Two medals were won by the judoists of Turkmenistan at the Asian open tournament held in Kuwait, 14 sets of awards of which were contested by 156 sportsmen (116 men and 40 women) from 27 countries of four continents for two days.
The silver medal in our team, which was represented by 14 judoists (9 men and 5 women), was won by Mammedali Achyldyyev. A first-year student of the Turkmen State Institute of Architecture and Construction achieved this success in the weight category up to 90 kg, in which 12 sportsmen from 11 countries competed for the title of the strongest.
In the first fight, which turned out to be a quarter-final, our compatriot won in just 17 seconds by ippon (clear victory) against John Viron Ferrer (Philippines). Then, in the semifinals, he defeated Yuchul Kim (Republic of Korea). And in the final he lost to Anarbek Ishenbayev (Kyrgyz Republic) and was content with the silver medal. Yuchul Kim (Republic of Korea) and Vlad Visan (Romania) became bronze medalists.
This is the first success of 19-year-old Mammedali Achyldyyev in international competitions. He started practicing judo in Lebap velayat. Currently, he is improving sportsmanship in the national team of Turkmenistan under the leadership of Gahryman Amandurdyyev and Omar Muhammetnazarov.
Maysa Pardayeva brought the second medal to the team of Turkmenistan, having won bronze in the weight category up to 57 kg, in which 7 judoists competed for awards.
Having lost in the first bout at the 1/2 final stage to Yuna Shin (Republic of Korea), our athlete then won a clear victory over Yamini Murya (India) in the fight for the bronze medal and climbed to the third step of the podium. Another bronze medal went to Fationa Kasapi (Kosovo). The winner of the tournament in this weight category was Yuna Shin from Korea, who defeated Noran Elmanruki from the USA in the final.
18-year-old first-class girl Maysa Pardayeva, who studies in the 10th grade of secondary school №20 of the Koytendag etrap of the Lebap velayat, is already climbing the podium at international competitions for the third time. A year ago, she excelled at the Junior Asian Cup 2022 in Almaty. In March of this year, she won silver at the European Junior Cup in Sarajevo.
And now she won bronze at the Asian Open Tournament in Kuwait.
This success of her pupil is shared by Maysa's first coach, Jora Matnazarov, and her current mentors, head coaches of the youth team Gulbadam Babamuratova and the national team Chemengul Geldibayeva.
The next serious test for the judoists of Turkmenistan will be starting in Doha (Qatar) the 36th World Championships, in which 657 athletes (343 men and 314 women) from 99 countries on five continents will compete for medals in seven men's and seven women's weight categories and ranking points on the way to the 2024 Olympic Games in Paris.
The national team of Turkmenistan at the 2023 World Cup will be represented in five weight categories by eight judokas. The men's team included: Aybek Omirov, Hakberdi Jumayev (both in the weight category up to 60 kg), Serdar Rahimov and Hekim Agamammedov (both in the weight category up to 66 kg). And in the women's - Aksoltan Hojageldiyeva (up to 48 kg), Sayara Roziyeva (up to 52 kg), Maysa Pardayeva (up to 57 kg) and Zulhumar Dashkinova (up to 63 kg).
The total prize fund of the World Championship, which will end on the 14th of May, is 998 thousand dollars. Its winners will be eligible to participate in the 2024 Olympic Games in Paris.
