Iranian female karate fighter earns second spot at WKF Karate 1 rankings
Published: June 20, 2016
Iranian karate fighter Hamideh Abbasali has been placed second in the latest edition of the World Karate Federation (WKF) Karate 1 rankings.
According to the rankings released by the largest international governing body of karate with over 130 member states, the 26-year-old Iranian sportswoman racked up 980 points to stand behind a representative from Switzerland.
Zabihollah Poursheib, Iran’s male karate fighter, claimed the third place with 840 points. On January 24, Abbasali clinched a bronze medal in the 20th edition of the Open de Paris – Karate Premier League in France.
She received a bye in the first round of women’s kumite over 68-kilogram contests at the Pierre de Coubertin Stadium in Paris. The Iranian athlete emerged victorious with a result of 2-0 in her first contest against the host nation’s Sofia Kloucha.
Abbasali then took down her Ecuadorian opponent Valeria Echever 4-0 in her march to the final competition, before losing to French athlete Anne Laure Florentin and settling for the third-place fight.
The Iranian sportswoman defeated Italian and Danish rivals in the next bouts, and won the bronze medal for Iran.
The 20th edition of the Open de Paris – Karate Premier League opened in the French capital on January 22, and finished on January 24.