Trampoline Gymnastics Asian Championship:
Iranian duo wins historic women’s silver
Yalda Hassan-Shokati and Shaqayeq Cheraghi etched their names into Iranian sports history by winning the country’s first women’s medal at the Trampoline Gymnastics Asian Championship in Hong Kong.
The Iranian duo advanced to Sunday’s senior synchronized final and finished with a precious silver medal.
Hassan-Shokati also reached the final of the women’s individual event but settled for fourth place, while her Iranian teammate Fatemeh Tavasolli finished fifth.
There was further team success for Iran in Hong Kong as Arya Akhavan and Emad Balanejad teamed up to win bronze in the men’s junior event.
Balanejad and Akhavan also finished fourth and sixth, respectively, in the boys’ 15-16 age category, with Padra Pajarang in fifth place in the 13-14 category.
Arya Mamabdollah and Sajjad Kargar, meanwhile, finished fourth in the men’s senior pair final.
“China, Japan, North Korea, Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Hong Kong, the Philippines, India, and Tajikistan all arrived with full-strength squads, with every team aiming to achieve the best possible result as the event served as a qualification pathway for September’s Asian Games,” said Vajiheh Naqavi, the caretaker of the Iranian Gymnastics Federation, highlighting the intense level of competition in Hong Kong.
On the challenges Iran faced in sending its first women’s team to an international tournament since the 1979 Islamic Revolution, Naqavi said: “Our first challenge was the issue of women’s attire. We had to design a uniform that would not only receive approval from domestic authorities but also be accepted by the Asian Gymnastics Union and the International Gymnastics Federation.”
Naqavi added that several training camps had been organized for the women’s team and praised the coaching staff and trampoline discipline officials for their efforts during nearly 10 preparation camps – both in-person and online – during a period of wartime constraints.
“Our primary objective for the women’s team was securing Asian Games qualification, while also targeting a possible medal in the synchronized event,” Naqavi said. “Iranian girls delivered an impressive performance, reaching the final and winning a silver medal, which marks a significant achievement for Iranian gymnastics.”