The 2022 Asian Championships are officially over, bringing a close to continental competitions until the new year. The action got underway at 11 am local time, with the finals taking place for the senior and junior divisions.
The junior finals took place first, followed by the medal ceremony, before moving on to the senior finals.
In the junior flyweight division, we were treated to a closely contested match-up between Mongolia’s Otgonbaatar Boldbaatar and Kazakhstan’s Yersultan Shakenbay. The pair went the distance, but it was Shakenbay who got the nod from the judges. Despite not securing gold, Boldbaatar secured the nation’s first-ever IMMAF medal.
Tajikistan’s Otabek Rajabov added a third junior gold medal to his collection after getting the better of fellow countryman Lutfullo Sohibnazarov on the judges’ scorecards. This was one of Tajikistan’s five gold medals in the junior divisions.
Elsewhere in the junior ranks, Lebanon’s Charbel Farah continued his fine run of form with his fourth victory of the competition, securing gold. Farah has been one of the breakout stars of the competition after overcoming stiff opposition in each round.
After an impressive competition from Uzbekistan, the team finished the competition with two gold medals through junior competitors Ugiloy Jumanov and Asborek Anvarjonov.
In the senior finals, it was a medal haul for Bahrain. Sabrina De Sousa, Fabiola Silva and Aieza Ramos thrived in their respective divisions to take gold. De Sousa had her only bout of the competition and did not disappoint as she put on a striking clinic against Kazakhstan’s Mulder Ashirbekova.
Rasul Magomedov took gold after his teammate Sultan Gazipov was unable to compete in the final. In the welterweight division, Ramazan Gitinov added his first Asian Championships gold to his long list of accolades, while Sultan Omarov outpointed Jordan’s Hazem Kayyali in the middleweight final.
Kazakhstan enjoyed plenty of success in the senior ranks as well. After medalling on six previous occasions, Yerevan Kabdulov finally added a gold medal by defeating Tajikistan’s Isrofil Komilzoda. Rassul Khatayev also added his first IMMAF gold medal after scoring his second arm-triangle choke of the competition.
Tajikistan dominated from flyweight through to lightweight in the senior ranks. Manuchehr Rioev put on one of the performances of the day when he submitted Uzbekistan’s Shukurjon Rustamov with a rear-naked choke in the second round to top the podium for the featherweight division.
The home nation finished the competition with thirty-five medals overall, nine of which were gold, to take the top spot on the medal table. Kazakhstan finished second on the medal table, followed by Bahrain.
A complete list of today’s results can be found here, and a list of medalists can be found here. Brackets can be viewed back on Smoothcomp.
