Azerbaijan enjoyed another successful day at the Judo Grand Prix in Qingdao, China, as Zelim Tckaev claimed the gold medal and Olympic champion Hidayat Heydarov added bronze in the men's 81 kg category, İdman.Biz reports.
Tckaev delivered an outstanding performance throughout the tournament before defeating Austria's Bernd Fasching in the final to capture the title. On his way to gold, the Azerbaijani judoka defeated opponents from Finland, Uzbekistan, the United Arab Emirates and Austria.
Heydarov also reached the semifinals but was stopped by Fasching before bouncing back in the bronze medal contest. The reigning Olympic champion defeated Egor Sukhoparov to secure Azerbaijan's second medal of the day.
In the 73 kg division, Rashid Mammadaliyev finished seventh after losing in the repechage, while Fidan Alizada was eliminated in the early rounds of the women's 63 kg competition.
Azerbaijan has now collected three medals at the Qingdao Grand Prix. On the opening day, Ahmad Yusifov won bronze in the men's 60 kg category after defeating France's Enzo Jean in the medal match. Gulutaj Mammadaliyeva (52 kg) and Ruslan Pashayev (66 kg) narrowly missed the podium, both finishing fifth in their respective weight classes.
