Photo by: USA Wrestling
Stanich Wins Gold at U20 World Championships
8/19/2025 4:20:00 PM | Men's Wrestling
SAMAKOV, Bulgaria – Luke Stanich is a World Champion. The Lehigh sophomore went 5-0 across action Monday and Tuesday to claim the gold medal at 65 kg at the U20 World Championships.
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Stanich edged Japan's Reiji Uchida 4-3 in Tuesday's gold medal bout to secure the gold medal. He had a 2-1 edge in takedowns in the gold medal match, converting his first 1:05 into the opening period to take a 2-0 lead into the break.
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Uchida opened the second period by scoring on a step out, before Stanich secured his second takedown of the match nearly a minute into the second period. A takedown by Uchida cut Stanich's lead to 4-3 with 1:38 remaining, but Stanich held strong positioning and earned the one-point victory to win the world title.
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The run to the title for Stanich was sparked by a big comeback win in his opening bout Monday morning. Stanich fell behind Turkiye's Abdullah Toprak 8-0 early in the first period on a takedown and three turns, but battled back, scoring a takedown of his own to close the opening three minutes down 8-2. Stanich broke the Turkish wrestler in period two, scoring two quick takedowns to cut the deficit to 8-6. He added another takedown followed by four leg laces to go up 16-8 before closing out the technical fall victory with a takedown at the 4:32 mark.
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Stanich won 9-3 over Omurbek Asan Uulu of Kyrgyzstan and then edged Alex Nini of Italy 3-3 on criteria, scoring the final takedown in the second period to tie the bout. Nini, like Stanich is a New Jersey native and wrestles collegiately at Rutgers.
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In the semifinals, Stanich scored the only takedown of the match in a 3-1 victory over Amal Dzhandubaev, a Russian competing under the United World Wrestling umbrella.
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The world championship caps an impressive summer for Stanich, who won gold at the Pan-American Championships in July. A NCAA All-American in 2024 as a true first-year, Stanich deferred his eligibility in 2024-25, going 12-1 while moving up to 141. He won Lehigh's Deferred Eligibility Wrestler of the Year award at the annual Lewis Dinner.
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Stanich is one of three Americans to win U20 world titles thus far, with two others set to wrestle for gold on Wednesday.
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Follow Lehigh Wrestling on X/Twitter and Instagram and like on Facebook for exclusive updates throughout the season.
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Stanich edged Japan's Reiji Uchida 4-3 in Tuesday's gold medal bout to secure the gold medal. He had a 2-1 edge in takedowns in the gold medal match, converting his first 1:05 into the opening period to take a 2-0 lead into the break.
Â
Uchida opened the second period by scoring on a step out, before Stanich secured his second takedown of the match nearly a minute into the second period. A takedown by Uchida cut Stanich's lead to 4-3 with 1:38 remaining, but Stanich held strong positioning and earned the one-point victory to win the world title.
Â
The run to the title for Stanich was sparked by a big comeback win in his opening bout Monday morning. Stanich fell behind Turkiye's Abdullah Toprak 8-0 early in the first period on a takedown and three turns, but battled back, scoring a takedown of his own to close the opening three minutes down 8-2. Stanich broke the Turkish wrestler in period two, scoring two quick takedowns to cut the deficit to 8-6. He added another takedown followed by four leg laces to go up 16-8 before closing out the technical fall victory with a takedown at the 4:32 mark.
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Stanich won 9-3 over Omurbek Asan Uulu of Kyrgyzstan and then edged Alex Nini of Italy 3-3 on criteria, scoring the final takedown in the second period to tie the bout. Nini, like Stanich is a New Jersey native and wrestles collegiately at Rutgers.
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In the semifinals, Stanich scored the only takedown of the match in a 3-1 victory over Amal Dzhandubaev, a Russian competing under the United World Wrestling umbrella.
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The world championship caps an impressive summer for Stanich, who won gold at the Pan-American Championships in July. A NCAA All-American in 2024 as a true first-year, Stanich deferred his eligibility in 2024-25, going 12-1 while moving up to 141. He won Lehigh's Deferred Eligibility Wrestler of the Year award at the annual Lewis Dinner.
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Stanich is one of three Americans to win U20 world titles thus far, with two others set to wrestle for gold on Wednesday.
Â
Follow Lehigh Wrestling on X/Twitter and Instagram and like on Facebook for exclusive updates throughout the season.
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Players Mentioned
133/141
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