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TEHRAN - Iran has provided some of the best talents that the world has throughout the many years of Iranian wrestling dominance.
That tradition has been long-standing and because of that, the official Instagram account for United World Wrestling (UWW) has taken a look at the top five Iranian wrestlers of all time.
The UWW has introduced the top five Iranian wrestlers.
1-Gholamreza Takhti
And the strong tradition of Iranian wrestling can be found back in 1951. That’s when Gholamreza Takhti made his senior-level debut. Takhti comes in at number one.
Nicknamed The World Champion, Takhti was a three-time Olympic medalist capturing gold at the 1956 games.
He also earned a pair of silver medals in both the Helsinki and Rome Olympic games.
The two-time world champion was inducted into the United World Wrestling Hall of Fame in 2007.
The native of Tehran passed away all too young at the age of 37, but his legacy and impact he had on Iranian wrestling will last forever.
2- Hamid Sourian
Iran’s first-ever Greco-Roman Olympic champion comes in at number two. Hamid Sourian was part of an unparalleled powerhouse 2012 Iranian squad.
Sourian was one of three Greco-Roman champions for Iran in the London Olympic Games and also represented Iran in both the 2008 and 2016 Olympic games.
The six-time world champion won 34 consecutive matches before disqualification and a bad streak in the 2015 world quarter-finals.”
3-Abdollah Movahed
“A blast from the past checks in at number three, with Abdollah Movahed. A five-time world champion raised eyebrows in his senior-level debut back in 1959 and his career took off from there.
Movahed was a two-time Olympic champion bringing the prestigious gold back to Babolsar in both the 1964 and 1968 games.
Movahed was perfect during a five-year stretch in the prime of his career, not losing a match while claiming five world titles.”
4- Rasoul Khadem
“Rasoul Khadem enters the list at number four. One of the most monumental moments in Iranian wrestling took place in the 1996 Olympic Games when Khadem stunned two-time Olympic gold medalist and five-time world champion Makharbek Khadartsev to capture his lone Olympic gold in his storied career.
After a near-miss following a bronze medal performance in the 1992 Olympic Games, Khadem’s Olympic title run will be a story long told in Iranian culture.
Khadem went off to win a pair of world titles along with five Asian championships.”
5- Hassan Yazdani
“Coming in at number five is the youngest star for Iran who’s enjoying the prime of his career, Hassan Yazdani.
You don’t get the nickname The Greatest without earning it and Yazdani has certainly done his part to carry on the tradition of Iranian wrestling.
The 25-year-old won the 2016 Rio Olympic gold medal at 74 kilos and has captured a pair of world championships to go along with a bronze and silver medal as well.
The Greatest knows a thing or two about the power of social media with nearly 500,000 followers on Instagram making him a national star, and certainly the greatest wrestler in Iran.”
https://www.tehrantimes.com/news/447848/Top-Five-Iranian-Wrestlers
