Havana, February 2 (RHC) – The freestyle gladiators Vladimir Vila (57 kg) and Geannis Garzón (79 kg), both from Santiago, return with a victory in three fights added in the Ivan Yarygin Cup, based in the Russian city of Krasnoyarsk.
Vila, the only gold medalist from his team at the recent II Junior Pan American Games in Asunción, lost his first match against Russia’s Ashein (0-6).
As expected, the one who advanced the furthest was Garzón, bronze medalist at the U23 World Championships held in Novi Sad, silver medalist at the demanding Dmitry Korkin Memorial International Tournament, also in Russia, and runner-up at the event in the Paraguayan capital.
He opened with a resounding victory against the local favorite Sharapudinov, with a wide score of (14-9), but in his next match, he lost a close one (4-5) against Vudashapov of Kyrgyzstan, who then lost his next match and was unable to force him into the repechage round.
Vila and Garzón will be key figures on the team in this style at the 2026 Central American and Caribbean Games in Santo Domingo, where the wrestlers will aim to contribute to a strong finish for the island nation in the rankings.
This highly competitive international tournament, the Yarygin Cup, which brought together competitors from more than 20 countries, is dedicated annually to the legendary Russian wrestler, a two-time Olympic champion (Munich 1972 and Montreal 1976).
