Azernews.Az

By Nigar Orujova

Azerbaijani Paralympic athletes achieved great success in the first day of the IBSA Judo European Championships 2013 and Junior World Judo Games.

On the first day of performance at the games, Azerbaijani athletes won two gold and one bronze medals, Azerbaijani National Paralympics Committee reported.

Judo European Championships 2013 and Junior World Judo Games by International Blind Sports Federation are held in Eger, Hungary, on December 2-6.

Ramil Gasimov (73 kg) and Bayram Mustafayev (66 kg) were awarded with gold medals, while Elchin Talybov (60 kg) got bronze medal.

Two-time Paralympic champion Ilham Zakiyev (100+ kg) and Sabina Abdullayeva (57 kg) will fight for the gold medal in the final part of the Championship.

Azerbaijan's team is represented by 16 athletes, five of whom are newcomers to such a competition.

The sport event is open to athletes with visual impairments in several weight categories. Contests last five minutes, and the athlete who scores the higher point wins.

Judo was first considered a martial art activity for practicing mobility, until it was included for the first time as a competitive sport at the Paralympics Games in Seoul in 1988. Women's weight categories were included at Athens games in 2004.