Azerbaijani judo star completes unprecedented championship hat trick Heydarov shines in Paris

On July 29, 1836, the Triumphal Arch was solemnly inaugurated at the Place de l'Étoile in Paris. The arch, designed in the "ancient Roman style," was commissioned by Napoleon to commemorate the triumphant victories of his "Great Army." Nearly two centuries later, 188 years to be exact, the same Paris witnessed the triumphant victories of Azerbaijani judoka Hidayat Heydarov. The pinnacle of his achievements was a golden "ippon" victory over French Joan-Benjamin Gaba.

The “monument” to this victory was erected by another Azerbaijani Olympic judo champion, Elnur Mammadli, who intensively prepared Hidayat for his Parisian triumph, working with him personally. The Azerbaijani athlete defeated the French rival in front of his own fans, who fervently supported Gaba, and that, you must agree, is a significant achievement!

I don’t know whether that same French commentator, who made inappropriate remarks about our country during the broadcast of the opening ceremony, watched this match or not. But I am sure of one thing: Heydarov's decisive "ippon" was a brilliant response not only to the commentator's remarks but also to the political bile from French politicians against Azerbaijan. As Heydarov himself noted right after the final match: "The French listened to the Azerbaijani anthem when I won the European Championship in Montpellier. Let them listen to it at the Olympics in Paris now."

Adding to this, on July 29, another Azerbaijani, Adil Osmanov, who represents Moldova, also stood on the podium with Heydarov after winning bronze. This underscores the significant blow dealt to those who constantly criticize us and seize every opportunity to undermine us. This day will now be remembered not only for its Napoleonic significance but also for Heydarov's and the broader Azerbaijani triumph. And all of this without any arches! I don't know about you, dear readers, but I hope our athletes will make the French listen to our national anthem at least a couple more times at these Games.

Let's return to our hero – the eighth Olympic champion in the history of independent Azerbaijan. He is only the fourth athlete in the country’s history (after Zemfira Meftakhetdinova, Sharif Sharifov, and Radik Isayev) to win at the European Championships, World Championships, and the Olympic Games. Moreover, Heydarov is currently the only athlete in the world this year to achieve such a championship hat trick! No one else in any sport has accomplished such a feat this year.

Moreover, Heydarov, who celebrated his 27th birthday just two days before his championship win, managed to secure victory in all four of his battles in overtime, which makes his Olympic gold even more remarkable. Yes, that’s right—starting from the round of 16, where he defeated Tohar Butbul (Israel), then in the quarterfinals against Arthur Margelidon (Canada), and in the semifinals against Akil Gjakova (Kosovo)—Heydarov won all these matches (including the final) in overtime. This highlights his incredible focus and motivation!

Unfortunately, these very qualities were lacking in our other representatives last Monday, who were defeated without much resistance and eliminated from further competition.

After Dominguez's Sunday miracle, we hoped that the other boxers would support their teammate. Expectations were especially high for super heavyweight Mahammad Abdullayev. However, the two-time bronze medalist at the World Championships and the team’s flag bearer at these Olympics was utterly defeated by Nelvie Tiafack from Germany (0:5). Three years of preparation were shattered in his very first bout! This was Abdullayev's second Olympics, and he was undoubtedly one of our potential medalists.

Malik Hasanov (63.5 kg) "supported" his teammate by also losing without much resistance in his first bout to Lasha Guruli from Georgia – 0:5.

Azerbaijani fencer Anna Bashta, who barely qualified for the Olympics (her second), won her first bout but unfortunately lost in the second and also exited the Olympic tournament. However, she lost to none other than six-time world champion and complete Olympic medalist Olga Kharlan. Still, the fact remains that we will no longer see Anna at these Games.

Similarly, we will not see badminton player Keisha Fatima Zahra anymore, who, after losing both of her group stage matches, left the tournament in disgrace. With such a performance, our Badminton Federation might as well have sent any Fatima or Zahra to the Games – without any Keishas.

However, our other representative in this sport, Ade Resky Dwicahyo, showed that he can be remembered not only for his unusual name in Azerbaijan but also for his performance. He defeated Collins Valentine Filimon (Austria) – 2:0 (21:18, 21:11). On July 31, Ade will play against Anders Antonsen (Denmark) – a two-time European champion. Let me remind you that Ade faced Antonsen at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics and lost to him in the group stage. I sincerely hope that now our legionnaire, who has cost Azerbaijan an indecently large amount of money throughout his career here, will be able to get revenge and somewhat offset these financial losses.

Meanwhile, in Paris, our losses in human resources continue. Four more athletes joined the four who were unsuccessful over the weekend, making a total of eight who have been eliminated. We are left hoping for success from the remaining athletes holding the 33 licenses. After all, it's not only Heydarov who can impress the Parisian audience. Isn’t that right, gentlemen?

By Vugar Vugarli

The views and opinions expressed by guest columnists in their op-eds may differ from and do not necessarily reflect the views of the editorial board.