Azerbaijani judoka Mammadali Mehdiyev has won the tournament dedicated to the 100th anniversary of Kazakhstan’s “Dinamo” sports society.
Mehdiyev, a multiple medalist at European Judo Championships and currently a police lieutenant, emerged victorious at the commemorative tournament in Kazakhstan.
According to Idman.Biz, Mehdiyev defeated local judoka Yersultan Muzaffarov in the final. Remarkably, the match lasted an astonishing 31 minutes, an unusually long duration for a judo bout.
Mehman Azizov, a former prominent judoka, three-time Olympian, currently a police lieutenant colonel, and head of the Sports Department of Azerbaijan’s Ministry of Internal Affairs (MIA) Sports Society, shared the details with Idman.Biz. Azizov was also invited to the event as an honorary guest.
He stated that in addition to official ceremonies in Astana, competitions were held in judo, sambo, grappling, hand-to-hand combat, and other sports disciplines as part of the centenary celebration:
"Only the final matches were held. The invited countries sent their strongest athletes. Mammadali fought for 31 minutes – 4 minutes of regular time and 27 minutes in ‘Golden Score.’ I have been involved in judo for over 40 years, and I have never seen anything like this. As far as I know, the official world record in judo matches is 18 minutes and some seconds. Here, the match lasted over half an hour. Seeing him emerge victorious in such an intense battle made all of us extremely happy."
It is worth noting that commemorative medals from Kazakhstan’s “Dinamo” 100th anniversary were also awarded to Mehman Azizov and Azerbaijan MIA Sports Society head, police colonel Movlud Miraliyev.
Vugar Vuqarly
