A place always worth coming back to, the Beach Wrestling World Series sees its third time back in Constanta, Romania; however, after two years as the location for the coronation of the world champions this time for the penultimate stop – a potentially pivotal point where one great move or poor mistake can decide titles.

A city and country with a rich history in wrestling, Constanta is the oldest city in Romania and now a familiar stop for the beach wrestling elite, as the beauty of the beach and city blend for a serene spectacle.

Neversea Beach offers the perfect venue to capture what is the essence of beach wrestling — sea, sand, city and strength. Situated on the Black Sea, the elements are always at play, which only adds to the challenge these wrestlers face out in the pit. What makes the United World Wrestling’s fastest growing style so thrilling yet demanding, is the possibility athletes may face when battling amid adverse elements such as wind, scorching sun, unpredictable light, and potentially wet, heavier sand. Beach wrestlers are forced to adapt their traditional wrestling tactics to an exposed environment or fall victim to the harshness of nature. Fans can expect a showdown on the beach with flying sand, powerful fights and of course a schedule full of action in the heart of Constanta.

It’s been ten weeks now since the last stop on Cousteau Beach in Saint Laurent Du Var, France, and with the results from Constanta leading us into the finals, we can expect some familiar names to really solidify their presence. As the last three stops have seen the emergence of some newcomers to the Series, there’s still always the chance a less familiar name could come out on top in Romania.

With Romania being the last-but-one stop before the Beach Wrestling world champions of 2023 will be crowned in Turkey in October, in both the men’s and women’s divisions, be sure to have all eyes on the current overall leaders. The Romanian and Ukrainian women across all weight divisions are looking strong. The Princess of Power, Stefania Claudia PRICEPUTU of Romania, is likely to give the crowd a homecoming in the women’s 50kg, as are teammates Elena Simona IONESCU in the 60kg and Catalina AXENTE in +70kg. But the Romanian home crowd favourites will need to watch out for some strong competition from all 12 participating nations including Norwegian and – for the first time ever - German teams as well as large Ukrainian and American teams.

The men’s divisions are sure to feel the mighty presence of the regular powerhouses. In the 90kg division, Dato PIRUZASHVILI (GEO), Ibrahim YUSUBOV (AZE) and Mahmut SEYFI (TUR) are looking strong, as are Mamuka KORDZAIA (GEO) and Fatih YASARLI (TUR) in the +90kg weight class. Oleskii BORUTA (UKR) is bound to keep us on our toes in the 70kg, as is Georgian, Nika KENTCHADZE who has been unstoppable all season.

One thing’s for sure, the athletes are going to give us nothing but brute force and will do everything to throw down their best. May it be rain or shine, get ready for the sand to fly on the 7th and 8th of September. If you aren’t travelling to the glorious Neversea Beach, you can still catch all the action and watch the event live which will be streaming on the Beach Wrestling World Series YouTube Channel.