Tazhudinov wins 97kg gold

TDT | Manama

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Akhmed Tazhudinov fought back from the brink to seize 97kg freestyle gold for Bahrain in Budapest, crushing Slovakia's Batyrbek Tsakulov with a late burst to win 13-7.

The Olympic champion had trailed 5-3 before drawing level at 7-7, though Tsakulov still led on criteria. With 30 seconds left, Tazhudinov struck with a four-point counter, then drove home a final takedown.

It was his second straight gold at the Polyák Imre, Varga János and Kozma István Memorial, part of wrestling's Budapest Ranking Series.

Tazhudinov tore through the draw before the final. He beat Ukraine's Ivan Prymachenko 10-0, swept aside Adlan Viskhanov 12-0 and pinned Poland's Zbigniew Baranowski in the semi-final while leading 10-0.

The 23-year-old won Bahrain's first Olympic wrestling gold at the Paris Games in 2024, a year after taking the world crown at 97kg.