Hamza Yerlikaya

Hamza Yerlikaya (born June 6, 1976, in Kadıköy, Istanbul) is a Turkish Graeco-Roman style wrestler. He is a two-time (in 1996 and 2000) Olympic champion, three-time World Champion (1993, 1995, and 2005), and the first Turkish wrestler to become European champion a record eight times, a feat that has since been matched by Rıza Kayaalp. He was named The Wrestler of the century in 1996 by the International Federation of Associated Wrestling Styles (FILA).

Hamza Yerlikaya
Personal information
NationalityTurkish
Born (1976-06-06) June 6, 1976
Kadıköy, Istanbul, Turkey
Height1.76 m (5 ft 9 in)
Weight84 kg (185 lb)
Sport
SportSport wrestling
Event(s)Greco-Roman wrestling
ClubIstanbul BB SK
Turned pro1992
Retired2007
Medal record
Men's Greco-Roman Wrestling
Olympic Games
2000 Sydney 85 kg
1996 Atlanta 82 kg
World Championships
2005 Budapest96 kg
1995 Prague82 kg
1993 Stockholm82 kg
1997 Wroclaw85 kg
2006 Guangzhou96 kg
European Championships
2006 Moscow96 kg
2005 Varna96 kg
2002 Seinaejoki84 kg
2001 Istanbul85 kg
1999 Sofia85 kg
1998 Minsk85 kg
1997 Kouvola85 kg
1996 Budapest82 kg
1993 Istanbul82 kg
World Cup
2006 Budapest 96 kg
1997 Tehran 86 kg
2002 Cairo 96 kg
Mediterranean Games
1997 Bari85 kg
1993 L-Roussillon82 kg
World Espoir Championships
1995 Tehran82 kg
European Espoir Championships
1994 Istanbul82 kg
World Juniors Championships
1994 Budapest88 kg
1993 Goetzis81 kg
1992 Cali74 kg
World Cadets Championships
1992 Istanbul76 kg

A sports complex in Gaziosmanpaşa district of Istanbul is named after him.

Between 2007 and 2011, he was a deputy of the ruling Adalet ve Kalkınma Partisi (AKP). In December 2020, a Turkish court ruled that high school diploma of Yerlikaya was fake and Yerlikaya isn't a high school graduate, creating further controversy, since he was the deputy chairman of AKP at that time.[1]

Early life

His family was originally from Sivas, but they moved to Istanbul three months prior to Hamza's birth. His father Mustafa Yerlikaya is also a wrestler but was no longer active by the time Hamza was born. He started wrestling at age of 11 encouraged by his father and inspired by his elder brother Muttalip Yerlikaya who is also a wrestler with international success.

International wrestling career

Hamza Yerlikaya's first international competition was in 1991 World Cadets Wrestling Championships in Quebec, Canada, in which he got the fourth place. His first senior international event was the 1993 European Wrestling Championships in Istanbul where he got the second place, losing to Thomas Zander in the finals. He surprised some of the spectators who thought this was a coincidence by winning the gold medal in 1993 World Wrestling Championships in Stockholm, Sweden at the age of 17, and hence becoming the youngest ever World Champion in wrestling.

As his age allowed, in some years he participated in seniors, juniors as well as cadets events. He won the World Championship again in 1995 and went on to win his first Olympic gold medal in Atlanta 1996 at the age of 20. He repeated his success four years later in Sydney 2000 and carried the flag for Turkey at the Sydney 2000 opening ceremony. Since then he has won three more World Championships (2002, 2003 and (at 96 kg) 2005). He has won the European Seniors Championship eight times (1996, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2001, 2002, 2005 and 2006).

He competed in 84 kg Men's Greco-Roman Wrestling for Turkey in 2004 Summer Olympic Games in Athens, Greece and placed 4th.

In April 2007, he withdrew from international competition due to emergency surgery to correct neck fractures, some of which were estimated to have been as much as four years old and never treated.

Affiliations and coaching
  • Between years 1986-1996 he was in Istanbul Demirspor club and was coached by Salih Bora and Muzaffer Aydin.
  • He did his military service in 1996-1997 and is the only Turkish athlete that won a medal in Olympic Games during military service.
  • He was coached by Salih Bora since 1997.
  • In years 1998-1999 he was in Emlakbank club.
  • Since 1999 he is wrestling for Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality.
  • Hakki Basar started coaching him in 2004.

Major international achievements

In reverse chronological order:

All listed events are Greco-Roman style wrestling.

References
  1. "İşte AKP'li Hamza Yerlikaya'nın sahte diploma davasının kararı: Diploması sahte". Cumhuriyet (in Turkish). Retrieved 2020-12-19.
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