The Turkish wrestler did not stand beside Armenia’s Olympic champion Artur Aleksanyan for the general photoshoot during an awards ceremony at the 2020 European Wrestling Championships in Rome.

The Greco-Roman competition of this event ended with the 97kg final where Aleksanyan won the European gold medal for the fifth time.

Turkey's Cenk Ildem, who faced the Armenian wrestler in the Round of 16, stood out with an unsportsmanlike conduct at the awards ceremony. During the overall photoshoot, the Turkish wrestler changed places with the other bronze medalist, Aleksandr Golovin (Russia), in order not to stand next to Aleksanyan.

Artur Aleksanyan beat Ildem 7-1 in the Round of 16. During the fight, the Turkish wrestler repeatedly provoked and hit Artur in the head, causing the referee to penalize him and adding two points in favor of the Olympic champion.