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Vasvl Fedoryshyn of Ukraine (in red) wrestles with Mavlet Batirov of Russia during the men's freestyle 60kg gold medal match at the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games wrestling event in Beijing, China, Aug. 19, 2008. Mavlet Batirov of Russia won the bout and got the gold medal.[Xinhua]
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Batirov is Russia's fourth wrestling gold medallist in Beijing, joining three Greco-Roman wrestlers.
"When I said in Athens after winning that I dedicate my gold to my father, my mother joked that I have to dedicate my next one to her. So I dedicate this gold to her.," he said.
Kenichi Yumoto of Japan scored from the clinch and then added two low single-leg attacks to defeat Bazar Bazarguruev of Kyrgyzstan 2-0.
"I'm happy for the victory. In the morning, after I lost in the quarterfinals, the only thing in my mind was the loss," said Yumoto. "But when I remembered my family and the audience in a dream, I thought the only thing I can do is to fight until the last minutes."
Iranian Mohammadi took Zelimkhan Huseynov to his back from clinch and racked up single points on takedowns in second bout for a 2-0 victory to win Iran's first medal at Beijing Olympics.
"I'm glad I could compete in Olympic Games," said Mohammadi. "All of my opponents are very strong, so it was hard to win. I'm very proud to be the one to win the first medal for my country."
(Xinhua News Agency August 19, 2008)