NEW CHAMPION AND BIG TIMES AT CSWC BY OLIVA CIGARS GEORGIA
- expertcigar
- 19 hours ago
- 2 min read
Georgia hosted its fourth National Slow Smoking Cigar Championship under CSWC rules, and once again, the “Havana Club” lounge – the official distributor of the Oliva brand in Georgia – warmly welcomed guests and participants to the tournament.
The tournament brought together cigar athletes from all over the Georgia. This time, the tournament’s international guests included representatives from Azerbaijan and Kazakhstan.
The evening kicked off with a Georgian-style buffet paired with a smooth glass of Bentley B13 rum. After the aperitif and registration, the tournament got underway. An hour of table-side smoking later, only eight cigar competitors were still in play. Fourth and fifth places went to brothers Zura and Luka Tabagari, clocking in at 1:08:40 and 1:13:23 respectively.
The fight for second place was intense. Ilia Zhghenti wrapped up with a time of 1:14:04, while his rival, Sandro Gibradze, had to smoke for just over a minute longer to offset a five-minute penalty for dropping ash midway through the tournament. In the end, Sandro lasted only 4:57 and had to give up second place to Ilia, finishing with a time of 1:14:01.
And so, there were only two left. You might wonder why, since second and third places had already been decided. The reason was simple: Igor Titievsky, the 2026 Champion of Kazakhstan, was competing solely to beat his own time.
Qaqi Qiqauri claimed the Georgian Champion title with a time of 1:30:39, while Igor kept running for over an hour after Qaqi finished, setting his personal best at 2:41:17. Once the tournament ended, guests were treated to prizes and gifts, followed by a delightful dinner where rum gave way to excellent Georgian wines and chacha.
The next day, the guests enjoyed a short trip to Adjara, visiting the beautiful city of Batumi to relax, smoke cigars on the Black Sea coast, and take in the waterfalls and mountain caves of this stunning country.