Iran Pays Tribute to Wrestler Who Threw Bout to Avoid Fighting ‘Israeli’
Local Editor
Iran's government paid tribute Monday to one of the country's wrestlers who threw an international bout when he was ahead because winning would have meant fighting an opponent from ‘Israel'.
Iran does not recognize the ‘Israeli' entity and forbids its sportsmen from competing against ‘Israelis.'
The story of wrestler Alireza Karimi Mashiani has struck a chord on social media, with many in Iran backing his stance.
His bout was in the Polish city of Bydgoszcz on Saturday, in the 86-kilo category of the under-23 world championships.
According to footage posted online, Karimi Mashiani looked well ahead in his bout against Russia's Alikhan Zabrailov but then let himself be easily beaten.
While he may have forfeited a podium place in the tournament, Karimi Mashiani did receive the backing of his government and the Iranian wrestling federation.
"Your noble and heroic action in the world competition in Poland, abandoning the medal and the podium in support of the highest human values, is a source of pride and praise," an official statement on the website of the youth and sports ministry said, addressing the young wrestler.
The country's wrestling federation in its own statement called him a "hero" and extolled his "sacrifice", hinting that he had acted in a similar manner previously in 2013.
"It is the second time that you have risen up against the oppression of the Palestinian people by abandoning your rights in an act of absolute submission," the federation wrote.
Quoted by the ISNA news agency, the coach of the national free wrestling team, Mohammad Talaie, called Karimi Mashiani a "deserving young man" and appealed for this to be recognized by the authorities.
Source: News Agencies, Edited by website team
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