Iranian Qassemi named Saudi FS wrestling head coach
Former Iranian superheavyweight wrestler Komeil Qassemi was appointed as the new head coach of Saudi Arabia freestyle national team.
This is a second coaching job overseas for the two-time Olympic medalist, who led the Cambodia to an all-time best haul of 19 medals – three golds and silvers apiece – at the 2022 Southeast Asian Wrestling Championships.
Qassemi, who is also a United World Wrestling (UWW) educator, retired from wrestling in 2019, with a 2014 world silver, as well as a gold medal and double silvers at the Asian Championships under his belt.
Qassemi won the freestyle 120kg bronze at the 2012 London Olympics, before his medal was upgraded to the gold seven years later, when the two original finalists Artur Taymazov and Davit Modzmanashvili were stripped of their medals after testing positive for banned substances.
Qassemi settled for a superheavyweight silver in Rio 2016, following a final defeat against Turkish great Taha Akgül.