Judoka Mollaei, who left Iran over demand he forfeit Israel matches, wins silver

By ToI Staff and AP 27 July 2021, 1:58 pm

Edit

Gold medalist Japan's Takanori Nagase (white) and silver medalist Mongolia's Saeid Mollaei react after the judo men's -81kg gold medal bout during the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games at the Nippon Budokan in Tokyo on July 27, 2021. (Jack GUEZ / AFP)

Saeid Mollaei — who is representing Mongolia after leaving the Iranian team during the World Championship in 2019 — wins a silver medal in the final of the men’s judo 81-kilogram division.

Mollaei won his first Olympic medal two years after leaving his native Iran upon revealing that his national team coaches had ordered him to lose in the semifinals of the 2019 world championships in Tokyo to avoid facing Israel’s Sagi Muki in the final. Mollaei subsequently moved to Germany and then acquired Mongolian citizenship. Mongolia has three judo medals in Tokyo.

Mollaei has since visited Israel and befriended Muki.

Israel’s Muki, who had been considered a top contender for a medal at the Tokyo Games, earlier today lost to Shamil Borchashvili and was knocked out in the round of 16 after a fight lasting more than eight minutes.

Sagi Muki of Israel, top, competes against Matthias Casse of Belgium during a men’s -81 kilogram final of the World Judo Championships in Tokyo, Wednesday, Aug. 28, 2019. (AP Photo/Koji Sasahara)

Mollaei lost to Takanori Nagase, who won Japan’s fifth gold medal in judo at the Tokyo Olympics. Belgium’s Matthias Casse and Austria’s Shamil Borchasvili claimed bronze medals. Austria hadn’t won a judo medal since 2008.