Arthur Aleksanyan, Arsen Julfalakyan and Karapet Chalayan Will Not Participate in the Armenian Championship

Three leading members of Armenia's Greco-Roman wrestling team will not participate in the country's 2019 championship. In an interview with "Haykakan Zhamanak," acting head coach Edward Sahakyan mentioned that Olympic champion, three-time world champion, and four-time European champion Arthur Aleksanyan (97 kg), Olympic silver medalist, world champion, and European champion Arsen Julfalakyan (77 kg), and European bronze medalist Karapet Chalayan (77 kg) will be absent from the competitions.

According to the coach, Aleksanyan is still recovering from an injury he sustained during the 2019 World Championships, where he suffered a rib fracture. As for Julfalakyan, the coach did not elaborate on the reasons for his absence. He stated that questions regarding the 77 kg weight class require extensive explanation.

"Chalayan has been exempted. The reason is that he achieved an Olympic qualification in the last competitions he attended... The topic of the 77 kg weight class is a separate matter," he said.

This weight class recently generated significant controversy within the Armenian Greco-Roman wrestling team during the summer. According to former coach Levon Julfalakyan, Arsen Julfalakyan should have participated in the World Championship. The specialist noted that there has been a tradition in the team that the athlete with good results in the European Championship represents Armenia at the World Championship, and Arsen Julfalakyan won bronze at the 2019 European Championship. However, disagreements began within the team, leading to claims that the coach was biased in favor of his son.

After 20 years of working with the team, Levon Julfalakyan departed, and his son did not participate in the 2019 World Championship. Karapet Chalayan represented Armenia in the 77 kg weight category and secured an Olympic qualification.

As for the Armenian 2019 championship, it will be held at the "Gazprom Armenia" sports complex. Today, December 2, the draw took place. The competition days are set for December 3-4. The matches are scheduled to start at 11:00 tomorrow, with 85 wrestlers competing across 10 weight classes. All other leading athletes, except for those mentioned, will be participating.

The national team will be formed based on this championship, which will begin a training camp in Tsaghkadzor on December 11. The wrestlers are expected to start training sessions in Yerevan from January 4 or 5, 2020, in preparation for international competitions.