Iranian judoka Hakimi bags silver in Cadet African Cup
Iranian judoka Sobhan Hakimi claimed a silver medal at the Cadet African Cup in Tunis, delivering a strong performance in the men’s -81kg division.
Hakimi received a first-round bye before defeating home favorite Mohamed Amin Abidi to book his place in the final. He ultimately fell short against world No. 3 Aly Elramly of Egypt, settling for second place on the podium.
The result followed a productive outing for Iran at the Junior African Cup in the Tunisian capital on Friday, where the team secured one gold and one silver medal.
Mohammadpouria Banaeian clinched the men’s +100kg title with a victory over Egypt’s Abdalla Abdalla in the final. Banaeian opened his campaign with a win against Serbia’s Petar Novakovic and then overcame Tunisia’s Adem Kouki in the semifinals to advance to the gold-medal bout.
Compatriot Ali Nikseresht finished runner-up in the men’s -100kg category after losing to Belarus’ Yauheni Morau in the final.
After receiving a bye in the opening round, Nikseresht defeated Tunisia’s Adem Landolsi to top Pool A and move into the semifinals, where he beat American Caedmon Haddad before eventually taking silver.