Baku, Azerbaijan May 14
By Azad Hasanli - Trend:
After gaining a victory in the 4th Islamic Solidarity Games in Baku, Azerbaijani karateka Irina Zaretska plans to take part in the Olympic Games.
“We will soon have qualifications for the Olympic Games. This means two years of hard work,” she told reporters May 14.
Talking about her performance today, Zaretska noted that the most difficult moment for her was the first fight with Egypt’s Nada Mohamed.
“I was preparing hard for this tournament and I had strong rivals, especially, the first karateka. I thought that if I defeat her, I will be able to gain a victory over the others and grab the gold medal. So it happened,” she said.
Zaretska expressed gratitude to the coaches and her team for the great support and pointed out that she dedicates her victory to her spouse.
The Baku 2017 Islamic Solidarity Games started May 8 and will last until May 22 in Azerbaijan’s capital on 16 sports grounds in 21 kinds of sports – 17 Olympic ones and three non-Olympic ones.