Azernews.Az

Laman Ismayilova

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The leadership of the Azerbaijan Wrestling Federation (AWF) has paid a visit to Garabagh region, Azernews reports.

AWF Vice Presidents Namig Abdullayev and Farid Mansurov, Secretary General Parvin Piriyev, and Greco-Roman wrestling coordinator Rafig Huseynov held a series of meetings in Shusha and Khankandi.

During the visit, federation officials met with representatives of the Shusha City State Reserve Administration, a secondary school in Shusha, and Garabagh University, engaging not only with officials but also with schoolchildren and university students.

Celebrated figures of Azerbaijani sport, including Namig Abdullayev, Farid Mansurov, and Rafiq Huseynov, shared stories from their professional careers, answered questions from young people, and offered advice aimed at motivating the next generation.

Note that the Azerbaijan Wrestling Federation plans to continue organising such motivational meetings on a systematic basis.

Wrestling remains the most widely followed sport in Azerbaijan and is governed by the National Wrestling Federation, established in 1993.

A major turning point in the nation's wrestling legacy came at the Rio Olympic Games, where Azerbaijan distinguished itself as one of only two countries to improve its medal haul across five consecutive Olympic Games.

Azerbaijan's success continued in 2020, when its freestyle wrestlers finished third in the overall medal standings at the Individual World Cup in Serbia, capturing two medals, one silver and one bronze, behind leaders Russia and Turkiye.

Further highlighting the country's strength on the world stage, Osman Nurmagomedov claimed the 92 kg world title at the 2022 World Championships in Belgrade, overcoming a Russian rival in the final.

Most recently, Azerbaijan added to its Olympic record at the 2024 Summer Games, securing three bronze medals in wrestling. Hasrat Jafarov reached the podium in the 67 kg Greco-Roman category, while Giorgi Meshvildishvili (125 kg) and Magomedkhan Magomedov (97 kg) delivered bronze medals in freestyle wrestling.