Türkiye's national wrestlers, Buse Tosun Çavuşoğlu and Ali Cengiz's names, were coated in gold at the 2023 World Wrestling Championship held in Serbia's capital, Belgrade.
Their remarkable achievements marked the pinnacle of their careers and added to Türkiye's glowing medal haul.
A total of 30 national wrestlers squared off on the mat during this intense competition, which unfolded between Sept. 16-24.
Türkiye emerged as a force to be reckoned with, amassing an impressive collection of seven medals: two gold, one silver and four bronze.
This triumphant performance showcased the nation's wrestling prowess and set the stage for their upcoming quest at the 2024 Paris Olympics.
Turkish wrestlers claimed one gold, one silver, and two bronze medals in Greco-Roman style, along with a gold medal in women's and two bronze medals in men's freestyle.
Among the stars donning the crescent and star, Buse Tosun Çavuşoğlu and Ali Cengiz stood out as true champions, with Rıza Kayaalp securing the silver medal, and Taha Akgül, Feyzullah Aktürk, Selçuk Can, and Enes Başar proudly receiving bronze medals.
The Turkish national wrestlers achieved a remarkable feat by clinching top-five spots in six out of the 18 Olympic weight classes, thereby securing invaluable Olympic quotas for the 2024 Paris Olympics.
Taha Akgül (125 kg.) and Ibrahim Çiftçi (97 kg.) impressed by finishing fifth in the men's freestyle, while Buse Tosun Çavuşoğlu (68 kg.) and Evin Demirhan Yavuz attained the fifth position in women's freestyle. Ali Cengiz (87 kg.) and Ali Cengiz (87 kg.) dazzled in the Greco-Roman style.
Rıza Kayaalp (130 kg.) was added to the Olympic quota tally.
Buse Tosun Çavuşoğlu, a 27-year-old powerhouse, delivered an outstanding performance in the women's 68 kg. final.
She secured her first-ever world championship by pinning Delgermaa Enkhsaikhan from Mongolia, leaving her opponents in awe. With three wins by pinfall and one by technical superiority, Çavuşoğlu established herself as a formidable force and a world champion, instilling fear in her rivals as the Olympics beckoned.
The grand finale of this championship witnessed Ali Cengiz's moment of glory.
In the Greco-Roman style, 87 kg. category, Ali faced off against Hungarian David Losonczi. In a thrilling final match, the 27-year-old Ali prevailed with an 8-7 victory, capturing the world championship for the first time.
His ascent to the top of the podium, accompanied by the national anthem, was a culmination of years of hard work and dedication.
The experienced wrestlers, Taha Akgül and Rıza Kayaalp, who were considered Türkiye's golden hopes, faced tough challenges.
Akgül, with one Olympic, three world, and 10 European championships to his name, was bested by the formidable Iranian Amir Zare in the men's freestyle 125 kg. semifinal.
Despite his setback, Taha rebounded to secure the bronze medal with a dominant 5-0 win over Hungarian Daniel Ligeti.
In a dramatic turn of events, Iranian Zare, who defeated Taha, went on to clinch the gold medal by defeating Georgian Geno Petriashvili in the final.
Rıza Kayaalp, Türkiye's most decorated wrestler with five world championships, faced off against another Iranian wrestler, Amin Mirzazadeh, in the Greco-Roman style 130 kg. final.
Although Kayaalp led 2-0, he narrowly missed the gold, settling for the silver medal.
Rıza Kayaalp's illustrious career boasts 12 European championships and three Olympic medals, including one silver and two bronze. His ultimate goal remains securing gold at the 2024 Paris Olympics to cap off his remarkable journey.
In addition to Buse and Ali's triumphs, Selçuk Can secured the bronze medal in the Greco-Roman style 72 kg. category.
It was his second consecutive bronze at the world championships, cementing his status as a consistent performer on the global stage.
Notably, the world championships witnessed two Turkish wrestlers, Feyzullah Aktürk and Enes Başar, clinching medals for the first time in their careers.
Feyzullah Aktürk, a two-time European champion, secured third place in the men's freestyle 92 kg. category.
Similarly, Enes Başar, representing Türkiye in the Greco-Roman style, 63 kg. category celebrated a career-defining moment by claiming the bronze medal.
Türkiye's outstanding wrestling contingent secured a total of eight medals, including four gold and four bronze, at the 2022 World Wrestling Championship hosted in Belgrade.
While this year, Rıza Kayaalp, Taha Akgül, Yasemin Adar Yiğit, and Burhan Akbudak claimed gold medals and Selçuk Can, Yunus Emre Başar, and Ali Cengiz added bronze medals to the tally.
Soner Demirtaş, who initially lost the third-place match, was later awarded the bronze medal due to the disqualification of Italian Frank Chamizo Marquez for using a banned substance.
Last year, Türkiye emerged as the team champion in the Greco-Roman style at the World Wrestling Championship.
At the 2023 World Wrestling Championship, Azerbaijan clinched the championship in Greco-Roman style with 120 points, while the U.S. secured victory in men's freestyle with 148 points, and Japan triumphed in the women's category with 195 points.
