Idman.biz
Azerbaijani athletes showed a great result at the World Kickboxing Championship in Abu Dhabi: four gold, one silver and six bronze medals.
On this occasion, Idman.Biz spoke with Telman Maharramov, the head coach of the Azerbaijani national kickboxing team.
- How do you assess the team's performance? Were you expecting this result?
- To be honest, we planned for exactly this result and I don't see anything extraordinary here.
- So you were sure that you would win four gold medals at the WAKO World Championship, which is held every two years and is internationally recognized?
- There could have been more medals. The judges pressured our athletes in some fights and were clearly unfair. As a result, Amin Guliyev (67 kg), Alim Nabiyev (81 kg) and Gasham Mammadov (75 kg) were left without medals, although all three were contenders for the championship. We had a very good training camp, and this directly affected the results.
- Nevertheless, the team showed one of the best results in our history at WAKO championships…
- Yes, they told me that too. But we fight not for statistics, but for the honor of our country.
- Two athletes - Surat Garayev (91 kg) and Elvin Mammadov (57 kg) have already become world champions for the second time. Do they have the opportunity to repeat or break the record of Eduard Mammadov, the legend of local kickboxing, three-time WAKO world champion?
- They can not only repeat, but also set a new record. Of course, if they do not stop developing and continue in the same spirit. It will be a little difficult for Surat, he is already 26 years old. Elvin is only 19 years old and has great potential. Two years ago, when he sensationally became the world champion at the age of 17, we already knew that a high-level athlete was growing up. Moreover, Elvin is a student of Eduard Mammadov, and I think that his teacher would be proud if his student surpassed him.
Vugar Vugarli
