iran in beijing 2008

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iran in beijing 2008

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Veteran Iranian taekwondo fighter Hadi Saei has claimed Beijing Olympics men’s welterweight gold medal by beating Italy’s Mauro Sarmiento.

In the Friday men’s -80kg final, the Iranian world and Olympic champion beat the European bronze medalist to win his second Olympic taekwondo gold medal and Iran’s first gold medal in the Beijing Olympic Games.

Saei, who stepped up to welterweight after winning the -68kg Olympic gold in Athens, lost the first round 4-2 after the 6-foot-5-inches Sarmiento stunned the Iranian with a two-point axe kick to the head.

Saei battled back in the second round and managed to tie the score at 4-4 with roundhouse kicks to his opponents left side.

The 32-year-old Saei attacked first in the third round to score two points and secure a 6-4 victory in a stunning-comeback fashion.

Sarmiento, who had earlier defeated American champion Steven Lopez in the quarterfinals, raised Saei’s hand to congratulate the veteran.

The four-time world champion Lopez and China’s Zhu Guo, who was earlier beaten by Saei, each captured a bronze medal

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Tehran - Iran's two-time heavyweight weightlifting Olympic champion, Hossein Rezazadeh, has withdrawn from active sports, ISNA news agency reported Wednesday.

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Tehran  - Iran will send 54 athletes to next month's Olympic Games in Beijing, including three women who will appear with Islamic outfits, the ISNA news agency reported Friday.

The three women Homa Hosseini, Najmeh Abtin and Sara Khosh-Jamal- Fekri will compete in the fields of rowing, archery and taekwondo, respectively, the report said.

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Tehran  - Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said Friday that he would not attend the Beijing Olympics.

"I will not attend the Olympics but might attend the para- Olympics," Ahmadinejad told channel two of state television.

China last February had presented an official invitation for Ahmadinejad to attend the Olympic Games.

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