Iryna Merleni
Template:Short description Template:Infobox sportsperson
Iryna Oleksiyivna Merleni (Template:Langx), née Melnyk (Script error: No such module "Lang".), married name Mykulchyn (Script error: No such module "Lang".) (born 8 February 1982) is a Ukrainian wrestler, who competed in the – 48 kg weight class at the 2004 Summer Olympics and claimed the gold medal. She is first female olympic champion in women`s wrestling.[1] In the same event at the 2008 Summer Olympics, she won a bronze medal.[2] She is a three-time world champion, and has also won the European Championships once.
Merleni was born in Kamianets-Podilskyi, Khmelnytskyi Oblast. In February 2006, she married Andriy Mykulchyn, with whom she has two sons – Artur and Adam. She was inducted into the Women's Wrestling Hall of Fame in 2023.[3]
Due to the Russian invasion of Ukraine she fled to Haparanda, Sweden, where she now works at the local Systembolaget. In her spare time she acts as a wrestling coach for the club Haparanda SKT.
Championships and accomplishments
- Women's Wrestling Hall of Fame
- Class of 2023[4]
References
- ↑ Mighty Merleni grabs a place in the history books
- ↑ Template:Cite Sports-Reference
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- ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
External links
Template:Olympic Champions freestyle wrestling flyweight women Template:Women's Wrestling Hall of Fame Template:World Champions freestyle wrestling women's flyweight Template:European Champions freestyle wrestling women's flyweight
- Pages with script errors
- 1982 births
- People from Kamianets-Podilskyi
- Living people
- Ukrainian female sport wrestlers
- Olympic gold medalists for Ukraine
- Olympic bronze medalists for Ukraine
- Olympic wrestlers for Ukraine
- Wrestlers at the 2004 Summer Olympics
- Wrestlers at the 2008 Summer Olympics
- Wrestlers at the 2012 Summer Olympics
- Olympic medalists in wrestling
- Medalists at the 2008 Summer Olympics
- Medalists at the 2004 Summer Olympics
- World Wrestling Championships medalists
- Summer World University Games medalists in wrestling
- FISU World University Games gold medalists for Ukraine
- Medalists at the 2005 Summer Universiade
- Sportspeople from Khmelnytskyi Oblast
- 21st-century Ukrainian sportswomen