Idman.biz
Azer Hasansoy is one of the people who stood at the beginning of the formation of martial arts in Azerbaijan. He has more than 30 years of activity behind him in the creation of several federations and the development of national sports. At the age of 65, he still heads the Azerbaijan Wushu Federation and remains at the center of events.
In an interview with Idman.Biz, the veteran of the local sports movement clarified the conflict with Kung Fu representatives and explained why the massive victories in Italy have nothing to do with big sports.
- You have developed several sports in the country. Which federations were created specifically with your participation?
- First, in 1992, I registered the Federation of Eastern Martial Arts. Then, in 1994, I created the Wushu Federation, in 1995 I founded the Kickboxing Federation, and a year later the Muay Thai Federation was created and later became part of the Kickboxing Federation.
- Babek Aliyev, Vice-President of the Azerbaijan Kung Fu Federation, recently accused you of not wanting to unite. Why are you against unification?
- What's the point? Why should we do this? They say they are developing faster, but I am interested in what this development consists of. Is it about going to the same place every year, winning a dubious tournament and calling yourself a "world champion"?
The problem is that there is no single international kung fu federation in the world. There are dozens of organizations that look more like joint-stock companies than sports organizations. The Azerbaijan Kung Fu Federation also works with one of these organizations. This organization holds a tournament every year in Perugia, Italy, and calls it the "World Championship". Our adult athletes also go there and win one victory after another. Why should I unite with such a federation and such "champions"?
- Do you consider these titles unofficial?
- Decide for yourself. In thirty years, we have had only one real world champion - Janpolad Budagov, who won "gold" in Hong Kong in 1999. We participate in official world championships held under the auspices of the International Wushu Federation. This organization includes 162 countries. The federation is headed by Gao Zhidan, head of the State General Administration of Physical Culture and Sports of the People's Republic of China.
Kung fu does not have a single federation, and all their tournaments are unofficial. There is no doping control there, not even a medical certificate is required. How can such competitions be called a "world championship"? It is in such an uncontrolled environment that their fighters easily win. I also offered them a compromise: let them create a club in their structures and compete in our official championships with their coaches. But they refused.
- For ordinary people, these are different sports. What is it really like?
- In fact, it's the same thing. In the West, the word "kung fu" became popular thanks to Bruce Lee. In fact, kung fu is only one technique of wushu, and the word itself translates as "labor", "work". When Bruce Lee was asked what he was doing in training, he would say, "I'm working" - that is, "I'm doing kung fu." The Chinese promote both terms to maintain control over this brand.
- Babek Aliyev claims that he defeated the Italian master who defeated Janpolad Budagov. Do you have any information about this?
- I don't know who he defeated or where. But Babek has never competed in the competitions we participate in.
