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Kizhan Andre Clarke (born 16 December 1997) is a German-American freestyle wrestler who competes internationally at 65 kilograms.[1] He was a medalist at the European Championship and the Grand Prix Henri Deglane, and was also an NCAA Division I National runner-up out of the University of North Carolina.[2]
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| Full name | Kizhan Andre Clarke | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Born | December 16, 1997 Wiesbaden, Germany | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Home town | Tampa, Florida, U.S. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Sport | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Country |  United States (2018–2022) Germany (2023–present) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Sport | Wrestling | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Weight class | 65 kg (143 lb) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Event(s) | Freestyle and Folkstyle | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| College team | Tar Heels | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Club | Tar Heel Wrestling Club AC Lichtenfels | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Coached by | Rob Koll | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Medal record
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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.[3] He started wrestling as a freshman at Riverview High School in Riverview, Florida, and became a state champion and two-time finalist before graduating.[4]
American University
2016–2017
Clarke wore a redshirt during his first year wrestling for the American Eagles, winning over 30 matches and placing at six tournaments.[5]
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.[5] 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.[5] After the season, he once again competed at the US Open and the U23 US World Team Trials though was unable to place.[6]
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.[7] However, the tournament was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.[8] In November 2020, Clarke went 4–2 at the US U23 National Championships but was unable to place.[9]
University of North Carolina
2021–2022
In March 2021, Clarke went 2–2 at the US Last Chance Qualifier, failing to qualify for the US Olympic Team Trials.[10]
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.[10] 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.[11]
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.[12] After beating the tenth-seed to reach the semi-finals, Clarke defeated the sixth-seed on ultimate tie-breaker to reach the finals.[13] 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.[14]
Germany
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.[15]
In April, Clarke defeated Niklas Dorn in a best-of-three wrestle-off to determine Germany's starter.[16] He then went 1–1 at the European Championships, defeating Italy's Colin Realbuto though falling to U20 World Champion Erik Arushanian.[17]
In June, Clarke became a German National champion with three wins over fellow countrymen.[18] He then competed at the Stepan Sargsyan Cup in Armenia, defeating an opponent from Kazakhstan before falling to U20 World Champion Peiman Biabani.[19] In July, he competed at the Polyák Imre & Varga János Memorial Tournament, though was eliminated by North Carolina teammate Lachlan McNeil.[20]
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.[21]
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.[22] He competed at the 2024 European Wrestling Olympic Qualification Tournament in Baku, Azerbaijan hoping to qualify for the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris, France.[23] He was eliminated in his first match and he did not qualify for the Olympics.[23]
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