Idman.biz
Two-time European and one-time world sambo champion Amil Gasimov gave an interview after many years.
Idman.Biz presents an interview with the last world sambo champion of Azerbaijan.
- You were born in Ganja and wrestling has always been a priority here. How did you get into sambo?
- I had no choice (laughs). My brother Ramil Gasimov is a Paralympic champion in para judo, and he also started his career in sambo. My cousin Shahmurad Gasimov is also a sambo wrestler, a world champion. It was impossible to bypass this sport in a place where there are such big brothers. Moreover, in my time in Ganja, sambo was more popular than judo and freestyle wrestling.
- But your brother eventually chose judo...
- Yes, he showed good results. Then he had problems with his eyesight, first he stopped performing, then he continued as a para judoka and became a champion in 2016. Shahmurad became the world champion in 1997, when the current president of our federation, Jeyhun Mammadov, also performed. I stayed in sambo, I couldn't leave.
Firstly, I felt more comfortable here. The results also show this: in judo, I was a maximum second at the national championship. In sambo, I am a world champion, a two-time European champion and a prize-winner of many tournaments. Secondly, the status of world champion is absolute - when they introduce you like that, many people don't ask in what sport you won. This is the highest achievement in sports.
- Nevertheless, you could not become the champion of Azerbaijan in judo because of your brother...
- That's not a fact either (laughs). Yes, once we competed in the same weight category - 73 kg - and met in the semi-finals. Of course, we didn't wrestle - I just didn't go to the mat. And he was trying very hard to convince me to perform. But I, as a younger brother, could not behave differently.
- What do you need to give up to become a world champion?
- A lot of things. The main thing is to fully focus on the goal. It is necessary to put aside everyday worries, thoughts about earnings, and personal problems. I am grateful to my parents, they always said not to think about work and money, just focus on sambo. And I did.
- You became a world champion in 2014, but you could not defend your title. What was missing?
- The injury I received at the first European Games interfered. I won "silver" there. There were only three months left until the World Championship and I could not fully recover. But there was also a psychological mistake: after the European Championship, I became complacent, I thought that I would win the World Championship easily. This was a big lesson for me - you can't lose focus even for a moment in such tournaments. As a result, I lost in the final and could not defend my title.
- Why haven't we had a new world champion in the last 12 years?
- There are talented athletes, and the federation is doing a great job searching for new stars. The problem is that not everyone is destined to become a champion. To do this, you need to be ready to go to the end. It is important to constantly focus on the goal, control weight, be the first in the country, and study international rivals. Success comes when the desire to win is above all else. I am sure that a new world champion is not far away in Azerbaijani sambo.
