World Wushu Championships:
Iran stands runner-up with 10 medals
Iran enjoyed a medal-laden run to the World Wushu Championships in in Brasilia, Brazil.
Having missed the 2023 edition in Fort Worth, Texas, the Iranian squad collected 10 medals – including a remarkable six golds – to finish as the runner-up to China, which bagged 16 medals, in the team standings.
Erfan Moharrami rounded off an impressive campaign for the country on Sunday with a sanda gold, thanks to a 2-0 victory over Alizhan Ablagatov of Kazakhstan in the final showpiece of the men’s 70kg class.
There was further sanda medals for Iran on the final day of the competitions, as Shoja Panahi and Mohsen Mohammadseifi settled for a couple of silvers in their respective classes.
Representing the country in the men’s 65kg category, Panahi fell to a 2-0 defeat against Wang Chengjin of China in the final, while Mohammadseifi missed out on a sixth gold in in the world event after a 2-0 setback against Chinese Jin Gensheng in the 75kg showdown.
Sunday’s medals came after Mahdi Moradi and Soheil Mousavi had won a gold and bronze, respectively, in the men’s sanda event.
Moradi made light work of Cruz Pérez, knocking out the Mexican in the first round, to walk away with the ultimate prize the 90kg division, while Mousavi suffered a last-four setback against Li Weijin of Hong Kong to finish with a consolation bronze in the 80kg category.
Iran’s second men’s bronze came in taolu contests, where Shahin Banitalebi – a gold medalist at The World Games in August – scored 9.733 points to finish third in the men’s nandao event.
Golden girls
Iranian wushu owed the major part of the success in Brasilia to its women’s roster, which collected four gold medals in across the sanda and taolu competitions.
Zahra Kiani etched her name into history books of the Iranian sport on Saturday by grabbing a maiden world taolu gold for country – courtesy of a 9.763-point performance in the qiangshu form final.
This was Kiani’s second history-making campaign in a year after she had won Iran’s first individual talou gold at the Asian Championships last September.
Soheila and Shahrbanou Mansourian as well as Sediqeh Daryaei added three sanda golds to Iran’s medal haul.
Daryaei came out victorious (2-0) against Turkey’s Sudenaz Gulay in the 65kg final, while Soheila Mansourian defeated China’s Ruiping Chen in straight rounds to win the 70kg gold.
Shahrbanou Mansourian bagged a sixth world gold medal in her illustrious career, thanks to a 2-0 victory over Indian Shivani Prajapati in the 75kg showdown.