Tweet
SWEDISH WRESTLER ARA ABRAHAMIAN THROWS AWAY MEDAL IN OLYMPIC HISSY FIT
By Andy Hooper and agencies
Telegraph.co.uk
14 Aug 2008
United Kingdom
While an Olympic medal would be seen by most athletes as the ultimate
reward for a lifetime's work, Swedish wrestler Ara Abrahamian was
less than pleased with the bronze he won at the Chinese Agricultural
University Gym.
Unwanted: Abrahamian's discarded medal - Photo: Reuters
Under the cosh: Andrea Minguzzi gets to grips with the Swede Photo: AP
Head to head: Abrahamian furious at judge Photo: Reuters Confrontation:
Abrahamian blasts judges after defeat Photo: AP Worthless: Abrahamian
looks at his token of defeat Photo: Reuters You can keep your medal:
Abrahamian storms out of presentation ceremony Photo: Getty Images
Abrahamian threw down his 84kg greco-roman bronze in disgust after his
shot at gold was ended by a decision denounced by the Swedish coach as
"politics".
Abrahamian took the medal from around his neck during the medal
ceremony, stepped from the podium and dropped it in the middle of
the mat before storming off.
The Swedish wrestler had to be restrained by team-mates earlier as a
row erupted with judges over the decision in a semi-final bout with
Andrea Minguzzi of Italy, who went on the take gold.
Abrhamian, who won silver at the Athens 2004 Games, shouted at the
referee and judges then went over to confront judges, angrily throwing
off the restraining arm of a team official.
Swedish fans booed loudly as the judges filed out of the
arena. Abrahamian said nothing to waiting reporters but whacked an
aluminium barricade with his fist as he left the hall.
"It's all politics," said Swedish coach Leo Myllari.
Myllari did not say if he intended to lodge a formal protest over the
decision by referee Jean-Marc Petoud of Switzerland, judge Lee Ronald
Mackay of Canada, and mat chairman Guillermo Orestes Molina of Cuba.
Other favourites went out in the semi-finals or earlier. Athens
96kg gold medallist Karam Gaber of Egypt failed to make it to the
quarter-finals. Aleksey Mishin of Russia, who took Athens gold in
the 84kg class, was beaten by Minguzzi.
Ramaz Nozazde of Georgia, who took silver in Athens, succumbed to
Marek Svec of the Czech Republic, still fighting at age 35. Svec then
lost to Russia's European champion Aslanbek Kushtov, who caught him
with a spectacular fall.
In the heavyweight 120kg class, Armenia's Yuri Patrikeev and Dremiel
Byers of the United States, both favoured as finalists, failed to
go through.
By Andy Hooper and agencies
Telegraph.co.uk
14 Aug 2008
United Kingdom
While an Olympic medal would be seen by most athletes as the ultimate
reward for a lifetime's work, Swedish wrestler Ara Abrahamian was
less than pleased with the bronze he won at the Chinese Agricultural
University Gym.
Unwanted: Abrahamian's discarded medal - Photo: Reuters
Under the cosh: Andrea Minguzzi gets to grips with the Swede Photo: AP
Head to head: Abrahamian furious at judge Photo: Reuters Confrontation:
Abrahamian blasts judges after defeat Photo: AP Worthless: Abrahamian
looks at his token of defeat Photo: Reuters You can keep your medal:
Abrahamian storms out of presentation ceremony Photo: Getty Images
Abrahamian threw down his 84kg greco-roman bronze in disgust after his
shot at gold was ended by a decision denounced by the Swedish coach as
"politics".
Abrahamian took the medal from around his neck during the medal
ceremony, stepped from the podium and dropped it in the middle of
the mat before storming off.
The Swedish wrestler had to be restrained by team-mates earlier as a
row erupted with judges over the decision in a semi-final bout with
Andrea Minguzzi of Italy, who went on the take gold.
Abrhamian, who won silver at the Athens 2004 Games, shouted at the
referee and judges then went over to confront judges, angrily throwing
off the restraining arm of a team official.
Swedish fans booed loudly as the judges filed out of the
arena. Abrahamian said nothing to waiting reporters but whacked an
aluminium barricade with his fist as he left the hall.
"It's all politics," said Swedish coach Leo Myllari.
Myllari did not say if he intended to lodge a formal protest over the
decision by referee Jean-Marc Petoud of Switzerland, judge Lee Ronald
Mackay of Canada, and mat chairman Guillermo Orestes Molina of Cuba.
Other favourites went out in the semi-finals or earlier. Athens
96kg gold medallist Karam Gaber of Egypt failed to make it to the
quarter-finals. Aleksey Mishin of Russia, who took Athens gold in
the 84kg class, was beaten by Minguzzi.
Ramaz Nozazde of Georgia, who took silver in Athens, succumbed to
Marek Svec of the Czech Republic, still fighting at age 35. Svec then
lost to Russia's European champion Aslanbek Kushtov, who caught him
with a spectacular fall.
In the heavyweight 120kg class, Armenia's Yuri Patrikeev and Dremiel
Byers of the United States, both favoured as finalists, failed to
go through.