but he reached the repechage thanks to Petriashvili advancing to the finals later in the day.
The Ukrainian wrestler's first opponent will be Robert Baran from Poland in the repechage. The winner of this bout will face Giorgi Meshvildishvili from Azerbaijan, a two-time bronze medalist at the European Championships, in the bronze medal match.
The repechage of the 125 kg class, as well as the medal matches, will occur on Aug. 10.
Ukraine's national team won two medals in Greco-Roman wrestling at the Olympic Games in Paris. Parviz Nasibov became a silver medalist in the 67 kg weight category, and Zhan Beleniuk won bronze in the 87 kg weight division.
Following the results of the competitions on Aug. 9, Ukraine took 16th place in the medal standings of the Olympic Games in Paris. Ukrainian athletes won 11 medals, including three gold, four silver, and four bronze.
Gold medals were secured by Ukrainian fencers Olga Kharlan, Alina Komashchuk, Yuliia Bakastova, and Olena Kravatska in the saber team competition, as well as by high jumper Yaroslava Mahuchikh and boxer Oleksandr Khyzhniak, who competed in the 80 kg weight category.
Kateryna Hodunova
