Penn State wrestler Aaron Brooks rolls to U23 World Championship
UNIVERSITY PARK, PA – Penn State Nittany Lion wrestler Aaron Brooks represented Penn State and Team USA at the United World Wrestling U23 World Championships in Tirana, Albania, on Tuesday and Wednesday. Brooks went 5-0 at 86 kg to win the U23 crown and become World Champion.
Brooks began the tournament with three impressive wins on Tuesday to advance to the semifinals. He posted a win over Turkey’s Ismail Kucuksolak and then rolled to a 10-0 technical fall over Owen James Martin of Canada. He then notched a quarterfinal victory over Moldova’s Ivan Ichizli to advance to the semifinals, going 4-0 on day one.
Brooks took on Arslan Bagaev of the Individual Neutral Athletes in the semis and worked his way to a 5-4 win. He met Tatsuya Shirai of Japan in the title bout on Wednesday. In Wednesday’s final against Shirai, Brooks opened up a 2-0 lead one minute into the first period. He dominated the opening period, notching a total of three takedowns, one four-pointer and a leg lace to end the bout, posting the 10-0 tech fall to win his world title.
Brooks is a four-time All-American and three-time NCAA Champion at 184 pounds. He returns for his final season this year when Penn State begins the new campaign.
The Nittany Lions open the 2023-24 campaign by taking part in the Journeymen Collegiate Classic on Sunday, Nov. 12. The round-robin individual event will take place at Freedom High School in Bethlehem, Pa. Penn State is coming off a season that saw it win its 10th NCAA National Championship under head coach Cael Sanderson (and the 11th in school history). The Nittany Lions also won the Big Ten Championship, the Big Ten Regular Season Championship and finished the year with a 16-0 dual meet record, 8-0 in the Big Ten.
