Iran men’s chess team makes history in Asian Games, wins first-ever gold medal

Iran men’s national chess team has featured great mental skills at the ongoing 19th edition of the Asian Games in China, and stood on top of the podium in the continental multi-sport event.

The historic gold medal was Iran’s first ever in the Games.

The Iranian squad, comprised of Parham Maghsoudloo, Bardiya Daneshvar, Seyyed Mohammad Amin Tabatabaei, Amirreza Pouraghabala and Pouya Idani, topped the men's team points table at the Hangzhou Qi-Yuan (Zhili) Chess Hall in the eastern Chinese city of Hangzhou with 7 wins, 2 draws and no loss as Round nine concluded.

Indian chess players earned the second spot with 6 wins, 3 draws and without loss.

Uzbekistan settled for the bronze medal with 6 wins, 2 draws and a single loss.

Iranian weightlifter finishes runner-up in Asian Games

Moreover, Iranian weightlifter Ali Davoudi brilliantly finished his campaign at the Asian Games, ranking second in the continental sporting event.

On Saturday, Davoudi participated in the over 109-kilogram weight category contests at the Xiaoshan Sports Center Gymnasium.

He was successful on his first snatch attempt at 192 kilograms, but failed to lift 185 kilograms in the second and third attempts.

Armenian-born Bahraini weightlifter Gor Minasyan topped the clean and jerk podium with 245 kilograms. Davoudi finished second and won the silver with 234 kilograms.

Uzbek contestant Rustam Djangabaev scooped up the bronze with a lift of 233 kilograms.

Minasyan finished the competition tied on an aggregate of 457 kilograms, and claimed the gold medal.

Iran’s Davoudi and Uzbekistan’s Djangabaev claimed the second and third overall slots with 426 and 423 kilograms respectively.

Additionally, Iran men’s national kabaddi team claimed the vice champion title at the Asian Games.

The Iranian sportsmen lost 29-33 to the Indian side in the final showdown at the Xiaoshan Guali Sports Center.

Kabaddi is the national game of Bangladesh and also the state game of the Indian states of Tamil Nadu, Maharashtra, Bihar, Andhra Pradesh, Telangana and Punjab.

India has the most successful Kabaddi team on the world stage, having won every World Cup and most Asian Games title so far, in both men’s and women’s categories.

Female Iranian karate fighter earns bronze

Female Iranian karate practitioner Fatemeh Sa’adati also won a bronze medal in the 2022 Asian Games on Saturday.

Sa’adati defeated Wong Sok I from Macau 6-0 in Round of 16 of the women's Kumite minus 55-kilogram category.

She, however, could not emerge victorious over Chinese Taipei’s Ku Tsui-Ping in the quarterfinal, and was defeated by 0 points to 4.

Later on, Sa’adati beat Vietnam’s Thi My Tam Hoang 7-0 in the repechage round.

The Iranian sportswoman defeated Indonesia’s Cok Istri Agung Sanistyarani 3-0 in the bronze medal match.

A record high of nearly 12,500 athletes from 45 countries and territories compete across 40 sports in the Asian Games.

Iran has sent 289 male and female athletes to the Games in 34 sports events.

China is on the top of the medal count table with 382 medals (200 golds, 111 silvers and 71 bronzes).

Japan has claimed the second spot with 186 medals (51 golds, 66 silvers, 69 bronzes), while South Korea is on the third with a total of 190 medals (42 golds, 59 silvers and 89 bronzes).

India, Uzbekistan and Chinese Taipei have earned the 4th to 6th places respectively.

The Islamic Republic of Iran has so far collected a total of 53 medals – thirteen golds, 21 silvers and nineteen bronzes – at the Hangzhou Asian Games, and currently stands in the 7th place of the tournament.

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