#WrestleZagreb

Tuesday night's European finals set

By Eric Olanowski

ZAGREB, Croatia (April 18) --- The second day of freestyle action at the European Championships kicks off with action at 61kg, 74kg, 86kg, 92kg and 125kg.

FULL EUROPEAN C'SHIP SCHEDULE:
- 11:30 - Qualification rounds
- 16:45 - Semifinals
- 18:00 - Finals

Tuesday's semifinal matchups:

61kg
Zelimkhan ABAKAROV (ALB) vs. Shota PHARTENADZE (GEO) 
Arsen HARUTYUNYAN (ARM) vs. Arman ELOYAN (FRA) 

74kg
Ali Pasha Ruslanovich UMARPASHAEV (BUL) vs. Frank CHAMIZO MARQUEZ (ITA) 
Taimuraz SALKAZANOV (SVK) vs. Avtandil KENTCHADZE (GEO) 

86kg
Myles Nazem AMINE (SMR) vs. Sebastian JEZIERZANSKI (POL) 
Boris MAKOEV (SVK) vs. Dauren KURUGLIEV (GRE) 

92kg
Miriani MAISURADZE (GEO) vs. Feyzullah AKTURK (TUR) 
Ermak KARDANOV (SVK) vs. Osman NURMAGOMEDOV (AZE) 

125kg
Taha AKGUL (TUR) vs. Abraham de Jesus CONYEDO RUANO (ITA) 
Daniel LIGETI (HUN) vs. Geno PETRIASHVILI (GEO) 

14:31: Akgul trailed 1-0 after the opening period but scored three points in the closing frame to win a close 3-1 battle. He'll likely have Olympic bronze medalist Conyedo Ruano, who is up 3-0 with :20 seconds left.

14:12: Two of the all-time greats in Taha AKGUL (TUR) and Geno PETRIASHVILI (GEO) are wrestling on Mat B and C, respectively.

14:10: In typical Chamizo fashion, he got going when he needed to and picked up the 7-4 win. He'll meet fellow Olympic bronze medalist Soner DEMIRTAS (TUR) in tonight's semifinals.

14:05: Things are getting heated between Chamizo and Dzhabrail GADZHIEV (AZE). Chamizo has been punched, kicked and had his hair pulled in the opening three minutes.

14:01: We have a pair of world champions on the mat right now. Chamizo is wrestling on Mat B and Abakarov is on Mat C.

13:25: Amine picked up a third takedown on Rubaev and increased his lead to 7-0. It's been a weird match from the Moldovian. He hasn't taken a single shot and there's less than a minute left.

13:20: Olympic bronze medalist Myles Amine is kicking off his quest for a second straight European title on Mat B. He's wrestling Georgii RUBAEV (MDA).

12:49: One of the most talked about storylines coming into the European Championships was the late transfer of Greek Dauren KURUGLIEV (GRE). He just had his first match, where he dominated Patrik PUESPOEKI (HUN), 10-0, in the first period.


12:43: One of the benefits of being seeded is having more time to recover after weigh-ins. The seeded athletes usually have around two hours of extra rest before competing. We're nearing that mark when the top athletes will be making their way to the mat, one after another.

Here are some of the stars that'll be making their way to Mat B soon:
- Bout 108 - Myles Nazem AMINE (SMR) 
- Bout 110 - Taimuraz SALKAZANOV (SVK) 
- Bout 111 - Soner DEMIRTAS (TUR) 
- Bout 112 -  Frank CHAMIZO MARQUEZ (ITA) 
- Bout 114 - Taha AKGUL (TUR)  

12:32: Daniel LIGETI (HUN) has a crowd behind him on Mat A. There's at least 20 people--one with a big drum--cheering for the Hungarian Big Man. He's in a tight 2-2 battle with Johannes LUDESCHER (AUT).

12:16: We'll stay on Mat B as U23 European champion Georgi Lyubomirov IVANOV (BUL) is making his way to the mat. He'll wrestle against Alexandr ROMANOV (MDA).

If you're unfamiliar with Ivanov, he's a more compact heavyweight that loves to throw. His go-to move is an arm throw.


12:13:  Abraham de Jesus CONYEDO RUANO (ITA), who won Olympic gold in Tokyo at 97kg, moved up to 125kg a season ago. It's taken nearly two years, but he looks like a true 125kg guy. He picked up a 3-0 opening-round win over Paris KAREPI (ALB).

12:05: There's your upset of the day (keeping in mind we're only a half-hour into the session). Arman ELOYAN (FRA) just took out 2022 European champion Vladimir EGOROV (MKD), 2-2, to set up a matchup with Nikolai OKHLOPKOV (ROU).

11:58: Reigning 57kg world champion Zelimkhan ABAKAROV (ALB) is up now on Mat B. He's wrestling up a weight class, competing at 61kg for the European Championships. He's wrestling Niklas STECHELE (GER).

11:45: We'll kick the morning session off with repechage matches for those who fell on Monday.

#development

Focus on Learning: Armenia Hosts Courses for Freestyle Coaches and Referees

By United World Wrestling Press

YEREVAN, Armenia (April 24) -- Other the past few years, Armenia has conducted multiple coaching and referee courses.

Last year, it held a course specifically designed for Greco-Roman coaches. This year, Armenia organized the same course but with an emphasis on Freestyle. The coaching course was conducted from April 10 to 14 in Yerevan.

In addition to the coaching course, a Referee Foundations course was conducted from April 14 to 17. Both courses were conducted in conjunction with Olympic Solidarity, Armenia NOC, and United World Wrestling.

The Level 2 coaching course was led by Yusup ABDUSALAMOV and was attended by 37 participants. The course focused on performance analysis, developing training plans, risk management, athlete well-being, and athlete safeguarding. The coaches participated in theoretical and practical sessions that helped provided a better understanding of the concepts.

"The participants demonstrated a positive attitude and engagement throughout the course. They showed a willingness to learn and apply new coaching methodologies, which is a good indicator of future development potential. Abdusalamov said. 

"We highly appreciate the organization and delivery of the UWW Level 2 coaching course in Armenia. The program introduced modern coaching approaches and provided valuable knowledge for our coaches." Arayik BAGHDADYAN, Secretary General of Armenia Wrestling Federation, said.

Armenia

Following the U20 National Championships, the Level 2 Referee Foundations course was led by Igor LIGAY. This course was attended by 25 participants which included national and international referees, coaches and the head Greco-Roman coach from Armenia.

This course covered various topics that included the updated UWW rules, evaluating actions, referee positioning, and coordination of the refereeing team. The participants learned through interactive sessions and practical on-the-mat experience.

"This seminar had a significant impact on my athletic development. As an athlete who participates in international competitions, I found the technical details and practical approaches presented to be especially valuable, as they can be directly applied on the mat," Srbuhi HOVAKIMYAN, who participated in the coaching course, said.