Armenian wrestlers to compete at Baku youth championship

Armenian wrestlers will compete in the U17 World Championship in Baku, marking the first time Armenian athletes have participated in events in Azerbaijan since the Second Nagorno-Karabakh War in 2020. The move comes as the two countries have taken unprecedented steps towards finalising a peace treaty to end decades of conflict.

According to the Armenian Wrestling Federation, almost 20 athletes will take part in the event, set to run from 27 July to 2 August.

Sarkhan Musayev, a spokesperson of the Azerbaijani Wrestling Federation, told OC Media that the Armenian national team reserved its earlier decision not to participate in the championship at the last minute.

‘Initially, the Armenian team was not planning to participate — this was widely reported in the Armenian press as well — but they changed their minds, and we will ensure their complete safety’, Musayev stated. There was no explanation provided for why the Armenian team originally opted not to participate, or why the decision was reversed.

In 2023, during the World Shooting Championships, the Armenia team registered to participate in the competition held in Baku, but later canceled, citing security concerns.

Previously, Armenian athletes competed in the Senior World Championships in Baku in 2007 and in events during the 2015 European Games.

Referring to those tournaments, Musayev said, ‘We did not encounter any problems in that regard such as security or any other incident’.

Over the decades of conflict, people with Armenian surnames — or even those that sound Armenian — can be denied entry into Azerbaijan, a practice that Baku has denied it enforces.

In 2014, Turkish athlete Zafer Noyan was denied entry to Azerbaijan, reportedly because his surname sounded Armenian.

The US State Department’s travel advisory for Armenia still reads, ‘law enforcement officials have at times detained individuals from Armenia or with Armenian surnames for questioning or denied them entry into the country’.

Nonetheless, Musayev assured OC Media there would be no issues at the border.

‘As for the Armenian athletes, all necessary measures are being taken to ensure there are no complications regarding their entry into or exit from the country’, Musayev said, adding that ‘all state agencies and security services have been informed about this world championship; they are acting in unison and providing us with support on this matter’.

The Armenian athletes will be accommodated in the Baku Athletes’ Village, designated for participants in competitions held in Azerbaijan.

Addressing the possibility of incidents between athletes, Musayev emphasised that the federation regularly holds discussions with Azerbaijani wrestlers on this subject:

‘We require our local athletes — both generally and immediately before competitions — to refrain from aggressive behaviour toward any opponent, whether Armenian, from another country, or of a different nationality, and to avoid accompanying victory celebrations with political statements’.

Musayev also reported that Russian athletes of Armenian descent would be participating in the competition.

However, US wrestler Galust Torosian, who is also of Armenian descent, declined to participate in the U17 World Championship in Baku, citing safety concerns.