Beat the Streets New York Wrestling alumni shine at 2026 U.S. Open Championships

Arseni Kikiniou led the group by capturing both the U17 freestyle and Greco-Roman U.S. Open titles.

A trio of Beat the Streets New York Wrestling alumni climbed their way up the podium at the 2026 U.S. Open Championships at The Expo at World Market Center in Las Vegas, earning All-America honors with top-four finishes.

Adrian Artsisheuskiy, Aliaksandr Kikiniou Jr. and Arseni Kikiniou each had strong performances at one of the nation's premier Olympic-style wrestling events. All three started to develop their skills competing in Beat the Streets Junior League tournaments with Elite Wrestling Academy in Brooklyn. The BTS Junior League is New York City's only elementary and middle school wrestling program, offering boys and girls the opportunity to learn fundamentals and test their skills in competition.

Arseni led the group by capturing both the U17 freestyle and Greco-Roman U.S. Open titles at 65 kilograms to make his second consecutive U17 U.S. World Championship Team. He earned silver in freestyle and bronze in Greco-Roman at the 2025 U17 Worlds and will compete at this year's U17 Worlds, which is set for July 17 to August 2 in Baku, Azerbaijan.

At the U.S. Open, Arseni was named the U17 Greco-Roman Most Outstanding Wrestler for his performance which included six technical falls, with two in his best-of-three championship series. In freestyle, he had five technical falls then two wins by decision in the best-of-three championship series.

Artisisheuskiy (82 kg) and Aliaksandr (72 kg) each competed in the Senior Greco-Roman division, advancing to the semifinals before falling to the eventual champions in their respective weight class.

Artsisheuskiy had a 10-2 technical fall in 1:19 and 8-2 decision to reach the semifinals, where he fell 5-0 to Kamal Bey. He rebounded with a 2-2 decision win on criteria then a 9-0 technical fall in 1:48 over James Foy to secure third place and a spot on the U.S. National Team.

Aliaksandr scored two technical falls (8-0 in 1:08, 11-1 in 5:18) before falling 7-0 to Benjamin Peak in the semifinals. Aliaksandr responded with a 4-1 decision to make the third-place match, where he fell 6-2 to Brett Back for fourth place.

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BTS Academy alumni Amir Avazov (70kg) and Oumar Tounkara (57kg) also picked up wins in U20 freestyle. Tounkara had a 12-0 technical fall in 1:01 and a 13-10 decision then dropped his next two bouts. Avazov had a 54-second fall for his lone victory.

Avazov of Brooklyn and Tounkara of The Bronx are currently competing at the NCAA Division 1 level, the highest caliber of men's college wrestling in the country. Avazov is at Long Island University, while Tounkara is at Drexel University.

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About Beat the Streets New York  

Beat the Streets Wrestling is a nonprofit organization dedicated to developing the full human and athletic potential of New York City’s urban youth through the sport of wrestling. Beat the Streets has pioneered a movement that now includes 110 individual wrestling programs, a youth league and the first girls high school league. Through wrestling, Beat the Streets instills discipline, perseverance, self-reliance, humility, and a strong work ethic, creating lifelong impact for more than 4,000 student-athletes while strengthening NYC’s wrestling culture. To learn more and support the mission, visit btsny.org/donate and follow Beat the Streets on Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn and X.