Paris Paralympics:
Teenage Rahimi wins taekwondo silver, gets Iran off the mark on Day 1
Unlike the Paris Olympics, Iranian fans did not have to wait too long for a first medal at the Paralympic Games in the French capital.
Representing the country in the taekwondo competitions, teenage sensation Zahra Rahimi enjoyed an emphatic run to the women’s -52kg K44 final on the first day of action in Paris, only to fall short against Mongolian Surenjav Ulambayar.
Rahimi, 15, began her campaign in Grand Palais with a 13-2 victory over China’s Shao Qian and then defeated Brazilian Maria Machado Stumpf 6-4 to reach the last four.
A 6-0 triumph over Georgian Ana Japaridze sent the Iranian to the final showdown, where she was beaten 5-2 and settled for the silver.
“I’m so thrilled to have won a first medal for the country in Paris, though I would have been much happier if it was a gold,” Rahimi said after the final.
“I had to face some tough opponents today. The Mongolian was surely more experienced and made the most of it to win the bout. I had a knee injury before the final and was not in my best form,” added the Iranian girl.
“I’m young and will definitely set sights on the gold medal in the next Paralympics,” said Rahimi, who will still be a teenager for the next edition of the Games in Los Angeles in four-years’ time.
Maryam Abdollahpour was the other Iranian girl in action in the taekwondo contests but was unlucky to miss out on the -47kg podium after a defeat in the third-place matchup.
Abdollahpour was beaten by defending champion Leonor Espinoza 19-9 in the quarterfinals but when Peruvian reached the final she was given a second chance in the repechage, where she was handed a walkover before falling to Thailand’s Khwansuda Phuangkitcha in the bronze-medal battle.
“Our girls had some grueling bouts today. Abdollahpour had to face an Olympic champion in the first round, while Rahimi fought the world number two and four. She was brilliant and I’m delighted she won a precious medal,” head coach Atefeh Keshavarz said of the two Iranians’ campaign in Paris.