The interview of Morteza Valıdarvı, head coach of the Azerbaijan national badminton team to Idman.biz
- Azerbaijan will host the qualifying badminton competition for the Paris-2024 Summer Olympic Games. Has the number of countries and athletes coming to Baku already been determined?
- Registration for the Azerbaijan International-2024 tournament is over. Athletes from 50 countries have sent applications for registration in this competition. We will have our last meeting on February 7 before the competition starts. The number of athletes will be specified here. 50 countries is a big number. There are two months left in the Olympic qualification period. This competition also gives huge ranking points to Olympia. 16 judges from abroad will come to Azerbaijan in this competition. It is a good thing that one main and 5 service local referees will also participate in this competition. This is the first, because until now, our Azerbaijani judges have never participated in the international competition held inside the country.
- How are the preparations going for the competition that will take place on February 8-11?
- We started training on January 4. We work on technical and physical exercises. We do a lot of things to strengthen the level of preparation of both male and female athletes. We train twice a day, 6 days a week. Our athletes are working with all their strength in order to get high results in this and other upcoming competitions. The tournament in Baku will be organized at a very high level, because we organized this competition in June 2019. At that time, everyone was satisfied with this competition and said that you organized the tournament at the level of the European Championship. Therefore, the desire of countries to come to Azerbaijan is great.
- And how many licenses is your target?
- Our wish is for one female and one male athlete to get a license for the Paris-2024 Summer Olympic Games. I believe that our badminton players will increase their score and win a license. I expect good results from our athletes in Azerbaijan International 2024.
- How many athletes will represent Azerbaijan in Azerbaijan International 2024?
- As the host, we will be represented in all categories. Our athletes will compete in both men's and women's individual, double and mixed doubles competitions. Ade Resky Dwicahyo and Keisha Fatimah Zahra will compete in the main stage of this tournament, not in the qualifying stage, as they have a lot of rating points.
- How would you rate the final state of the team for the competition?
- Our athletes are in good condition. Their preparations are also at a high level. Keisha is 70 percent ready for this competition. The reason for this is his leg injury, but in a short time, he receives certain treatments and exercises to eliminate the problem. Badminton is developing sufficiently in our country. Many international federations are aware of this development.
Banuchichak Huseynli
Idman.biz
