Iran’s Tae Kwon Do Follies
Iranian competitors continue to be coerced into refusing to go up against Israeli opponents, resulting in funny articles like this one from Iran’s PressTV:
Iran’s team has pocketed seven medals during the second day of competitions at the 35th Dutch Open Taekwondo Championships in Eindhoven.
…Alireza Shakouri settled for bronze in the men’s 54-kilo competition after refusing to face a contestant representing the Zionist regime in the semi-finals. Hadi Mosta’an also made the same decision when he came up against an Israeli opponent in the finals and opted for the silver.
In the women’s competitions, Fatima Ne’mati took bronze after losing in a semi-final match against a British practitioner. However, Aitak Me’marzadeh, who could have walked away with the gold, decided not to face her Israeli rival and placed second.
What is noteworthy is that the international sports bodies refuse to penalize Iran for its behavior.
In 2004, an Iranian judo competitor refused to go up against an Israeli opponent in the Olympics, but he purposefully missed his weight so as to have a legitimate excuse to avoid sanctions from the International Judo Federation. Iran rewarded his scam with a $125,000 reward, the same amount it gives its gold medal winners, and then-Tehran mayor “Mahmood Ahmadi Nejad” praised him for his cowardice.
About the Author
Elder of Ziyon may or may not be a real person. He (or she, or it) blogs at http://elderofziyon.blogspot.com/Filed Under: General
So? If they don’t want to go up against our guys, that means we win by default. I’ve got no problem with that. Makes things easier.
-ron
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I think they’re being smart. They are protecting themselves. If they were to lose to an Israeli, they would have hell to pay at home. It’s easier to not fight at all than to lose and become a target at home.