Azernews.Az

Laman Ismayilova

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The fourth stage of the Beach Wrestling World Series has concluded in Baku, with Azerbaijan's wrestlers securing seven medals at the competition.

The event was held at the Sea Breeze resort, where Vusal Aliyev (80 kg), Ashraf Ashirov (90 kg) and Jamal Feyziyev (+90 kg) won gold medals. Nargiz Samadova (60 kg) and Sahib Dadashov (80 kg) claimed silver, while Javid Niftalizade (80 kg) and Ramiz Hasanov (90 kg) took bronze.

Azerbaijan's men's team topped the team standings with 84 points, followed by Georgia with 62 points and Ukraine with 45. In the women's team standings,

Azerbaijan finished second with 40 points. Ukraine took first place with 100 points, while Spain finished third with 24 points.

The competition, held in Azerbaijan for the first time, brought together 55 wrestlers from 14 countries.

The final stage of the World Series will take place on September 26-27 in Katerini, Greece.

The world champions will be determined based on the points accumulated across all stages of the series.

Note that beach wrestling is one of the youngest internationally organized disciplines of wrestling. It combines traditional wrestling techniques with competition on sand, creating a faster and more accessible format that is particularly suited to outdoor venues and coastal locations. The discipline was formally established in its modern form in 2004, while the first Beach Wrestling World Championship was held in Turkiye in 2006.

Since 2019, the sport's senior world champions have been determined through the annual Beach Wrestling World Series, which brings together leading athletes across several international stages.

Unlike traditional wrestling, beach wrestling is contested entirely on its feet, with no ground wrestling. Bouts take place on a circular sand area and generally last three minutes, with athletes scoring points by forcing an opponent to touch the sand with a knee or upper body or by pushing them outside the competition area. The discipline places particular demands on balance, strength, endurance and explosive movement because athletes must perform techniques on an unstable surface.

Azerbaijan has quickly become a strong force in beach wrestling. The country began developing the sport in an organized way in 2019, when the Azerbaijan Wrestling Federation launched a dedicated programme.

By 2022, Azerbaijani U17 and U20 wrestlers had won world and European titles, and the country went on to produce several world champions.

Azerbaijan's first major success came in 2019, when Oyan Nazariani won the +90 kg title in the first Beach Wrestling World Series season.

He became Azerbaijan's first world champion in the discipline. Ibrahim Yusubov and Ramiz Hasanov later added to the country's international success, with Yusubov becoming the first wrestler to win four consecutive World Series titles.

Beach wrestling has also continued to grow in Azerbaijan at the national level. In 2025, women's events were added to the national beach wrestling championships, giving more female wrestlers the chance to compete and develop in the sport.