Azerbaijan's Hasrat Jafarov, who won his third consecutive European Championship title in Greco-Roman wrestling, shared his thoughts on the challenges he faced and his future goals.

"A month before the European Championship, I got injured at an international tournament in Croatia. I had surgery on my ear. It was uncertain whether I would participate in the European Championship. The recovery process took some time," Jafarov told Offsideplus.az.

The 67 kg wrestler spoke about his journey to winning the title in Bratislava, Slovakia, explaining the difficulties involved:

"Even though I had surgery, the doctor was wrapping my ear, and I continued my training. The European Championship may look easy from the outside, but there are unseen aspects. Weight cutting, constant training before stepping onto the mat — these are all behind-the-scenes efforts. Thank God, our hard work did not go to waste. I became European champion for the third time in a row."

Jafarov also expressed his ambition to become a world champion:

"I haven't won a world championship yet. I’ve finished second once and third once. I will prepare better for the upcoming World Championship. After every competition, I tell myself that my result is not enough. I need to break records. I want to win medals that I don’t yet have in my personal collection and succeed in future major competitions."

Nihat Mammadli, who won the 60 kg European Championship, also shared his thoughts:

"This is my second time becoming European champion. I want to thank everyone who congratulated me, supported me, prayed for me, and stood by me. I dedicate this victory to our entire nation. May God be pleased with all of you. God willing, we will raise our flag higher in future competitions and make our people proud."

It is worth noting that Azerbaijan’s Greco-Roman wrestlers won a total of 3 gold, 1 silver, and 2 bronze medals at the European Championship.