Idman.biz
Azerbaijan's national taekwondo team successfully performed at the "Polish Open" international tournament, winning one gold and two bronze medals.
After the tournament, the team's head coach, Mammad Abdullayev, gave an interview to Idman.biz.
– Minaya Akbarova won the second consecutive tournament. Does this mean the emergence of a new leader in women's taekwondo?
– I wouldn't characterize it as a "new leader." Minaya is 24 years old and has been competing for the national team for a long time. She has consistently shown good results. It's just that she has sometimes been in the shadow of Patimat Abakarova and Farida Azizova. But her achievements are not small – she is a bronze medalist of the European Championship and a silver medalist of the Islamic Games.
– What can you say about the Islamic Games to be held in Saudi Arabia in November?
– For now, we have focused all our attention on the World Championship to be held in China in October. It is too early to talk about November.
– How ready is the team for these competitions? Considering that at the last World Championship, in Baku, we failed and were left without medals...
– I don't like making predictions, and I don't think it's right to make excuses either. But I will say that the leader of the men's team, Olympic silver medalist Gashim Mammadov, is still undergoing recovery after a serious injury. Nevertheless, both boys and girls have a chance to win medals.
– The last time a gold medal was won at the World Championship was by Milad Harchagani in 2019. In 2023, in Baku, we were left without medals at all. Maybe it is necessary to set a specific goal now?
– The goal is one – to perform as well as possible. We will mobilize all our strength to succeed and win a medal at the World Championship. At the very least, we want to make people forget the failure we experienced at the home championship.
Vugar Vugarly, Idman.biz
