By Richard Immel
USA Wrestling

ASTANA, Kazakhstan – The U.S. women’s freestyle team rose to the top at the 2026 Senior World Championships on Friday night at Bary Arena, capping its first team title in the sport’s modern era as 19-year-old Everest Leydecker, who was the Arizona winner of the National Wrestling Hall of Fame's Tricia Saunders High School Excellence Award in 2026, surged to gold at 55 kg.  

As she did throughout the tournament, Leydecker stayed patient in the championship match and forced Ukraine’s Nataliia Klivchutska into the critical mistake. Klivchutska was put on activity time in the final minute of a tied match. She pressed hard for an opening, but Leydecker reversed the momentum and caught Klivchutska on her back for exposure points in the final seconds, securing a 4-1 win.

Leydecker, a freshman at the University of Iowa, adds a Senior crown to her two U20 World titles. She joined 62 kg champion Adaugo Nwachukwu, who secured gold on Thursday night, as champions for the U.S. women in Astana. Nwachukwu and Leydecker are the 13th and 14th Americans, respectively, to earn a Senior World title in women’s wrestling.

Abby Nette came home with a silver medal at 59 kg, falling just short of India’s Manisha in the finals, 8-6. Nette held a 6-1 lead after the first period, but Manisha reeled off seven straight points to steal the win in the second frame.

With a silver in tow, Nette finished the season five-for-five in international medals, a testament to her consistency. She was the Pan American champion and finished on the podium at three UWW Ranking Series events. Nette is a Sergeant in the U.S. Army and a member of its World Class Athlete Program, as is Nwachukwu.

Team USA finished with two champions (Leydecker, Nwachukwu), a silver medalist (Nette), three bronze medalists (Helen Maroulis, Kennedy Blades, Dymond Guilford), and Top-10 placements in all but one weight class, totaling 137 team points. Perennial power Japan finished two points behind the U.S. in the standings, while China placed third.

This marks the second team title in U.S. women’s wrestling history, and the first in its Olympic era (2004-present). The previous title came in 1999 with gold medalists Tricia Saunders and Sandra Bacher, plus silver medalist Kristie Davis, leading the way. Saunders and Davis were the first and second females inducted into the National Wrestling Hall of Fame.

Read More: 2026 Senior World Championships Day 7 Match Notes

Action resumes Saturday at Barys Arena at 10:30 a.m. local time with the men’s freestyle group two (61-70-86-125 kg) repechage, plus the men’s freestyle group three (57-74-79-92 kg) qualification rounds. Taking mats in the morning for Team USA are Marcus Blaze (MFS, 61 kg), Spencer Lee (MFS, 57 kg), James Green (MFS, 74 kg), Levi Haines (MFS, 79 kg) and Trent Hidlay (MFS, 92 kg). Astana, Kazakhstan, is nine hours ahead of U.S. Eastern Time.

U.S. fans can watch the Senior World Championships live or on-demand at FloWrestling.org. Brackets and live results are available at uww.org.

USA Wrestling will provide continued updates from the Senior World Championships on TheMat.com and its social media platforms.

2026 Senior World Championships 

At Astana, Kazakhstan, October 30 

Reference Links 

• USA Wrestling Event Hub

• Live Stream

• Brackets And Results

• Photo Galleries

• Athlete Interviews

Team Ranking 

Women’s Freestyle 

1. United States, 137

2. Japan, 135

3. China, 121

4. Ukraine, 106

5. India, 94

6. Russia, 83

7. Mongolia, 74

8. Kazakhstan, 63

9. Sweden, 33

10. Kyrgyzstan, 32

Weight Class Ranking 

Women’s Freestyle | Group Three 

55 kg  

Gold – Everest Leydecker (United States)

Silver – Nataliia Klivchutska (Ukraine)

Bronze – Ekaterina Verbina (Russia)

Bronze – Nagisa Harada (Japan)

5th – Tuba Demir (Türkiye)

5th – Anastasia Blayvas (Germany)

7th – Veronika Konsevich (North Macedonia)

8th – Kyong Ryong Oh (North Korea)

9th – Ahilya Shinde (India)

10th – Karla Godinez Gonzalez (Canada)

Gold – Everest Leydecker (United States) dec. Nataliia Klivchutska (Ukraine), 4-1

Bronze – Ekaterina Verbina (Russia) tech. fall Tuba Demir (Türkiye), 11-0

Bronze – Nagisa Harada (Japan) fall Anastasia Blayvas (Germany), 4:10

59 kg 

Gold – Manisha (India)

Silver – Abigail Nette (United States)

Bronze – Mariia Vynnyk (Ukraine)

Bronze – Bolortuya Khurelkhuu (Mongolia)

5th – Svetlana Lipatova (Russia)

5th – Altyn Shagayeva (Kazakhstan)

7th – Lydia Perez Tourino (Spain)

8th – Mengyu Xie (China)

9th – Ruzanna Mammadova (Azerbaijan)

10th – Jowita Wrzesien (Poland)

Gold – Manisha (India) dec. Abigail Nette (United States), 8-6

Bronze – Mariia Vynnyk (Ukraine) dec. Svetlana Lipatova (Russia), 7-6

Bronze – Bolortuya Khurelkhuu (Mongolia) fall Altyn Shagayeva (Kazakhstan), 2:59

U.S. Results 

Women’s Freestyle | Group Three 

55 kg – Everest Leydecker (Phoenix, Ariz./Thorobred WC/New York AC), gold medal 

WIN Karla Godinez Gonzalez (Canada), 2-1

WIN Anastasia Blayvas (Germany), fall, 3:56

WIN Nagisa Harada (Japan), 6-1

WIN Nataliia Klivchutska (Ukraine), 4-1

59 kg – Abigail Nette (Colorado Springs, Colo./Army WCAP), silver medal 

WIN Gloria Niyonkuru (Burundi), fall, 0:43

WIN Svetlana Lipatova (Russia), 7-6

WIN Mariia Vynnyk (Ukraine), fall, 2:13

LOSS Manisha (India), 8-6