ABU DHABI // Irisney de Lima made his first visit to Abu Dhabi a memorable one with the Irishman winning his country’s first gold medal on the opening day of the ninth Abu Dhabi World Professional Jiu-Jitsu Championship.
De Lima, 33, came through four fights before winning the final against Colombian Willi Fernandez Herrera in the Masters-1 blue belt 69-kilogramme weight class at the Ipic Arena on Tuesday.
“I tried to win a spot for the World Pro in the blue belt from a qualifying event but I could finish only second. Then I decided to travel on my own for the Masters and I got rewarded,” De Lima said.
“It was a great experience for me. Every fight I had to go through was real hard but I enjoyed every moment I was on the mat. I loved the atmosphere, the hospitality and already looking forward for next year.”
Brazilian fighters won three of the 14 gold medals on offer in the adults division.
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For Brazil, Diego Batista took the blue belt 62kg final from Sami bin Hariz of Yemen, Luis Medeiros bagged the blue belt 69kg when he outclassed Martin Izaguirre of Spain, and Roosevelt Pereira de Sousa got the better of Mohammed Mukhtar of Egypt in the blue belt 110kg.
Gilgamesh Blanch retained his hold on the blue belt 56kg after edging out Emirati teenager Khalifa Nassrati by an advantage point. The Australian won an early point and did well to hold on to the remaining five minutes of the fight.
“I’m delighted with the result but Khalifa was a terrific competitor,” Blanch said. “You have to give all credit to him for fighting at this level battling all his odds. I met him in the final last year and he has always given me a tough fight.”
Nassrati, who is handicapped with stumped fingers in his left hand, left his disappointment behind and looked forward to his next competition.
“It was the best man on the night,” said the 18-year-old Emirati. “He’s a good fighter, too, and an awesome guy. I respect him a lot and it was a pleasure to meet him in the final for a second straight year.”
Rashid Kaitmazov of Russia won the remaining gold in the blue belt 77kg from Martin Mejia of Mexico.
Emirati fighters claimed three golds in the Masters. Salem Al Hosani clinched the blue belt 62kg final from Riad Medjahad of Algeria and Mohammed Al Shamsi won the blue belt 110kg final from Isa Al Hasan of Bahrain, both in the Masters-1.
Jassim Saeed Mubarak won a third gold for the hosts by getting the better of Berik Kurakbayev of Kazakhstan in the Masters-2 blue belt 69kg.
In some of the finals carried forward from the previous day’s Abu Dhabi World Youth Championship, Omar Al Fadhli was an impressive winner over his UAE junior national teammate Hamad Nawad, avenging his defeat to Nawad in last month’s Jiu-Jitsu International Federation’s World Championship for Juniors and Aspirants in Athens.
“It was an amazing win for me,” said Al Fadhli, who won the final by choking his opponent.
“All my focus was on this fight and to win my first gold in the World Youth. It was real special for me and I’ll remember this achievement for my whole life. I was also glad Hamad reached the final as we were drawn in two different brackets among the foreign competitors.”
Mahra Al Hanaei emulated her younger sister Hanna’s achievements to claim a second gold medal for the family.
Mahra took just 56 seconds to win by submission over fellow Emirati Sharifa Mubarak in the girls juvenile 52kg blue belt final.
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