DUSHANBE, August 9, 2010, Asia-Plus — Rasoul Boqiyev, one of the top judokas in Tajikistan in the -73 kg category, has won silver medal at the Europe Judo Cup 2010 in Hamburg, finishing second in the men’s judo 73 kilogram competition, according to the Committee for Youth, Sports and Tourism Affairs.
In the final that was held on August 8, Rasoul competed for gold medal with Germany’s Christopher Volk and unfortunately lost the fighting, the source said.
Tajikistan was represented by two athletes in this last important tournament prior to the world championships in Tokyo this year. “Abubakr Rahmonov (-100kg+ category) lost to the German judoka Robert Zimmermann already in the first round of the competition,” the source said, adding that in the team event, Tajikistan took the 14th place among 24 nations participating at the Europe Judo Cup 2010 in Hamburg.
We will recall that Rasoul Boqiyev won the first medal (bronze) for Tajikistan in the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing. Rasoul Boqiyev claimed his Olympic berth by finishing third at the 2007 World Judo Championships in Rio de Janeiro. This year, Rasoul Boqiyev won gold medal at the Cairo World Cup, finishing first in his weight category. This tournament took place in Cairo, Egypt on May 15-16, 2010.
