Judo Training Center starts operating in Shabran

The Judo Training Center has started operating in Shabran.

The opening ceremony was attended by the Minister of Youth and Sports, Farid Gayibov, the head of the Shabran District Executive Authority, Asif Huseynov, Executive Vice-President of Azerbaijan Judo Federation Rashad Rasulov, and other officials.

The center, which meets modern standards, is equipped with tatami mats, and the training area is furnished with necessary sports equipment to ensure the physical development of judo athletes.

The total area of the tatami is 200 square meters.There are also changing rooms for coaches and athletes. More than 200 athletes will train in the hall.

It is noteworthy that the Azerbaijan Judo Federation has opened judo halls in Ganja, Sumqayit, Gusar, Agstafa, Zagatala, Goranboy, Sabirabad, the village of Agali in Zangilan district, the Zira settlement of Baku, Agdash, Kurdamir, Astara, Jalilabad, Tartar, Gakh, Imishli, and Mosul village in Zagatala district between 2022-2025.

Future judo halls are planned to open in Masalli, Jalilabad, Gobustan, and Siyazan.

Since 2022, the Azerbaijan Judo Federation has provided 11,704 tatami mats to 158 sports halls in Baku and the regions, offering over 2,430 young athletes the opportunity to train for free.

Founded in 1972, the Azerbaijan Judo Federation actively promotes this martial art across the country. Since 2015, the Federation has been led by Rovnag Abdullayev.

The country's modern judo history was laid by Mehman Azizov, who won a silver medal at the Old World Championship in 1998.

A year later, the winner of the World Youth Games in Moscow, Rasul Salimov, grabbed the bronze medal at the European Championship in Slovakia. Another national judoka, Elchin Ismayilov, became the European champion in 2000 in Wroclaw.

However, the achievements of Azerbaijani judo fighters did not stop there. Elnur Mammadli was named the best at the 2008 Beijing Olympics in the 73 kg division.

The list of the country's top judo fighters includes Rustam Orujov, ?rina Kindzerskaya, Mammadali Mehdiyev, Elmar Gasimov, Hidayat Heydarov, Zelim Kotsoev, Ushangi Kokauri, and Nijat Shikhalizada.

At the Paris 2024 Summer Olympic Games, judokas Hidayat Heydarov (73 kg) and Zelym Kotsoiev (100 kg) earned gold medals for Azerbaijan.