Azernews.Az

Azerbaijani judokas have won first place in the European Championship held in Podcetrtek, Slovenia.

The national team claimed the gold medal in the men's competition in the U30 category, Azernews reports.

In the first match and the semi-finals, the national team defeated the French team and reached the final. In the final, the Azerbaijani judokas surpassed the Belgian team (3:1) and became the European champion.

Azerbaijani judokas won a total of 4 gold, 2 silver and 5 bronze medals in individual competitions.

Earlier, national judokas claimed three medals at the Jerusalem Masters 2022 in Israel.

Saeid Mollaei brought a silver medal for Azerbaijan, while Balabay Aghayev and Zelym Kotsoiev took bronze medals.

Founded in 1972, the Azerbaijan Judo Federation actively promotes this martial art across the country. Since 2015, the Federation has been led by Rovnag Abdullayev.

The country's modern judo history was laid by Mehman Azizov, who won a silver medal at the Old World Championship in 1998.

A year later, the winner of the World Youth Games in Moscow, Rasul Salimov, grabbed the bronze medal at the European Championship in Slovakia. Another national judoka Elchin Ismayilov became the European champion in 2000 in Wroclaw.

However, the achievements of Azerbaijani judo fighters did not stop there. Elnur Mammadli was named the best at the Beijing Olympics 2008 in the 73 kg division.

The Beijing Olympics 2008 gave a fresh impetus to judo in Azerbaijan.

The list of the country's top judo fighters includes Rustam Orujov, İrina Kindzerskaya, Mammadali Mehdiyev, Elmar Gasimov, Hidayet Heydarov, Zelim Kotsoev, Ushangi Kokauri, and Nijat Shikhalizada.

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