ITHACA, N.Y. — Two members of Cornell wrestling's incoming freshman class competed on the international stage this past weekend at the U20 World Championships in Slovakia, as Isaiah Cortez captured a silver medal at 57 kg in freestyle and Alessio Perentin placed fifth at 74 kg while representing Italy.
Cortez earned his second career U20 World silver medal on Saturday, capping a tremendous freestyle season with a runner-up finish at 57 kg. The incoming freshman previously won silver at the 2024 U20 World Championships in Greco-Roman and added another medal to his international resume in his first U20 World Championships competing in freestyle.
Perentin followed on Sunday in his first international competition representing Italy, taking fifth at 74 kg. The incoming freshman opened the day with a pair of victories, earning a 10-0 technical fall before securing a win by pin to advance to the bronze medal match. Perentin ultimately fell, 10-5, to Kazakhstan's Seibelkov, the reigning U20 and U23 Asian champion, in the bout for bronze.
"I'm very proud of both Isaiah and Alessio's efforts in Slovakia," said Mike Grey, The David Dunlop '59 Head Coach of Wrestling. "Their commitment to the process of becoming world champions this summer is going to help propel them forward this upcoming college season. While they didn't achieve their ultimate goal this weekend, their championship standard was on full display in every match. I'm excited to see the great impact they will have on our team this season."
Cortez and Perentin will now turn their attention to their first collegiate season with the Big Red, bringing valuable experience from the international stage to a Cornell program looking to build on another strong campaign in 2026-27.
