Kizhan Clarke

Kizhan Andre Clarke (born 16 December 1997) is a German-American freestyle wrestler who competes internationally at 65 kilograms. He was a medalist at the European Championship and the Grand Prix Henri Deglane, and was also a NCAA Division I National runner-up out of the University of North Carolina.

High school
Clarke was born in Wiesbaden, Germany to an American father and a German mother, and moved to Dallas, Texas at the age of one before moving to Florida in seventh grade. He started wrestling as a freshman at Riverview High School in Riverview, Florida, and became a state champion and two-time finalist before graduating.

2016–2017
Clarke wore a redshirt during his first year wrestling for the American Eagles, winning over 30 matches and placing at six tournaments.

2017–2018
Clarke went 16–13 as the team's starter at 141 pounds, and was unable to place at the EIWA Championships or qualify for the NCAA's. After the season, he competed in freestyle at the US Open and the U23 US World Team Trials, but was unable to place.

2018–2019
Clarke then moved up to 157 pounds, recording a 26–13 record and placing seventh at the EIWA Championships, though missing a trip to NCAA's. After the season, he once again competed at the US Open and the U23 US World Team Trials though was unable to place.

2019–2020
Dropping down to 149 pounds, Clarke improved to a 35–7 record, placed fourth at the EIWA Championships and qualified for the NCAA tournament. However, the tournament was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. In November 2020, Clarke went 4–2 at the US U23 National Championships but was unable to place.

2021–2022
In March 2021, Clarke went 2–2 at the US Last Chance Qualifier, failing to qualify for the US Olympic Team Trials.

After being unable to compete during the 2020–2021 season due to COVID-19 protocols, Clarke transferred to the University of North Carolina for his final year. Back down to 141, Clarke posted a 17–1 record during the regular season before going 0–2 at the ACC Championships, requiring an at-large berth to qualify for the NCAA tournament.

Ranked as the fifteenth-seed, Clarke avenged a loss suffered at the ACC Championship in the first round, and took out returning NCAA finalist Jaydin Eierman to advance to the quarterfinals. After beating the tenth-seed to reach the semi-finals, Clarke defeated the sixth-seed on ultimate tie-breaker to reach the finals. In the finals, Clarke fell to returning champion Nick Lee, though earned runner-up and All-American honors and closed his final year at 21–4.

2023
In January, Clarke returned to freestyle and represented Germany for the first time in international competition, at the Grand Prix de France Henri Deglane. He defeated fellow NCAA runner-up Ridge Lovett and veteran Evan Henderson to make the finals, where he was defeated by All-American Pat Lugo.

In April, Clarke defeated Niklas Dorn in a best-of-three wrestle-off to determine Germany's starter. He then went 1–1 at the European Championships, defeating Italy's Colin Realbuto though falling to U20 World Champion Erik Arushanian.

In June, Clarke became a German National champion with three wins over fellow countrymen. He then competed at the Stepan Sargsyan Cup in Armenia, defeating an opponent from Kazakhstan before falling to U20 World Champion Peiman Biabani. In July, he competed at the Polyák Imre & Varga János Memorial Tournament, though was eliminated by North Carolina teammate Lachlan McNeil.

From September to November, Clarke competed in the German Bundesliga, where he participated in six dual meets for AC Lichtenfels and emerged victorious in four of them.

2024
In February, Clarke earned a bronze medal from the European Continental Championships, with a notable victory over Individual World Cup and U23 World Champion Vazgen Tevanyan. He competed at the 2024 European Wrestling Olympic Qualification Tournament in Baku, Azerbaijan hoping to qualify for the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris, France. He was eliminated in his first match and he did not qualify for the Olympics.

Freestyle record
! colspan="7"| Senior Freestyle Matches ! Res. !  Record ! Opponent ! Score ! Date ! Event ! Location ! style=background:white colspan=7 |2024 World Olympic Qualification Tournament DNP at 65 kg 🇹🇷 Istanbul, Turkey ! style=background:white colspan=7 |2024 European Championships at 65 kg 🇷🇴 Bucharest, Romania 🇩🇪 Germany ! style=background:white colspan=7 |2023 Polyák Imre & Varga János Memorial 15th at 65 kg 🇭🇺 Budapest, Hungary ! style=background:white colspan=7 |2023 Stepan Sargsyan Cup 7th at 65 kg 🇦🇲 Yerevan, Armenia ! style=background:white colspan=7 |2023 German Nationals at 65 kg 🇩🇪 Heidelberg, Germany ! style=background:white colspan=7 |2023 European Championships 10th at 65 kg Zagreb, Croatia ! style=background:white colspan=7 |2023 German World Team Trials at 65 kg 🇩🇪 Germany ! style=background:white colspan=7 |2023 Henri Deglane Grand Prix at 65 kg 🇫🇷 Nice, France ! style=background:white colspan=7 |2021 US Last Chance DNP at 65 kg 🇺🇸 Fort Worth, Texas ! style=background:white colspan=7 |2020 U23 US Nationals 4th at 65 kg 🇺🇸 Omaha, Nebraska ! style=background:white colspan=7 |2019 U23 US World Team Trials DNP at 70 kg 🇺🇸 Akron, Ohio ! style=background:white colspan=7 |2019 US Open DNP at 70 kg 🇺🇸 Las Vegas, Nevada ! style=background:white colspan=7 |2018 U23 US World Team Trials DNP at 70 kg 🇺🇸 Akron, Ohio ! style=background:white colspan=7 |2018 US Open DNP at 70 kg 🇺🇸 Las Vegas, Nevada
 * Loss
 * 34–20
 * align=left|🇰🇿 Adlan Askarov
 * style="font-size:88%"|3–6
 * style="font-size:88%"|May 11, 2024
 * style="font-size:88%"|2024 World Olympic Qualification Tournament
 * style="text-align:left;font-size:88%;"|
 * style="text-align:left;font-size:88%;"|
 * Win
 * 34–19
 * align=left| Goderdzi Dzebisashvili
 * style="font-size:88%"|5–3
 * style="font-size:88%" rowspan=4|February 16–17, 2024
 * style="font-size:88%" rowspan=4|2024 European Continental Championships
 * style="text-align:left;font-size:88%;" rowspan=4|
 * style="text-align:left;font-size:88%;" rowspan=4|
 * Win
 * 33–19
 * align=left|🇦🇲 Vazgen Tevanyan
 * style="font-size:88%"|3–2
 * Loss
 * 32–19
 * align=left|🇷🇺 Gadzhimurad Rashidov
 * style="font-size:88%"|0–6
 * Win
 * 32–18
 * align=left|🇲🇰 Besir Alili
 * style="font-size:88%"|Fall
 * Win
 * 31–18
 * align=left|🇩🇪 Danny Mayr
 * style="font-size:88%"|TF 16–0
 * style="font-size:88%"|November 25, 2023
 * style="font-size:88%"|2023 KG Baienfurt/Ravensburg – AC Lichtenfels (71 kg)
 * style="text-align:left;font-size:88%;" rowspan=6|
 * style="font-size:88%"|TF 16–0
 * style="font-size:88%"|November 25, 2023
 * style="font-size:88%"|2023 KG Baienfurt/Ravensburg – AC Lichtenfels (71 kg)
 * style="text-align:left;font-size:88%;" rowspan=6|
 * Win
 * 30–18
 * align=left|🇩🇪 Magomed Kartojev
 * style="font-size:88%"|8–2
 * style="font-size:88%"|November 18, 2023
 * style="font-size:88%"|2023 AC Lichtenfels – SV Wacker Burghausen (71 kg)
 * Win
 * 29–18
 * align=left|🇩🇪 Dawid Volny
 * style="font-size:88%"|7–0
 * style="font-size:88%"|November 4, 2023
 * style="font-size:88%"|2023 ASV Schorndorf – AC Lichtenfels (71 kg)
 * Loss
 * 28–18
 * align=left|🇲🇩 Nicolai Grahmez
 * style="font-size:88%"|1–9
 * style="font-size:88%"|October 21, 2023
 * style="font-size:88%"|2023 AC Lichtenfels – RSV Rotation Greiz (75 kg)
 * Win
 * 28–17
 * align=left|🇩🇪 Roman Walters
 * style="font-size:88%"|TF 17–0
 * style="font-size:88%"|October 2, 2023
 * style="font-size:88%"|2023 AC Lichtenfels – AV Germania Markneukirchen (66 kg)
 * Loss
 * 27–17
 * align=left|🇦🇱 Islam Dudaev
 * style="font-size:88%"|2–10
 * style="font-size:88%"|September 30, 2023
 * style="font-size:88%"|2023 AC Lichtenfels – ASV Schorndorf (66 kg)
 * 27–17
 * align=left|🇦🇱 Islam Dudaev
 * style="font-size:88%"|2–10
 * style="font-size:88%"|September 30, 2023
 * style="font-size:88%"|2023 AC Lichtenfels – ASV Schorndorf (66 kg)
 * Loss
 * 27–16
 * align=left|🇨🇦 Lachlan McNeil
 * style="font-size:88%"|3–5
 * style="font-size:88%"|July 13, 2023
 * style="font-size:88%"|2023 Polyák Imre & Varga János Memorial
 * style="text-align:left;font-size:88%;"|
 * style="text-align:left;font-size:88%;"|
 * Loss
 * 26–15
 * align=left| Peiman Biabani
 * style="font-size:88%"|1–3
 * style="font-size:88%" rowspan=2|June 15–17, 2023
 * style="font-size:88%" rowspan=2|2023 Stepan Sargsyan Cup
 * style="text-align:left;font-size:88%;" rowspan=2|
 * style="text-align:left;font-size:88%;" rowspan=2|
 * Win
 * 26–14
 * align=left|🇰🇿 Timur Aitkulov
 * style="font-size:88%"|11–10
 * style="font-size:88%"|11–10
 * Win
 * 25–14
 * align=left|🇩🇪 Niklas Dorn
 * style="font-size:88%"|6–1
 * style="font-size:88%" rowspan=3|June 8–11, 2023
 * style="font-size:88%" rowspan=3|2023 Deutsche Meisterschaft Männer
 * style="text-align:left;font-size:88%;" rowspan=3|
 * style="text-align:left;font-size:88%;" rowspan=3|
 * Win
 * 24–14
 * align=left|🇩🇪 Victor Lyzen
 * style="font-size:88%"|4–0
 * Win
 * 23–14
 * align=left|🇩🇪 Alexander Semisorow
 * style="font-size:88%"|6–4
 * align=left|🇩🇪 Alexander Semisorow
 * style="font-size:88%"|6–4
 * Loss
 * 22–14
 * align=left|🇺🇦 Erik Arushanian
 * style="font-size:88%"|2–2
 * style="font-size:88%" rowspan=2|April 17, 2023
 * style="font-size:88%" rowspan=2|2023 European Continental Championships
 * style="text-align:left;font-size:88%;" rowspan=2|
 * style="text-align:left;font-size:88%;" rowspan=2|
 * Win
 * 22–13
 * align=left|🇮🇹 Colin Realbuto
 * style="font-size:88%"|3–0
 * style="font-size:88%"|3–0
 * Win
 * 21–13
 * align=left|🇩🇪 Niklas Dorn
 * style="font-size:88%"|6–0
 * style="font-size:88%" rowspan=2|April 1–2, 2023
 * style="font-size:88%" rowspan=2|2023 German World Team Trials
 * style="text-align:left;font-size:88%;" rowspan=2|
 * style="text-align:left;font-size:88%;" rowspan=2|
 * Win
 * 20–13
 * align=left|🇩🇪 Niklas Dorn
 * style="font-size:88%"|4–0
 * style="font-size:88%"|4–0
 * Loss
 * 19–13
 * align=left|🇺🇸 Pat Lugo
 * style="font-size:88%"|0–7
 * style="font-size:88%" rowspan=4|January 20–22, 2023
 * style="font-size:88%" rowspan=4|Grand Prix de France Henri Deglane 2023
 * style="text-align:left;font-size:88%;" rowspan=4|
 * style="text-align:left;font-size:88%;" rowspan=4|
 * Win
 * 19–12
 * align=left|🇺🇸 Evan Henderson
 * style="font-size:88%"|10–8
 * Win
 * 18–12
 * align=left|🇺🇸 Ridge Lovett
 * style="font-size:88%"|4–1
 * Win
 * 17–12
 * align=left|🇫🇷 Quentin Sticker
 * style="font-size:88%"|TF 11–0
 * 17–12
 * align=left|🇫🇷 Quentin Sticker
 * style="font-size:88%"|TF 11–0
 * Loss
 * 16–12
 * align=left|🇺🇸 Mitch McKee
 * style="font-size:88%"|TF 1–12
 * style="font-size:88%" rowspan=4|March 27, 2021
 * style="font-size:88%" rowspan=4|2021 US Last Chance Olympic Trials Qualifier
 * style="text-align:left;font-size:88%;" rowspan=4|
 * style="text-align:left;font-size:88%;" rowspan=4|
 * Loss
 * 16–11
 * align=left|🇺🇸 Evan Henderson
 * style="font-size:88%"|TF 2–13
 * Win
 * 16–10
 * align=left|🇺🇸 Dean Heil
 * style="font-size:88%"|9–2
 * Win
 * 15–10
 * align=left|🇺🇸 Mitch McKee
 * style="font-size:88%"|TF 14–4
 * 15–10
 * align=left|🇺🇸 Mitch McKee
 * style="font-size:88%"|TF 14–4
 * Loss
 * 14–10
 * align=left|🇺🇸 Max Murin
 * style="font-size:88%"|TF 0–10
 * style="font-size:88%" rowspan=6|November 13–15, 2020
 * style="font-size:88%" rowspan=6|2020 U23 US National Championships
 * style="text-align:left;font-size:88%;" rowspan=6|
 * style="text-align:left;font-size:88%;" rowspan=6|
 * Win
 * 14–9
 * align=left|🇺🇸 Clay Carlson
 * style="font-size:88%"|TF 10–0
 * Loss
 * 13–9
 * align=left|🇺🇸 Don Demas
 * style="font-size:88%"|3–5
 * Win
 * 13–8
 * align=left|🇺🇸 Cael Happel
 * style="font-size:88%"|TF 10–0
 * Win
 * 12–8
 * align=left|🇺🇸 James Emmer
 * style="font-size:88%"|TF 10–0
 * Win
 * 11–8
 * align=left|🇺🇸 Tony Mendoza
 * style="font-size:88%"|TF 11–0
 * Win
 * 11–8
 * align=left|🇺🇸 Tony Mendoza
 * style="font-size:88%"|TF 11–0
 * style="font-size:88%"|TF 11–0
 * Loss
 * 10–8
 * align=left|🇺🇸 Benjamin Lamantia
 * style="font-size:88%"|TF 0–11
 * style="font-size:88%" rowspan=7|June 1–3, 2019
 * style="font-size:88%" rowspan=7|2019 U23 US World Team Trials Challenge
 * style="text-align:left;font-size:88%;" rowspan=7|
 * style="text-align:left;font-size:88%;" rowspan=7|
 * Win
 * 10–7
 * align=left|🇺🇸 Mike Van Brill
 * style="font-size:88%"|5–1
 * Win
 * 9–7
 * align=left|🇺🇸 Seth Hogue
 * style="font-size:88%"|7–6
 * Win
 * 8–7
 * align=left|🇺🇸 Anthony Scantlin
 * style="font-size:88%"|TF 10–0
 * Loss
 * 7–7
 * align=left|🇺🇸 Kendall Coleman
 * style="font-size:88%"|3–7
 * Win
 * 7–6
 * align=left|🇺🇸 Benjamin Brancale
 * style="font-size:88%"|8–6
 * Win
 * 6–6
 * align=left|🇺🇸 Kevin Budock
 * style="font-size:88%"|TF 12–1
 * style="font-size:88%"|8–6
 * Win
 * 6–6
 * align=left|🇺🇸 Kevin Budock
 * style="font-size:88%"|TF 12–1
 * style="font-size:88%"|TF 12–1
 * Loss
 * 5–6
 * align=left|🇺🇸 Jake Keating
 * style="font-size:88%"|TF 1–12
 * style="font-size:88%" rowspan=4|April 23–26, 2019
 * style="font-size:88%" rowspan=4|2019 US Open National Championships
 * style="text-align:left;font-size:88%;" rowspan=4|
 * style="text-align:left;font-size:88%;" rowspan=4|
 * Win
 * 5–5
 * align=left|🇺🇸 Zehlin Storr
 * style="font-size:88%"|6–1
 * Loss
 * 4–5
 * align=left|🇺🇸 Jason Nolf
 * style="font-size:88%"|TF 0–10
 * Win
 * 4–4
 * align=left|🇺🇸 Carlos Herrera
 * style="font-size:88%"|TF 14–2
 * 4–4
 * align=left|🇺🇸 Carlos Herrera
 * style="font-size:88%"|TF 14–2
 * Loss
 * 3–4
 * align=left|🇺🇸 Matthew Kolodzik
 * style="font-size:88%"|2–6
 * style="font-size:88%" rowspan=4|June 1–3, 2018
 * style="font-size:88%" rowspan=4|2018 U23 US World Team Trials Challenge
 * style="text-align:left;font-size:88%;" rowspan=4|
 * style="text-align:left;font-size:88%;" rowspan=4|
 * Loss
 * 3–3
 * align=left|🇺🇸 Hayden Hidlay
 * style="font-size:88%"|TF 0–10
 * Win
 * 3–2
 * align=left|🇺🇸 Austin Singer
 * style="font-size:88%"|TF 10–0
 * Win
 * 2–2
 * align=left|🇺🇸 Sammy Peticos
 * style="font-size:88%"|TF 10–0
 * 2–2
 * align=left|🇺🇸 Sammy Peticos
 * style="font-size:88%"|TF 10–0
 * Loss
 * 1–2
 * align=left|🇺🇸 Josh Reyes
 * style="font-size:88%"|TF 0–10
 * style="font-size:88%" rowspan=3|April 24–28, 2018
 * style="font-size:88%" rowspan=3|2018 US Open National Championships
 * style="text-align:left;font-size:88%;" rowspan=3|
 * style="text-align:left;font-size:88%;" rowspan=3|
 * Win
 * 1–1
 * align=left|🇺🇸 Jacob Hatley
 * style="font-size:88%"|TF 10–0
 * Loss
 * 0–1
 * align=left|🇺🇸 Matthew Kolodzik
 * style="font-size:88%"|TF 5–16
 * align=left|🇺🇸 Matthew Kolodzik
 * style="font-size:88%"|TF 5–16