Four-time European champion Arsen Harutyunyan is aiming for his fifth gold medal, and fourth in a row. The 25-year-old Armenian wrestler has won the last three European Championships—twice in the 61kg category and once at 57kg.
The 2025 European Freestyle Wrestling Championships will take place in Bratislava, Slovakia, from April 7 to 9. All eyes from Armenian fans will be on the talented and ambitious Arsen Harutyunyan, who will again compete in his familiar 61kg weight class. Let’s assess his chances and examine his main rivals.
Return to His Natural Weight
Last year, Harutyunyan competed at 57kg to qualify for the Paris Olympics, which, unfortunately, didn’t go well for him. Now, Arsen is back at his comfortable weight and ready to fight for another European title. However, the road to gold won’t be easy: one of his main rivals will be Olympic champion Zaur Uguev from Russia.
Uguev: Inconsistent Since the Olympics
The 30-year-old Russian, who won gold in Tokyo, has been inconsistent in recent years. At the 2024 World Championships in a non-Olympic weight, he came away without a medal, losing to American Vitali Orujov and Japan’s Masanosuke Ono. A year earlier, at the 2023 World Championships, he placed only fifth, losing to Serbia’s Stevan Micic and Zelimkhan Abakarov, who represents Albania.
Still, Uguev won both of the most recent Yarigin tournaments—crucial for selection to Russia’s national team—which earned him a spot at the 2025 European Championships.
Harutyunyan vs. Uguev: Head-to-Head History
Arsen and Zaur have faced each other twice on the international stage.
The first time was in the final of the 2020 World Cup in Serbia. Back then, the experienced Uguev dominated the young Harutyunyan with a technical fall — 10:0. Despite the loss, Arsen had a strong tournament, notably defeating top-tier wrestler Stevan Micic in the semifinals.
Their second bout was at the 2023 PWL exhibition tournament in Vladikavkaz. This time, the match was much closer, but Uguev still came out on top — 6:4.
Abakarov: A Consistent Favorite, Still Without European Gold
Zelimkhan Abakarov, a 31-year-old born in Chechnya, has represented Albania since 2021. Although he also had a disappointing showing at the Paris Olympics, he remains a top contender at nearly every tournament he enters.
In 2022, Abakarov won the World Championship at 57kg. However, European gold has eluded him—he's won silver twice: losing to Harutyunyan in the 2023 final (2:5) and to Abasgadzhi Magomedov in 2024 (2:7).
Harutyunyan - Abakarov 5-2, Final Europe 2023.
Top Contenders for Gold
Thus, the top three contenders in the 61kg weight class at the 2025 European Championships are:
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Arsen Harutyunyan (Armenia)
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Zaur Uguev (Russia)
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Zelimkhan Abakarov (Albania)
Given the caliber of these wrestlers, it’s hard to name anyone else in the bracket who could confidently be expected to beat any of them head-to-head.
Arsen Harutyunyan’s Record vs. 2025 European Championships Competitors:
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Harutyunyan (Armenia) vs. Giorgi Goniashvili (Georgia) — 18-5 | 2024
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Harutyunyan (Armenia) vs. Emrah Ormanoglu (Turkey) — 7-0 | 2023
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Harutyunyan (Armenia) vs. Zelimkhan Abakarov (Albania) — 5-2 | 2023 European Final
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Harutyunyan (Armenia) vs. Zaur Uguev (Russia) — 4-6 | 2023, PWL-5 (video)
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Harutyunyan (Armenia) vs. Besir Alili (North Macedonia) — 5-0 | 2022
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Harutyunyan (Armenia) vs. Zaur Uguev (Russia) — 0-10 | 2020, World Cup Final
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Harutyunyan (Armenia) vs. Andrii Dzhelep (Ukraine) — 11-6 | 2018
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Harutyunyan (Armenia) vs. Leomid Colesnic (Moldova) — 10-0 | 2017
Full List of 61kg Competitors at the 2025 European Freestyle Wrestling Championships:
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Zelimkhan ABAKAROV (ALB) – 31 years old
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Arsen HARUTYUNYAN (ARM) – 25 years old
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Nuraddin NOVRUZOV (AZE) – 22 years old
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Stilyan ILIEV (BUL) – 24 years old
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Giorgi GONIASHVILI (GEO) – 26 years old
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Leomid COLESNIC (MDA) – 26 years old
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Besir ALILI (MKD) – 22 years old
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Nils LEUTERT (SUI) – 26 years old
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Robert MESZAROS (SVK) – 20 years old
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Emrah ORMANOGLU (TUR) – 26 years old
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Andrii DZHELEP (UKR) – 25 years old
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Dzmitry SHAMELA (UWW) – 24 years old
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Zavur UGUEV (UWW) – 30 years old