Murad Ahmadiev keeps bronze medal hopes alive

October 25, 2026

The Wrestling World Championships are underway in Astana, the capital of Kazakhstan.

On the second day of the competition, Greco-Roman wrestlers in the 72kg, 97kg and 130kg weight categories began their campaigns.

Two-time world champion Ulvu Ganizade (72kg) started his campaign in the Round of 16. He defeated Japan’s Rintaro Sogabe 9-4 to advance to the quarterfinals. Ganizade faced Russia’s Mingiyan Goryaev in the quarterfinal. He was forced to stop the bout after suffering a serious leg injury while attempting a four-point move in the final minute.

Murad Ahmadiev (97kg) made a strong start to his campaign. The Azerbaijani wrestler defeated South Korea’s Jeongbin Kwon 8-0 and Croatia’s Matej Mandic by fall to reach the quarterfinals. Ahmadiev narrowly lost 4-5 to Belarus’ Kiryl Maskevich in the quarterfinal and will compete in the repechage tomorrow. His opponent will be Austria’s Markus Ragginger.

Sarkhan Mammadov (130kg) defeated Brazil’s Guilherme Dias by technical superiority, 11-0, but lost 2-6 to Belarus’ Pavel Hlinchuk in the Round of 16.