Tragic Loss: Remembering Nugzari Tsurtsumia, the World Wrestling Champion Who Lost His Life at 27

Nugzari TSURTSUMIA (GEO), a 2019 world champion, passed away in his hometown of Khobi, Georgia at the age of 27. The young star’s death has saddened all who knew him, leaving United World Wrestling and the wrestling community mourning his loss.

At the Budapest Ranking Series in June, Tsurtsumia won a bronze medal in the Greco-Roman 55kg weight class. This was the same weight class in which he had previously won two silver and two bronze medals at the World Championships. In addition to his five World Championship medals, Tsurtsumia also won four medals at the European Championships, including a silver and three bronzes.

Tsurtsumia achieved great success at the age group level as well, earning medals at various European Championships. He won bronze at the U17 level, gold and two bronzes at the U20 level, and two golds at the U23 level. At the age-group World Championships, he was the U23 world champion in 2018 and won silver and bronze medals at the U20 level.

A highlight of Tsurtsumia’s career was his victory at the 2019 World Championships in Nursultan, where he became