Bulgaria ended its participation in the European Wrestling Championship in Tirana with a silver medal for Ahmed Bataev, who lost in the final of the 92 kg freestyle category to Ali Tsokaev 3:5. The national team finished the competition with a total of six awards, including gold for Kiril Milov in the classic style up to 97 kg, silver medals for Bataev and Semen Novikov, as well as three bronzes, BTA reports.
On the way to the final, Bataev achieved a dramatic victory over world vice-champion Amanula Hadzhimagomedov, after taking the decisive points in the last second to win 3:2. The final match was also extremely contested. The Bulgarian started well, winning a point after pushing his opponent off the mat, but was later penalized for passivity and fell behind in the score.
Tsokaev increased his lead to 4:1, which forced Bataev to take risks in the closing minutes. The Bulgarian athlete managed to reduce the gap to a point, but did not find an opportunity for a decisive attack in the last seconds and remained with the silver.
For Tsokaev, this is his first European title among men, after he already has gold in the youth under 23 years of age from 2024 and bronze from 2025.