Kyoko Hamaguchi won her first title in three years while Kaori Icho and Saori Yoshida claimed their first-ever gold Sunday as Japan took three of the seven weight classes at the Women's Wrestling World Championships. Hamaguchi, fresh from winning the Asian Games title a month ago, outpointed China's Wang Xu 5-1 in the 72-kg final to return to the top of the podium following her three-year reign from 1997.
"From the moment I grappled with Wang, I was sure I was going to win. I was able to keep my cool and show what I've done in practice," Hamaguchi said.
Yoshida downed Tina George of the United States 10-4 to seal the 55-kg title, while Icho went one better than her silver-medal performance at the Asian Games in South Korea, pinning Sweden's Sara Eriksson 4 minutes, 38 seconds into the 63-kg final.