Baku, Azerbaijan, June 21
Trend:
The judges have demonstrated bias against Azerbaijani gymnasts, the fan of gymnastics, a spectator of the competitions at the National Gymnastics Arena at Baku 2015, Mirkyazym Khalilov told Trend June 21.
According to him, if there are no bias of judges, Azerbaijan would have had more medals at gymnastics competitions at Baku 2015.
Khalilov said he has been watching competitions at the National Gymnastics Arena at Baku 2015 during the past few days.
"I'm a fan of gymnastics, so I understand, how performances of gymnasts are being estimated. I can say with full confidence that the judges demonstrated bias towards Azerbaijani gymnasts," Khalilov said.
"Azerbaijani gymnast Marina Durunda performed well in individual exercises with a hoop. I thought that she would take at least second place, but I am very surprised and disappointed by the results," Khalilov said.
According to him, the judges, in general, were unfair to the Azerbaijani team at these competitions.
"Azerbaijan artistic gymnasts performed well in group exercises, but their performances have been undervalued," he said.
Khalilov underscored that some forces in international judging are concerned about the development of gymnastics in Azerbaijan, thus showcasing biased approach towards the country's efforts.
The European Games that kicked off in Baku June 12, will last till June 28. There is a total of 20 sports at Baku 2015: 16 Olympic sports and four non-Olympic sports.
More than 6,000 athletes from across Europe came to Baku to represent their nations over 17 days of competition. Baku was awarded the games by the European Olympic Committees (EOC) in December 2012.