Olympian joins Mustangs coaching staff

LONDON, Ont. - The London-Western Wrestling Club is pleased to announce that 2008 Beijing Olympian Saeed Azarbayjani will be joining the coaching staff of the London-Western Wrestling Club and as an assistant coach with the Western Mustangs varsity wrestling team.

To qualify for the 2008 Beijing Olympic Canadian wrestling team, Azarbayjani upset three-time Olympian and 1996 Atlanta Games silver medallist Gia Sissaouri (2001 World champion, 1996 Olympic silver medallist), to secure the 60 kg Olympic berth during a challenge wrestle-off in April, 2008.

The holder of eight Canadian Senior Championship titles in both Greco-Roman (6) and Freestyle (2), Azarbayjani won gold at the Pan-American Championships in 2006 and has competed at the World Championships in both Greco-Roman and Freestyle. He has numerous medals in various international events as a member of the Canadian national wrestling team for over 10 years.

Azarbayjani is a native of Tehran, Iran, where wrestling is the national sport and where he had his initial competitive career before moving to Canada.

He joins three-time Olympian Ray Takahashi in London where the Mustangs varsity program and affiliate club, London-Western, have undergone a fund-raising campaign initiative to revitalize the wrestling program. The "Changing Lives One Wrestler at a Time" campaign will continue to secure Athletic Financial Awards, additional programming needs and further coaching support for Western and the club.

"Saeed will enhance our coaching and he will be a big part in our high-performance development," said Takahashi. "I want to thank our alumni and friends, and in particular the wrestling committee of Glynn Leyshon and Josip Mrkoci, as well as Bruce Barran, Sang Kim and Glenn Yonemitsu, for making it possible to bring Saeed to London."

Sang Kim, current President of the London-Western Wrestling club and a Mustangs wrestling alumnus said he is pleased to have Azarbayjani join the coaching staff.

"He will provide a good balance for our program and help elevate our elite wrestlers in London and the surrounding area to new heights at the national and international level," Kim said.

Still an active athlete, Azarbayjani had been an assistant coach with the Brock Wrestling Club in St. Catharines, Ont., for the past several years and will begin relocating to London, Ont. He plans on competing at the National Championships and qualifying for the upcoming World Championships scheduled in Denmark in August, 2009.

Source: Mustangs Athletics