Armenian Wrestlers Win Two Medals at Youth Tournament in Iran
On May 16, the Rahim Aliabadi Cup, an international Greco-Roman wrestling tournament for boys under 17, concluded in Iran. The competition featured numerous wrestlers from Iran (155 participants), as well as representatives from Armenia (10), Afghanistan (3), Russia (3), and Georgia (4).
Armenia was represented by 10 athletes, two of whom won bronze medals — Arsen Melkonyan and Meruzhan Mkhitaryan. Additionally, all wrestlers representing Russia and Georgia were of Armenian descent.
Results of Armenian wrestlers at the Rahim Aliabadi Tournament:
45 kg:
Alen Kasabyan (Armenia) and Bagrat Karapetyan (Armenia) lost in the first round.
48 kg:
Arsen Melkonyan (Armenia) won a bronze medal.
He lost in the first round to a future finalist, then advanced through the repechage to the bronze medal match, where he defeated an Iranian wrestler 3-1.
55 kg:
Artur Petrosyan (Armenia) placed fifth.
He reached the semifinals with two victories over Iranian opponents (9-0, 10-3), then lost 1-3 in the semis, and again lost in the bronze medal match 1-5.
Varlam Akopyan (Russia) lost in the first round.
60 kg:
Meruzhan Mkhitaryan (Armenia) won a bronze medal.
He secured two victories in the main bracket, lost in the quarterfinals to a future finalist, and then won two dominant repechage matches (9-0) to claim bronze.
65 kg:
Four Armenian wrestlers competed in this weight class: Gevorg Melkonyan (Armenia), Emin Fahradyan (Russia), Artur Melkonyan (Georgia), and Gor Kurginyan (Georgia). All lost in the first round.
71 kg:
Ashot Davoyan (Armenia) and Martin Arakelyan (Georgia) lost in the first round.
80 kg:
Hayk Mehrhyan (Armenia) and Narek Balayan (Russia) lost in the first round.
92 kg:
Smbat Kazaryan (Armenia) won his first match against an Iranian (3-1) but then lost 1-5 in the next round.
Davit Panosyan (Russia) lost in the first round.
110 kg:
Narek Manukyan (Armenia) lost in the first round.