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The International Anti-Doping Agency (ITA) has acquitted Olympic champion Khadzhimurat Gatsalov, coach of the Russian freestyle wrestling team, of all doping charges following a preliminary agreement, Mikhail Mamiashvili, president of the Russian Wrestling Federation, told TASS.
Gatsalov was provisionally suspended from May 5, 2025, for violating anti-doping rules.
“Hadzhimurat Gatsalov was completely acquitted, all charges were dropped. We never doubted his innocence for a second” Mamiashvili said.
Gatsalov has been the head coach of the Russian freestyle wrestling team since 2023. As an athlete, he won the Olympic title in 2004, and is also a five-time world and three-time European champion.
The anti-doping rule violation dates back to May 10, 2015, based on the database of the Moscow Anti-Doping Laboratory (LIMS) and the samples collected by it. LIMS registered actions related to the results of doping tests of Russian athletes from 2012 to 2015. In January 2019, as part of the agreement to restore the rights of the Russian Anti-Doping Agency (RUSADA), the data was transferred to the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA).
Olympic freestyle wrestling champion Khadzhimurat Gatsalov will continue to be the head coach of the national team, Mikhail Mamiashvili added.
The coach commented that he was completely confident that the truth would be proven.
“I want to thank everyone who was by my side and provided me with professional support. I have never used banned substances and I was confident that we would be able to prove the truth. Special thanks to Mikhail Mamiashvili and the Russian Wrestling Federation for their trust and support during this difficult period. After the suspension, I was removed from all lists, my employment contract was not renewed, and I was deprived of the presidential scholarship that I received as an Olympic champion in 2004. For more than six months, I was forbidden to train or participate in sports activities in any form. Fortunately, we were able to overcome this ordeal and achieve justice” Gatsalov said.
