Following the Asian Karate Championship in Japan, the below-60-kilogram karatekas went on tatami and the Iranian representative defeated all his rivals and made his way to the final match.
In the first round, Amir Mehdizadeh defeated his Chinese opponent 11-3 and in his second match could beat his North Korean competitor 8-nil.
Iranian gold and bronze holder won the Saudi karateka in the third round and reached the semi-final at which he could defeat the representative of the host country 1-nil.
Previously, Sahar Karaji had also beaten her competitor from Hong Kong to reach the games' final match. In her first match versus the Sri Lankan champ, Karaji had defeated her 8-nil and in her tougher 2nd match she had won her Kazakh competitor 2-1.
The Iranian national karate team is participating in all fields of the Yokohama Asian Karate Championships with 14 male and 11 female athletes in Individual and Team Kata and Individual and Team Kumite.
Iranian male and female teams are headed by Gholamreza Dabaghian and Fariba Bodaghi, respectively.
Head of Iranian Karate Federation Alireza Samandar, a candidate for Asian Karatedo Federation (AKF) board of directors, is also accompanying the team in Japan.
Members of the presiding board of the AKF were elected on Thursday, September 3, during the Asian Karate Championship in Yokohama, Japan.
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