# Kotaro Kiyooka

Kotaro Kiyooka (清岡幸大郎, Kiyooka Kotaro, born 12 April 2001) is a Japanese freestyle wrestler who competes in the 65 kilogram class. He represented Japan at the 2024 Summer Olympics, where he became the reigning Olympic champion. He qualified by reaching the finals at the 2024 Asian Olympic Qualification Tournament and by winning the Olympic national trials, where he defeated World and Olympic champion Takuto Otoguro.

## Early life

Kiyooka was born in Kōchi Prefecture, where he started wrestling at an early age. He attended Kochi Minami High School. During his teenage years, he won medals at multiple Japan National tournaments in different age-groups.

## Career
### 2018–2020

While still a high school student, Kiyooka placed fifth at the Emperor's Cup in 2018, and third in 2019 in the 57 kilogram class. After graduating, he started attending the Nippon Sport Science University in 2020 and reached fifth place at the Emperor's Cup that year in the 61 kilogram class.

### 2021–2022

In 2021, Kiyooka reached second place at the Meiji Cup and fifth at the Emperor's Cup. In 2022, he moved up to the 65 kilogram class, reaching third place at the Meiji Cup and the Emperor's Cup.

### 2023

Competing outside Japan for the first time in his career, Kiyooka won the championship at the Dan Kolov & Nikola Petrov Tournament, defeating returning champion Islam Dudaev, Olympian Agustín Destribats and U23 World finalist Mikyay Naim.
He then qualified for the U23 World Championships by winning the trials, before a seventh-place finish at the Meiji Cup. At the U23 World Championships, Kiyooka reached ninth place.
At the Emperor's Cup, Kiyooka stunned World and returning Olympic champion Takuto Otoguro to reach the finals before claiming the championship, qualifying for the 2024 Asian Olympic Qualification Tournament.

### 2024

At the qualifier, he defeated U23 European finalist Abdulmazhid Kudiev, Olympian Yun Jun-sik and Yuan Shaohua to reach the Olympic quota. He thus represented Japan at the 2024 Summer Olympics.
In June, Kiyooka entered the Polyák Imre & Varga János Memorial Tournament, where after a first-round loss to three-time World champion Haji Aliyev, he rebounded with victories over reigning World champion Ismail Musukaev, NCAA finalist and fellow Olympian Austin Gomez, and Abbas Ebrahimzade, winning gold.
In August, Kiyooka made his Olympic debut at the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris. On the first day, he opened up with a technical fall over Maxim Saculțan from Moldova, followed by hard-fought victories over returning World finalist Sebastian Rivera from Puerto Rico and Asian Games champion Tömör-Ochiryn Tulga from Mongolia, cruising to the finals and securing a medal. In the gold-medal bout, he defeated World champion Rahman Amouzad from Iran, becoming the Olympic champion at the age of 23.
Throughout October and November, Kiyooka competed in the Bundesliga, in Germany, for club KSC Hösbach. He recorded a 4–1 record for them, shifting between the 66, 71 and 75 kilogram weight classes.

## Freestyle record

Senior Freestyle Matches :
| Res. | Record | Opponent | Score | Date | Event | Location |
| Win | 42–15 | Andriy Shyyka | 6–0 | November 23, 2024 | 2024 KSV Köllerbach – KSC Hösbach (75 kg) | Germany |
| Win | 41–15 | Ibrahim Guzan | TF 15–0 | November 16, 2024 | 2024 KSC Hösbach – ASV Mainz 88 (66 kg) | Germany |
| Win | 40–15 | Vasile Diacon | 9–2 | November 9, 2024 | 2024 KSC Hösbach – SC Kleinostheim (75 kg) | Germany |
| Win | 39–15 | Saba Bolaghi | Fall | November 2, 2024 | 2024 KSC Hösbach – SC Kleinostheim (66 kg) | Germany |
| Win | 38–15 | Alexander Semisorow | TF 18–2 | October 19, 2024 | 2024 ASV Mainz 88 – KSC Hösbach (71 kg) | Germany |
| Loss | 37–15 | Nachyn Kuular | 8–8 | October 12, 2024 | 2024 SC Kleinostheim – KSC Hösbach (71 kg) | Germany |
| 2024 Summer Olympics at 65 kg |||||||
| Win | 37–14 | Rahman Amouzad | 10–3 | August 11, 2024 | 2024 Summer Olympics | Paris, France |
| Win | 36–14 | Tömör-Ochiryn Tulga | 5–1 | August 10, 2024 | 2024 Summer Olympics | Paris, France |
| Win | 35–14 | Sebastian Rivera | 8–6 | August 10, 2024 | 2024 Summer Olympics | Paris, France |
| Win | 34–14 | Maxim Saculțan | TF 10–0 | August 10, 2024 | 2024 Summer Olympics | Paris, France |
| 2024 Polyák Imre & Varga János Memorial at 65 kg |||||||
| Win | 33–14 | Abbas Ebrahimzade | 12–8 | June 6, 2024 | 2024 Polyák Imre & Varga János Memorial | Budapest, Hungary |
| Win | 32–14 | Austin Gomez | 12–6 | June 6, 2024 | 2024 Polyák Imre & Varga János Memorial | Budapest, Hungary |
| Win | 31–14 | Ismail Musukaev | 7–2 | June 6, 2024 | 2024 Polyák Imre & Varga János Memorial | Budapest, Hungary |
| Loss | 30–14 | Haji Aliyev | 2–5 | June 6, 2024 | 2024 Polyák Imre & Varga János Memorial | Budapest, Hungary |
| 2024 Asian Olympic Qualification Tournament at 65 kg |||||||
| Win | 30–13 | Yuan Shaohua | TF 11–0 | April 19, 2024 | 2024 Asian Olympic Qualification Tournament | Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan |
| Win | 29–13 | Yun Jun-sik | TF 10–0 | April 19, 2024 | 2024 Asian Olympic Qualification Tournament | Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan |
| Win | 28–13 | Abdulmazhid Kudiev | 10–7 | April 19, 2024 | 2024 Asian Olympic Qualification Tournament | Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan |
| 2023 Japan Nationals at 65 kg |||||||
| Win | 27–13 | Masanosuke Ono | TF 11–0 | December 21–24, 2023 | 2023 Japan National Championships – Emperor's Cup | Tokyo, Japan |
| Win | 26–13 | Takuto Otoguro | 6–6 | December 21–24, 2023 | 2023 Japan National Championships – Emperor's Cup | Tokyo, Japan |
| Win | 25–13 | Kaiki Yamaguchi | 2–1 | December 21–24, 2023 | 2023 Japan National Championships – Emperor's Cup | Tokyo, Japan |
| Win | 24–13 | Yuto Miwa | 11–3 | December 21–24, 2023 | 2023 Japan National Championships – Emperor's Cup | Tokyo, Japan |
| Win | 23–13 | Toshihiro Hasegawa | TF 11–0 | December 21–24, 2023 | 2023 Japan National Championships – Emperor's Cup | Tokyo, Japan |
| 2023 U23 World Championships 9th at 65 kg |||||||
| Loss | 22–13 | Omar Mourad | Fall | October 24, 2023 | 2023 U23 World Championships | Tirana, Albania |
| Win | 22–12 | Andranik Avetisyan | Fall | October 24, 2023 | 2023 U23 World Championships | Tirana, Albania |
| 2023 Japan Nationals 7th at 65 kg |||||||
| Loss | 21–12 | Kaiki Yamaguchi | 1–2 | June 15–18, 2023 | 2023 Japan National Championships – Meiji Cup | Tokyo, Japan |
| 2023 JPN U23 World Team Trials at 65 kg |||||||
| Win | 21–11 | Suwama Shotaro | 3–0 | April 22, 2023 | 2023 U23 World Championships Japan National Team Qualifier | Fujimi, Saitama |
| Win | 20–11 | Kanta Tokuriki | 7–0 | April 22, 2023 | 2023 U23 World Championships Japan National Team Qualifier | Fujimi, Saitama |
| 2023 Dan Kolov & Nikola Petrov at 65 kg |||||||
| Win | 19–11 | Islam Dudaev | 7–6 | March 3, 2023 | 2023 Dan Kolov & Nikola Petrov Tournament | Sofia, Bulgaria |
| Win | 18–11 | Marwane Yezza | 6–2 | March 3, 2023 | 2023 Dan Kolov & Nikola Petrov Tournament | Sofia, Bulgaria |
| Win | 17–11 | Agustín Destribats | 7–6 | March 3, 2023 | 2023 Dan Kolov & Nikola Petrov Tournament | Sofia, Bulgaria |
| Win | 16–11 | Amir-Ali Asad | TF 11–0 | March 3, 2023 | 2023 Dan Kolov & Nikola Petrov Tournament | Sofia, Bulgaria |
| Win | 15–11 | Mikyay Naim | TF 14–3 | March 3, 2023 | 2023 Dan Kolov & Nikola Petrov Tournament | Sofia, Bulgaria |
| 2022 Japan Nationals at 65 kg |||||||
| Win | 14–11 | Yujiro Ueno | 14–6 | December 22–25, 2022 | 2022 Japan National Championships – Emperor's Cup | Tokyo, Japan |
| Loss | 13–11 | Ryoma Anraku | 2–3 | December 22–25, 2022 | 2022 Japan National Championships – Emperor's Cup | Tokyo, Japan |
| Win | 13–10 | Yuuma Tomiyama | 9–2 | December 22–25, 2022 | 2022 Japan National Championships – Emperor's Cup | Tokyo, Japan |
| 2022 Japan Nationals at 65 kg |||||||
| Win | 12–10 | Suwama Shotaro | TF 17–6 | June 16–19, 2022 | 2022 Japan National Championships – Meiji Cup | Tokyo, Japan |
| Win | 11–10 | Aoyagi Yoshinosuke | 4–2 | June 16–19, 2022 | 2022 Japan National Championships – Meiji Cup | Tokyo, Japan |
| Loss | 10–10 | Kaiki Yamaguchi | 1–8 | June 16–19, 2022 | 2022 Japan National Championships – Meiji Cup | Tokyo, Japan |
| Win | 10–9 | Taiki Tsutsumi | 3–0 | June 16–19, 2022 | 2022 Japan National Championships – Meiji Cup | Tokyo, Japan |
| 2021 Japan Nationals 5th at 61 kg |||||||
| Loss | 9–9 | Kodai Ogawa | 4–4 | December 16–19, 2021 | 2021 Japan National Championships – Emperor's Cup | Tokyo, Japan |
| Loss | 9–8 | Rei Higuchi | 1–2 | December 16–19, 2021 | 2021 Japan National Championships – Emperor's Cup | Tokyo, Japan |
| Win | 9–7 | Fukami Kotetsu | TF 10–0 | December 16–19, 2021 | 2021 Japan National Championships – Emperor's Cup | Tokyo, Japan |
| 2021 Japan Nationals at 61 kg |||||||
| Loss | 8–7 | Toshihiro Hasegawa | 1–6 | May 27–30, 2021 | 2021 Japan National Championships – Meiji Cup | Tokyo, Japan |
| Win | 8–6 | Kodai Ogawa | 7–4 | May 27–30, 2021 | 2021 Japan National Championships – Meiji Cup | Tokyo, Japan |
| Win | 7–6 | Wataru Tadano | TF 11–0 | May 27–30, 2021 | 2021 Japan National Championships – Meiji Cup | Tokyo, Japan |
| 2020 Japan Nationals 5th at 61 kg |||||||
| Loss | 6–6 | Toshihiro Hasegawa | TF 1–12 | December 17–20, 2018 | 2020 Japan National Championships – Emperor's Cup | Tokyo, Japan |
| Loss | 6–5 | Kodai Ogawa | 1–7 | December 17–20, 2018 | 2020 Japan National Championships – Emperor's Cup | Tokyo, Japan |
| 2019 Japan Nationals at 57 kg |||||||
| Win | 6–4 | Taiki Arinobu | 8–4 | December 19–22, 2019 | 2019 Japan National Championships – Emperor's Cup | Tokyo, Japan |
| Loss | 5–4 | Yuki Takahashi | TF 1–11 | December 19–22, 2019 | 2019 Japan National Championships – Emperor's Cup | Tokyo, Japan |
| Win | 5–3 | Iwasawa Kan | TF 12–1 | December 19–22, 2019 | 2019 Japan National Championships – Emperor's Cup | Tokyo, Japan |
| Win | 4–3 | Daiki Araki | 12–3 | December 19–22, 2019 | 2019 Japan National Championships – Emperor's Cup | Tokyo, Japan |
| Win | 3–3 | Suwama Shotaro | 4–1 | December 19–22, 2019 | 2019 Japan National Championships – Emperor's Cup | Tokyo, Japan |
| 2019 Japan Nationals 8th at 57 kg |||||||
| Loss | 2–3 | Daiki Araki | 3–4 | June 13–16, 2019 | 2019 Japan National Championships – Meiji Cup | Tokyo, Japan |
| 2018 Japan Nationals 5th at 57 kg |||||||
| Loss | 2–2 | Daiki Araki | 1–3 | December 20–23, 2018 | 2018 Japan National Championships – Emperor's Cup | Tokyo, Japan |
| Loss | 2–1 | Yuki Takahashi | 0–7 | December 20–23, 2018 | 2018 Japan National Championships – Emperor's Cup | Tokyo, Japan |
| Win | 2–0 | Rikuto Arai | 2–2 | December 20–23, 2018 | 2018 Japan National Championships – Emperor's Cup | Tokyo, Japan |
| Win | 1–0 | Taiki Arinobu | TF 12–2 | December 20–23, 2018 | 2018 Japan National Championships – Emperor's Cup | Tokyo, Japan |