Armenia’s Wrestling Champ Artur Aleksanyan Says he Was Robbed of Gold Medal at Olympics
Official Yerevan Joins Armenia’s Wrestling Federation Appeal of Olympics Ruling
Armenians around the world were elated on Wednesday when Team Armenia wrestling champion Artur Aleksanyan won silver medals during the Paris Olympics Games.
During the medal ceremony, however, Aleksanyan took off his medal in protest and was visibly upset at the outcome.
Aleksanyan on Friday spoke out about the outcome of the match saying that he was robbed of a gold medal, citing an error by the judges, who ruled in favor of Iran’s Mohammad Hadi Saravi, who was awarded a gold medal.
“I came here for gold,” Aleksanyan told reporters in Paris on Friday, according to the Armenpress news agency.
“But during the match you all saw what happened. In one instance, the Iranian wrestler completely stepped out of the wrestling zone with both feet, and I asked my coaches to file an appeal. In such cases, I should have been awarded one point, but instead, the Iranian wrestler was given two points, plus an additional point for the appeal,” Aleksanyan said.
“Everyone is asking me why I took off the medal, this is why! That one point was supposed to be mine and the final score was supposed to be 2:1 in my favor,” Aleksanyan said, adding that he is disappointed by “unjust refereeing.”
“There was no tension, as this was my third final and fourth Olympics. However, in such tournaments, especially in the final, even the smallest details can make a significant difference,” Aleksanyan stated.
Despite the disappointment, Aleksanyan affirmed that he will continue his athletic career, although he expressed frustration with the perceived bias in judging.
“Yes, I am deeply disappointed by this injustice, but I will remain in the sport for now. There were biases not only in my case. Slavik Galstyan achieved a clean victory, the referee confirmed it, and he could have advanced to the final, securing at least a silver medal. But today, Slavik is left without a medal because, for some reason, the result of the match was changed. The same thing happened today with Arsen Harutyunyan. It felt like there was tension against our team. I know that an appeal has been filed, and I hope justice will be restored,” said Aleksanyan.
The 2016 Olympic gold winner added that he has noticed similar unjust ruling against fellow Armenian wrestler Slavik Galstyan, which makes him believe that there were some “tensions” against the Armenian team.
The Aleksanyan-Saravi match was refereed by Ferenc Gyarmati (Romania). The judge was Nedyalko Kirov Kireziev of Bulgaria, and the Mat Chairman was Stanislav Sernek of Slovenia.
The Armenian Wrestling Federation officially filed an appeal regarding the outcome of Aleksanyan’s match in the 2024 Olympic final, the country’s Education and Sports Ministry of reported on Friday.
Karen Giloyan, Armenia’s Deputy Education and Sports Minister, who is currently in Paris, stated that the Armenian government is joining the appeal process.
“We are awaiting a written response, which will be attached to the complaint by the National Olympic Committee of Armenia and submitted to the appropriate bodies. I assure you that we will strive to restore justice,” he said.
As of now, Armenia has won two silver and one bronze medals at the 33rd Summer Olympic Games. Gymnast Artur Davtyan also became an Olympic silver medalist, while Greco-Roman wrestler Malkhas Amoyan secured a bronze medal.
