Iranian girls crowned world cadet taekwondo champions

Sports Desk

A glittering final day of the World Taekwondo Cadet Championships in Sofia, Bulgaria, saw Iran claim the girls’ title, while in the boys’ event, the country settled for a second-spot finish.

On Sunday, Parnian Saki suffered a defeat against Thailand’s Thosiri Singthong in straight rounds and grabbed the -37kg silver – a sixth medal for the country in the girls’ competitions, as all members of the team finished their campaigns on the podium.

Baran Jamal-Livani (-29kg), Parnian Nouri (-44kg), Sayna Alipour (-51kg), and Hana Zarrin-Kamar (-59kg) collected four gold medals to help Iran defend its 2019 crown, with Fatemeh Baqerzadeh leaving the Bulgarian capital with a consolation bronze in the -41kg weight class.

Iran’s head coach Ma’soumeh Mohammadian, meanwhile, was named the Best Women’s Team Coach.

Thailand, South Korea, and Uzbekistan finished behind Iran in the team table.

Brace for boys

In the boys’ contests, Mohammad-Mehdi Sa’adati and Radin Zeynali rounded off the cadet event for Iran with a couple of gold medals.

Sa’adati outmuscled South Korean Eunseok Lee in successive rounds for the ultimate prize of the -49kg class, and the last bout of the competition saw Zeynali beat Georgian Nika Gogoberidze in the -61kg final.

Mohammad-Erfan Zare’ had won a -65kg silver for Iran on Day 1, as Iran finished second to South Korea, which dominated the boys’ competitions with four golds and silvers apiece.

Mexico finished third in the boys’ standings, followed by Azerbaijan and Thailand.