The secret to Amir Zare’s success

Zare burst onto the senior heavyweight scene in 2021 with his first world title.

Since then, he has formed one of the sport’s most intriguing rivalries alongside Turkish Olympic gold medallist and three-time world champion Taha Akgul, and another three-time world champion in Georgia’s Geno Petriashvili – the latter of whom he defeated in the 2023 Worlds final.

So how does the Iranian man mountain stay so calm and composed on the world’s biggest stage, demonstrating maturity well beyond his years to go toe-to-toe with such experienced campaigners?

“Discipline is the most important thing to me,” Zare revealed.

“I don’t compare myself to my rivals or other athletes my age. At 22-years-old, I’ve sacrificed so much to be here.

“Perhaps the secret is that I’ve followed the good example of the very experienced people around me, like [Rio 2016 Olympic gold medallist at 86kg freestyle] Hassan Yazdani and Abdulrashid Sadulaev, some people in [mixed martial arts promotion company] the UFC, and USA basketball player Steph Curry.”

That’s right, Zare draws inspiration from Golden State Warriors star Curry, who has helped the USA to two FIBA World Cup titles among his many achievements in the NBA.

“He places a high importance on discipline as well,” Zare said of Curry.

“Curry is a great performer under pressure, and he can control those pressure situations. It’s a skill that is vital in our sport and I have studied him a lot.”