Returning to the magnificent Côte d’Azur for a fourth year in a row, the series’ second stop is once again sure to put on a show in quintessential French Riviera style. As the pristine white sandy beaches of Cousteau Beach await the athletes, preparations for a showdown like no other are in full swing.

With the series now back on the European continent, the field of competition will draw some more familiar faces to the tournament. A significant turn out from the American and Ukrainian teams are expected as well as the hosting nation, who have successfully gone from strength to strength in the last years. A noteworthy mention will be the German athletes who will debut their second season in the beach wrestling discipline. We can expect to see over 50 athletes from 15 nations in both the women’s and men’s field.

For many of the European-based athletes, it will be their first tournament of the season with the exception of Ukrainian Anastasiya KRAVCHENKO, who was the only European athlete to have started at the first stop of the season in Mexico in March. Meaning this weekend will be full of surprises with the strongest competition likely to come out on top and set the tone for a long summer of beach wrestling.

With last season’s 50kg World Champion Emine CATALOGLU of Turkey likely to be missing out on the French leg of the season, there’s plenty of room to shake the sand up, especially for home crowd favourite, Justine VIGOUROUX (FRA), who finished third last season. In the 60kg division, all eyes will be looking towards the Ukrainians with Sofiia KUSHNIR and of course Anastasiya KRAVCHENKO who will be starting her second sand tournament sand for year. The women’s 70kg promises to cause a stir on sand with 2023 World Champion Oksana HERHEL (UKR) and teammate Olena NIKITINSKA expected to dominate the division. While the women’s +70kg is also no exception to tough competition with the likes of Stefania ZACHEILA (GRE) and American young gun Eliana BOMMARITO who is set to start her second season in senior competition.

In the men’s field, the 70kg division promises stiff competition with household names including 2023 champion Oleksii BORTUA (UKR), Quentin Jean Rene STICKER (FRA) and Justin Douglas BENJAMIN (USA). Last year’s series reigning champion, Frenchman Hugo Jose Fabien CUENOT dominated the sand in the 80kg category and is likely to secure a top result on home sand, but not without a challenge. In the 90kg category, overall winner Ibrahim YUSUBOV (AZE) has his eyes on gold regardless of an upset from an outsider. Georgian Mamuka KORDZAIA had his fair share of wins last year but fell short last year on Cousteau Beach, leaving with silver in the +90kg. Seeking redemption, perhaps this year he’ll leave with gold?

Before the Beach Wrestling World Series shakes up the sand, there will be various local activities in Saint-Laurent du Var worthy of checking out if you are in the area including Wrestling for Earth Day, which will take place at Cousteau beach on Thursday, just days ahead of the main event. 

Now a world series classic, Cousteau Beach awaits the wrestlers where the kings and queens of sand will be decided on the 28th & 29th of June. If you aren’t able to see the sand fly in person, be sure to tune into the live streaming on the Beach Wrestling YouTube channel for all the action.

Until then keep an eye on our socials and stay tuned for upcoming news about the full calendar for the 2024 Beach Wrestling World Series!