National wrestlers win gold medals in Georgia

By Laman Ismayilova

Azerbaijani free-style wrestlers have brought home a clutch of four medals including two golds from Tbilisi Golden Grand Prix in Georgia.

Organized by the Georgian National Wrestling Federation, the tournament was held on June 10-11 in Tbilisi where ten Azerbaijani wrestlers struggled for medals .

Azerbaijan's gold medals came from Galib Aliyev (86kg) and Alexander Gostiyev (86kg).

Mirjalal Hasanzade won silver in the 57kg weigh class, while Joshgun Azimov grabbed bronze in the 65kg division.

 All the three members of the national team competed with Georgians in the final.

Notably, international referee Vagif Zeynalli represented Azerbaijan in managing matches.  

Wrestling remains the most popular sport in the county and is overseen by the Azerbaijani National Wrestling Federation, which was established in 1993.

The Rio Games opened a new page in wrestling for Azerbaijan. The country became one of only two nations ever to increase the number of medals achieved in five consecutive Games.