Armenian and Turkish wrestlers disqualified after brawl

An Armenian and a Turkish wrestler were disqualified from a championship in Albania after they got into a brawl mid-match.

The incident took place during a match between the two wrestlers, Lyova Gevoryan and Hakan Buykcingil, at the U23 World Championship in Albania. 

The two athletes began brawling mid-match, leading to both of them being disqualified.

The short video of the match circulating online shows the Turkish wrestler shoving Gevorgyan, who is then seen slapping Buyukcingil before the referees and coaches interfere and break the two apart.

Tensions between Armenian and Turkish or Azerbaijani athletes have previously been recorded in international sports matches and events.

At the end of September, another incident took place in France during an amateur football match between Turkish and Armenian clubs.

Turkish fans reportedly stormed the field and attacked Armenian footballers, two of whom were critically injured, after the first half of the match. Armenia was in the lead by 2–0.

In April 2023, criminal investigations were launched in both Armenia and Azerbaijan after an Azerbaijani flag was burnt on stage at the opening ceremony of the European Weightlifting Championship in Yerevan. 

The Azerbaijani delegation withdrew from the competition following the incident.

The incidents took place after Armenia and Turkey launched normalisation talks at the end of 2021. At the time, the two countries appointed special representatives to hold negotiations.

Previously, in 2019, Arsenal’s Henrikh Mkhitaryan — a prominent Armenian football player — did not take part in the final of the Europa League in Baku, reportedly due to ‘fears over his safety’.