Scandals in Armenia’s sport: father of coach and sportsman beaten, criminal case launched against general’s son - RESEARCH

Scandals in Armenia’s sport: father of coach and sportsman beaten, criminal case launched against general’s son - RESEARCH Armenian NOC President was in epicenter of the scandal
Individual sports
January 5, 2019 16:09
Scandals in Armenia’s sport: father of coach and sportsman beaten, criminal case launched against general’s son - RESEARCH

Baku. 5 January. REPORT.AZ/ Armenian sport was rich of numerous scandals and even criminal cases, Report informs citing news.am.

Doping scandal: How did the coach try to conceal that he was beaten?

Last year started with doping scandal for Armenia. International Weightlifting Federation (IWF) announced that doping was used in the team of women. Doping-test of Sona Poghosyan, champion of European weightlifting championship of youth in the age group U20, bronze winner of world championship, participant of Rio de Janeiro 2016 Olympic Games, gave positive result. The weightlifter, 75 kg, was removed from all competitions. This was one more shaking strike to Armenian team, which was temporarily punished at that time.

Armenia Weightlifting Federation made a decision to dismiss head coach Artashes Nersisyan and Poghosyan’s personal coach Arman Kazaryan. Later on, Kazaryan was hospitalized. There were rumors that President of Armenian National Olympic Committee Gagik Tsarukyan beat him. However, the coach said that as if he has fallen from height while repairing his home.

Was father of boxer, who avoided military service, beaten or did he fall down?

One more incident took place with the participation of boxers. Tsarukyan was in the epicenter of the incident too. World Champion Nikolai Arutyunov’s father 50-year-old Vyacheslav Arutyunov was hospitalized with numerous injuries. It was identified that he was beaten during the meeting of officials of Armenian Boxing Federation at the NOC. The reason was that V. Arutyunov’s boxer son, who was in Moscow, avoided military service. Despite Tsarukyan promised to solve military service matter of the boxer, he did not keep his word. Consequently, an incident occurred between hem and boxer’s father.

A criminal case was launched on the fact. Assistant to the NOC President Eduard Babayan was arrested. Thereafter, boxer’s father and mother removed their testimony against Tsarukyan and said that V. Arutyunov accidentally fell down.

Why did Armenian NOC President interfere in the Federation’s work?

One more scandal in connection with the Armenian NOC President occurred in the second half of 2018. Although Artur Gevorgyan was re-elected as the President of Armenia Boxing Federation, a group of boxer, who had been instructed by Tsarukyan, entered the meeting hall and demanded new election. Gevorgyan did not retreat. He announced that will put forward his candidacy for presidency of Armenian NOC in 2020.

Later on, an alternative Boxing Federation was established in Armenia. Gevorgyan considered it as intervention to the work of legal federation. Armenian Acting Sport Minister Gabriel Kazaryan promised to hole trilateral meeting. However, no one except Gevorgyan attended the meeting. This problem still remains unsolved.

There was money shortage for treatment of champion of Olympia

The next scandal occurred in the Greco-Roman wrestling. Father of Artur Aleksanyan, who was the Olympic Champion a three-time World Champion, and a four-time European Champion, made a shocking statement after world championship in Budapest. He said that he treated his son’s injuries on his own account, got no support from the state. Currently, the sportsman is being treated in US on his own account. Aleksanyan refused to compete for bronze medal due to his injury. He did not join the ceremony on awarding the best sportsmen of 2018 either. As his father did not participate in the ceremony either, head coach of the team Levon Julfalakyan got the car instead of him.

A criminal case was launched against general’s son, who is the president of federation

One more scandal was related to Armenian Taekwondo Federation. After launch of a criminal case against the honored President of the Federation, general Manvel Grigoryan, his son Karen Grigoryan, who headed the Federation, was demanded to resign. The reason was that his term-in-office expired, there were many violations in the federation, corruption. A criminal case was launched on the facts. K. Grigoryan was dismissed. No president has been elected to the federation yet. 

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