Regional Athletes Win Big At European Wrestling Championship Games

Nearly 20 athletes from the Caspian and Caucasus regions won medals at the 2017 European Wrestling Championship, held in Serbia from April 27 – May 2.

Azerbaijan’s Giorgi Edisherashvili won gold for his performance in the men’s 57 kg weight category, while Mariya Stadnik proved to be the strongest amongst female athletes competing in the 45 kg category. Stadnik’s win was her seventh European title.

Suleymanov Murad (74 kg) and Aleksandr Gotsiev (86 kg) won silver, and bronze medals were won by females Alyona Kolesnik (55 kg) and Tatyana Omelchenko (60 kg). 

Georgian athlete Vladimer Khinchegashvili took home a gold medal for his performance in the 61 kg category, claiming his third European Champion title. He won a silver medal at the 2012 Summer Olympics in London, and a gold in Rio in 2016.  Georgia’s Iakobashvili Zurabi (65 kg) and Odikadze Elizbar (97 kg) scooped bronze in Serbia this last week.

Russian wrestlers proved to be the most prolific, having won seven medals. Ilyas Bekbulatov (65 kg) and Dauren Kurugliev (86 kg) were gold medalists in men’s divisions, while Lyubov Ovcharova (60 kg) clinched gold for the women. Ahmad Chakaev (61 kg), Anzor Boltukaev (97 kg), and Malysheva Natalya (53 kg), all took a silver medal. Ahmed Gadzhimagomedov won bronze.

Turkish wrestlers Soner Demirtaş (74 kg) and Rıza Yıldırım (97 kg) were crowned champions in their respective categories, while Süleyman Atlı (57 kg) and Selim Yaşar (86 kg) took bronze. 

Female wrestler Yasemin Adar (75 kg) clinched gold, after competing against two-time U-23 European champion and Hungarian national Zsanett Nemeth. Last year Adar became the first Turkish female wrestler to win a gold medal at the European Wrestling Championship, held in Latvia. 

The European Championships were held in Serbia’s northern city of Novi Sad, where athletes from 20 countries competed for the continental title. The 2018 competition will be held in Bucharest, Romania.