Exclusive Comment by Zhan Beleniuk for Suspilne Sport.
Ukrainian wrestler Zhan Beleniuk is the bronze medalist in Greco-Roman wrestling in the 87 kg weight category at the 2024 Olympics. In the match for the Paris 2024 medal, he defeated Polish wrestler Arkadiusz Kulynycz with a score of 3:1.
The bronze medal at the 2024 Games is Zhan Beleniuk’s third Olympic award. Over the course of the Rio de Janeiro, Tokyo, and Paris Games, the athlete has collected a full set of medals. Zhan was a silver medalist in 2016, a gold medalist in 2021, and a bronze medalist at this year’s competition in France.
The bronze medal match at the 2024 Olympics was the final bout for the 33-year-old wrestler. After the match, Beleniuk symbolically removed his wrestling shoes and left them in the center of the ring, confirming his retirement.
After leaving the mat, the wrestler gave an exclusive flash comment to Suspilne Sport, where he shared his impressions of his final Olympic Games and the bronze medal match.
On performing at the 2024 Olympics
“I wouldn’t mind if there was a gold medal. But this is sport, everything happens. Unfortunately, I lost the fight. To be honest, I’m very happy that I managed to [win the bronze medal match]. I know this guy [Arkadiusz Kulinich], I’ve fought him three times and always won. But when you are 30 years old and, frankly, think that this is the last match in your life, you want to end it on a positive note. I am satisfied with the result,” Beleniuk said after the bronze medal fight.
“In 2013, the last time I came back without an international medal (World Championships, Europe). I didn’t want to break this streak. I was motivated, prepared… I watched his [my opponent’s] fights again, what he does, how he fights. In principle, it was more or less clear to me. He probably realized that he was unlikely to beat me, but to be honest, he resisted as best he could,” the athlete added.
About emotions after the bronze medal
“Will there be tears now? When I won gold last time, I sobbed all night,” Zhan admitted. “For some reason, I felt very sorry for myself, because there were certain moments related to my dislocated shoulder on the eve of the Games. But, thank God, it happened that I brought home a gold medal. Now, if there are any tears, they will be tears of happiness, just like last time.”
On the end of his competitive wrestling career
“I’m going to miss wrestling, I’ll definitely stay in sports and keep up my physical strength. I have a new hobby: table tennis, and I love it. I think I will spend more time on this sport. But sometimes I will go out on the mat. The fact that I left my wrestling shoes on the carpet means I still have spare ones,” the wrestler jokes.
“Will I enter the Olympics in table tennis? By the way, there was an athlete here [at the Paris Olympics], 58 years old [Zhiying Zeng]. I wrote in my club, where I play table tennis, that I have every chance of qualifying for the Olympics in this sport, I have about 25 years to spare,” the athlete laughs.
“Beleniuk’s bronze medal in Paris was Ukraine’s fourth at the Games. Only fencer Olha Harlan and swimmer Yana Klochkova (five medals each), as well as shooter Olena Kostevych and rower Inna Osypenko-Radomiska (four each) have won more medals for an athlete in the history of Ukraine.
In addition to the Olympic medals, Beleniuk won five medals at the World Championships, including two golds, as well as six European Championships (including three titles). The athlete also won the 2019 European Games.
Yevhen Perestenko, Andriy Nikitenok
Tags: sport Ukraine
