Bulgaria captured its first gold medal at the Senior European Wrestling Championships that are being held in Rome, Italy.
The18-year-old son of the Greco-Roman legend Armen Nazaryan – Edmond Nazaryan won the gold in the 55 kg category last night, defeating the reigning champion Vitalii Kabaloev (RUS) in his senior-level debut.
Nazaryan soared to the top of the European podium with a pair of technical superiority wins, a fall over world champion Eldaniz Azizli (AZE), and the finals win over Kabaloev.
“I want to say that I am very happy that I have won the gold medal of the European Championships, especially among Seniors,” said Nazaryan. “Even though it’s my first time, it’s my debut, but I have been doing everything I could to win this gold medal. And I have done it.”
In the final match, the Bulgarian went hard right from the get-go, jumping out to an early 5-0 lead over the Russian. His first point came from an inactivity call against Kabloev. He gained the three-point advantage after Kabloev was knocked for a caution-and-two for jumping the gun. He tacked on two additional points with a reverse lift and commanded the 5-0 lead. He conceded a stepout and a takedown and his lead was cut to two points. He ended the match on a high note, scoring a failed challenge point and a stepout and captured the European title with a 4-point victory.
