The European Judo Championship started in Montpellier and was marked by a referee scandal.
The reporter of Idman.biz sent to France informs that the referee made a biased decision in the match of the Azerbaijani judoka Balabay Aghayev (60 kg) with the Italian Andrea Carlino.
Balabay, the two times winner of the "Grand Slam" held in Paris in the last three years, was expected to achieve another success in France. The Azerbaijani judoka started the meeting with his Italian rival Carlino quite confidently and was distinguished by his activity and technique. As a result, the Italian athlete received warnings for passive performance. But then the scene of the fight changed a little: the referee started to give Balabey "shido" and the fight continued until the "golden score".
The Azerbaijani judoka was more active in extra time, but he was warned for the third time for no reason. Balabay refused to leave the tatami, asking the judges to reconsider the episode with gestures. The Azerbaijani delegation in the tribune noted the judge's mistake and indicated the possibility of watching the video replay, but refused to change the judge's decision.
As a result, Balabay left the tatami disappointed. The decisions of the judges, not controversial, but rather biased, made it possible for him to stop fighting. Aghayev's opponent in the next round will be Luka Mkheidze (France), whom he defeated earlier. This increased his chances of winning a medal. Now the French athlete will compete with the inexperienced Carlino in the quarterfinals.
Zaki Feyzullayev
Idman.biz
