Iran Athletes Rank 2nd at Asia Taekwondo Championships

Iran’s junior taekwondo athletes claimed second spot at the 20th Asian Taekwondo Championships in Vietnam’s metropolis of Ho Chi Minh City.

Iranian taekwondo fighter Sajjad Mardani took the country's medal tally to eight when he snatched the fourth bronze medal for Iran.

In the men’s 63kg division, the Iranian athlete was given the first round off. He defeated his Vietnamese rival 7-5 in the second round before being brushed aside 2-0 following a stiff challenge from his South Korean opponent.

In total, the Iranian junior squad won one gold medal by Alireza Nasr Azadani in the men’s featherweight category (51kg-55kg), two silvers by Masoud Hoji Zavareh in the men’s welterweight division (59kg-63kg) and Samaneh Sheshpari in the women’s bantamweight class (44kg-46kg); and four bronze medals by Dina Pouryounis in the women’s fin weight category (-42kg), Hossein Tajik in the men’s light middle weight category (63kg-68kg), Nafiseh Mokhlesi in the women’s middle weight class (59kg-63kg) and Sajjad Mardani in the men’s middle weight section (68kg-73kg).

The 20th Asian Taekwondo Championships took place at Phu Tho Stadium in May. The tournament gathered 293 athletes from 34 countries, including China, Iran, South Korea and Thailand.