Iran’s Ashourzadeh wins world taekwondo title
Iran’s -58kg athlete Farzan Ashourzadeh Fallah has grabbed the gold medal in World Taekwando Championships at the Traktor Arena of Chelyabinsk, Russia.
The 18-year-old Iranian, who made a spectacular comeback against Russia’s hopeful Ruslan Poiseev in the semifinal, snatched the glittering gold with an 8-3 win over Belgium's Si Mohammed Ketbi in the final showdown.
Ketbi attended the prestigious meet as an independent athlete as the World Taekwondo Federation (WTF) suspended the Belgian National Taekwondo Union in January due to a dispute with a rival governing body.
Ashourzadeh, the 2014 Asian Games and Asian Championships gold medalist, was behind 11-5 in the semifinal with almost 30 seconds left, but he overcame the Russian rival and partisan fans.
The Iranian, known as “The Tsunami”, restored parity two seconds before the time, silencing the home crowd and squeezing into the final with the decisive score in the subsequent golden point period.
Poiseev and China’s Shuai Zhao bagged bronze.
After receiving his medal from IOC Sports Director Kit McConnell, Ashourzadeh said, “With all the experience I had before, and with all the practice I had, I expected to win.”
Asked if there was anyone who could beat “The Tsunami” right now, Iran’s coach Mahdi Bibak replied, “I don’t think so!”
The tournament, which runs for seven days from May 12-18, is a key gateway for athletes seeking Olympic glory.
KK/NN
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