Report.az
Azerbaijani wrestler Zahra Karimzade (72 kg), who took third place in the ranking tournament held in Zagreb, the capital of Croatia, is considering replacing the bronze medal with a gold medal in the next competitions.
"Report" reports that the 18-year-old athlete herself stated this in a statement to the press service of the Azerbaijan Wrestling Federation.
She shared her impressions of the competition:
"I am very happy and proud to have won a bronze medal at the ranking tournament among adults. In the first match, I faced Turkish Olympic medalist Buse Tosun. Although I lost, I did not lose heart. I wrestled with a Japanese representative for the bronze medal. I knew that I would face a titled opponent. Our coaches prepared me for the match at a high level psychologically and tactically. As a result of their motivation, I was fully prepared for the match. Our fight was intense. I wrestled until the end and won. I thank our head coach, our federation, and my personal coach for their efforts. I hope to replace the bronze medal with a gold medal in the next competitions."
It should be noted that Zahra Karimzade, the world and European third-place winner among juniors in 2024, climbed the podium of honor for the first time in the adults' competition. Karimzade, who lost to Olympic medalist, world and European champion Buse Tosun with a score of 0:2 in the 1/4 finals, defeated Mahiro Yoshitake (4:1), the world champion among youth and Asian champion among adults, in the match for third place.
