SPORT: Garibyan, Shahinyan, and Ovasapyan Start with Victories

During the ongoing European zone Olympic qualifying tournament in wrestling taking place in Budapest, Hungary, on March 20, Greco-Roman wrestlers have entered the competition. The Armenian team has four representatives: Gevorg Garibyan (60 kg), Slavik Galstyan (67 kg), Artur Shahinyan (87 kg), and Davit Ovasapyan (130 kg).

2020 European champion Gevorg Garibyan began his fight in the Round of 16, where he confidently won 7-0 against Polish wrestler Dawid Ersetich. In the quarterfinals, Garibyan will face Azerbaijani wrestler Murad Mammadov.

2019 World Championship bronze medalist Slavik Galstyan won his qualification match 9-6 against Belarusian Aleksandr Liavonchuk, and in the Round of 16, he dominated French wrestler Mamadasa Silai, winning 10-1. In the quarterfinals, his opponent will be Azerbaijani Islanbek Dadov, who eliminated Georgian wrestler Gevorg Sahakyan from the competition.

Artur Shahinyan started his journey in the Round of 16 as well, winning 6-2 against Croatian Ivan Huklek. The next opponent for the wrestler from Gyumri will be Georgian Lasha Gobadze.

Davit Ovasapyan also commenced his fights in the Round of 16, defeating Finnish wrestler Johannes Maenpaeae by 5-1. Ovasapyan will compete against Hungarian wrestler Adam Varga for a spot in the semifinals.

It’s important to note that only the wrestlers who reach the finals at the Budapest tournament will secure spots for the Tokyo Olympics. The Armenian freestyle wrestling team had previously traveled to the competition with four wrestlers and secured two gold medals. 2020 World Cup winner Vazgen Tevanyan (65 kg) and 2019 European champion Arsen Harutyunyan (57 kg) both won gold medals and qualified for the Tokyo Olympics, while Hrayr Alikhanian (74 kg) and Hovhannes Mkhitaryan (86 kg) did not achieve success.