Azernews.Az

Laman Ismayilova

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The Azerbaijani youth judo team has participated in an international training camp in the Turkish city of Istanbul, Azernews reports.

During the two-day preparatory process, the judokas were led by the head coach of the youth team Rustam Alimli and coach Elkhan Rajabli.

The main purpose of the training camp was to prepare for the European Youth Cup tournaments, which will be held in the Austrian city of Graz from May 31 to June 1 and in the German capital Berlin from June 21 to 22.

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 2008 Beijing Olympics in the 73 kg division.

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

At the Paris 2024 Summer Olympic Games, judokas Hidayat Heydarov (73 kg) and Zelym Kotsoiev (100 kg) earned gold medals for Azerbaijan.