Nurlan Altynbekovich Koizhaiganov (, ''Nūrlan Altynbekūly Qoijaiğanov''; born March 27, 1977, in

Ayagoz Ayagoz or Ayakoz (, ''Aiagöz''), formerly Sergiopol (), is a city of regional significance in Kazakhstan, the administrative centre of Ayagoz district of Abai Region. Population: Geography It is located at the southeastern end of the Chingizt ...

) is a retired amateur Kazakh Greco-Roman wrestler, who competed in the men's lightweight category. He scored top five finishes in the 60-kg division in two consecutive editions of the

Asian Games The Asian Games, also known as Asiad, is a continental multi-sport event held every four years for athletes of Asia. The Games were regulated by Asian Games Federation from the 1951 Asian Games, first Games in New Delhi, India in 1951, until ...

(1998 and 2002), and later represented his nation

Kazakhstan Kazakhstan, officially the Republic of Kazakhstan, is a landlocked country primarily in Central Asia, with a European Kazakhstan, small portion in Eastern Europe. It borders Russia to the Kazakhstan–Russia border, north and west, China to th ...

at the

2004 Summer Olympics The 2004 Summer Olympics (), officially the Games of the XXVIII Olympiad (), and officially branded as Athens 2004 (), were an international multi-sport event held from 13 to 29 August 2004 in Athens, Greece. The Games saw 10,625 athletes ...

. Before being retired from wrestling in 2005, Koizhaiganov also trained throughout his sporting career at Professional Sport Club Daulet in

Semipalatinsk Semey (; , formerly known as Semipalatinsk ( ) until 2007 and as Alash-Qala ( ) from 1917 to 1920, is a city in eastern Kazakhstan, in the Kazakh part of Siberia. When Abai Region was created in 2022, Semey became its administrative centre. I ...

, under his personal coach Kanat Nurlasiev. Koizhaiganov qualified for the Kazakh squad in the men's 60 kg class at the

Athens Athens ( ) is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Greece, largest city of Greece. A significant coastal urban area in the Mediterranean, Athens is also the capital of the Attica (region), Attica region and is the southe ...

. Earlier in the process, he placed first in his respective category from the Olympic Qualification Tournament in

Tashkent, Uzbekistan Tashkent (), also known as Toshkent, is the Capital city, capital and List of cities in Uzbekistan, largest city of Uzbekistan. It is the most populous city in Central Asia, with a population of more than 3 million people as of April 1, 2024. I ...

to guarantee a spot on the Kazakh wrestling team. He easily ousted Italy's Paolo Fucile in his opening match by a quick 7–0 margin, and then overwhelmed 2000 Olympic bronze medalist Akaki Chachua of Georgia 7–6 in the prelim pool to clinch his spot for the next round of the competition. Koizhaiganov lost to neighboring Russia's Aleksey Shvetsov in the quarterfinal match at 1–3, and to Japan's Makoto Sasamoto in a consolation playoff with a comfortable 4–0 verdict, dropping him to sixth in the final standings.

References

External links

Profile – International Wrestling Database
1977 births Living people Kazakhstani male sport wrestlers Olympic wrestlers for Kazakhstan Wrestlers at the 2004 Summer Olympics Wrestlers at the 1998 Asian Games Wrestlers at the 2002 Asian Games People from Ayagoz Sportspeople from East Kazakhstan Region Asian Games competitors for Kazakhstan {{Kazakhstan-wrestling-bio-stub