Iranian women grab gold as Karate team finishes runner-up

TEHRAN, (MNA) – Iran's women's kumite team won gold while the national karate delegation secured an overall runner-up finish at the 22nd Asian Senior Karate Championships in Bali, Indonesia.

The June 19-21 tournament brought together competitors from 33 countries across the continent.

Iran ended the championships with three gold medals, one silver and five bronze medals to finish second in the overall standings behind Japan. Kazakhstan placed third.

The Iranian women produced one of the highlights of the competition.

They defeated Chinese Taipei, Uzbekistan and Vietnam to reach the team kumite final before overcoming Japan 2-0 to claim the Asian title.

Hananeh Salehi opened the way to victory by winning on senshu after a 2-2 draw. Fatemeh Zahra Saeidabadi then sealed the gold with a commanding 10-2 victory over her Japanese opponent.

Iran's other gold medals came through brothers Morteza and Mahmoud Nemati on the final day of competition, according to Press TV.

Morteza Nemati captured the men's kumite -75kg title after defeating his Kazakh rival in the final. Minutes later, Mahmoud Nemati added another gold in the +84kg division with a convincing win over Saudi Arabia's representative.