A Games first for Jordan, Iran
Print Edition
AHMAD Abughaush, a 20-year-old student from Amman, won Jordan’s first ever Olympic medal when he beat Russian Alexey Denisenko to win taekwondo gold in the men’s 68-kilogram category on Thursday.
Abughaush, who was seeded 10th and considered an outsider for a medal in Rio, used his quick footwork and effective kicks to score a 10-6 upset win over the 2012 London Games bronze medalist.
“It’s an indescribable feeling to win the first medal in the history of Jordan in all the sports,” said Abughaush, who lost in the second round of the world championships last year. “It’s also a great feeling to listen to the national anthem of Jordan being played in Rio in front of the whole world.”
Jordan first competed at the Olympics in 1980 in Moscow. The Middle Eastern country of more than 7 million people has never sent more than 10 athletes to compete at a Games, with only eight in Brazil.
Abughaush produced a series of upsets to make the final, taking out twice world champion Lee Dae-hoon in the quarterfinals and then gold medal holder Joel Gonzalez in the last four.
Meanwhile, Kimia Alizadeh Zenoorin kicked and punched down opponents and barriers as she became the first Iranian woman to win an Olympic medal by taking taekwondo bronze in the 57kg category.
The 18-year-old former junior world champion fell to the floor and kissed the mat after beating Nikita Glasnovic of Sweden 5-1 in a one-sided contest at the Carioca Arena 3 to secure a breakthrough bronze.
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