Subhan Akhundov: "Every competition is an experience"

"Almost all the favorite athletes participated in the Olympic festival. This further increased the interest in the competition and the competition itself." Sport24.az reports that this was said by Subhan Akhundov (+90 kg), bronze medalist of the judo competitions of the XVIII European Youth Summer Olympic Festival (EYOF) held in Skopje, the capital of North Macedonia.

In his statement to the press service of the National Olympic Committee, he shared his impressions of the competition: "I lost to my French opponent in the 1/4 final. In fact, it was a meeting I could have won. I had even defeated him before, at the European Cup held in Teplice, Czech Republic. Unfortunately, I couldn't choose the right tactics this time. Although I lost the chance to reach the semi-finals, I won in the consolation matches. First, I defeated the judoka who competed under the flag of the International Olympic Committee, and then my opponent from Bosnia and Herzegovina. In the match for the bronze medal, I faced a Czech athlete. I had lost to that athlete in the European Cup. This time I eliminated him from the competition, took revenge and won the bronze medal. It's true, I aimed for the championship before the competition. But I don't regret it. Every competition is an experience. The World Championship awaits us ahead. I believe that I will prepare better for that competition and win the championship title. Taking this opportunity, I express my gratitude to the National Olympic Committee, to the leadership of the Azerbaijan Judo Federation for creating all conditions for our training, as well as to our coaches who contributed to my success," said Subhan Akhundov.

It should be noted that Azerbaijani judokas finished the festival with 8 medals.