Armenian Wrestlers Will Not Compete in Qualification Tournament in Baku

Armenian wrestlers will skip the continental tournament in Baku and will directly participate in the Olympic qualification phase taking place in Istanbul, according to the Olympic news site Inside the Games. “According to United World Wrestling regulations, a country cannot participate in the world qualification phase if it skips the continental qualification phase. Armenia will be an exception; however, Armenian wrestlers, unlike their competitors, will have the opportunity to qualify for Paris 2024 only once instead of twice,” the publication stated.

Baku will host the European wrestling qualifications in April, while the world qualification tournament will be held in Istanbul from May 9-12. The site reminded that during the opening ceremony of the European Weightlifting Championship in Yerevan, the flag of Azerbaijan was burned, after which Azerbaijani weightlifters did not continue participation and had to replace their results in Olympic weight categories with those from other tournaments. “Since a precedent has already been set, such requests may arise in the future,” clarified the site.

The European Weightlifting Championship took place in Yerevan from April 15-23, 2023. A 12-member Azerbaijani delegation, including 4 athletes, arrived in Armenia to participate in the championship. Armenian designer Aram Nikoyan burned the flag of Azerbaijan during the opening ceremony on April 14, after which he was arrested and later released.