Türkiye’s Burhan Akbudak clinched a gold medal at the World Wrestling Championships on Monday after beating Uzbekistan’s Jalgasbay Berdimuratov in the men’s Greco-Roman 82kg category.
Akbudak improved on last year’s silver to claim his first-ever gold in the tournament as he rallied to a 7-6 victory over 2019 bronze medalist Berdimuratov in Belgrade, the capital of Serbia.
Berdimuratov, looking to become Greco’s second champion of Uzbekistan, opened the match with a 4-point arm throw.
Akbudak came back with a pair of outs to close the gap to 4-2, before, on a third attempt, Berdimuratov shrugged it off and scored a strikeout for a 6-2 lead at the break.
In the second period, Akbudak got his chance when he received a passivity point and was placed in the lead on the floor. From there, he ripped back-to-back gut wrenches to take the lead for the first time with 1:16 to go, and he held on for gold.
Tamas Levai of Hungary and Yaroslav Filchakov of Ukraine both won the bronze medal.
This spring, 27-year-old Akbudak picked up a bronze medal in the 82kg Greco-Roman wrestling at the European Wrestling Championships in Budapest, Hungary.
