UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. – The Penn State Nittany Lion wrestling program and the Penn State Olympic RTC helped lead Team USA to a dominant performance at the 2022 World Wrestling Championships in Belgrade, Serbia. Led by former Nittany Lion great David Taylor's second world title at 86 kg, the Penn State Olympic RTC had four wrestlers competing for Team USA and all four finished in the top two with to Gold Medalists and two Silver Medalists.
Former Nittany Lions David Taylor (86kg) rolled to the 2022 World Championship finals with three straight tech falls, including an 11-0 tech over Kazakhstan's Azamat Dauletbekov in the semis. He met Iran's Hassan Yazdani Charati in the Gold Medal bout. After falling behind 1-0 on passivity, Taylor took a 2-1 lead into the bout's midway break with a takedown in the latter half of the opening period. Taylor dominated the second period, notching a takedown, forcing a step out and finishing of the bout with another takedown to win going away, 7-1. Taylor is now a two-time World Champion in addition to winning the Gold Medal at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics.
Kyle Snyder (97kg) also moved into the finals at Worlds with three wins on Saturday. He advanced to the semifinals with a decision and a tech fall. In the semis, he posted an impressive 4-1 win over Iran's Mohammadhossein Mohammadian to advance to the Gold Medal bout. He met Batyrbek Tsakulov of Slovakia in the finals. Snyder opened up an early 2-0 lead with a quick takedown against Tsakulov. He added a third point on passivity for Tsakulov and led 3-0 at the break. Snyder pressured his opponent throughout the second period and added three step out points as he rolled to a 6-0 win and yet another world title. Snyder now has three World Championships to go along with Olympic Gold and Silver medals.
Former Penn Stater Zain Retherford (70kg) rolled to the 70kg finals with a tech fall and three decisions, including a 7-0 win over Georgia's Zurabi Iakobishvili in the semifinals. In the finals against Japan's Taishi Narikuni, he fell victim to a counter takedown and leg lace, dropping a 10-0 bout. Retherford posted a 4-1 mark and left Belgrade as the 2022 World Silver Medalist. The medal was Retherford's first senior level medal.
Thomas Gilman (57kg) rolled into the finals at Worlds with three straight wins at 57kg. He opened with a tech fall and a victory before downing China's Wanghao Zou 8-2 in the semifinals. That win moved him into the Gold Medal match where he took on Albania's Zelimkhan Abakarov. In the finals, Gilman gave up an early takedown and exposure to fall behind early. The Olympic Bronze Medalist and 2021 World Champion tried to battle back but lost a tough 7-2 match. He left Belgrade as the 2022 World Silver Medalists, adding to his hardware as a member of the Penn State ORTC/NLWC.
Bekzod Abdurakhmonov (74kg) wrestled for Uzbekistan and placed fifth. Abdurakhmonov, who was a Bronze Medalist in the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, went 3-2 overall, losing in the semifinals and rebounding to advance to the Bronze Medal match where he dropped a tough 5-3 decision to Vasyl Mykhailov of Ukraine. Franklin Gomez (74kg) and Jane Valencia (57kg WFS) also qualified, representing Puerto Rico at the event.
The Nittany Lion wrestling team returns five All-Americans, four national champions and a handful of other NCAA qualifiers for the 2023 season. Penn State is coming off winning its ninth NCAA team championship in the last 11 tournaments.
The 2022-23 Penn State Wrestling season is presented by the Family Clothesline. Penn State Fans are encouraged to follow Penn State wrestling via twitter at @pennstateWREST, on Penn State Wrestling's Facebook page at www.facebook.com/pennstatewrestling and on Instagram at www.instagram.com/pennstatewrest. This is PENN STATE. WRESTLING lives here.
