Artak Dashyan as an Epic Hero After the Armenian Cup Final (PHOTO)

When FC Noah celebrated their 2024/25 Armenian Cup victory, a man stood on the podium in the pouring rain — not just the team’s leader, but a character straight out of a cinematic saga. Artak Dashyan, wrapped in the Armenian flag, with a medal on his chest and determination in his eyes, looked less like a footballer and more like a hero from a fantasy or historical film.

His image evoked associations with several iconic characters:

Obi-Wan Kenobi — a Jedi guarding the light, wise and composed even in the storm;

Gandalf — the wizard who passed through darkness and returned stronger;

Doctor Strange — the sorcerer mastering time and space, as Dashyan controls the midfield;

Qui-Gon Jinn — a noble warrior with Eastern philosophy, believing in balance;

Jon Snow — a leader without a crown but with honor, forged in battle.

The photograph of Artak standing on the podium in the rain, draped in the tricolor, has already gone viral on social media. It feels like a frame from the final scene of a saga: a hero who endured the season’s trials, led his team forward, and now stands in the spotlight — alone, yet majestic.

The 35-year-old Armenian national team footballer has become the country’s champion for the second year in a row — last season with Pyunik, and this year with Noah. Artak Dashyan is a footballer with a complex career path. During the prime years of his career, he was overlooked by the Armenian national team, and only in 2022, at the age of 32, did he begin to play regularly for the national side, becoming one of its key players.