Iranian taekwondo judges have refused to judge Israeli athletes in Croatia's International Taekwondo Tournament, head of the Iranian Taekwondo delegation has announced.
"Iran's international judges, Peyman Sabet, Gholamreza Azizi and Abbas Mohebi, declined to judge Israeli representatives' matches in support of the oppressed people of Palestine," IRNA quoted Jamshid Sohrabi as saying on Monday, Press TV reported.
Iranian athletes do not recognize the Israeli regime under any circumstances, so they refuse to judge Israeli athletes in various competitions, he further explained.
The Iranian sports official reiterated that Iranian athletes managed to grab one silver and one bronze medal in the very first day of the tournament in the Croatian capital city of Zagreb.
A total of 36 teams from 25 countries have participated in Croatia's International Taekwondo Tournament.
Earlier in July, Iran's national taekwondo team defeated Spain to claim the 2010 World Cup Taekwondo Championships held in Urumqi, China.
Also in April, Iranian athletes won the title at the First Asian University Taekwondo Championships held in Abu Dhabi in the United Arab Emirates.