Taha Akgül
Rio champion and eleven-time king of Europe
- Born
- November 22, 1990, Sivas, Turkey
- Nationality
Turkey- Height
- 192 cm (6′4″)
- Style
- High-tempo athletic heavyweight
- Weight
- 120 kg, 125 kg
- Active
- 2010–2024
- Status
- Retired · age 35
The medals
1 Olympic gold, 3 world titles
The story
aha Akgül spent more than a decade near the top of the heaviest class in freestyle. From Sivas in central Turkey, he won back-to-back world titles in 2014 and 2015 and Olympic gold at 125 kg in Rio in 2016. His rivalry with Georgia's Geno Petriashvili produced some of the wildest heavyweight matches of the era, high-scoring and often decided in the last seconds. Akgül won eleven European titles, a third world title in 2022, when UWW named him its Freestyle Wrestler of the Year, and Olympic bronzes in Tokyo and Paris. He took off his shoes after his final bout in Paris in 2024, wrestling's sign of retirement, and that December he was elected president of the Turkish Wrestling Federation.
- Olympic champion (2016)
- Olympic bronze medalist (2020, 2024)
- World champion ×3 (2014, 2015, 2022)
- European champion ×11
- UWW Freestyle Wrestler of the Year (2022)
- Turkey's flag bearer at the 2016 and 2024 Olympic closing ceremonies
Defining matches
- 2016WINvs Komeil Ghasemi (Rio Olympic final)
- 2019LOSSvs Geno Petriashvili (World final, 6-6 on criteria after a late takedown)
- 2022WINvs Lkhagvagerel Munkhtur (World final, Belgrade)
- 2024WINvs Aiaal Lazarev (Paris Olympic bronze, 7-0; final match)
Condition like a lightweight even if you wrestle heavyweight: Akgül's matches with Petriashvili were high-scoring battles decided late. Heavier Satori students should finish practice with full-pace, six-minute live rounds so the late scramble belongs to them.
2007–2024
