Zhan Beleniuk

Beleniuk was born in 1991 in Kyiv to a father from Rwanda and a mother from Ukraine. His father was a pilot who studied in Kyiv at the National Aviation University and died during the genocide against the Tutsi in Rwanda when Beleniuk was 3 years old.Melkozerova, Veronika. (14 December 2018). [https://www.kyivpost.com/ukraine-politics/zhan-beleniuk-champion-wrestler-refuses-better-offers-abroad-to-stay-at-home-i-belong-here.html Zhan Beleniuk: Champion wrestler refuses better offers abroad to stay at home: ‘I belong here’.] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191224234953/https://www.kyivpost.com/ukraine-politics/zhan-beleniuk-champion-wrestler-refuses-better-offers-abroad-to-stay-at-home-i-belong-here.html |date=24 December 2019 }} Kyiv Post. Retrieved 30 November 2019.

Beleniuk began wrestling in 2000 when he was nine years old.{{cite news |last1=Bagaterenko |first1=Anton |title=Жан Беленюк: "В Африке я слишком светлый, в Украине – слишком темный" |language=ru |trans-title=Zhan Beleniuk: "In Africa I was too light, and in Ukraine — too dark" |location=Ukraine |url=http://ua.tribuna.com/others/1020953315.html |access-date=30 April 2016 |work=Tribuna.com |date=31 May 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160605125532/http://ua.tribuna.com/others/1020953315.html |archive-date=5 June 2016 |url-status=live}}

In 2010, Beleniuk won the silver medal at the Junior World Championships. In 2011, he became the Junior European Champion amongst, and won bronze at the World Championship. In 2012, he won the bronze medal at the European Championships. In 2013, he won bronze again at the Summer Universiade.

In 2014, he won a gold medal at the 2014 European Wrestling Championships,{{cite web |url=http://fakty.ua/179997-zhan-belenyuk-ne-raz-predlagali-vystupat-za-drugie-sbornye-no-ya-ukrainec-i-vsegda-budu-predstavlyat-nashu-stranu |title=Жан Беленюк: "Мне не раз предлагали выступать за другие сборные, но я — украинец" |work=fakty.ua |access-date=10 September 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140417075636/http://fakty.ua/179997-zhan-belenyuk-ne-raz-predlagali-vystupat-za-drugie-sbornye-no-ya-ukrainec-i-vsegda-budu-predstavlyat-nashu-stranu |archive-date=17 April 2014 |url-status=live|language=ru}} and bronze at the World Championships.

In 2015, he won the silver medal at the first European Games in Azerbaijan. On 10 September 2015, after winning against the then-reigning World Champion and then-Champion of Asia, Uzbek Rustam Assakalov scoring 6:0, Beleniuk won gold at the 2015 World Wrestling Championships in the under-85 kg weight category.

In 2016, he won gold at the 2016 European Wrestling Championships, followed by the silver medal at the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro.{{cite web |url=http://noc-ukr.org/en/attachments/160802065026-0c84ed056c2e8f7ba94e5efd0a58fb16 |title=The Olympic Team of Ukraine: Rio 2016: Official Handbook |format=PDF |website=noc-ukr.org |publisher=National Olympic Committee of Ukraine |access-date=14 June 2020 |page=28 |quote=Беленюк Жан / Belenyuk Jean |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181201025526/http://noc-ukr.org/en/attachments/160802065026-0c84ed056c2e8f7ba94e5efd0a58fb16/ |archive-date=1 December 2018 |url-status=live}}

In 2021, he won the gold medal in the men's Greco-Roman 87 kg event at the 2020 Summer Olympics in Tokyo.{{cite web |url=https://olympics.com/tokyo-2020/olympic-games/en/results/wrestling/athlete-profile-n1330685-beleniuk-zhan.htm |title=Wrestling: BELENIUK Zhan |work=Tokyo 2020 Olympics |publisher=Tokyo Organising Committee of the Olympic and Paralympic Games |access-date=5 August 2021 |archive-date=28 August 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210828050815/https://olympics.com/tokyo-2020/olympic-games/en/results/wrestling/athlete-profile-n1330685-beleniuk-zhan.htm |url-status=dead}}

Beleniuk was briefly a member of the National Olympic Committee of Ukraine. He left the National Olympic Committee in January 2023 due to disagreement with its new president Vadym Gutzeit.{{Cite web |title=NOC excluded Surkis, Shufrych, Shevchenko and Belenyuk from its composition |url=https://www.pravda.com.ua/news/2023/01/13/7384723/ |website=Ukrainska Pravda |access-date=2023-01-13 |date=2022-01-13 |language=Ukrainian}} In 2024, Beleniuk won a bronze medal in the men's Greco-Roman 87 kg at the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris and subsequently retired from competing.{{Cite web |date=2024-08-08 |title=Ukraine wrestler Beleniuk wins bronze, retires |url=https://www.espn.com/olympics/story/_/id/40784621/ukraine-zhan-beleniuk-retires-winning-bronze-wrestling |access-date=2024-08-10 |website=ESPN.com |language=en}}{{Cite web |title=Wrestling Results Book |url=https://olympics.com/OG2024/pdf/OG2024/WRE/OG2024_WRE_B99_WRE-------------------------------.pdf |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240811181048/https://olympics.com/OG2024/pdf/OG2024/WRE/OG2024_WRE_B99_WRE-------------------------------.pdf |archive-date=11 August 2024 |access-date=12 August 2024 |website=2024 Summer Olympics}}

Beleniuk was elected a deputy to the Verkhovna Rada in July 2019 Ukrainian parliamentary election as a member of the Servant of the People political party.{{cite web |url=https://www.kyivpost.com/ukraine-politics/zelenskiy-party-unveils-candidates-for-parliament.html |title=Zelenskiy's Servant of the People party unveils candidates for parliament |work=Kyiv Post}} He was one of the first ten candidates on the party's electoral list.{{Cite web |url=https://en.interfax.com.ua/news/general/593353.html |title=First hundred candidates on Servant of the People's election list: who are they? |access-date=16 August 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190719060401/https://en.interfax.com.ua/news/general/593353.html |archive-date=19 July 2019 |url-status=live}}

{{s-start}}

! colspan="8"| International record

|-

! Res.

! Record

! Opponent

! Score

! Date

! Event

! Location

! Notes

|-

! style=background:white colspan=9 | {{small| 2021 Olympic Champion {{gold1}} at 87kg}}

|-

|{{yes2}}Win

|4–0

|align=left|{{flagicon|HUN}} Viktor Lőrincz

|style="font-size:88%"|5–1

|style="font-size:88%"|2021-08-04

|style="font-size:88%" rowspan=4|2020 Summer Olympics

|style="text-align:left;font-size:88%;" rowspan=4|{{flagicon|JPN}} Tokyo, Japan

|style="text-align:left;font-size:88%;"|

|-

|{{yes2}}Win

|3–0

|align=left|{{flagicon|CRO}} Ivan Huklek

|style="font-size:88%"|7–1

|style="font-size:88%" rowspan=3|2021-08-03

|style="text-align:left;font-size:88%;"|

|-

|{{yes2}}Win

|2–0

|align=left|{{flagicon|ALG}} Bachir Sid Azara

|style="font-size:88%"|1–1

|style="text-align:left;font-size:88%;"|

|-

|{{yes2}}Win

|1–0

|align=left|{{flagicon|SRB}} Zurab Datunashvili

|style="font-size:88%"|3–1

|style="text-align:left;font-size:88%;"|

|-

! style=background:white colspan=9 | {{small| 2021 European Championships {{bronze3}} at 87kg}}

|-

|{{yes2}}Win

|3–1

|align=left|{{flagicon|GER}} Denis Kudla

|style="font-size:88%"|1–1

|style="font-size:88%" rowspan=2|2021-04-24

|style="font-size:88%" rowspan=4|2021 European Championships

|style="text-align:left;font-size:88%;" rowspan=4|{{flagicon|POL}} Warsaw, Poland

|style="text-align:left;font-size:88%;"|

|-

|{{yes2}}Win

|2–1

|align=left|{{flagicon|CRO}} Vjekoslav Luburić

|style="font-size:88%"|7–1

|style="text-align:left;font-size:88%;"|

|-

|{{no2}}Loss

|1–1

|align=left|{{flagicon|SRB}} Zurab Datunashvili

|style="font-size:88%"|1–1

|style="font-size:88%" rowspan=2|2021-04-23

|style="text-align:left;font-size:88%;"|

|-

|{{yes2}}Win

|1–0

|align=left|{{flagicon|SWE}} Oskar Johansson

|style="font-size:88%"|7–1

|style="text-align:left;font-size:88%;"|

|-

! style=background:white colspan=9 | {{small| 2019 World Champion {{gold1}} at 87kg}}

|-

|{{yes2}}Win

|5–0

|align=left|{{flagicon|HUN}} Viktor Lőrincz

|style="font-size:88%"|2–1

|style="font-size:88%"|2019-09-16

|style="font-size:88%" rowspan=5|2019 World Championships

|style="text-align:left;font-size:88%;" rowspan=5|{{flagicon|KAZ}} Nur-Sultan, Kazakhstan

|style="text-align:left;font-size:88%;"|

|-

|{{yes2}}Win

|4–0

|align=left|{{flagicon|GER}} Denis Kudla

|style="font-size:88%"|2–1

|style="font-size:88%" rowspan=4|2019-09-15

|style="text-align:left;font-size:88%;"|

|-

|{{yes2}}Win

|3–0

|align=left|{{flagicon|BLR}} Mikalai Stadub

|style="font-size:88%"|3–1

|style="text-align:left;font-size:88%;"|

|-

|{{yes2}}Win

|2–0

|align=left|{{flagicon|CRO}} Ivan Huklek

|style="font-size:88%"|7–1

|style="text-align:left;font-size:88%;"|

|-

|{{yes2}}Win

|1–0

|align=left|{{flagicon|MEX}} Alfonso Leyva

|style="font-size:88%"|5–1

|style="text-align:left;font-size:88%;"|

|-

! style=background:white colspan=9 | {{small| 2019 European Games Champion {{gold1}} at 87kg}}

|-

|{{yes2}}Win

|4–0

|align=left|{{flagicon|AZE}} Islam Abbasov

|style="font-size:88%"|3–1

|style="font-size:88%"|2019-06-30

|style="font-size:88%" rowspan=4|2019 European Games

|style="text-align:left;font-size:88%;" rowspan=4|{{flagicon|BLR}} Minsk, Belarus

|style="text-align:left;font-size:88%;"|

|-

|{{yes2}}Win

|3–0

|align=left|{{flagicon|BLR}} Radzik Kuliyeu

|style="font-size:88%"|3–1

|style="font-size:88%" rowspan=3|2019-06-29

|style="text-align:left;font-size:88%;"|

|-

|{{yes2}}Win

|2–0

|align=left|{{flagicon|POL}} Arkadiusz Kułynycz

|style="font-size:88%"|9–1

|style="text-align:left;font-size:88%;"|

|-

|{{yes2}}Win

|1–0

|align=left|{{flagicon|ARM}} Maksim Manukyan

|style="font-size:88%"|5–1

|style="text-align:left;font-size:88%;"|

|-

! style=background:white colspan=9 | {{small| 2019 European Champion {{gold1}} at 87kg}}

|-

|{{yes2}}Win

|4–0

|align=left|{{flagicon|AZE}} Islam Abbasov

|style="font-size:88%"|5–1

|style="font-size:88%"|2019-04-13

|style="font-size:88%" rowspan=4|2019 European Championships

|style="text-align:left;font-size:88%;" rowspan=4|{{flagicon|ROU}} Bucharest, Romania

|style="text-align:left;font-size:88%;"|

|-

|{{yes2}}Win

|3–0

|align=left|{{flagicon|LTU}} Eividas Stankevičius

|style="font-size:88%"|5–1

|style="font-size:88%" rowspan=3|2019-04-12

|style="text-align:left;font-size:88%;"|

|-

|{{yes2}}Win

|2–0

|align=left|{{flagicon|HUN}} Erik Szilvássy

|style="font-size:88%"|3–1

|style="text-align:left;font-size:88%;"|

|-

|{{yes2}}Win

|1–0

|align=left|{{flagicon|CRO}} Ivan Huklek

|style="font-size:88%"|6–1

|style="text-align:left;font-size:88%;"|

|-

! style=background:white colspan=9 |{{small|2018 UWW world {{silver2}} at 87kg}}

|-

|{{no2}}Loss

|4–1

|align=left|{{flagicon|TUR}} Metehan Başar

|style="font-size:88%"|1–2

|style="font-size:88%"|2018-10-27

|style="font-size:88%" rowspan=5|2018 World Championships

|style="text-align:left;font-size:88%;" rowspan=5|{{flagicon|HUN}} Budapest, Hungary

|style="text-align:left;font-size:88%;"|

|-

|{{yes2}}Win

|4–0

|align=left|{{flagicon|AZE}} Islam Abbasov

|style="font-size:88%"|5–1

|style="font-size:88%" rowspan=4|2018-10-26

|style="text-align:left;font-size:88%;"|

|-

|{{yes2}}Win

|3–0

|align=left|{{flagicon|IRI}} Hossein Nouri

|style="font-size:88%"|4–2

|style="text-align:left;font-size:88%;"|

|-

|{{yes2}}Win

|2–0

|align=left|{{flagicon|ARM}} Artur Shahinyan

|style="font-size:88%"|4–1

|style="text-align:left;font-size:88%;"|

|-

|{{yes2}}Win

|1–0

|align=left|{{flagicon|LTU}} Eividas Stankevičius

|style="font-size:88%"|4–2

|style="text-align:left;font-size:88%;"|

|-

! style=background:white colspan=9 |{{small| 2016 Olympic {{silver2}} at 85kg}}

|-

|{{no2}}Loss

|3–1

|align=left|{{flagicon|RUS}} Davit Chakvetadze

|style="font-size:88%"|2-9

|style="font-size:88%" rowspan=4|2016-08-15

|style="font-size:88%" rowspan=4|2016 Summer Olympics

|style="text-align:left;font-size:88%;" rowspan=4|{{flagicon|Brazil}} Rio de Janeiro

|style="text-align:left;font-size:88%;"|

|-

|{{yes2}}Win

|3–0

|align=left|{{flagicon|BLR}} Javid Hamzatau

|style="font-size:88%"|6–0

|style="text-align:left;font-size:88%;"|

|-

|{{yes2}}Win

|2–0

|align=left|{{flagicon|BUL}} Nikolay Bayryakov

|style="font-size:88%"|10–1

|style="text-align:left;font-size:88%;"|

|-

|{{yes2}}Win

|1–0

|align=left|{{flagicon|EGY}} Ahmed Othman

|style="font-size:88%"|9–0

|style="text-align:left;font-size:88%;"|

|-

! style=background:white colspan=9 | {{small| 2016 European Champion {{gold1}} at 85kg}}

|-

|{{yes2}}Win

|4–0

|align=left|{{flagicon|GEO}} Roberti Kobliashvili

|style="font-size:88%"|5–2

|style="font-size:88%" rowspan=4|2016-03-13

|style="font-size:88%" rowspan=4|European Championships

|style="text-align:left;font-size:88%;" rowspan=4|{{flagicon|LAT}} Riga, Latvia

|style="text-align:left;font-size:88%;"|

|-

|{{yes2}}Win

|3–0

|align=left|{{flagicon|LTU}} Laimutis Adomaitis

|style="font-size:88%"|2–1

|style="text-align:left;font-size:88%;"|

|-

|{{yes2}}Win

|2–0

|align=left|{{flagicon|GER}} Denis Kudla

|style="font-size:88%"|6–1

|style="text-align:left;font-size:88%;"|

|-

|{{yes2}}Win

|1–0

|align=left|{{flagicon|SWE}} Kristofer Johansson

|style="font-size:88%"|5–0

|style="text-align:left;font-size:88%;"|

|-

! style=background:white colspan=9 |{{small|2015 UWW world {{gold1}} at 85kg}}

|-

|{{yes2}}Win

|6–0

|align=left|{{flagicon|UZB}} Rustam Assakalov

|style="font-size:88%"|6–0

|style="font-size:88%" rowspan=6|2015-09-09

|style="font-size:88%" rowspan=6|2015 World Championships

|style="text-align:left;font-size:88%;" rowspan=6|{{flagicon|USA}} Las Vegas, NV

|style="text-align:left;font-size:88%;"|

|-

|{{yes2}}Win

|5–0

|align=left|{{flagicon|AZE}} Saman Tahmasebi

|style="font-size:88%"|3–1

|style="text-align:left;font-size:88%;"|

|-

|{{yes2}}Win

|4–0

|align=left|{{flagicon|POL}} Damian Janikowski

|style="font-size:88%"|2–1

|style="text-align:left;font-size:88%;"|

|-

|{{yes2}}Win

|3–0

|align=left|{{flagicon|HUN}} Viktor Lőrincz

|style="font-size:88%"|3–1

|style="text-align:left;font-size:88%;"|

|-

|{{yes2}}Win

|2–0

|align=left|{{flagicon|GER}} Ramsin Azizsir

|style="font-size:88%"|3–0

|style="text-align:left;font-size:88%;"|

|-

|{{yes2}}Win

|1–0

|align=left|{{flagicon|MEX}} Alfonso Leyva

|style="font-size:88%"|6–2

|style="text-align:left;font-size:88%;"|

|-

! style=background:white colspan=9 |{{small|2015 European Games {{silver2}} at 85kg}}

|-

|{{no2}}Loss

|4–1

|align=left|{{flagicon|RUS}} Davit Chakvetadze

|style="font-size:88%"|2–3

|style="font-size:88%" rowspan=5|2015-06-14

|style="font-size:88%" rowspan=5|2015 European Games

|style="text-align:left;font-size:88%;" rowspan=5|{{flagicon|AZE}} Baku, Azerbaijan

|style="text-align:left;font-size:88%;"|

|-

|{{yes2}}Win

|4–0

|align=left|{{flagicon|ARM}} Maksim Manukyan

|style="font-size:88%"|12–4

|style="text-align:left;font-size:88%;"|

|-

|{{yes2}}Win

|3–0

|align=left|{{flagicon|TUR}} Metehan Başar

|style="font-size:88%"|3–1

|style="text-align:left;font-size:88%;"|

|-

|{{yes2}}Win

|2–0

|align=left|{{flagicon|ROU}} Attila Tamas

|style="font-size:88%"|7–0

|style="text-align:left;font-size:88%;"|

|-

|{{yes2}}Win

|1–0

|align=left|{{flagicon|SRB}} Dejan Franjković

|style="font-size:88%"|8–0

|style="text-align:left;font-size:88%;"|

|-

! style=background:white colspan=9 |{{small|2014 UWW world {{bronze3}} at 85kg}}

|-

|{{yes2}}Win

|4–1

|align=left|{{flagicon|GER}} Ramsin Azizsir

|style="font-size:88%"|3–0

|style="font-size:88%" rowspan=5|2014-09-12

|style="font-size:88%" rowspan=5|2014 World Championships

|style="text-align:left;font-size:88%;" rowspan=5|{{flagicon|UZB}} Tashkent, Uzbekistan

|style="text-align:left;font-size:88%;"|

|-

|{{no2}}Loss

|3–1

|align=left|{{flagicon|AZE}} Saman Tahmasebi

|style="font-size:88%"|0–4

|style="text-align:left;font-size:88%;"|

|-

|{{yes2}}Win

|3–0

|align=left|{{flagicon|EGY}} Ahmed Othman

|style="font-size:88%"|10–1

|style="text-align:left;font-size:88%;"|

|-

|{{yes2}}Win

|2–0

|align=left|{{flagicon|CUB}} Pablo Shorey

|style="font-size:88%"|6–1

|style="text-align:left;font-size:88%;"|

|-

|{{yes2}}Win

|1–0

|align=left|{{flagicon|FIN}} Rami Hietaniemi

|style="font-size:88%"|1–0

|style="text-align:left;font-size:88%;"|

|-

! style=background:white colspan=9 |{{small| 2013 Summer Universiare {{bronze3}} at 84kg}}

|-

|{{yes2}}Win

|4–1

|align=left|{{flagicon|KAZ}} Nursultan Tursynov

|style="font-size:88%"|3–1

|style="font-size:88%" rowspan=5|2013-07-15

|style="font-size:88%" rowspan=5|2013 Summer Universiade

|style="text-align:left;font-size:88%;" rowspan=5|{{flagicon|RUS}} Kazan, Russia

|style="text-align:left;font-size:88%;"|

|-

|{{no2}}Loss

|3–1

|align=left|{{flagicon|ARM}} Maksim Manukyan

|style="font-size:88%"|0–5

|style="text-align:left;font-size:88%;"|

|-

|{{yes2}}Win

|3–0

|align=left|{{flagicon|GEO}} Beka Rokva

|style="font-size:88%"|3–1

|style="text-align:left;font-size:88%;"|

|-

|{{yes2}}Win

|2–0

|align=left|{{flagicon|POL}} Tadeusz Michalik

|style="font-size:88%"|3–1

|style="text-align:left;font-size:88%;"|

|-

|{{yes2}}Win

|1–0

|align=left|{{flagicon|TUR}} Aslan Atem

|style="font-size:88%"|3–1

|style="text-align:left;font-size:88%;"|

|-

{{end}}

File:Ukrainian Independence Day 2019 01.jpg in August 2019.]]

• List of members of the parliament of Ukraine, 2019–24

{{notelist}}

{{Reflist}}

• {{cite Sports-Reference |title=Zhan Beleniuk |url=https://www.sports-reference.com/olympics/athletes/be/zhan-beleniuk-1.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171201032851/https://www.sports-reference.com/olympics/athletes/be/zhan-beleniuk-1.html |archive-date=1 December 2017}}

{{Commons category|Zhan Beleniuk}}

• {{UWW|beleniuk-zhan|Zhan Beleniuk|archive=20230510005900}}
• {{IWD|name=Zhan Belenyuk}}
• {{Olympics.com|name=Zhan Beleniuk}}
• {{Olympedia|name=Zhan Beleniuk}}
• [https://itd.rada.gov.ua/mps/info/page/20980 Jean Vensanovich Beleniuk] at Verkhovna Rada {{in lang|uk}}
• [https://olympics.com/en/paris-2024/athlete/zhan-beleniuk_1550116 Zhan Beleniuk] at the Paris 2024 Summer Olympics
• {{Instagram}}

{{Olympic Champions Greco-Roman wrestling middleweight}}

{{World Champions Greco-Roman wrestling middleweight}}

{{2020 Ukraine Summer Olympic team}}

{{2024 Ukraine Summer Olympic team}}

{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Beleniuk, Zhan}}

Category:1991 births

Category:Living people

Category:Ukrainian male sport wrestlers

Category:World Wrestling Championships medalists

Category:Summer World University Games medalists in wrestling

Category:FISU World University Games bronze medalists for Ukraine

Category:European Games gold medalists for Ukraine

Category:European Games silver medalists for Ukraine

Category:European Games medalists in wrestling

Category:Wrestlers at the 2015 European Games

Category:Wrestlers at the 2019 European Games

Category:Martial artists from Kyiv

Category:Politicians from Kyiv

Category:Interregional Academy of Personnel Management alumni

Category:National University of Ukraine on Physical Education and Sport alumni

Category:Ukrainian people of Rwandan descent

Category:Hutu people

Category:Recipients of the Order of Merit (Ukraine), 3rd class

Category:Servant of the People (political party) politicians

Category:Ukrainian sportsperson-politicians

Category:Ninth convocation members of the Verkhovna Rada

Category:European Wrestling Championships medalists

Category:Medalists at the 2013 Summer Universiade

Category:Olympic wrestlers for Ukraine

Category:Olympic gold medalists for Ukraine

Category:Olympic silver medalists for Ukraine

Category:Olympic bronze medalists for Ukraine

Category:Olympic medalists in wrestling

Category:Wrestlers at the 2016 Summer Olympics

Category:Wrestlers at the 2020 Summer Olympics

Category:Wrestlers at the 2024 Summer Olympics

Category:Medalists at the 2016 Summer Olympics

Category:Medalists at the 2020 Summer Olympics

Category:Medalists at the 2024 Summer Olympics

Category:Military World Games gold medalists for Ukraine

Category:Military World Games medalists in wrestling

Category:21st-century Ukrainian sportsmen