Sevinj Yusibova, Azerbaijan's first international wrestling judge, interviewed on Idman.biz website.
- What sparked your interest in this particular profession?
- I started this job as the first secretary. Looking off the mat, I was drawn to the work of the judges. Later, this inspired me to come to refereeing.
- What are the difficulties of being a female judge?
- The main difficulty is that many people say that she is a woman, but what will be the judgement? But sometimes they say that you should manage some meetings.
- Did you say that you will never refer again?
- No, it didn't disappear (laughs). Not at all. On the contrary, I constantly worked on myself. I have watched the decisions I made, thought about them and tried to fix them.
- Probably, such love also resulted in your becoming the first Azerbaijani female judge of the international level...
- Yes.
- How do you remember the moment you received your degree?
- I was happy. I heard about this in the US. I checked the results there and saw that I was an international judge. I was happy to write my name in history. I showed myself well at the veterans' world championship in Loutraki, Greece. Later, I passed the exam on both mat and English.
- Then what can we call wrestling for you?
- Life.
- Your son is also a wrestler. How do you feel about managing his meeting?
- I am a judge, a mother and a coach. It is difficult, very difficult.
- But in those moments, there are no outsiders who say that he won at the expense of his mother or that he led his son forward?
- It happens. But when my son wrestles, I am not myself. I know the world stops. I am excited on the sidelines, watching and knowing that my colleagues will handle the meeting well.
- What is your biggest goal in judging?
- I want to buy "Golden Whistle". This is my goal from day one.
- Don't you want to manage the Summer Olympics?
- Yes, the Olympics is also my dream. I believe they will come true.
- What can you say to women like you who want to be a judge, but are afraid of it?
- I invite them to come and have a heart. There is nothing scary. Here we are a family with the judges. If someone does not know something, he will learn it by experience.
Emin Aga
Idman.biz
