Saravi, Dorostkar among Asian wrestling’s best in 2025
The Asian Wrestling Council named Iran's Mohammad-Hadi Saravi as the continent's best Greco-Roman in 2025.
Saravi's compatriot Pejman Dorostkar, meanwhile, was picked as the best freestyle head coach after steering the Iranian national squad to the world and Asian team titles last year.
Reigning Olympic champion Saravi proved to be the wrestler to beat in the 97kg category last year, posting a 10-0 record en route to gold medals at three major tournaments, including the world title in September.
He opened the international season with a dominant run at the Asian Championships in March, claiming three superiority victories without conceding a single point to secure the third continental gold of his career.
Saravi then defeated Russia’s Artur Sargsian, competing as a neutral athlete, 3-1 in the final in Zagreb to claim his second world gold after his 2021 triumph, before rounding out the season with a 5-1 final victory over Azerbaijan’s Murad Ahmadiyev at the Islamic Solidarity Games in November.
The gold-laden season earned Saravi a nomination for the UWW Most Dominant Greco-Roman Wrestler of 2025 award, though he ultimately lost out to fellow Iranian world and Olympic champion Saeid Esmaeili.