The Armenian team won a record 12 medals at the European Wushu Championships 2024 in Stockholm. The tournament ended on 5 May and the Armenian team will arrive in Yerevan tomorrow, 8 May.
After the European Championship, Sportball24 contacted with Aram Haydinyan, Vice President of the Traditional Wushu Federation of Armenia. Aram Haydinyan is also an international class judge, he and Spartak Tsaturyan were part of the judging team at the tournament in Sweden.
The Armenian national team took part in the tournament with 14 athletes and won 12 medals - 7 gold, 2 silver and 3 bronze. Full results HERE.
Interview with Aram Haydinyan:
- How would you assess the performance of the Armenian national team at the European Championships?
- I should note that there are two disciplines in wushu: Taolu, which is a demonstration performance when an athlete performs a pre-prepared training set, and sanda, which is a fight that uses hand and foot strikes and throws. We performed in both competitions.
I would appreciate the performances of our athletes. I would also praise the work of our judges.
- Is the result of this tournament the best in the history of Armenia or were there more successful tournaments?
- Yes, the result recorded at this tournament is the best in the history, but this is only the beginning of our ascent. There are many more achievements ahead of us.
- What was the most interesting and impressive fight for you?
- All the fights were impressive for me, I would not like to single out any of them.
- Will the athletes receive prizes from the state for their victories or is it not foreseen?
- Yes, of course, not only the athletes, but also the coaches of the national team will be awarded.
- What is the reason for such a rapid development of Wushu in Armenia?
-This is the result of hard and painstaking work of our whole team under the leadership of the President of the Traditional Wushu Federation of Armenia Mr Rustam Alaverdyan. Our tireless dedication to this martial art is the main reason for our success.
- Wushu will be represented at the 2026 Youth Olympic Games in Dakar. Do you plan to participate there?
- Yes, we will be competing in the Dakar tournament.
- Do you think wushu will ever become an Olympic sport?
- Definitely it will.
- What is the future for Wushu athletes in professional sports: MMA, boxing, kickboxing?
- Since, as I have already said, sanda competitions include punches and kicks, throws, our athletes can show very high results in the sports you mentioned.