“Being left out of the Olympics made you stronger.” Putin congratulated Russian wrestler Sadulaev on his victory at the World Championships

President of the Russian Federation Vladimir Putin congratulated the two-time Olympic freestyle wrestling champion, Russian Abdulrashida Sadulayev with a victory at the World Championships in the non-Olympic weight categories in Tirana.

On Thursday, Sadulaev defeated Georgian representative Mirian Maisuradze in the final fight in the weight category up to 92 kg and became six-time world champion. At the tournament, Russian athletes competed in neutral status.

— Dear Abdulrashid Boulachevich! Congratulations on your brilliant victory. The unfair exclusion from participation in the 2024 Olympic Games did not break you, it strengthened your character and made you stronger. And at the World Championships in Tirana, you convincingly demonstrated your leadership qualities, confidently defeated experienced opponents and climbed to the highest step of the podium for the sixth time. “I am convinced that your brilliant triumph will become an example for future generations of athletes,” said the telegram published on the Kremlin website.

At the World Championships which ended at the end of October in Albania, the Russians won five medals.

In July, the Russian Wrestling Federation (FSBR) reported that Russian wrestlers who received an IOC invitation had refused to participate in the Paris Olympics. The federation declared that it “does not accept the principle of non-sporting selection which guided the IOC in establishing the list of eligible athletes, the aim of which is to undermine the principle of team unity”. The list of wrestlers assigned neutral status by the IOC did not include many of the strongest athletes, including Olympic champions Sadulaev, Zaur Uguev, Zaurbek Sidakov and Musa Evloev.

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