phelps

Honeyland was included in last year's Sundance Festival, so it should be available somewhere (in Italy it's not, instead)... are you talking of this one, right? https://www.imdb.com/title/tt8991268/?ref_=fn_al_tt_1

Matteo Pellicone Tournament (Ostia, ITA) Day #2 Recap women's Wrestling -57kg Gold: Odunayo Folasade Adekuoroye Silver: Anshu Bronze: Linda Morais & Allison MacKenzie Ragan -62kg Gold: Aisuluu Tynybekova Silver: Liubov Ovcharova Bronze: Long Jia & Yuliia Tkach Ostapchuk -68kg Gold: Zhou Feng Silver: Tamyra Mariama Mensah Bronze: Danielle Suzanne Lappage & Blessing Oborududu -76kg Gold: Erica Elizabeth Wiebe Silver: Zhou Qian Bronze: Natalia Vorobeva & Aline Rotter Focken men's Greco-Roman Wrestling -72kg Gold: Mohamed Ibrahim Elsayed Silver: Selcuk Can Bronze: Cengiz Arslan & Maksym Yevtushenko -77kg Gold: Zoltan Levai Silver: Yunus Emre Basar Bronze: Wuileixis De Jesus Rivas Espinoza & Sajan -82kg Gold: Gurpreet Singh Silver: Burhan Akbudak Bronze: Florian Neumaier & Salih Aydin

not to mention that we are not playing the men's Football tournament since Beijing 2008 despite we won the Gold Medal in 1936!

a few updates... Michelle Lee Ahye: 2 year-ban https://www.stabroeknews.com/2020/01/15/news/regional/trinidad/trinidad-olympian-michelle-lee-ahye-banned-for-two-years/ Kateryna Tabashnyk https://www.google.it/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=11&cad=rja&uact=8&ved=2ahUKEwiq2Y2di4jnAhWLYsAKHT0_D40QFjAKegQIARAB&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.athleticsintegrity.org%2Fdownloads%2Fpdfs%2Fdisciplinary-process%2Fen%2FAIU-19-47-Katerina-TABASHNYK-Decision_FINAL.pdf&usg=AOvVaw0zrAydYGAtxzTZ3ufqC5jN Alfred Kipketer https://www.reuters.com/article/us-athletics-doping-kenya/kenyan-athletics-authority-says-top-athlete-escaped-from-anti-doping-testers-idUSKBN1ZF1DO?feedType=RSS&feedName=sportsNews&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+reuters%2FsportsNews+(Reuters+Sports+News) finally, also the Moroccan Marathon specialist Al Mahjoub Dazza is going to face a 2-year ban https://www.athleticsintegrity.org/disciplinary-process/provisional-suspensions-in-force

yeah, I know the guy (or at least, his public image) and some of his "masterpieces"... however, it would be interesting to see him competing...just to make the tournament more interesting...

don't underestimate the guy and his background... we already have the example of Jemyma Betrian, who switched with success from Kickboxing/K1 disciplines to Boxing... and considering how poor is the current heavyweight lineup among the aiba boxers, I wouldn't be surprised if he can knock all those Kazakh, Uzbek, Russian overestimated cheaters (well not them, actually, but all of their entourage and officials) around comes the Tokyo OQT time...

the Predazzo hills are just falling apart...they all know, but they won't do anything until the Olympic specific funds come to them... the track in Cesana was dismissed because the local administration didn't want to pay for the mantainance costs and there was no financial guarantee about its legacy, meanwhile this time it's all already there with all the needed signatures by our NOC, the local club that will be responsible of the everyday job, the Veneto Region (track mantainance after the Olympics won't be funded by our NOC nor the National government, but from the local administrations -the city of Cortina and the Veneto Region- so the risks of not keeping the promises are very low)... moreover, the Cesana track wasn't even supported by our wintersports federation, as it was built on the basis of a totally wrong project (it was exposed to the sun for most of the day, making it unavailable for high level training races from mid-morning to late afternoon) and it was miles and miles away from the Italian core of this kind of disciplines (as said, it's basically a South Tyrol thing only)... this time the track is in a perfect location and just 20 minutes bus ride away from the South Tyrolean valleys...and of course, if they get everything in place, it's quite obvious that they would eventually get a regular place in the Luge and Bobsligh calendar, as it's always been until the old track was in use...

it's because an international federation sometimes needs to be pushed by some of their members to show interest in making some disciplines "Olympic" (FIL is basically a branch of the German federation...they would never do anything that's against the German interests like entering new non-GER dominated events in the Olympic schedule)... and however, our NF did that in the name of the local organizers of the Milano-Cortina Olympics, who can do that as an institution yet because of burocratic issues with their statute (basically, the Milano-Cortina LOCOG officially doesn't exist yet)...

yeah, but the original "skeleton" it's still there and the costs to have a good make-up and make it again the best and most difficult track on the sliding sports circuit are not as high as building a new track... they started with a reasonably low budget and even if they said it would take a bit more money, I don't think the total costs would eventually raise up to immoral level... and they also signed a document to keep it working full time for at least 25 more years after the Olympics...

it's a bit more than a rumor... the author is a true NOC insider...if he writes they have started the official burocratic tasks it means that they have moved on from the "rumor" status... of course there's still quite a long way to do and in particular we still have to wait for the IOC decision, but given the low cost and the fact that they gave China the mixed team Aerials event only to win a safe Gold, I'm pretty much convinced that this time they will give us the NTL chance (unlike in 2006)...

me too...

no, the news was reported in a more general sports news article on the Italian newspaper La Repubblica, as the author was talking of the usual political fight between our NOC and our government (which also involves our relationship with the IOC because of that sh*tty law that takes the control of the italian sport out of our NOC)... there's nothing specific about NTL and Milano-Cortina 2026, it was written as a side note...

yes, it's streamed on the FIL website, too...but still on that sh*tty platform (I think it's a facebook page)... however, Red Bull also distributes a comprehensive recap show for various TV network (I saw that on Austrian TV -of course- but also on Nova Sport Czech/Slovak)... I don't know how many other Nations have a network showing that staff...

yeah, but at the moment it's only an unofficial proposal, an idea, just like Ice Climbing (however, Dolomites would be the perfect landscape for Ski Mountaineering...I really hope they can get that, too)... meanwhile it looks that for NTL they've started all the official burocratic tasks to have it in the 2026 Games...

it's basically only a South Tyrolean thing...in the rest of the Country it's almost unknown (as many winter sports) and it never goes on our National TV... so, I wouldn't say "it's popular"...rather, it's a sport where the Italian NOC can win a lot of medals... in Olympic terms, it's Italy vs Austria with Russia just behind... Poland used to have great doubles (they even won world cups and world champs), but they're no longer a force... the other participating Nations (at the world cup/champs there are always a good number showin'up) are quite far behind the top 3, however...

It looks that the Italian WinterSports Federation and the Italian National Olympic Committee officially asked the IOC to include Natural Track Luge (3 more events, men and women's Singles and open Doubles...most likely, no Team event) in the 2026 Olympic Games schedule...

no recent news about Nikoloz, unfortunately... but I suspect he's also expecting not to be able to compete in the Olympic qualifiers, as earlier today he said that he hopes to win the European Champs and didn't mention the OQTs... as I wrote before, at the moment the only "new" addition to our Olympic team is Conyedo, all the other guys coming from abroad still have to wait for their Italian passport (and it won't be a short wait, I fear)...

no, I'm really serious... in the past years there have been quite a few furious fights also in the Italian Parliament, where you could see 120+ kg men hitting -60kg women, too... luckily, it's quite some time that this has not happened anymore, but in the Berlusconi era (and earlier) it was quite normal to see scenes like that...

Matteo Pellicone Tournament (Ostia, ITA) Day #1 (Men's Greco-Roman Wrestling) Recap Lorincz Locks up Sixth Career Ranking Series Gold Medal Coming into the Matteo Pellicone, Viktor LORINCZ (HUN) already owned a Ranking Series title for every finger on one hand. The 2019 Greco-Roman Wrestler of the Year now has to move to a second hand to count his Ranking Series gold medals after he captured his sixth career Ranking Series title on Wednesday night in the Roman seaside town of Ostia. The Hungarian tallied 19 wins in his previous five Ranking Series appearances. With his quartet of wins on Wednesday, Lorincz improved his Ranking Series record to a perfect 23-0 with a 2-1 win over last year’s Asian silver medalist Kumar SUNIL (IND) in the 87kg finals. “I am very happy to win this tournament. I want to continue this very good series for me. I want to win the last two qualifications (European Championships and Poland Open) because it helps my seed for the Olympic Games,” said Lorincz. In the finals, Lorincz, a 2019 world runner-up, picked up an inactivity point and a stepout in the first period. He had his lead cut to a single point after he was dinged for an inactivity point himself. The Hungarian hung on to win his unprecedented sixth Ranking Series title, 2-1. “I came here to win. I had some hard matches, and I’m not where I want to be. I want to (build) my strength and power for the other tournaments.” Kakhelashvili Wins Second Ranking Series Gold on Home Soil Last year’s City of Sassari champion Nikoloz KAKHELASHVILI (ITA) edged Felix BALDAUF (NOR) in the 97kg finals and won his second Ranking Series title on home soil. “I’m so happy that I won in my country,” Kakhelashvili said. “Today was a big tournament. I think it’s good that I won, and I felt very strong. Now I hope to win the European Championships.” In the 97kg gold-medal bout, Kakhelashvili jumped out to a five-point opening period lead, but fought off a late flurry of points from the Norwegian wrestler and won his finals match, 5-4. “I was a little bit nervous. I thought it was a touché, but I won the match, so everything is okay.” Walihan and Bakhshilloev Claim Final Pair of Olympic Weight Golds The final pair of Olympic weight gold medals of the day went to Sailike WALIHAN (CHN) and Makhmud BAKHSHILLOEV’s (UZB), who won gold medals at 60kg and 67kg, respectively. At 60kg, Walihan was 70 seconds away from seeing his hopes of winning a first Ranking Series gold disappear after he allowed a three-point second-period lead dwindle to nothing against Islomjon BAKHRAMOV (UZB). But in the end, a late flurry allowed the Chinese wrestler to score a stepout, which in turn, gave him the one-point victory. Walihan, a 2018 world bronze medalist, scored an inactivity point and a gut wrench and carried the 3-0 lead late into the second. That all changed when Walihan’s opponent, Bakhramov, a four-time Ranking Series finalist, gained the 3-3 lead on criteria after he scored an inactivity point that was quickly followed by a two-point tight low-level gut wrench. Like a savvy veteran would do, Walihan quickly responded. He scored a stepout with just under a minute left and hung on to win his first Ranking Series gold medal, 4-3. In the finals at 67kg, junior world champion Bakshilloev's sealed up a 3-1 win over Rio Olympian Abouhalima ABOUHALIMA (EGY) by scoring a first-period inactivity point and gut wrench. Abdellatif MOHAMED (EGY), the two-time Ranking Series finalist, joined Mohamed EL SAYED as the only Egyptian Ranking Series champion after sticking Moises Salvador PEREZ HELLBURG (VEN) in the opening period of the 130kg finals. Ayazci and Montano Arroyo Win Nordic Golds Dogus AYAZCI (TUR) and Andres Roberto MONTANO ARROYO (ECU) claimed the final two opening-day golds, which both came in Nordic-style brackets. Their wins came in the non-Olympic weight classes of 55kg and 63kg, respectively. Ayazci outscored his three opponents 22-0 en route to the 55kg gold medal, while Montano Arroya’s 11-0 thumping of Rio Olympic bronze medalist Stig-Andre BERGE (NOR) highlighted his run to the 63kg title. Results 50kg GOLD - Dogus AYAZCI (TUR) SILVER - Max NOWRY (USA) BRONZE - Andrii SEMENCHUK (UKR) 60kg GOLD - Islomjon BAKHRAMOV (UZB) vs. Sailike WALIHAN (CHN) BRONZE - Erbatu TUO (CHN) vs. Kerem KAMAL (TUR), 7-1 BRONZE - Firuz TUKHTAEV (UZB) df. Sachin RANA (IND), 9-0 63kg GOLD – Andres Roberto MONTANO ARROYO (ECU) SILVER – Stig-Andre BERGE (NOR) BRONZE – Erik TORBA (HUN) 67kg GOLD - Makhmud BAKHSHILLOEV (UZB) df. Abouhalima ABOUHALIMA (EGY), 3-2 BRONZE - Qiye TIAN (CHN) df. Ashu ASHU (IND), 9-0 BRONZE - Anthony PALENCIA PUENTES (VEN) df. Ruben MARVICE (ITA), 10-1 87kg GOLD - Viktor LORINCZ (HUN) df. Kumar SUNIL (IND), 2-1 BRONZE - Ali CENGIZ (TUR) df. Josef Patrick RAU (USA), 9-0 BRONZE - Luis Eduardo AVENDANO ROJAS (VEN) df. Patrick Anthony MARTINEZ (USA), 4-1 97kg GOLD - Nikoloz KAKHELASHVILI (ITA)df. Felix BALDAUF (NOR), 5-4 BRONZE - Mélonin NOUMONVI (FRA) df. Matti Elias KUOSMANEN (FIN), 3-2 BRONZE - Gangelo HANCOCK (USA) df. Semen NOVIKOV (UKR), 10-0 130kg GOLD - Abdellatif MOHAMED (EGY) vdf Moises PEREZ HELLBURG (VEN), via fall (4:37) BRONZE - Lingzhe MENG (CHN) df. Adam Jacob COON (USA), 4-2 BRONZE – Muminjon ABDULLAEV (UZB) df. Oskar MARVIK (NOR), 3-3

2020 UWW Ranking Series, Matteo Pellicone Tournament (Ostia, ITA) The first stop on the road to the 2020 Tokyo Olympic Games travels through Rome, Italy, for the first of two Ranking Series events, the Matteo Pellicone. The four-day tournament kicks off January 15-18 in Ostia, a port city of ancient Rome, located 30km away from the city center. The stacked entry list includes seven reigning world champions, all three 2019 Wrestlers of the Year and over 30 world medal holders from the 2019 World Championships. Freestyle boasts nine world medalists, one of which is a two-time world champion. Greco-Roman features four podium finishers from Nur-Sultan, and women's wrestling rounds out the tournament with an astonishing six reigning world champs and 18 medalists from Kazakhstan. World Champions That Are Registered: FS 74kg - Kyle Douglas DAKE (USA) – two-time world champion at 79kg WW 57kg - Linda MORAIS (CAN) – world champion at 59kg WW 62kg - Inna TRAZHUKOVA (RUS) – world champion at 65kg WW 62kg - Aisuluu TYNYBEKOVA (KGZ) WW 69kg - Tamyra Mariama MENSAH (USA) WW 76kg - Natalia VOROBEVA (RUS) – world champion at 72kg WW 76kg - Adeline Maria GRAY (USA) Trio of Wrestlers of the Year Entered The trio of United World Wrestling's 2019 Wrestlers of the Year Frank CHAMIZO (ITA), Viktor LORINCZ (HUN) and Tamyra MENSAH-STOCK (USA) will all be in action at the Matteo Pellicone. Frank Chamizo, the Freestyle Wrestler of the Year and two-time world champion, is searching for his third Ranking Series title since 2018. He competed in three Ranking Series events last season and captured gold at the City of Sassari Tournament in front of a friendly Italian crowd. He also finished with a silver medal at the Yasar Dogu and a bronze at the Dan Kolov before dropping his world finals match to Zaurbek SIDAKOV (RUS). Viktor Lorincz, Greco-Roman's Wrestler of the Year, is making his sixth Ranking Series appearance of his storied career. Through his five previous showings, the 2019 world runner-up has tallied a perfect 19-0 record while reaching the top of the podium in each outing. Tamyra Mensah-Stock, the 2019 Women's Wrestler of the Year and reigning 68kg world champion, will scrap in her seventh career Ranking Series event. Last year, she wrestled at three of the four Ranking Series events and claimed gold medals at the City of Sassari Tournament, Dan Kolov and Ivan Yariguin. Potential Dake and Chamizo Matchup Some of the biggest personalities in the sport already reside at 74kg. Well, Kyle DAKE (USA) just added his name to the likes of Jordan BURROUGHS (USA), Frank Chamizo and Zaurbek SIDAKOV (RUS), among many others. The weight gained massive depth after Dake announced he's moving down from 79kg, a weight where he's the reigning two-time world champion. The timing of Dake's move couldn’t have come at a better time for wrestling fans, especially heading into the Matteo Pellicone where there’s a long list of renowned wrestlers entered, including Italy's own Frank Chamizo. Dake and Chamizo is a must-see potential matchup that wrestling fans can't miss. Although Dake is fairly defensive at times, he is one of the best offensive wrestlers on earth when it comes to unconventional positions. Coupling that with Chamizo being one of the toughest wrestlers to score on because of his unorthodox defensive style of wrestling; it’s a match that could light up the scoreboard. In addition to the above-mentioned pair of two-time world champions, 74kg will also feature Soner DEMIRTAS (TUR), James GREEN (USA) and Yones EMAMICHOGHAEI (IRI). Demirtas is a Rio bronze medalist, Green is a two-time world medalist, and Emamichoghaei is a reigning world bronze medalist, though that was down at 70kg. Indian Stars Making the Trip to Rome Reigning world medalists Kumar RAVI, Bajrang BAJRANG, and Deepak PUNIA will lead a loaded freestyle squad into the Matteo Pellicone. Ravi qualified India for the 2020 Olympic Games at 57kg with a bronze-medal finish in Nur-Sultan and quite possibly has the toughest road to gold in Rome. Ravi's road could weave through a trio of seasoned American wrestlers with past senior or age-group world medals and a 2020 Olympian. The United States is sending Joseph COLON (USA), Daton FIX (USA) and Thomas GILMAN (USA). Colon medaled (bronze) at 61kg in 2018, while Gilman was a 2017 world runner-up in Paris and finished in fifth place in 2018. But it's the youngster Fix who is the leading man at the weight for the Stars and Stripes after downing Gilman for the world championship starting sport. Fix was a junior world champion back in 2017 Serbia's Stevan MICIC will also be competing at 57kg. Micic became his nation's first freestyle Olympian after finishing in fifth place at the 2019 World Championships. Bajrang, a 2018 word silver medalist and 2019 world bronze-medal finisher, could see Iran's reigning world bronze medalist Behnam EHSANPOOR on his road to a potential fourth career Ranking Series gold. India’s inserted junior world champion Deepak Punia at 86kg. The 2019 Junior Wrestler of the Year qualified India for the Olympic Games after finishing the 2019 World Championships with a silver medal. Punia's toughest competition at the weight will be 2018 world silver medalist Fatih ERDIN (TUR) and 2020 Olympian Myles AMINE (SMR). U23 World Champion Nickal Moving up to Challenge Snyder at 97kg Three months after bulldozing his way to a U23 world title at 92kg, Bo NICKAL (USA) is bumping up to the Olympic weight of 97kg with hopes of dethroning two-time world and Rio Olympic champion Kyle SNYDER (USA) for the starting spot. Snyder, known by American fans as "Captain America," qualified the weight for the 2020 Olympic Games with a bronze-medal finish in Nur-Sultan. He's been America's starter since 2015 when he became the youngest American to win a world title. Six of Ten Women's Wrestling World Champs Set to Scrap in Rome Over a handful of women's world champions from Nur-Sultan will be in action in Rome – six to be exact – but of those six reigning champs, there's a trio of women moving from non-Olympic weights to Olympic weight in preparation for a run at Olympic gold. The six Nur-Sultan winners are: Linda MORAIS (CAN), Inna TRAZHUKOVA (RUS), Aisuluu TYNYBEKOVA (KGZ), Tamyra Mariama MENSAH (USA), Natalia VOROBEVA (RUS) and Adeline Maria GRAY (USA). But Morais, Trazhukova and Vorobeva will all be moving from their non-Olympic winning weights to Olympic weight classes. Morais, who won world gold in 2019 at 59kg, is on her way down to already stacked 57kg. In early December, Morais defeated Hannah TAYLOR (CAN) in two straight matches at the Canada Wrestling Trials and will be Canada’s starter for the 2020 season. The addition of Morais bolsters a weight class that now features three-time world and Olympic champion Risako KAWAI (JPN) and RONG Ningning (CHN), who fell short of defending her 2018 world title in this year's gold-medal bout. Although Kawai won't be in action in Rome, Rong will be. Another star who competed at 59kg in Kazakhstan, Pooja DHANDA (IND), will also be making her descent down to 57kg. Dhanda was a bronze medalist at 57kg back in 2018 but moved up to 59kg in 2019, where she finished in fifth place at the World Championships. Also in the field at 57kg are past world medalists Emese BARKA (HUN), Iryna CHYKHRADZE KHARIV (UKR) and Allison RAGAN (USA). Inna TRAZHUKOVA (RUS) is the second world champion that's switching weights. She was the 65kg world champion but has decided that moving down to 62kg gives her the best shot at making Russia’s Olympic team. But Trazhukova won't have to wait long to see how she stacks up against the world's best at the weight as Aisuluu TYNYBEKOVA (KGZ) is set to make an appearance at the first Ranking Series event of the year. Tynybekova, the reigning 62kg world champion, was named a United World Wrestling History Maker after becoming the first wrestler from Kyrgyzstan to win a senior-level world title. Marianna SASTIN (HUN) and Yuliia TKACH OSTAPCHUK (UKR), who both have world gold on their resumes, will also compete at 62kg. Sastin, a four-time world medalist, won her world gold in 2013, while Tkach Ostapchuk, who is also a four-time world medalist, won her world title in 2014. Natalia VOROBEVA (RUS) is the third and final reigning world champion leaping from a non-Olympic weight class to an Olympic weight. The 2019 Comeback Wrestler of the Year is moving from 72kg up to 76kg. Vorobeva joins fellow Olympic champion Erica WIEBE (CAN) on the entry list at 76kg. But it isn't either of the Olympic champions who are the favorite coming into Rome. The clear favorite to win the weight is Adeline GRAY (USA), who made United States history by winning her unprecedented fifth world title at the Nur-Sultan World Championships late last year. Past, Present and Future Greco-Roman Stars Set to Compete at Matteo Pellicone Although Greco-Roman lacks the presence of a reigning world champion in the entries, there isn't a shortage of current and future stars that'll be looking to make some noise in Rome. World runner-ups Aram VARDANYAN (UZB) and Viktor Lorincz will wrestle at 72kg and 87kg, respectively. Meanwhile, rising stars Mohamed ELSAYED (EGY), Kerem KAMAL (TUR) and Semen NOVIKOV (UKR) are looking to make some noise on the senior-level after climbing to the summit of world ranks at the age-group World Championships in 2019. El Sayed, who is wrestling at 67kg, has been extremely active since qualifying Egypt for the 2020 Olympic Games at arguably the toughest weight class in Nur-Sultan, 67kg. Shortly after the 21-year-old finished in fifth place at the 2019 World Championships, he won gold at the World Military Games then tacked on a second U23 world title to his resume. Kerem Kamal, who was named United World Wrestling's Junior Greco-Roman Wrestler of the Year after winning his third consecutive junior world title, is entered at 60kg. The young Turkish spark plug is no stranger to the senior level. Last year, he won the Grand Prix of Zagreb, which was a Ranking Series event. He finished with a bronze medal at the European Championships before representing Turkey at the World Championships in Kazakhstan. Kamal's most significant competition at 60kg will be China's Sailike WALIHAN, who was a world bronze medalist in 2018. Semen Novikov, a 2019 U23 world champion, rounds out the Greco-Roman rising stars that are on the entry list. He'll be accompanied at 97kg by three-time 2019 Ranking Series medalist Tracy Gangelo HANCOCK (USA). Last season, Hancock won the Grand Prix of Hungary, took second place at the City of Sassari Tournament and third place at the Grand Prix of Zagreb. At the World Championships, Hanock fell to France's 2014 world champion Mélonin NOUMONVI, who is also plugged in at 97kg. The Matteo Pellicone begins on January 15-18 and can be followed at www.unitedworldwrestling.org or flowrestling.org. SCHEDULE Wednesday (January 15) 08:00 - Medical Examination, Weigh-in & Draw GR55-60-63-67-87-97-130kg 10:30 - Qualification rounds & repechage GR – 55-60-63-67-87-97-130kg 17:00 - Opening Ceremony 18:00 - Finals GR – 55-60-63-67-87-97-130kg / Award ceremonies Thursday (January 16) 08.00 - Medical Examination, Weigh-in and Draw GR – 72-77-82kg & WW – 57-62-68-76kg 10.30 - Qualification rounds & repechage GR – 72-77-82kg & WW – 57-62-68-76kg 18:00 - Finals GR – 72-77-82kg & WW – 57-62-68-76kg / Award ceremonies Friday (January 17) 08:00 - Medical Examination, Weigh-in and Draw WW – 50-53-55-59-65-72kg & FS – 97-125kg 10:30 - Qualification rounds & repechage WW – 50-53-55-59-65-72kg & FS – 97-125kg 18:00 - Finals WW – 50-53-55-59-65-72kg & FS – 97-125kg / Award ceremonies Saturday (January 18) 08:00 - Medical Examination, Weigh-in and Draw FS – 57-61-65-70-74-79-86-92kg 10:30 - Qualification rounds & repechage FS – 57-61-65-70-74-79-86-92kg 18:00 - Finals FS – 57-61-65-70-74-79-86-92kg / Award ceremonies ENTRIES https://unitedworldwrestling.org/article/matteo-pellicone-entries

naaa..it's quite entertaining... I saw something similar in the Italian Parliament...more than once, actually!

Final confirmed: Mountfield HK will host the clash against Frölunda indians What started out with 32 teams in late August is now down to just two teams in mid-January. In three weeks' time we'll know which team has been crowned Champions of Europe in 2019/20. This season's Champions Hockey League Final will take place on Tuesday, February 4th in Hradec Kralové, the home of Mountfield HK, marking the first time the CHL's climax is held in the Czech Republic. They will face defending champions, three-time winners, and fifth-time finalists Frölunda Indians. Mounfield HK earned the right to host the showpiece event by having the better overall record during this CHL season of the teams left to contest the final. Mountfield clocked 26 points en route to the final, while Frölunda picked up 22. The spectacular setting offered by Hradec Kralovè arena for the Champions Hockey League matches:

Mountfield HK, 3 vs Djurgården Stockholm, 0 (Aggregate Score: 6-1, Mountfield advance to the Final) Another Mazanec shutout, Mountfield on to the Final For the third straight Champions Hockey League Playoff round, Marek Mazanec and Mountfield HK conceded just one goal over 120 minutes. As a result, Mountfield are off to the CHL Final for the first time following a 3-0 home-ice victory over Djurgården Stockholm, giving them a 6-1 win on aggregate. For the last several games, Mountfield have shown the ability to play solid defence and wait for their opportunities, and the two-goal lead to start this game played right into their hands in that regard. The return game remained scoreless after an evenly played first period, but Mountfield remained with 53 seconds left of power play time at the start of the second and that paid off for them. Jakub Lev took a pass in his own zone and took it coast to coast, completely undressing defenceman Jesper Pettersson inside the blueline and then going high glove side on Niklas Svedberg. Considering Mountfield had only conceded three goals in their last 16 CHL periods, Djurgården now faced a critical situation, needing to score at least three in a little under two periods. However, try as they might, they just couldn’t penetrate the stifling Mountfield defence to generate any quality scoring chances. When Richard Nedomlel kept the puck in the Djurgården zone and then fired a rocket from the top of the circle past Svedberg early in the third period, the Swedish team’s situation went from bad to worse. Halfway through the third period, coach Robert Ohlsson pulled Svedberg for a sixth attacker in a desperation move, but Aleš Jergl’s empty-netter less than a minute later put an exclamation point on the Mountfield victory. The only question to be answered was if Mazanec would post his third shutout in the last six CHL games, and Djurgården were awarded two penalty shots in the last eight minutes. On the first, Mazanec stared down Jacob Josefson and then on the second, Patrik Berglund hit the crossbar. But the fans in Hradec Králové knew their team had its place in the CHL Final firmly in hand and celebrated the final moments away. Match Highlights

Luleå Hockey, 1 vs Frölunda Indians, 3 (Aggregate Score: 4-5, Indians advance to the Final) Another comeback books Final place for Frölunda Tonight was crunch time in the Champions Hockey League Semi-Finals, and in Sweden two former champions went head to head to try and secure their place as Luleå Hockey played host to the reigning champions the Frölunda Indians after Luleå took a 3-2 victory in the first leg. With a one-goal advantage, Luleå were entering the second leg on home ice and looking to use that to their advantage, and they found a way to strike first. After going close a few times, Juhani Tyrväinen wouldn’t be denied forever, eventually opening the scoring on the night, and giving the hosts 4-2 aggregate lead, jumping on the puck after a long shot went wide and bounced off the boards, beating Johan Mattsson who was sprawling to take away the angle, but couldn’t stop it from cross the line for the only goal of the opening period. Frölunda had a few chances early in the second period, but couldn’t get anything to really challenge Joel Lassinantti, until midway through, when Lassinantti denied Frölunda captain Joel Lundqvist who was left alone in the slot, but in his 1000th appearance for the club, couldn’t tie things up. If you give Frölunda too many chances eventually they’ll strike, after a few near misses, the reigning champions found themselves on the powerplay, and after Lassinantti made an initial save, the puck sprawled loose to captain Lundqvist who found Rhett Rakhshani, sending it into the gaping net to tie things up on the night, but still Frölunda trailed by one overall. It didn’t take long in the third for things to be evened up on aggregate, a good forecheck kept the play alive for Frölunda, and then in his 1000th game for Frölunda, Joel Lundqvist redirected a shot past Lassinantti to make it 2-1 to the visitors on the night, but 4-4 overall, setting up a very interesting final 20 minutes of action. Frölunda kept on pushing, looking to take the lead overall, and just after the midway point, Ryan Lasch wired a shot past Lassinantti, placing it past the blocker and into the net, giving the reigning champions a lead on the road, and meaning the hosts Luleå had less than 10 minutes to try and regain control of the tie to either advance, or force overtime. Try as they might, it just wasn't to beat for Luleå who couldn't find anything to get past Johan Mattsson who stood tall in net in the last moments of the Semi-Final, helping defend the lead all the way to the final buzzer to secure a fifth Champions Hockey League final for the Frölunda Indians, as they came from behind in each of their playoff series' on the way. It'll be a Group H affair and a rematch when the final gets underway as Frölunda take on Mountfield HK to see who can be crowned this years Champions. Match Highlights

Knockout Stage Semifinals, Second Leg Tuesday 14.1.2020 - Results 18:00 Luleå Hockey (SWE) - Frölunda Indians (SWE) 1-3 (4-5 on Aggregate) 18:00 Mountfield HK (CZE) - Djurgården Stockholm (SWE) 3-0 (6-1 on Aggregate) 2019/2020 Champions Hockey League, the Final Tuesday, February 4th, Mountfield HK vs Frölunda Indians