Boltukaev had difficulty executing meaningful attacks with Yildirim, the winner of last month's Dan Kolov and Nikola Petrov tournament in Bulgarian city Ruse, fashioning a 4-2 win at the Spens Sport Hall for his first senior continental crown.

In the bronze medal matches at 97kg, Georgia's Elizbar Odikadze beat Macedonia's Magomedgadzhi Nurov and Belarus' Aleksandr Hushtyn defeated 2010 world champion Michail Ganev of Bulgaria.

The men's 65kg freestyle category saw Russia go one better as Ilyas Bekbulatov stormed to a 10-0 technical fall win over Bulgaria's Borislav Novachkov for his first European Championship gold medal.

Bekbulatov, a two-time bronze medallist at continental level, started quickly against Novachkov and wrapped up the victory with a cross-ankle lock and turn.

Slovenia's David Habat overcame Ukraine's Gor Oganesyan in one of the two battles for bronze, claiming his country's first medal at the senior European Championships since it achieved independence from Yugoslavia in June 1991.

Georgia's Zurabi Iakobishvili got the better of Azerbaijan's Gitinomagomed Gadzhiev in the other to ensure he improved on his fifth-place finish from last year.

There was further success for Russia in the women's 60kg category, which was won by under-23 champion Lyubov Ovcharova at the expense of Latvia's Anastasija Grigorjeva.

Ovcharova registered a leg attack and added a bodylock takedown for an early 6-2 lead over Grigorjeva and then held off last year's 63kg champion for an 8-5 victory.

Azerbaijan's Tetiana Omelchenko beat Ukraine's Anzhelina Lysak to bronze and was joined on the third step of the podium by Sweden's Johanna Mattsson, the two-time European champion who triumphed over Romania's Kriszta Incze. 

In the women's 53kg category, 2012 world champion Vanesa Kaladzinskaya of Belarus scored an early go-behind takedown and held on for a 2-1 win over Russia's Natalya Malysheva.

It takes her medal tally for 2017 to four having won gold at the Dan Kolov and Nikola Petrov tournament in April, silver at the Klippan Lady Open in Sweden in February and bronze at the Paris Tournament in January.

Germany's Nina Hemmer and Greece's Maria Prevolaraki won the bronze medals ahead of home favourite Ana Randelovic and Moldova's Iulia Leorda respectively.

The event continues tomorrow.