Iranian judo International Javad Mahjoub has climbed the world ranking of +100kg category for seven places after winning the silver medal at the Antalya Grand Prix in Turkey at the weekend.
Mahjoub now is on the 17th place of the world ranking for his weight category; the medal raised the medal count for the Iranian to four silver and gold medals in 2018, according to Ijf.org website.
Silver at the Tunis Grand Prix in January, gold from the Prague European Open in March and Tbilisi Grand Prix silver as well as Antalya Grand Prix silver are Javad Mahjoub’s medals in the current year so far.
Junior world champion Inal Tasoev from Russia did not read the script as he erased the headlines journalists had already penned and won his first IJF World Judo Tour crown in golden score to give a sublime finish to the competition when he threw with an o-goshi for ippon.
Both men deserve plaudits for their attacking efforts as they almost went throw-for-throw which made for an exhilarating gold medal contest
On April 2, Iranian heavy-weight took part in the +100kg final of Tbilisi Grand Prix in Georgia where viewers were on the edge of their seats for an outstanding clash between World Judo Masters winner Guram Tushishvili from Georgia and former Grand Slam winner Mahjoub. The Iranian was beaten by his rival to win silver.
While Mahjoub may look slightly under-sized for the category he moved up to in 2017, what he lacks in size he makes up for in heart and again left everything on the tatami with a lung-busting performance.
1 Week 2 Medals
After his second Grand Prix silver medal in the space of a week, Mahjoub let all of his emotions out after a tumultuous week.
“It is difficult to put into words what I am feeling at the moment,” said Mahjoub who earned two Grand Prix silver medals either side of the birth of his daughter. “My body and spirit is here in Antalya but my heart is home with my baby girl who means the world to me. I knew that this may happen while I was away and I was prepared for it as my career is what lets me provide things for my family.”
“Judo is my love and my family is my life. I am thankful for what I have received this week. I feel ok about the silver medal. It’s two in a week, I wish it could have been gold both times but I am making small steps in the heavyweight category,” the judo champ continued.
Mahjoub feels that there is still a lot more to come from him and underlined his immediate plans as the IJF World Judo Tour takes a moments breath before the Tokyo 2020 Olympic qualification phase starts in May.
“I feel like I am getting stronger in this division but I know I can win and I am prepared to work harder to do it,” said the 26-year-old. “I feel like I need to do more power training at home in Iran and I will do everything I can to become a better judoka.”
Ten-time Grand Prix medalist Mahjoub, who expects to return to action at the Hohhot Grand Prix in May, shared his post-event plans which revolve around his family rather than the tatami.
