Sports competition held in liberated Aghdam [PHOTO]

2 November 2021 14:37 (UTC+04:00)

By Laman Ismayilova

A sports competition has been held on Azerbaijan's territories liberated after almost 30 years of Armenian occupation.

The event was co-organized by the Azerbaijan Wheelchair Fencing Federation and the Baku Main Department of Youth and Sports in honor of the first anniversary of the Victory Day.

The Victory Cup was held among the 2020 Nagorno-Karabakh War veterans.

The main goal of the competition is to create a team of fencers made up of the Karabakh war veterans to prepare them for participation in the Summer Paralympic Games in Paris to be held in 2024.

The venue for the competition's final was not chosen by chance.

The historical and spiritual significance of the Panahali Khan Palace Complex lies in the fact that there is the house of the founder of the Karabakh Khanate, Panahali Khan, and the mausoleum of the Karabakh khans, representatives of the Javanshir dynasty.

A sports platform and a tent were installed in front of the palace, where the flags of the ancient states that were on the territory of Azerbaijan were presented. It is symbolic that the entrance to the tent was entrusted to guard the heroes of the 44-day Karabakh war, the holders of battle medals Elmin Mehtiyev and Jalal Alishli, who were in the attire of ancient warriors.

The anthem of Azerbaijan sounded at the event and the memory of the Karabakh war martyrs was honored with a minute of silence.

Azerbaijan Wheelchair Fencing Federation First Vice-President Asaf Melikov, Baku City Youth and Sports Department Head Ragif Abbasov and the representative of the Azerbaijani presidential special representative office on the liberated territories in Aghdam region, Bashir Hajiyev, stressed that the Victory Day (November 8) is fast approaching. The day is inscribed in gold letters in Azerbaijan's history.

The speakers emphasized that led by Commander-in-Chief and President Ilham Aliyev, the Azerbaijani army defeated the Armenian aggressors and restored the country's territorial integrity.

Since the beginning of the 44-day Patriotic War, the federation's staff has constantly supported the families of martyrs and veterans.

From April, the federation has been conducting social, psychological and legal assistance actions, and also began to involve the 44-day Patriotic War veterans in the Paralympic movement.

Many events were held with the support of the Baku Main Department of Youth and Sports and regional organizations. Meetings were organized with hundreds of Karabakh war veterans to attract them to fencing.

Over 20 veterans took part in the competition. Only four of them reached the semifinals.

Azerbaijan Wheelchair Fencing Federation President Nubar Malikova noted the importance of the events in the development of the Paralympic movement in the country. She announced the start of the final evening and wished them success.

The participants fought in the duels: Nijat Ahadov - Bashir Huseynzade and Seyidbakir Khaligov-Huseyn Alikhanov.

The competition was judged by the coach of the international category in fencing Mahin Malikova and the judge of the international category in fencing in wheelchairs Maryam Malikova.

In the final, Huseyn Alikhanov defeated Nijat Ahadov with a score of 15:12. The participants were awarded diplomas, medals, and valuable prizes, while the winner got the Victory Cup.

The competition was followed by a concert performed by Orkhan Huseynli.

Media partners of the event are Azernews.az, Trend.az, Day.az, Milli.az.

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