Azernews.Az

By Abdul Kerimkhanov

The Azerbaijan Weightlifting Cup started in the competition hall of the Academy of Weightlifting in the Shuvalan village of Baku on November 29, the country's Weightlifting Federation said.

About hundreds of athletes who have been trained in the established standards of sports communities, sports clubs, sports centers, sports schools and have undergone medical examinations took part in the competitions. The purpose of the Azerbaijan Cup is to check the status of training of athletes, look at the reserves, select strong athletes.

On the first day of the women's competition, Sabina Azimova was stronger than her rivals. The Azerbaijani athlete raised 172 kilograms in a double-event (75 kilograms in clean, 97 kilograms in jerk) and, gaining 253.22 points, she was able to beat her rivals in the final standings. The second place went to Boyanka Kostova, who raised a total of 171 kg (78 kg in clean, 93 kg in jerk) and scored 233,29 points. The third place was taken by Firuza Ibragimova, who lifted 164 kg (72 kg in clean, 92 kg in jerk) and scored 213.11 points.

Among men, on the first day of the tournament, weightlifters in the weight categories 49, 55 and 61 kg first experienced their strength. Athletes Avaz Tagiyev (152 kg in total), Omar Javadov (198 kg in total) and Elmeddin Huseynov (228 kg in total) became winners in their weight category.

At the end of the tournament, weightlifters competed in the weight categories of 67 kg and 73 kg. Athlete Mohammed Mammadli won a gold medal with a score of 267 kg in total (116 + 151). Another weightlifter Rustam Gasimov won a silver medal with a score of 266 kg in total (120 kg + 146 kg). Kanan Khalilov, a weightlifter, climbed to the third step of the podium with a score of 255 kg (120 kg + 135 kg).

Athlete Pasha Ibrahimli in the weight category of 73 kg climbed to the highest step of the podium with a score of 291 kg (132 + 159). The second place was occupied by Fyugan Aliyev - 260 kg (120 + 140), Elshan Sharifov also took the third place with a score of 248 kg (112 + 136).

Wrestling, shooting, fencing, racing and weightlifting remain popular sports in Azerbaijan famous for its rich sports traditions.

The development of weightlifting in Azerbaijan has been in the spotlight of the international community in recent years.

In 2014, the country hosted European Powerlifting Championships which brought together nearly 300 athletes from 27 countries.

Over 50 Azerbaijani athletes vied for the medals. The gold medals came from national athletes Elnara Guliyeva, Gunel Talibova, Sara Abbasova, Kamran Badalov, Elmir Tarverdiyev, Farid Gurbanov, Zerdush Hasratov, Sarkhan Gasimli, Orkhan Ahmadzade and Vusal Aliyev.

---

Abdul Kerimkhanov is AzerNews’ staff journalist, follow him on Twitter: @AbdulKerim94

Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz