Armenian Wrestling Federation files appeal over Aleksanyan's Olympic loss
YEREVAN, August 9. /ARKA/. The Armenian Wrestling Federation officially filed an appeal regarding the outcome of Artur Aleksanyan's match in the 2024 Olympic final, the country’s Ministry of Education, Science, Culture, and Sports reported on Friday.
Artur Aleksanyan, a celebrated Armenian Greco-Roman wrestler and multiple-time Olympic medalist, world and European champion, lost the gold medal match in the 97 kg category to Iran's Mohammad Hadi Sarav with a score of 1-4. Aleksanyan and his supporters hope that the appeal will bring justice to what they see as an unfair ruling.
"I came here for the gold medal, but everyone saw what happened during my match. 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. I am confident that one point from that episode should have been mine. 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.
Karen Giloyan, Armenia's Deputy Minister of Education, Science, Culture, and Sports, 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 medal 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.
