From: Gary Abbott [email protected] Subject: Draws announced for Men and Women Freestyle Wrestling World Cups Date: February 13, 2018 at 6:19 PM To: Girls Rankings [email protected]

U.S. draws , Georgia, Iran at Freestyle World Cup in Iowa City, April 7-8

IOWA CITY, Iowa -- United World Wrestling has announced the pool pairings for the 2018 Freestyle World Cup hosted by the University of Iowa at Carver-Hawkeye Arena on April 7-8.

The United States competes in Pool A against the nations of Japan, Georgia, and Iran. Pool B consists of teams from , Azerbaijan, Cuba, and Kazakhstan.

"It is a great draw," said U.S. National Freestyle Coach Bill Zadick. "Last year, we were drawn into the 'Pool of Death,' and our guys rose to the occasion. This year, we have a strong pool with Iran, Georgia and Japan. We are going to have to fight to get out of our pool. Our guys are coming into it with that attitude."

The United States and Russia, the top two countries at the 2017 World Championships in Paris, France, were separated into opposite pools prior to the draw.

WATCH TEAM USA The U.S. opens its tournament against Japan on Saturday at 10 a.m. (CT). Defending World Cup champion Iran will meet the U.S. in a rematch of last year's World Cup final on Saturday at 2:30 p.m. Team USA's final pool- play contest against Georgia is slated for Sunday at 10 a.m. The medal rounds will be determined after pool-play results are finalized.

WORLD CUP FORMAT The two-day tournament is broken down into three pool-play sessions, in addition to a medal round. Every team will compete during each session. The event schedule is as follows:

Saturday, April 7 10 a.m. - Session I 2 p.m. - Opening Ceremonies 2:30 p.m. - Session II

Sunday, April 8 10 a.m. - Session III 12:30 p.m. - 7th Place Match, 5th Place Match 2:15 p.m. - Bronze Medal Match 4 p.m. - Gold Medal Match

EXPERIENCE THE WORLD CUP Ticket opportunities for the World Cup include a Gold all-session package ($225), a Black all-session package ($150), and standard all-session tickets ($75/$50). Tickets are now available on the University of Iowa Athletics website.

Visit worldcupiowacity.com for more information on the event.

USA draws Japan, and in its pool at Women’s World Cup in Japan, March 17-18

United World Wrestling has conducted the draw for the 2018 Women’s World Cup, which will be held in Takasaki, Japan, March 17-18.

The United States drew into Pool A, where it will face Japan, Canada and Sweden. The teams in Pool B are The United States drew into Pool A, where it will face Japan, Canada and Sweden. The teams in Pool B are Belarus, , and Mongolia.

Last year, the United States placed fourth at the Women’s World Cup out of the eight teams in the field.

The top eight teams from the 2017 World Championships were invited to compete in the 2018 Women’s World Cup, which were: 1. Japan, 2. United States, 3. Belarus, 4. Mongolia, 5. Turkey, 6. Canada, 7. China and 8. Romania. When Turkey declined to participate, No. 9 Sweden was added to the field in their place.

The United States is seeking its first Women’s World Cup victory since 2003, when the United States defeated Japan in the championship finals dual meet, 14-13.

“We know Japan has been the team to beat. They have set the standard in our sport. Canada is always a tough competitor and Sweden always has tough individuals. It is a tough draw, but I don’t think it is an easy draw on the other side. We need to be ready to compete. It doesn’t matter when we meet up with teams. We aren’t going to Japan to be part of the mix. We are going to Japan to come out with a World Cup title and to be the best we can be,” said USA Wrestling National Women’s Coach Terry Steiner.

Only three teams have won the Women’s World Cup, Japan (9 times), China (6 times) and the United States (1 time).

UWW article on World Cup draws for men and women freestyle https://unitedworldwrestling.org/article/draws-announced-womens-wrestling-mens-freestyle-world-cups