On the second day of World Taekwondo Grand Prix Series 2, being held in the Turkish city of Samsun, Iranian fighters snatched two medals at Yasar Dogu Sport Salon.
Mehdi Khodabakhshi bagged home the gold medal of the 80kg category of men’s event after his opponent from the Ivory Coast walked out the court.
The Iranian ruler of the 80kg division was given the bye in the first round and in his second round defeated the Spanish Raul Martinez Garcia 13-7.
Later he defeated his Turkish opponent 10-0 to get to quarter-final against the other Iranian fighter of the category Masoud Hajji. Hajji walked out in favor of his compatriot and Khodabakhshi got to the final.
Masoud Hajji grabbed the bronze medal after letting his fellow-Iranian pass to final.
Counting on the silver medal snached by Sajjad Mardani on the first day of the event, the Iranian team has garnered 3 medals so far.
The three-day event kicked off on September 18 and will be concluded on September 20, after 234 athletes from 50 countries line up against their opponents in encounters officiated by 50 international referees.
Cash prize will be awarded to the top four athletes in each of the four male and female Olympic weight categories: $5,000 for the gold medalist, $3,000 for the silver medal winner, and $1,000 each for the two bronze-medal winners.
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