Paris, France – Former Husker wrestlers Jordan Burroughs (74 kg/163 lbs.) and James Green (70 kg/154 lbs.) are set to represent the United States at the UWW Freestyle World Championships this Saturday at the AccorHotels Arena in Paris, France.
The elimination rounds and repechage for the men’s freestyle 65 kg, 70 kg, 74 kg and 97 kg weight classes are set to begin at 3 a.m. (CT), while the medal matches will be contested at noon (CT).
The elimination rounds and repechage will be live-streamed on TrackWrestling (subscription required), while the medal rounds will be broadcast on NBC’s newly-launched Olympic Channel.
Burroughs, the 2012 Olympic gold medalist at 74 kg, looks to claim his fourth world title, after winning in 2011, 2013 and 2015. He is competing on his seventh-straight U.S. World or Olympic team, the most of any active athlete on Team USA, regardless of style, and one of the longest streaks in USA history. Burroughs is currently fourth in the UWW World Rankings at 74 kg. He will face two-time World bronze medalist Ali Shabanau of Belarus, currently ranked 11th in the world, in the first round.
Green, the top seed at 70 kg, looks to build off his bronze-medal finish at the World Championships in 2015. The three-time U.S. World Team member is the top seed at 70 kg for the World Championships and he is currently ranked third in the UWW World Rankings. Green will face 2017 Pan American silver medalist (at 74 kg) Nestor Taffur of Columbia in the first round.
Both Burroughs and Green claimed their spots on the USA Wrestling world team as they won their weight classes at the U.S. World Team Trials at the Devaney Center in Lincoln in June. Green defeated Jimmy Kennedy in a best-of-three series, 2-0, while Burroughs dropped his first match to Kyle Dake, but won his next two to clinch a spot on the world team.
The pair also both won individual crowns at the Grand Prix of Spain in July as well as U.S. Open titles in April. Burroughs was a member of the U.S. team that finished second at the World Cup earlier this year, while Green won a Pan American title as well.
Burroughs, who wrestled for Nebraska from 2007-11, was a two-time national champion, as well as a three-time All-American in his time as a Husker. Green, a four-time All-American as a Husker wrestler from 2012-15, remains on the Husker wrestling coaching staff as a volunteer administrative assistant. Both Burroughs and Green continue to live and train in Lincoln under NU wrestling coaches Mark Manning and Bryan Snyder.
Husker wrestlers have won a total of 19 medals at the World Championships, including five gold medals.
The UWW World Championships began Monday and run through Saturday, with freestyle, Greco-Roman and women’s competitions held. In addition to live coverage of the medal rounds, NBCSN will air 6.5 hours of tape-delayed coverage in the afternoons and evenings — Wednesday, Aug. 23 (2:30-4 p.m. CT), Thursday, Aug. 24 (3-4 p.m. CT), Friday, Aug. 25 (6-8 p.m. CT) and Sunday, Aug. 27 (2-4 p.m. CT).
2017 UWW World Championships
Aug. 21-26, 2017
AccorHotels Arena
Paris France
Saturday, Aug. 26: Men’s Freestyle (65 kg, 70 kg, 74 kg, 97 kg)
- Session 1 (3 a.m. CT): Preliminaries, Round of 16, Quarterfinals, Semifinals, Consolation Matches
- Session 2 (Noon CT): Bronze and Gold Medal Matches