Armenia’s Samvel Terteryan has won gold at the U20 World Greco-Roman Wrestling Championships in Bratislava, Slovakia, defeating Azerbaijan’s Javidan Nahmatov 1:1 on criteria in the 77kg final on Monday, August 17, and completing a European and World double in 2026, reports Zartonk Sports.
The final was decided in Terteryan’s favor because he scored the first point, edging a bout that finished level. The two had met earlier this year in the U20 European final in Skopje, where the Armenian won 4:0. This rematch was far tighter, but the result was the same.
Terteryan carried the Armenian flag around the mat after the win. At the medal ceremony, the flag was raised and the national anthem played in his honor, footage of which was released by the Wrestling Federation of Armenia.
Terteryan reached the final in dominant form. He shut out the United States’ Leister Bowling 6:0 in the opening round and beat Georgia’s Giorgi Gogelashvili 6:0 in the semifinal. The title marked a sharp rise from last year’s World Championships, where he placed seventh.
The gold came on a strong day for Armenia’s junior Greco-Roman team. Yurik Petrosyan reached the 87kg final and took silver after losing to Japan’s Taizo Yoshida, while Yurik Mkhitaryan at 67kg and Erik Ter-Matevosyan at 97kg advanced into the medal rounds.
Terteryan’s win carried a family echo. His brother Gaspar won U20 World gold last year at 72kg in Samokov, Bulgaria, taking his final 1:1 on criteria against Uzbekistan’s Ahmad Kodirov. Samvel has now matched him, winning his own final the same way. The Terteryan brothers have become U20 World champions in consecutive years, extending one of Armenia’s deepest sporting traditions.
