European Games

Olympic Champions Attract Gold, Attention at 2nd European Games in Minsk

Monday, July 1, 2019 - 15:08 By Tim Foley

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International Olympic Committee President Thomas Bach and UWW President Nenad Lalovic, along with members of the UWW Bureau, take in the action at the European Games on Sunday in Minsk, Belarus.

MINSK, Belarus (July 1) – The second European Games attracted the best athletes from the continent, and nowhere was that clearer than the wrestling mats where a number of defending Olympic champions and medalists came to Minsk in search of a Euro Games gold.

Perhaps no star shone brighter than Olympic champion Abdulrashid SADUALEV (RUS) the defending 97kg world champion and 86kg Olympic champion from Rio 2016. Arguably the sport’s most recognizable name, the athletic Sadulaev cruised to a 97kg Europeans Games title on day three, upending Azerbaijan’s Nurmagomed GADZHIYEV (AZE).

In addition to their on-the-mat dominance, wrestling’s stars also attracted off-the-mat dignitaries. IOC president Thomas Bach was in attendance Sunday night as 2016 Olympic champion Artur ALEKSANYAN (ARM) lifted and tossed his way to his first European Games title at 97kg in Greco-Roman. The 27-year-old Armenian shut out local favorite Aliaksandr HRABOVIK (BLR) 5-0 in the gold-medal match.

Olympic bronze medalist, and recent mother, Sofia Mattsson, made a splash in her return to the mats winning her second European Games gold medal at 53kg in women’s wrestling, defeating Yulia KHAVALDZHY (UKR), 6-4.

Belarus experienced a brief gold rush on the competitions fourth day nabbing a pair of gold medals with Iryna KURACHKINA (BLR) upedned Mimi HRISTOVA (BUL), 10-0 at 57kg and Olympic bronze medalist Vasilisa MARZALIUK (BLR) dominated Francy RAEDELT (GER), 9-0 at 76kg.

The United World Wrestling calendar continues July 12-14 with the Yasar Dogu Ranking Series tournament in Istanbul. The tournament will be the last Ranking Series event of the year in freestyle and women’s wrestling. 

#WrestleBudapest

Ranking Series: Tazhudinov Shows No Rust on His Way to Gold

Thursday, July 17, 2025 - 21:32 By Vinay Siwach

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BUDAPEST, Hungary (July 17) --  Akhmed TAZHUDINOV (BRN) gave an early preview to what to expect from him at the World Championships in September.

The Paris Olympic champion won the gold medal in the 97kg weight class at the Budapest Ranking Series, outscoring his opponents 44-2 in four bouts and never appearing in trouble on the mat.

"I feel very good," Tazhudinov said. "I'm very happy to be back on the mat. It’s been almost a year I haven’t been competing  and it’s such a pleasure for us when you come back and win a gold medal."

The final Ranking Series event of the season kicked off in Budapest on Thursday with several familiar names winning gold medals. Asian champion Takara SUDA (JPN), world silver medalist Yoshinosuke AOYAGI (JPN), world U20 champion Luke LILLEDAHL (USA) and SUJEET (IND) were among the gold medalists on day one.

But none were as dominant as Tazhudinov.

The Bahrain star returned to competition for the first time since Paris Olympics competing last week in Madrid, where he won gold at the Grand Prix of Spain. In Budapest, he followed it up with another flawless run, claiming his second gold medal in as many weeks.

"Overall I’m satisfied with my performance. I would say I’m not yet in full form, so I’m pleased with how I did. I’ll reach 100% form by the World Championships," he said.

Wrestling in just his third career Ranking Series, Tazhudinov capped the day with an 11-0 technical superiority win over veteran Zbigniew BARANOWSKI (POL) in the final.

He opened the tournament with a 14-2 win over Adlan VISKHANOV (FRA), who clearly looked smaller for the weight class and had trouble matching Tazhudinov in every aspect of the game.

Tazhudinov hit a big double-leg attack for four points but Viskhanov got two points for exposure. But that was only opening Tazhudinov allowed for the rest of the bout. Viskhanov tried a few leg attacks but Tazhudinov scored a takedown and two turns to be up 10-2 before an arm-bar attempt turned into takedown for his win.

In the quarterfinals, Tazhudinov needed just one minute to defeat Aliaksandr HUSHTYN (UWW). In the semifinals, he dispatched Merab SULEIMANISHVILI (GEO) in 1:48, winning 10-0.

Despite the dominant performance in Budapest, Tazhudinov admitted the World Championships would present a tougher challenge. He’s expected to defend his 97kg world title in Zagreb.

"We’ll have two training camps leading up to the World Championships, and I think after those camps I’ll be fully ready," he said. "There will be very strong, tough opponents. So I’ll prepare thoroughly and focus on performing even better."