ATHENS, November 2026 — Greek armwrestler Giorgos Charalampopoulos won silver and bronze at the WAF World Championship in New Delhi, beating Russia’s Konstantin Petrov before losing their left-arm final rematch, his team said.
The 51-year-old competed in the Grand Master Men +100kg category at the World Armwrestling Federation event in India.
Charalampopoulos has since returned to Greece with both medals, adding to the European title he won in May.
WAF World Championship left-arm run
On his left arm, Charalampopoulos opened against India’s Elton Dermott. He then beat Turkey’s Damar Erkan, a long-time rival he has faced many times.
Read more: Greek Athlete Giorgos Charalampopoulos Returns Home with Two Medals from World Armwrestling Championship
Next, he overcame Petrov to reach the final unbeaten. In the final, however, he met Petrov again. He suffered his first defeat of the event and finished second in the world.
His team described Petrov as a veteran soldier who fought in Afghanistan.
Right-arm bronze
The right-arm draw proved far less straightforward. Charalampopoulos first beat Russia’s Aleksandr Frantsuzov, then recorded a sweeping win over Erkan.
Against Janurijus Musvicas, the bout was restarted four times. Charalampopoulos eventually lost on a foul.
He then met Erkan again in the semi-final and lost on a foul call that his team disputes. That second defeat left him with the bronze medal.
After the WAF World Championship, the Greek athlete holds world medals on both arms in 2026. In May, Greek City Times reported his European title in the Grand Masters +100kg right-hand category.
Charalampopoulos won his first world title in 2015, at the WAF World Championship in Kuala Lumpur. He has also presided over the Armwrestling Administration Committee in Greece since 2020.
Charalampopoulos posted footage of his WAF World Championship bouts on his YouTube channel.
Source: Supplied
