Ganjzadeh won the Karate Olympic gold medal because his opponent was disqualified | Olympic News

The unconscious Sajad Ganjzadeh won the +75 kg men’s gold medal for the Iranian team because Saudi Arabia’s Tareg Hamedi was disqualified for high kicks.

The last game of karate’s historic debut in the Olympics ended in an uproar. Saudi Arabia’s Tareg Hamedi kicked Iran’s Sajad Ganjzadeh. Neck, he was disqualified, and his motionless opponent won the gold medal in the men’s over 75 kg kilogram final.

In less than a minute, Hamidi appeared to be dominant, scoring a three-pointer “ippon” in the ninth second, leading 4-1 before Saturday’s game abruptly ended.

Before the mood of the Nippon Budokan Arena changed, Hamidi’s last kick sent Ganjzadeh onto the tatami mat, and Saudi Arabia entered the celebration mode. The medical staff rushed to Ganjzadeh, put an oxygen mask on the Iranian, and then carried him onto a stretcher.

After a few minutes of discussion between officials on the sidelines, the referee cancelled Hamidi’s unrestricted offensive qualifications, thus canceling the game against Ganjzadeh, which is not allowed by the karate Olympic rules.

Ganjzadeh returned to attend the medal ceremony later and walked normally. When they stepped onto the podium and received the medals, both he and Hamidi were expressionless.

However, when they hugged and took photos together, they didn’t seem to be hostile to each other.

“I am very happy to win the gold medal, but I am sad that I have to win it like this,” Ganjzadeh said at a press conference.

Hamedi calmly dealt with the loss, saying that he was not satisfied with the judge’s decision but was satisfied with his fighting style.

Turkey’s Ugur Aktas and Japan’s Ryutaro Araga won the bronze medal in the men’s 75kg category.

The gold medal winner in the women’s 61 kg class was Egypt’s Feriar Abdulaziz. She defeated Azerbaijan’s Irina Zaretska in the final and won the second gold medal since 1948. Sophia Belutseva of Kazakhstan and Gong Li of China won the bronze medal.

Egyptian player Feyal Abdulaziz celebrates winning gold [Annegret Hilse/Reuters]

Ganjzadeh was the second karate player to be carried away on a stretcher on Saturday.

Jonathan Horne, who is expected to win the gold medal for the German team, was injured in the knockout round, writhing and screaming in pain, unable to get up from the tatami.

Michael Ship, the press officer of the German Olympic Sports Federation, said that Horn was injured in his elbow and will undergo further examination in the hospital. He said the extent of the damage is still unknown.

Horn is the defending world champion in the +84 kg category, and he has 20 seconds left in the game.

Earlier in the women’s +61 kg competition, Italian Sylvia Semeraro’s head was bandaged, and the field staff replaced the tatami mats stained with her blood.