BUCHAREST, Romania - The first four U.S. Greco-Roman wrestlers have weighed in and received their draws for the opening day of the FILA Junior World Championships, which begin on Tuesday.

FILA Juniors are athletes who are 17-20 years old. Many of the athletes who are successful at the Junior World Championships go on to win World and Olympic medals for their nations.

Jesse Thielke (Germantown, Wis./Sunkist Kids), who will be wrestling in his third Junior World Championships, opens up against Radoslav Vasilev of Bulgaria. 

Thielke will compete at 60 kg/132 lbs. after wrestling at 55 kg/121 lbs. in the two previous Junior World Championships.

Josh Castellano (Wood Dale, Ill./USOEC), who is competing at 74 kg/163 lbs., opens up with Ahmad Iskandarani of Denmark. Castellano was a 2009 Pan American Junior champion in Greco-Roman.

At 50 kg/110 lbs., Jake Bellis (Bloomington, Ill./USOEC) opens with Pavel Vasilenko of Russia.

At 96 kg/211.5 lbs., Marcus Finau (Ewa Beach, Hawaii/USOEC) faces Tynchtyk Toktorbaev of Kyrgyzstan in his first test.

The team is led by Coach Eric Wetzel of Chicago, Ill. and Team Leader Ike Anderson, Colorado Springs, Colo., USA Wrestling’s National Greco-Roman Developmental Coach.

“It has been going really well,” said Anderson. “We came out five days early, before the championships, and trained about an hour and a half away in a town called Patesh, with the Romanian Junior Team. We got acclimated to the time zone and the European style. It has been really good for us.”

The USA is looking to improve on its ninth-place finish in Greco-Roman at the 2010 Junior World Championships in Budapest, Hungary. The 2010 Greco-Roman team featured a bronze medalist, Ellis Coleman at 66 kg/145.5 lbs., who is back again this year.

“Our goal is to win two or three medals and we will try to get a gold medal. We are looking to move up in the standings. If we wrestle well, these goals are attainable,” said Anderson.

Brackets, results and more will be available on the official website at:
http://www.fila-wrestling.com/bucarest2011

JUNIOR WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS
At Bucharest, Romania, July 26-31

U.S. Junior World Greco-Roman draws

50 kg/110 lbs. – Jake Bellis, Bloomington, Ill. (USOEC)
Vs. Pavel Vasilenko (Russia)

60 kg/132 lbs. – Jesse Thielke, Germantown, Wis. (Sunkist Kids)
Vs. Radoslav Vasilev (Bulgaria)

74 kg/163 lbs. – Josh Castellano, Wood Dale, Ill. (USOEC)
Vs. Ahmad Iskandarani (Denmark)

96 kg/211.5 lbs. – Marcus Finau, Ewa Beach, Hawaii (USOEC)
Vs. Tynchtyk Toktorbaev (Kyrgyzstan)