Kizhan Clarke Explained

Kizhan Clarke
Headercolor:Gold
Fullname:Kizhan Andre Clarke
Birth Date:December 16, 1997
Birth Place:Wiesbaden, Germany
Hometown:Tampa, Florida, U.S.
Country: (2018–2022)
(2023–present)
Sport:Wrestling
Weight Class:65kg (143lb)
Event:Freestyle and Folkstyle
Collegeteam:Tar Heels
Club:Tar Heel Wrestling Club
AC Lichtenfels
Coach:Rob Koll
Medaltemplates: North Carolina Tar Heels
Show-Medals:yes

Kizhan Andre Clarke (born 16 December 1997) is a German-American freestyle wrestler who competes internationally at 65 kilograms.[1] He was a medalist at the European Championship and the Grand Prix Henri Deglane, and was also a NCAA Division I National runner-up out of the University of North Carolina.[2]

Career

High school

Clarke was born in Wiesbaden, Germany to an American father and a German mother, and moved to Dallas, Texas at the age of one before moving to Florida in seventh grade.[3] He started wrestling as a freshman at Riverview High School in Riverview, Florida, and became a state champion and two-time finalist before graduating.[4]

American University

2016–2017

Clarke wore a redshirt during his first year wrestling for the American Eagles, winning over 30 matches and placing at six tournaments.[5]

2017–2018

Clarke went 16–13 as the team's starter at 141 pounds, and was unable to place at the EIWA Championships or qualify for the NCAA's. After the season, he competed in freestyle at the US Open and the U23 US World Team Trials, but was unable to place.

2018–2019

Clarke then moved up to 157 pounds, recording a 26–13 record and placing seventh at the EIWA Championships, though missing a trip to NCAA's. After the season, he once again competed at the US Open and the U23 US World Team Trials though was unable to place.[6]

2019–2020

Dropping down to 149 pounds, Clarke improved to a 35–7 record, placed fourth at the EIWA Championships and qualified for the NCAA tournament.[7] However, the tournament was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.[8] In November 2020, Clarke went 4–2 at the US U23 National Championships but was unable to place.[9]

University of North Carolina

2021–2022

In March 2021, Clarke went 2–2 at the US Last Chance Qualifier, failing to qualify for the US Olympic Team Trials.

After being unable to compete during the 2020–2021 season due to COVID-19 protocols, Clarke transferred to the University of North Carolina for his final year.[10] Back down to 141, Clarke posted a 17–1 record during the regular season before going 0–2 at the ACC Championships, requiring an at-large berth to qualify for the NCAA tournament.[11]

Ranked as the fifteenth-seed, Clarke avenged a loss suffered at the ACC Championship in the first round, and took out returning NCAA finalist Jaydin Eierman to advance to the quarterfinals.[12] After beating the tenth-seed to reach the semi-finals, Clarke defeated the sixth-seed on ultimate tie-breaker to reach the finals.[13] In the finals, Clarke fell to returning champion Nick Lee, though earned runner-up and All-American honors and closed his final year at 21–4.[14]

Germany

2023

In January, Clarke returned to freestyle and represented Germany for the first time in international competition, at the Grand Prix de France Henri Deglane. He defeated fellow NCAA runner-up Ridge Lovett and veteran Evan Henderson to make the finals, where he was defeated by All-American Pat Lugo.[15]

In April, Clarke defeated Niklas Dorn in a best-of-three wrestle-off to determine Germany's starter.[16] He then went 1–1 at the European Championships, defeating Italy's Colin Realbuto though falling to U20 World Champion Erik Arushanian.[17]

In June, Clarke became a German National champion with three wins over fellow countrymen.[18] He then competed at the Stepan Sargsyan Cup in Armenia, defeating an opponent from Kazakhstan before falling to U20 World Champion Peiman Biabani.[19] In July, he competed at the Polyák Imre & Varga János Memorial Tournament, though was eliminated by North Carolina teammate Lachlan McNeil.[20]

From September to November, Clarke competed in the German Bundesliga, where he participated in six dual meets for AC Lichtenfels and emerged victorious in four of them.[21]

2024

In February, Clarke earned a bronze medal from the European Continental Championships, with a notable victory over Individual World Cup and U23 World Champion Vazgen Tevanyan.[22] He competed at the 2024 European Wrestling Olympic Qualification Tournament in Baku, Azerbaijan hoping to qualify for the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris, France.[23] He was eliminated in his first match and he did not qualify for the Olympics.[23]

Freestyle record

! colspan="7"| Senior Freestyle Matches|-! Res.! Record! Opponent! Score! Date! Event! Location|-! style=background:white colspan=7 ||-|Loss|34–20|align=left| Adlan Askarov|style="font-size:88%"|3–6|style="font-size:88%"|May 11, 2024|style="font-size:88%"|2024 World Olympic Qualification Tournament|style="text-align:left;font-size:88%;"| Istanbul, Turkey|-! style=background:white colspan=7 | |-|Win|34–19|align=left| Goderdzi Dzebisashvili |style="font-size:88%"|5–3|style="font-size:88%" rowspan=4|February 16–17, 2024|style="font-size:88%" rowspan=4|2024 European Continental Championships|style="text-align:left;font-size:88%;" rowspan=4| Bucharest, Romania|-|Win|33–19|align=left| Vazgen Tevanyan |style="font-size:88%"|3–2|-|Loss|32–19|align=left| Gadzhimurad Rashidov|style="font-size:88%"|0–6|-|Win|32–18|align=left| Besir Alili |style="font-size:88%"|Fall|-|Win|31–18|align=left| Danny Mayr|style="font-size:88%"|TF 16–0|style="font-size:88%"|November 25, 2023|style="font-size:88%"|2023 KG Baienfurt/Ravensburg – AC Lichtenfels (71 kg)|style="text-align:left;font-size:88%;" rowspan=6| Germany|-|Win|30–18|align=left| Magomed Kartojev|style="font-size:88%"|8–2|style="font-size:88%"|November 18, 2023|style="font-size:88%"|2023 AC Lichtenfels – SV Wacker Burghausen (71 kg)|-|Win|29–18|align=left| Dawid Volny|style="font-size:88%"|7–0|style="font-size:88%"|November 4, 2023|style="font-size:88%"|2023 ASV Schorndorf – AC Lichtenfels (71 kg)|-|Loss|28–18|align=left| Nicolai Grahmez|style="font-size:88%"|1–9|style="font-size:88%"|October 21, 2023|style="font-size:88%"|2023 AC Lichtenfels – RSV Rotation Greiz (75 kg)|-|Win|28–17|align=left| Roman Walters|style="font-size:88%"|TF 17–0|style="font-size:88%"|October 2, 2023|style="font-size:88%"|2023 AC Lichtenfels – AV Germania Markneukirchen (66 kg)|-|Loss|27–17|align=left| Islam Dudaev|style="font-size:88%"|2–10|style="font-size:88%"|September 30, 2023|style="font-size:88%"|2023 AC Lichtenfels – ASV Schorndorf (66 kg)|-! style=background:white colspan=7 | |-|Loss|27–16|align=left| Lachlan McNeil|style="font-size:88%"|3–5|style="font-size:88%"|July 13, 2023|style="font-size:88%"|2023 Polyák Imre & Varga János Memorial|style="text-align:left;font-size:88%;"| Budapest, Hungary|-! style=background:white colspan=7 | |-|Loss|26–15|align=left| Peiman Biabani|style="font-size:88%"|1–3|style="font-size:88%" rowspan=2|June 15–17, 2023|style="font-size:88%" rowspan=2|2023 Stepan Sargsyan Cup|style="text-align:left;font-size:88%;" rowspan=2| Yerevan, Armenia|-|Win|26–14|align=left| Timur Aitkulov|style="font-size:88%"|11–10|-! style=background:white colspan=7 | |-|Win|25–14|align=left| Niklas Dorn|style="font-size:88%"|6–1|style="font-size:88%" rowspan=3|June 8–11, 2023|style="font-size:88%" rowspan=3|2023 Deutsche Meisterschaft Männer|style="text-align:left;font-size:88%;" rowspan=3| Heidelberg, Germany|-|Win|24–14|align=left| Victor Lyzen|style="font-size:88%"|4–0|-|Win|23–14|align=left| Alexander Semisorow|style="font-size:88%"|6–4|-! style=background:white colspan=7 | |-|Loss|22–14|align=left| Erik Arushanian|style="font-size:88%"|2–2|style="font-size:88%" rowspan=2|April 17, 2023|style="font-size:88%" rowspan=2|2023 European Continental Championships|style="text-align:left;font-size:88%;" rowspan=2| Zagreb, Croatia|-|Win|22–13|align=left| Colin Realbuto|style="font-size:88%"|3–0|-! style=background:white colspan=7 | |-|Win|21–13|align=left| Niklas Dorn|style="font-size:88%"|6–0|style="font-size:88%" rowspan=2|April 1–2, 2023|style="font-size:88%" rowspan=2|2023 German World Team Trials|style="text-align:left;font-size:88%;" rowspan=2| Germany|-|Win|20–13|align=left| Niklas Dorn|style="font-size:88%"|4–0|-! style=background:white colspan=7 | |-|Loss|19–13|align=left| Pat Lugo|style="font-size:88%"|0–7|style="font-size:88%" rowspan=4|January 20–22, 2023|style="font-size:88%" rowspan=4|Grand Prix de France Henri Deglane 2023|style="text-align:left;font-size:88%;" rowspan=4| Nice, France|-|Win|19–12|align=left| Evan Henderson|style="font-size:88%"|10–8|-|Win|18–12|align=left| Ridge Lovett|style="font-size:88%"|4–1|-|Win|17–12|align=left| Quentin Sticker|style="font-size:88%"|TF 11–0|-! style=background:white colspan=7 | |-|Loss|16–12|align=left| Mitch McKee|style="font-size:88%"|TF 1–12|style="font-size:88%" rowspan=4|March 27, 2021|style="font-size:88%" rowspan=4|2021 US Last Chance Olympic Trials Qualifier|style="text-align:left;font-size:88%;" rowspan=4| Fort Worth, Texas|-|Loss|16–11|align=left| Evan Henderson|style="font-size:88%"|TF 2–13|-|Win|16–10|align=left| Dean Heil|style="font-size:88%"|9–2|-|Win|15–10|align=left| Mitch McKee|style="font-size:88%"|TF 14–4|-! style=background:white colspan=7 | |-|Loss|14–10|align=left| Max Murin|style="font-size:88%"|TF 0–10|style="font-size:88%" rowspan=6|November 13–15, 2020|style="font-size:88%" rowspan=6|2020 U23 US National Championships|style="text-align:left;font-size:88%;" rowspan=6| Omaha, Nebraska|-|Win|14–9|align=left| Clay Carlson|style="font-size:88%"|TF 10–0|-|Loss|13–9|align=left| Don Demas|style="font-size:88%"|3–5|-|Win|13–8|align=left| Cael Happel|style="font-size:88%"|TF 10–0|-|Win|12–8|align=left| James Emmer|style="font-size:88%"|TF 10–0|-|Win|11–8|align=left| Tony Mendoza|style="font-size:88%"|TF 11–0|-! style=background:white colspan=7 | |-|Loss|10–8|align=left| Benjamin Lamantia|style="font-size:88%"|TF 0–11|style="font-size:88%" rowspan=7|June 1–3, 2019|style="font-size:88%" rowspan=7|2019 U23 US World Team Trials Challenge|style="text-align:left;font-size:88%;" rowspan=7| Akron, Ohio|-|Win|10–7|align=left| Mike Van Brill|style="font-size:88%"|5–1|-|Win|9–7|align=left| Seth Hogue|style="font-size:88%"|7–6|-|Win|8–7|align=left| Anthony Scantlin|style="font-size:88%"|TF 10–0|-|Loss|7–7|align=left| Kendall Coleman|style="font-size:88%"|3–7|-|Win|7–6|align=left| Benjamin Brancale|style="font-size:88%"|8–6|-|Win|6–6|align=left| Kevin Budock|style="font-size:88%"|TF 12–1|-! style=background:white colspan=7 | |-|Loss|5–6|align=left| Jake Keating|style="font-size:88%"|TF 1–12|style="font-size:88%" rowspan=4|April 23–26, 2019|style="font-size:88%" rowspan=4|2019 US Open National Championships|style="text-align:left;font-size:88%;" rowspan=4| Las Vegas, Nevada|-|Win|5–5|align=left| Zehlin Storr|style="font-size:88%"|6–1|-|Loss|4–5|align=left| Jason Nolf|style="font-size:88%"|TF 0–10|-|Win|4–4|align=left| Carlos Herrera|style="font-size:88%"|TF 14–2|-! style=background:white colspan=7 | |-|Loss|3–4|align=left| Matthew Kolodzik|style="font-size:88%"|2–6|style="font-size:88%" rowspan=4|June 1–3, 2018|style="font-size:88%" rowspan=4|2018 U23 US World Team Trials Challenge|style="text-align:left;font-size:88%;" rowspan=4| Akron, Ohio|-|Loss|3–3|align=left| Hayden Hidlay|style="font-size:88%"|TF 0–10|-|Win|3–2|align=left| Austin Singer|style="font-size:88%"|TF 10–0|-|Win|2–2|align=left| Sammy Peticos|style="font-size:88%"|TF 10–0|-! style=background:white colspan=7 | |-|Loss|1–2|align=left| Josh Reyes|style="font-size:88%"|TF 0–10|style="font-size:88%" rowspan=3|April 24–28, 2018|style="font-size:88%" rowspan=3|2018 US Open National Championships|style="text-align:left;font-size:88%;" rowspan=3| Las Vegas, Nevada|-|Win|1–1|align=left| Jacob Hatley|style="font-size:88%"|TF 10–0|-|Loss|0–1|align=left| Matthew Kolodzik|style="font-size:88%"|TF 5–16|-

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Clarke To Compete In European Championships . 2024-03-09 . University of North Carolina Athletics . en.
  2. Web site: 2024-03-06 . March 2024 International Men's Freestyle Rankings . 2024-03-09 . THE FIGHT SITE . en-US.
  3. Web site: Lawyer in the Making: Unlocking Ki Zhan Clarke . 2024-03-09 . American University . en.
  4. Web site: Riverview's Kizhan Clarke makes a name for himself in wrestling . 2024-03-09 . Tampa Bay Times . en.
  5. Web site: Kizhan Clarke – 2020–21 – Wrestling . 2024-03-09 . American University . en.
  6. Web site: These are the wrestlers outside the top 10 we might see make the NCAA finals NCAA.com . 2024-03-09 . www.ncaa.com . en.
  7. Web site: 2019-11-23 . Kizhan Clarke Remains Undefeated, Leads Wrestling at Navy Classic . 2024-03-09 . American University . en.
  8. Web site: Goodwin . Cody . NCAA cancels Division I, II, III wrestling championships amid COVID-19 pandemic . 2024-03-09 . The Des Moines Register . en-US.
  9. Web site: Bray . David . 2020-11-09 . Who's Registered For 2020 UWW Jr & U23 Nationals? . 2024-03-09 . FloWrestling . en.
  10. Web site: UNC Wrestling Adds Kizhan Clarke For 2021–22 Season . 2024-03-09 . University of North Carolina Athletics . en.
  11. Web site: Hamilton . Andy . 2022-03-29 . Overcomers: Kizhan Clarke Laid Down The Law During Run To NCAA Finals . 2024-03-09 . FloWrestling . en.
  12. Web site: NJ.com . Bill Evans NJ Advance Media for . 2022-03-18 . NCAA Wrestling Championships, 2022: 8 N.J. wrestlers reach quarterfinals . 2024-03-09 . nj . en.
  13. Web site: 2022-03-18 . Pitt's Cole Matthews Earns NCAA All-America Status . 2024-03-09 . Pitt Panthers #H2P . en.
  14. Web site: Clarke Caps Off Season With Runner Up Finish . 2024-03-09 . University of North Carolina Athletics . en.
  15. Web site: 2023-02-20 . American Men's Freestyle Rankings – February 20th, 2023 . 2024-03-09 . InterMat . en-US.
  16. Web site: Kizhan Clarke To Compete In European Wrestling Championships . 2024-03-09 . Tar Heel Times.
  17. Web site: admin . 2023-04-28 . 3x Bronze für ACL-Eagles . 2024-03-09 . AC Lichtenfels – Bundesliga Ringen . de-DE.
  18. Web site: admin . 2023-06-12 . Gold für Hannes Wagner und Kizhan Clarke . 2024-03-09 . AC Lichtenfels – Bundesliga Ringen . de-DE.
  19. Web site: Stepan Sargsyan Cup 2023 wrestling . 2024-03-09 . uww.org . en.
  20. Web site: jeandaniel . Polyák Imre & Varga János Memorial . 2024-03-09 . United World Wrestling . en.
  21. Web site: admin . 2023-11-26 . 22:5 Sieg in Baienfurt. Revanche geglückt! . 2024-03-09 . AC Lichtenfels – Bundesliga Ringen . de-DE.
  22. Web site: admin . 2024-02-19 . 4 Medaillen bei der Europameisterschaft . 2024-03-09 . AC Lichtenfels – Bundesliga Ringen . de-DE.
  23. Web site: 2024 European Wrestling Olympic Qualification Tournament Results Book . https://web.archive.org/web/20240408164811/https://cdn.uww.org/2024-04/final-book-seniors_european_og_qualifier.pdf . 8 April 2024 . 8 April 2024 . United World Wrestling.

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