Arsen Julfalakyan ( hy, Արսեն Ջուլֆալակյան, born 8 May 1987) Ph.D., is an

Armenia Armenia (), , group=pron officially the Republic of Armenia,, is a landlocked country in the Armenian Highlands of Western Asia.The UNbr>classification of world regions places Armenia in Western Asia; the CIA World Factbook , , and ' ...

n Greco-Roman style wrestler, Olympic silver medalist, World and European Champion, World Cup winner and three-time Olympian.

Early life

Julfalakyan was born in the city of Leninakan (now

Gyumri Gyumri ( hy, Գյումրի, ) is an urban municipal community and the second-largest city in Armenia, serving as the administrative center of Shirak Province in the northwestern part of the country. By the end of the 19th century, when the city w ...

. He is the son of renowned European, World and Olympic Champion, Armenian national Greco-Roman wrestling team head coach Levon Julfalakyan. Under the guidance of his father, Arsen began wrestling at age 11.

Career

In the years 2001, 2003, and 2004, Julfalakyan won the Junior Armenian Championship, and won the Cadet European Championships in 2003 and 2004 and the Junior World Championships in 2007. Arsen, age 21, competed at the 2008 Summer Olympics. He was eliminated in his second match, coming in tenth place. Julfalakyan was a member of the Armenian Greco-Roman wrestling team at the 2009 Wrestling World Cup. The Armenian team came in third place. Julfalakyan personally won a bronze medal. Julfalakyan won the gold medal at the

2009 European Wrestling Championships The 2009 FILA European Wrestling Championships were held in Vilnius, Lithuania. The event took place from 31 March to 5 April 2009. Bids Five countries showed interest in hosting the tournament, but only two were shortlisted: Vilnius (Lithuania) ...

Vilnius Vilnius ( , ; see also other names) is the capital and largest city of Lithuania, with a population of 592,389 (according to the state register) or 625,107 (according to the municipality of Vilnius). The population of Vilnius's functional urb ...

and the silver medal in the

2010 World Wrestling Championships The 2010 World Wrestling Championships were held at the Olympic Stadium in Moscow, Russia. The event took place between September 6 to September 12, 2010. Medal table Team ranking Medal summary Men's freestyle Men's Greco-Roman Women's ...

Moscow Moscow ( , US chiefly ; rus, links=no, Москва, r=Moskva, p=mɐskˈva, a=Москва.ogg) is the capital and largest city of Russia. The city stands on the Moskva River in Central Russia, with a population estimated at 13.0 millio ...

. Julfalakyan was a member of the Armenian Greco-Roman wrestling team at the 2010 Wrestling World Cup. The Armenian team came in third place. Julfalakyan personally won a gold medal. Arsen made his Olympic return at the 2012 Summer Olympics. He advanced to the finals without losing a single point, but faced defeat in the finals against Roman Vlasov in a tensely contested match. Vlasov called Julfalakyan his idol afterwards. Julfalakyan won an Olympic silver medal, the first Olympic silver medal won by an Armenian representative in sixteen-years. At the closing ceremony, Julfalakyan was the flag bearer of Armenia. Julfalakyan was voted the Armenian Athlete of the Year for 2012. Julfalakyan won the gold medal at the 2014 World Wrestling Championships, the first for Armenia in Greco-Roman wrestling in 13 years. In the 2014 Grapple at the Garden in New York City, Julfalakyan defeated 4-time NCAA champion

Kyle Dake Kyle Douglas Dake (born February 25, 1991) is an American freestyle wrestler and graduated folkstyle wrestler who currently competes at 74 kilograms. Dake is a four-time and the reigning World Champion, winning back-to-back titles twice, at ...

in a Greco-Roman match. He won the "Dan Kolov and Nikola Petrov" international tournament in Sofia on 24 April and dedicated his victory to the victims of the

Armenian genocide The Armenian genocide was the systematic destruction of the Armenian people and identity in the Ottoman Empire during World War I. Spearheaded by the ruling Committee of Union and Progress (CUP), it was implemented primarily through t ...

on the 100th anniversary, wearing a shirt commemorating the 1.5 million victims during the medal presentation. He competed at the 2016 Summer Olympics but lost in the first round and didn't move onto the repechage.

Personal life

Julfalakyan got married on 27 August 2012 in the St. Gevorg Church in

Mughni Mughni ( hy, Մուղնի) is a village in the Aragatsotn Province of Armenia. It is located just to the north of Ashtarak town and belongs to its municipality. Until the Russian conquest, it was the southernmost town in the district of Aparan ...

. Arsen studied at

Yerevan State University Yerevan State University (YSU; hy, Երևանի Պետական Համալսարան, ԵՊՀ, ''Yerevani Petakan Hamalsaran''), also simply University of Yerevan, is the oldest continuously operating public university in Armenia. Founded in 1919 ...

and received an

International Relations International relations (IR), sometimes referred to as international studies and international affairs, is the scientific study of interactions between sovereign states. In a broader sense, it concerns all activities between states—such a ...

faculty master's degree and PhD in History. In 2021 Arsen Julfalakyan was elected as a Chairman of the United World Wrestling Athletes’ Commission. He serves also as UWW Bureau Member. The Athletes' Commission was established in 2013 with the role of protecting the rights and interests of all United World Wrestling Olympic style athletes. The Athletes' Commission members reach out and communicate with active athletes as peers to collect feedback.

Awards

Julfalakyan was awarded the "For Merit" 2nd degree medal in 2012 and the "For Service to Fatherland" 1st degree medal in 2014.

References

External links

*
The-Sports.org
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Julfalakyan, Arsen 1987 births Living people Sportspeople from Gyumri Yerevan State University alumni Armenian male sport wrestlers Olympic wrestlers of Armenia Wrestlers at the 2008 Summer Olympics Wrestlers at the 2012 Summer Olympics Wrestlers at the 2016 Summer Olympics Olympic silver medalists for Armenia Olympic medalists in wrestling Medalists at the 2012 Summer Olympics World Wrestling Championships medalists Universiade medalists in wrestling Universiade bronze medalists for Armenia European Wrestling Championships medalists Medalists at the 2013 Summer Universiade Ethnic Armenian sportspeople