BAKU, Azerbaijan, April 8. The first day of taekwondo competitions at the Gymnasiade in Serbia has concluded, Trend reports.
Held in the city of Pozega, the event proved successful for Azerbaijani athletes, who secured a number of medals in both the girls' and boys' categories.
In the girls' competition, Rugia Aliyeva (33 kg) won the gold medal after defeating Maria Eloisa de Almeida from Brazil in the final. Medina Aslanli (29 kg) earned silver following a loss to Ana Hansuki from Thailand in the final bout. Mehriban Ismayilli (44 kg) and Gulnaz Abdullayeva (59 kg) both secured bronze medals after losing in the semifinals to Wuyi-Ni Chang (Taiwan) and Du Ruisi (China), respectively.
Among the boys, Abil Mehrali (45 kg) claimed a silver medal after being defeated by Iran's Marti Shamsizadeh in the final. Saleh Heydarov (53 kg) won bronze, falling short in the semifinals against a Brazilian opponent.
Sabir Mammadli (33 kg), Nijat Nadirov (41 kg), Aysu Aslanli (41 kg), and Hagigat Aleskerli (51 kg) were eliminated in the quarter-finals.
Notably, on April 9, ten more Azerbaijani taekwondo athletes are set to compete in the ongoing tournament.
