The first message about the death of Ahmed Zhiletezhev was published on the evening of July 24 on a public page dedicated to the struggle in Kabardino-Balkaria. The 19-year-old wrestler was at a training camp in the republic.
“A young man died tragically after falling from a mountain. The accident occurred in the Elbrus region, where the Russian youth freestyle wrestling team held a training camp.
Information about the death of Akhmed Zhiletezhev appeared in the media on the morning of the 25th. st. Petersburg Wrestling Federation confirmed the information that the wrestler died as a result of a fall at the parade.
They just brought the body, now it will be a funeral. We were at training camp, we were hiking, we stumbled and fell into the valley,” says a source from the Match TV Federation.
Zhiletezhev’s death was also confirmed by the regional Ministry of Sports.
“The freestyle wrestler Akhmed Zhiletezhev, who died in the Elbrus region, was a promising and well-known athlete in the republic,” quoted a source from the Ministry of Sports, RIA Novosti.
According to the Regional Ministry of Emergencies, Zhiletezhev was part of a group of tourists who decided to climb the mountain outside the main excursion. In total, there were nine people in it, they did not record their route before climbing the mountain, and also did not warn the guide and did not receive the necessary instructions. Rescue teams were called to the scene after the wrestler fell into the valley. It was reported that a group of 15 people was working at the scene and with 2 pieces of equipment.
The body of an athlete who fell from Buka-Bashi Mountain on the night of July 25 was found. He was taken to the nearest village of Elbrus, where he was handed over to the investigation-operation group. Information appeared on social networks that the funeral of Zhiletezhev will take place on the 25th. At the same time, two more members of the group, including the wrestler, reportedly needed the help of rescuers to get down the mountain. Access to the site where tourists end up is difficult, but there are reportedly no threats to their lives.
Zhiletezhev, Kabardino-Balkarian. Studying at the local school of the Olympic reserve, St. Petersburg national team. In 2019, by a decree of Smolny, St. Petersburg wrestling team, he was awarded the government award “For achieving high sports results in official international and all-Russian sports competitions”.
The wrestler became the winner and laureate of All-Russian competitions, in the spring he took the bronze of the Russian championship in freestyle wrestling among juniors under 21 in the weight category up to 70 kg.
A little more than a week ago, another tragedy occurred that cost the lives of three people, including Russian biathlete Igor Malinovsky, famous for his young performances. Ending his professional career, the athlete switched to aviation and became a helicopter pilot. On July 16, the ship operated by Malinovsky disappeared from the dispatchers’ radar. Due to bad weather conditions, rescuers were only able to start their search after a few hours. The crashed helicopter was discovered during an aerial survey near Semyachkov Pass, 13 kilometers from the Uzon volcano.
Malinovsky and his two passengers – Zoya Kaigorodova and Sergey Kolesnik – died.
The Robinson helicopter belonged to the private company Vzlyot, which was headed by the father of the former biathlete, Vladimir Malinovsky. The athlete himself also loved to fly – he studied at the Omsk Flight Technical College and retrained in Vladivostok, was a certified pilot and had a flying license.
Malinovsky became a five-time world junior biathlon champion. Condolences were expressed by the Russian Biathlon Union in connection with his death.
“Multiple junior world champion Igor Malinovsky died. He loved biathlon and aviation. After completing his sports career, Igor became a pilot and worked in his hometown of Kamchatka. The whole biathlon family is in mourning. The Russian Biathlon Union expresses its deepest condolences to Igor’s family and friends.