Azernews.Az

Laman Ismayilova

Read more

Azerbaijan's national beach wrestling team has won the World Series title for the first time in its history.

The achievement came at the final stage of the Beach Wrestling World Series, held in Katerini, Greece.

Three Azerbaijani wrestlers won gold medals at the competition. Vusal Aliyev (80 kg), Ashraf Ashirov (90 kg) and Jamal Feyziyev (+90 kg) claimed first place in their respective weight categories.

Ruvail Ibrahimli (70 kg) and Sahib Dadashov (80 kg) took bronze medals.

Azerbaijan collected 90 points in the team standings to finish first at the final stage of the World Series.

The overall world champions were determined based on the points accumulated across the five stages of the World Series. Vusal Aliyev (80 kg) secured his second career world title, while Ashraf Ashirov (90 kg), who made his beach wrestling debut this year, also became world champion.

Ruvail Ibrahimli (70 kg), Sahib Dadashov (80 kg) and Jamal Feyziyev (+90 kg) finished third in the overall World Series rankings in their respective weight categories.

With two gold and three bronze medals, Azerbaijan also became the Beach Wrestling World Series world champion in the team standings for the first time.

The team's successful season was also recognized by United World Wrestling (UWW). Azerbaijan head coach Oyan Nazariani was named the Beach Wrestling Coach of the Year. Pedro Silva, President of the UWW Beach Wrestling Committee, presented the special award to the coach.

I-S category referee Asif Shiraliyev also officiated at the competition.

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.