Arayik Gevorgyan (, born 22 January 1973) is a retired

Armenia Armenia, officially the Republic of Armenia, is a landlocked country in the Armenian Highlands of West Asia. It is a part of the Caucasus region and is bordered by Turkey to the west, Georgia (country), Georgia to the north and Azerbaijan to ...

n Freestyle wrestler. He is an Armenian Champion, European Champion, and three-time World Champion. Gevorgyan was awarded the Master of Sports of the USSR, International Class title in 1991 and the Honored Master of Sports of Armenia title in 1995.

Biography

Gevorgyan was born on 22 January 1973 in a village of the Artashat region of

Soviet Armenia The Armenian Soviet Socialist Republic (ArSSR), also known as Soviet Armenia, or simply Armenia, was one of the Republics of the Soviet Union, constituent republics of the Soviet Union, located in the Caucasus region of Eurasia. Soviet Armenia ...

. He started wrestling in 1984 under the guidance of Razmik Goletsyan. From 1989 to 1991, he was a member of the USSR junior freestyle wrestling team. Gevorgyan became a Junior European Champion in 1991. In 1992, Gevorgyan joined the Armenia espoir freestyle wrestling team. Gevorgyan became an Espoir European Champion in 1992 and an Espoir World Champion in 1993. After that year, Gevorgyan joined the Armenian national freestyle wrestling team. He became a three-time consecutive World Wrestling Champion, having won a gold medal at the 1995 World Wrestling Championships, 1997 World Wrestling Championships and 1998 World Wrestling Championships. Gevorgyan is the first ever wrestler from the independent Armenia to become a World Wrestling Champion in freestyle wrestling. He is also the first

European Championship A European Championship is the top level international sports competition between European athletes or sports teams representing their respective countries or professional sports clubs. In the plural, the European Championships also refers t ...

medalist in either Greco-Roman or freestyle wrestling and only the third European Championship gold medalist in freestyle wrestling from the independent Armenia. Gevorgyan is a three-time Olympian, competing at the

1996 Summer Olympics The 1996 Summer Olympics (officially the Games of the XXVI Olympiad, also known as Atlanta 1996 and commonly referred to as the Centennial Olympic Games) were an international multi-sport event held from July 19 to August 4, 1996, in Atlanta, ...

2000 Summer Olympics The 2000 Summer Olympics, officially the Games of the XXVII Olympiad, officially branded as Sydney 2000, and also known as the Games of the New Millennium, were an international multi-sport event held from 15 September to 1 October ...

, and

2004 Summer Olympics The 2004 Summer Olympics (), officially the Games of the XXVIII Olympiad (), and officially branded as Athens 2004 (), were an international multi-sport event held from 13 to 29 August 2004 in Athens, Greece. The Games saw 10,625 athletes ...

. He was one of the favorites in 1996 and 2000 but wasn't able to win an Olympic medal. Gevorgyan was voted the Armenian Athlete of the Year for 1997 and 1998. He completed his international wrestling career after the 2004 Olympics in Athens.

References

External links

* * *
Bundesliga
{{DEFAULTSORT:Gevorgyan, Arayik 1973 births Living people Armenian male sport wrestlers Olympic wrestlers for Armenia Wrestlers at the 1996 Summer Olympics Wrestlers at the 2000 Summer Olympics Wrestlers at the 2004 Summer Olympics World Wrestling Championships medalists European Wrestling Championships medalists People from Artashat, Armenia