Turkmen sambo athletes won 10 medals of various distinctions at the World Cup held in Cholpon-Ata (Issyk-Kul region of Kyrgyzstan), as reported to the "GA" correspondent by the State Committee of Turkmenistan for Physical Culture and Sports.

The competition gathered over 250 athletes from 14 countries, who competed for the title of the strongest in 26 weight categories in sport and combat sambo among men and women. According to the regulations, each participating country could present two athletes in each weight category.

As a result of the World Cup, the Turkmenistan team, with 1 gold, 2 silver and 7 bronze medals, took fourth place in the team standings, behind representatives of the Russian Federation (22 gold, 12 silver and 4 bronze), who competed under the flag and anthem of the International Sambo Federation (FIAS), as well as Kazakhstan (2-5-10) and Uzbekistan (1-2-8).

The highest award in our team was won by Niyazmyrat Babekov. This success was achieved by the 24-year-old serviceman of military unit No. 1001 named after Myalikguly Berdimuhamedov of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Turkmenistan in sport sambo in the weight category up to 64 kg, where medals were contested by 11 athletes from 7 countries.

In the first match, Niyazmyrat defeated Nursultan Amenov (Kazakhstan) 3:1, then in the quarterfinals he overcame Andri Kurnia (Indonesia) 8:0, and in the semifinals, by the last move, he defeated Igor Miroevsky from Belarus, competing under the FIAS flag, 1:1. In the final, N. Babekov was stronger than 22-year-old Adilet Kubanych Uulu (Kyrgyzstan) 9:1 and climbed to the top step of the podium.

Silver medals were awarded to representatives of combat sambo – Yusup Tanriberdiyev, 29-year-old employee of the Ministry of National Security of Turkmenistan, and Zarina Abdyrahmanova, 31-year-old coach-teacher of the sports school of Ak Bugday etrap of the Main Department of Physical Culture and Sports of Ahal velayat. The first athlete achieved this success in the weight category up to 58 kg, in which 9 athletes from 6 countries competed, and the second in the weight up to 54 kg among 10 sambo athletes from 6 countries.

On the way to the podium, Y. Tanriberdiyev and Z. Abdyrahmanova each won two victories. Yusup won in the quarterfinals against Daniyel Asekov (Kyrgyzstan) 5:2, in the semifinals he won against Shokhrukhbek Gapurov (Uzbekistan) 2:0 in the 34th second of the match, and only in the final did he lose to Arman Turumbetov (Kazakhstan) 0:1. Zarina defeated Kymbat Akhmet (Kazakhstan) 7:0 and Farogat Nurmamatova (Uzbekistan) 7:0, and lost in the final by warning to Vera Lotkova from Russia, competing under the flag of the International Sambo Federation, 0:0.

Bronze medalists in the Turkmenistan team were: Aziza Nazarova (up to 50 kg, sports sambo),coach-teacher of the 1st sports school of Danew etrap of the Main Department of Physical Culture and Sports of Lebap velayat; Babamurat Bayramov (up to 58 kg, sports sambo), second-year student of the Turkmen State Institute of Architecture and Construction; Kambar Umarov (up to 71 kg, sports sambo), coach-teacher of the 3rd sports school of Charjev etrap of the Main Department of Physical Culture and Sports of Lebap velayat; Kerim Kerimov (up to 64 kg, combat sambo), second-year student of the Turkmen State Institute of Architecture and Construction; athletes of the National Federation of Martial Arts of Turkmenistan Gulzada Jorakuliyeva (up to 72 kg, combat sambo) and Agasapar Mukhadov (up to 79 kg, combat sambo); as well as Maksat Annagylyjov (up to 88 kg, combat sambo), serviceman of military unit No. 69109 of the Security Service of the President of Turkmenistan.

The performances of Turkmen sambo athletes in Kyrgyzstan left a pleasant impression on the president of the International Sambo Federation (FIAS), Vasily Shestakov.

"The hosts of the tournament, the Kyrgyzstan team, as well as representatives of the teams of Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan and Turkmenistan, demonstrated good quality of wrestling," said the head of FIAS following the World Cup.

Shestakov also noted that at this tournament, athletes were able not only to test their strength ahead of the main sporting events of the FIAS calendar – the World Beach Sambo Championship in Morocco, the World Youth Championship in Cyprus, and the World Sambo Championship in Kazakhstan – but also to earn ranking points. And for combat sambo wrestlers, both men and women, the World Cup became one of the stages of selection for the World Games, which will be held in August 2025 in China.

It should also be added that this was the second World Cup in sambo this year, which is not yet included in the program of the Summer Olympic Games. The first World Sambo Cup was held on April 4-5 in Yerevan.