OMM Redaksiyası
Azerbaijan’s representatives will compete for two medals in the +100kg category on the final day of individual events at the world judo championships in Baku. Ushangi Kokauri will fight for gold, while Kenan Nasibov and Jamal Hamzatkhanov will contest bronze.
Kokauri’s opponent in the final is Russian judoka Inal Tasoyev. They have met seven times, with Tasoyev winning every bout. The final will give the Azerbaijani judoka an eighth opportunity to end the long-running losing streak.
Kokauri and Tasoyev’s rivalry
Their most recent meeting was the final of the Grand Slam tournament in Astana on May 10 this year. Tasoyev scored a yuko and held on to a narrow lead to claim gold. He also won the world title in 2023 and 2025 and currently leads the world rankings.
One of their first notable encounters came in the mixed team event at the world championships in Baku in September 2018. Tasoyev defeated Kokauri, and the Russian team beat Azerbaijan 4-1 to win bronze. Eight years later, the two will meet again in Baku, this time for the individual world championship title.
Azerbaijani judokas to compete for bronze
Nasibov leads Hamzatkhanov 2-1 in their three previous official tournament meetings. They faced each other in the final of the Azerbaijan championships in 2022 and in the decisive bout of the national championships in December 2025. Nasibov also won their bout at the Grand Prix in Zagreb in November 2025.
The athletes train together every day and know each other’s grappling styles well. Nasibov and Hamzatkhanov also won medals at the Grand Slam tournament in Tashkent in March 2026: Nasibov took gold and Hamzatkhanov bronze.
Ahead of the decisive bouts in Baku, Azerbaijan’s team has five medals: Ahmad Yusifov won gold, Zalim Tchkaev silver, and Rashid Mammadaliyev, Omar Rajabli and Murad Fatiyev bronze.
