The sport of Kurash has reached another historic milestone. For the first time, Kurash was included in the program of the Islamic Solidarity Games as a demonstration sport, and the competitions were held at the Boulevard Arena sports complex in the Saudi Arabian capital, Riyadh. This was an important step not only for athletes and coaches, but also for the international development of Kurash. Kurash, which glorifies values such as martial arts, strength, tolerance, and respect, aroused great interest among athletes from Islamic countries. “Kurash is not just a sport. It is a philosophy of friendship, unity, and mutual respect,“ said Reza Nassiri, General Secretary of the International Kurash Association. ”The participation of Kurash in the Islamic Solidarity Games is a cultural bridge between nations. Another important aspect is that Khalol is the highest value of our sacred religion of Islam and the sport of Kurash itself. In the true sense, Kurash is a sport that embodies the values and principles of the Islamic religion. The competitions were held in the following weight categories: Women: -57 kg, -70 kg, Men: -66 kg, -81 kg. Although Kurash was presented as an exhibition sport, the atmosphere of the fights on the Gilam (mat) created the atmosphere of real championships. The competitions were conducted by experienced Kurash referees led by Ravi Kapoor, Technical Director of the International Kurash Association, and Ali Shaherkhani, Technical Director of the Kurash Confederation of Asia.
After hard-fought and uncompromising competitions, Ruslan Buriev and Shokhista Nazarova, representing the homeland of Kurash, won gold medals in the weight categories -66 kg and -70 kg.
In the weight category -57 kg, Begai Beishenaaly from Kyrgyzstan and Ramin Ahmadzadeh from the Islamic Republic of Iran were unrivalled in the weight category -81 kg.
The debut of Kurash at the Islamic Solidarity Games is a vivid testimony to its further advancement in the international sports arena.
Kurash is a sport that celebrates universal human values such as courage, respect, and honesty.
The full list of winners and medalists is available below.
Women — 57 kg.
🥇 BEGAI BEISHENAALY (Kyrgyzstan)
🥈 FOTIMA KODIROVA (Uzbekistan)
🥉 TAHEREH AZARPEIVAND (Iran)
🥉 ARUSHA SAEED (Pakistan)
Women — 70 kg.
🥇 SHOKHISTA NAZAROVA (Uzbekistan)
🥈 DONYA AGHAEI (Iran)
🥉 SHOHIDA QALANDAROVA (Tajikistan)
🥉 YARA TARABAY (Lebanon)
Men — 66 kg.
🥇 RUSLAN BURIEV (Uzbekistan)
🥈 MAJID VAHID BARIMANLOU (Iran)
🥉 ABDULWAHAB MOHAMMED F ALDHEFIAN (Kingdom of Saudi Arabia)
🥉ISLAM KAMCHYBEKOV (Kyrgyzstan)
Men — 81 kg
🥇 RAMIN AHMADZADEH (Iran)
🥈 UMID ESANOV (Uzbekistan)
🥉 MAHAMADSHARIF NAJMUDINOV (Tajikistan)
🥉 CHYNGYZKHAN SAGYNALIEV (Kyrgyzstan)
