Magomedomar Magomedomarov strikes first gold for UAE in Judo at Asian Games

Magomedomar Magomedomarov has won the UAE's first gold medal at this year's Asian Games after beating Tajikistan's Temur Rakhimov in Hangzhou on Tuesday.

The Russian-born judoka defeated Rakhimov in the over 100kg final with an ippon four minutes into the contest after teammates Aram Grigorian (90kg) and Dzhafar Kostoev (100kg) each bagged bronze on the penultimate day of the judo competition.

It takes the UAE's tally in judo at the Xiaoshan Linpu Gymnasium to one gold, a silver and three bronzes, and the country now sits 10th in the medals table. Judokas Bishrelt Khorloodoi and Narmandakh Bayanmunkh took the other two medals on Sunday.

Grigorian, 25, stopped Korean Han Juyeop in three-and-a-half minutes with an ippon in the opening medal contest in the second session.

Kostoev, 24, outclassed the defending Olympic champion Aaron Phillip Wolf of Japan with a waza-ari on his way to the podium.

The UAE judo team accounts for all the medals the nation has won so far in China - exceeding their own pre-tournament predictions.

“We expected two or three medals, but our judokas have performed beyond those expectations,” Nasser Al Tamimi, general secretary of the UAE Wrestling and Judo Federation, told The National.

“The Asian Games is an excellent platform for us to build for the Paris Olympics next year. This has been our objective when we assembled the new squad early in 2022.”

Magomedomarov, 22, had to clear four hurdles to reach the final. Gold medallist last year at both the European Open in Cluj-Napoca, Romania, and the Islam Solidarity Games in Konya, Turkey, he opened his campaign with a win over Syimyk Zhaparov of Kyrgyzstan by ippon in three minutes and 20 seconds.

He then beat Mongolia’s Tsetsentsengel Odkhuu in a