The World Para Taekwondo Federation has announced its latest athlete world rankings, AzerNEWS reports.
Several Azerbaijani para taekwondo athletes have improved their positions in the new rankings.
Paralympic champion Imamaddin Khalilov has retained the top spot in the men’s 70 kg weight category with 495.75 points.
Paralympic bronze medalist Sabir Zeynalov (58 kg) climbed to second place after increasing his ranking score to 381.15 points, thanks to the two gold medals he won at tournaments held in June.
Amin Aliyev (63 kg) moved up one position to 21st place with 52.91 points.
Competing in the same weight category, Amin Shikhaliyev is ranked 23rd with 39.71 points.
In the women’s rankings, Samaya Hasanova (47 kg) climbed two places to 20th with 42.32 points.
Meanwhile, Orkhan Jafarov (80 kg) maintained his 24th-place position with 45.83 points.
Azerbaijan made its Paralympic Games debut at the 1996 Summer Paralympics in Atlanta, competing in track and field and powerlifting. In the same year, the National Paralympic Committee was established.
Since 1996, national paralympians have taken part in many international competitions and six Paralympic Games. They enriched the country’s medal haul with multiple awards.
The Azerbaijani Paralympic team has made significant progress since the Tokyo 2020 Games, where they won 14 medals, including 4 gold, 4 silver, and 6 bronze.
Notable athletes, including Olympic gold medalists Lamiya Valiyeva and Said Najafzade, proudly represented their countries by waving their national flags during the official country parade at the closing ceremony of the Summer Paralympic Games.
At the Paris 2024 Summer Paralympic Games, the Azerbaijani team won a total of 11 medals (4 gold, 2 silver, and 5 bronze), competing across seven different sports