Kazım Ayvaz Explained
| Headercolor: | lightblue |
| Kazım Ayvaz |
| Nationality: | Turkish |
| Residence: | Sweden |
| Birth Date: | 10 March 1938 |
| Birth Place: | Rize, Turkey |
| Death Place: | Sweden |
| Country: | Turkey |
| Sport: | Greco-Roman wrestling |
| Event: | Lightweight |
| Retired: | 1969 |
Kazım Ayvaz (March 10, 1938 - January 18, 2020) was a Turkish Olympic medalist sports wrestler in the lightweight class and a trainer. He won the gold medal in Men's Greco-Roman wrestling at the 1964 Olympics and became world champion twice.[1]
Career
He was born 1938 in Rize, north-eastern Turkey. He began wrestling 1953 at his age of 15 in the "İstanbul Güreş İhtisas Kulübü", a club in Fatih, Istanbul specialized in wrestling.
He won the gold medal at the 1958 World Wrestling Championships in Budapest in 73 kg. Greco-Roman wrestling, ahead of silver medalist Grigory Gamarnik of the USSR and bronze medalist Valeriu Bularca of Romania.
Representing his country in Greco-Roman style wrestling, he participated at three consecutive Olympics in 1960, 1964 and 1968, however was successful only in Tokyo.[2] From 1964 on, Kazım Ayvaz could not repeat his victorious matches. He retired from the active sports in 1969 and served from then on as a trainer in Sweden, where he emigrated after the 1968 Olympics.
Ayvaz lived in Sweden until his death on 18 January 2020.[3] [4]
Achievements
- 1957 Adriatic Cup in Opatija, Yugoslavia – bronze (Greco-Roman Welterweight)
- 1958 World Wrestling Championships in Budapest, Hungary – gold (Greco-Roman Welterweight)
- 1959 Balkan Wrestling Championships in Istanbul, Turkey – gold (Greco-Roman 73 kg)
- 1960 Balkan Wrestling Championships in Burgas, Bulgaria – silver (Freestyle 73 kg)
- 1960 Summer Olympics in Rome, Italy – 4th (Greco-Roman Middleweight)
- 1962 World Wrestling Championships in Toledo, Ohio, U.S. – gold (Greco-Roman Lightweight)
- 1963 World Wrestling Championships in Helsingborg, Sweden – 17th (Greco-Roman Lightweight)
- 1964 Summer Olympics in Tokyo, Japan – gold (Greco-Roman Lightweight)
- 1964 Balkan Wrestling Championships in Constanţa, Romania – silver (Greco-Roman Lightweight)
- 1966 European Wrestling Championships in Essen, Germany – 4th (Greco-Roman Lightweight)
- 1966, World Wrestling Championships in Toledo, Ohio, U.S. – 6th (Greco-Roman Lightweight)
- 1968 Summer Olympics in Mexico City, Mexico – 24th, injured (Greco-Roman Lightweight)
Notes and References
- Web site: International Wrestling Database .
- Web site: Wrestling at the 1964 Tokyo Summer Games: Men's Lightweight, Greco-Roman . https://web.archive.org/web/20200418130501/https://www.sports-reference.com/olympics/summer/1964/WRE/mens-lightweight-greco-roman.html . dead . 18 April 2020 . Sports Reference . 27 March 2019.
- Web site: Former Olympic champ Turkish wrestler Kazim Ayvaz dies. Fatih. Erel. 20 January 2020. aa.com.tr. 30 May 2021.
- News: Turkish Wrestling Great Kazim Ayvaz Passes Away. 27 January 2020. United World Wrestling. 27 January 2020.
