The stage was set with the beautiful Neversea Beach providing the platform for the sand superstars to take a step closer to overall Beach Wrestling World Series gold in this penultimate event of the season.

There was a shock in the Women’s 50kg division when Emine CATALOGLU (TUR), who had been hotly tipped to take home the gold, lost to a great throw and pin by Ukrainian Doroshenko with just over a minute on the clock. The stunned Turkish tornado challenged the call to keep her gold medal match dreams alive but lost the challenge, and Doroshenko faced up against Ana Maria PIRVU (ROU) in the final.

With a strong home crowd behind her, it was Pirvu who would take home the gold with a fine 3-0 win in just over two minutes, much to the delight of her teammates and the Constanta crowd. Cataloglu bounced back from her defeat to take bronze as she defeated Nicoleta Cristina BAJAN in the 3 / 4 match.

Andrea GRASRUCK (GER) was competing in her first-ever Women’s 60kg division event at the Series, and she was within 2 seconds of making it to the final, only for Turkey’s Merve KARADENIZ to grab an equalising point. Grasruck challenged but lost the challenge and the tie, as Karadeniz advanced to the final to face Anastasiya KRAVCHENKO (UKR), who had got the better of her teammate Daria MEDVETSKA in the semi.

Kravchenko has been in stunning form this season, and once again, she showed why she is the one to beat in this division with a commanding performance in the final, where she was crowned queen of the sand with a 3-0 win in just 1 minute 45 seconds.

There was another shock in the Women’s 70kg division as reigning champion and home sand star Adina IRIMIA lost in the semi-final to compatriot Paula Aurelia Izabela ROTARU, who would go on to face Ukrainian Olena NIKITINSKA in the gold medal match.

Rotaru will be delighted with her showing in her home country as she then went on to take the gold, beating Nikitinska in just under a minute and a half. Irimia would make do with bronze, with a win over Viorica Tania ADAM in the 3-4 match.

There were scenes of jubilation from the large contingent of Americans at sand side as the Women’s +70kg Final came to an end with Eliana Bommarito’s gold finally ending their over-a-decade-long wait for a gold, as she beat reigning champion Catalina AXENTE in the final. Axente had picked up an injury in her semi-final win over Liudmyla PAVLOVETS TYCHYNA (UKR), during which she had to stop for treatment, but she had no answer to the sheer power of Bommarito. Pavlovets Tychyna would take the bronze for Ukraine.

Oleksii BORUTA (UKR) suffered a shock opening round defeat yesterday and had to win his third group match in the morning session to make it through to the elimination rounds, but that will all be forgotten about as he looks at the gold medal he’s taking home with him after defeating Azerbaijan’s Ramiz HASANOV to the gold in the Men’s 70kg division. There was also a first-ever Beach Wrestling World Series medal for Germany in their maiden event, as Valentin SEIMETZ beat Moldovan Pavel GRAUR in the 3-4 matchup to take the bronze.

Moldova didn’t have long to wait for a medal of their own though, as Traian CAPATINA secured Moldovan gold with a great win over Romanian Denis CHIRICA in just over a minute in the Men’s 80kg division. Bulgaria’s Nikolay Iliev DIMITROV took the bronze, as American Tyler Loethen was unable to continue through injury.

Ibrahim YUSUBOV (AZE) shows no signs of relinquishing his Men’s 90kg World Series title anytime soon, and the amazing Azerbaijani was at his imperious best today as he took 40 seconds to win his semi-final and then 20 seconds to wrap up the gold as he beat Ukrainian Oleksii YAKOVCHUK  in the final. Tyson BEAUPERTHUY would pick up USA’s second medal of the leg as he beat Turkey’s Mahmut OZKAYA in the 3-4 match.

The Men’s +90kg had been dominated by Fatih YASARLI (TUR) and Mamuka KORDZAIA (GEO) this season, with both men being the only gold winners so far, but the Big Gun Oyan NAZARIANI (AZE) is showing that his injury worries are behind him as he came within millimetres of taking the gold against Yasarli in the final here on Neversea Beach. With Nazariani leading 2-1 and 2 seconds on the clock, both men went down, and it was Yasarli who had just about landed second. This took the score to 2-2, but Nazariani challenged the call, only to lose out and forfeited the final point, as a result giving Yasarli another well fought-for gold.  Kordzaia would take the bronze as he edged out Andrii VLASOV (UKR) in the 3-4 matchup.

A phenomenal day of Beach Wrestling at its finest was capped off when Oleksii Boruta and Germany’s Laura SCHMITT took home the top technique awards.

As always, Constanta has delivered, and with the final stop coming to Turkey next month, all is set to coronate the Season’s Kings and Queens in magical Mugla on October 14 to 15. 

Results Beach Wrestling World Series Constanta 
WOMEN
50kg
1. Ana Maria PIRVU (ROU)
2. Iryna DOROSHENKO (UKR)
3. Emine CATALOGLU( (TUR)

60kg
1. Anastasiya KRAVCHENKO (UKR)
2. Merve KARADENIZ (TUR)
3. Daria MEDVETSKA (UKR)

70kg
1. Paula Aurelia Izabela ROTARU (ROU)
2. Olena NIKITINSKA (UKR)
3. Adina Ionela IRIMIA (UKR)

+70kg
1. Eliana Rose BOMMARITO (USA)
2. Catalina AXENTE (ROU)
3. Liudmyla PAVLOVETS TYCHYNA (UKR)

MEN
70kg
1. Oleksii BORUTA (UKR)
2. Ramiz HASANOV (AZE)
3. Valentin SEIMETZ (GER)
 

80kg
1. Traian CAPATINA (MDA)
2. Denis Ioan CHIRICA (ROU)
3. Nikolay Iliev DIMITROV (BUL)

90kg
1. Ibrahim YUSUBOV (AZE)
2. Oleksii YAKOVCHUK (UKR)
3. Tyson Daniel BEAUPERTHUY (USA)

+90kg
1. Fatih YASARLI  (TUR)
2. Oyan NAZARIANI  (AZE)
3. Mamuka KORDZAIA (GEO)

Top Technique
Laura SCHMITT (GER)
Oleskii BORUTA (UKR)

Find the complete results here.