FOURTH BEST

Five years have passed since the 4th Islamic Solidarity Games (ISG) held with great success in Azerbaijan, where the national team of the country took the first place in the team competition with 162 medals (75 gold, 50 silver and 37 bronze). And now, in 2022, the ISG was held in Konya, Turkey.

The 5th ISG tournament was due to be held back in 2021, but due to the global pandemic, the games were postponed. It is no coincidence that the next Islamic Games took place in Konya, one of Turkey's ancient cities. This city has long been known as a bridge between Asia and Europe and the cradle of many cultures. Thank to its ancient history, Konya is also known as one of the important centres of Islamic civilization. The mausoleum of one of the great Sufi poets, Jalaluddin Rumi, is a place of pilgrimage for the faithful.

Unlike in Baku, the programme of competition in Konya has undergone significant changes. New types of sport replaced the existing ones. In some disciplines Azerbaijan was not represented by the main team because the national federations of respective sports decided to save the teams for the world judo and wrestling championships slated for September.

The opening ceremony of the Islamic Solidarity Games was attended by Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev, First Vice-President Mehriban Aliyeva and other officials. Azerbaijani athletes were greeted with great enthusiasm during the parade.

One of 54 countries

In total, Azerbaijan was represented by 281 athletes in Konya, being the largest delegation after Turkey. Azerbaijani athletes took part in competitions in weightlifting, shooting, athletics, 3x3 basketball (women and men), judo, football, wrestling, gymnastics, aerobics, handball (women and men), karate, etc.

At the end of the fifteen-day competition, the Azerbaijani national team finished the Games as the best fourth with 99 medals - 29 gold, 36 silver and 34 bronze.

More than 4,000 athletes from 54 countries competed for 483 sets of medals in 24 sports.

The wrestlers from Azerbaijan ranked first in terms of the number of medals. The national wrestling team was thus awarded 23 medals, eight of which were gold. Our gymnasts were the second best team of the Games. In three of the disciplines, they won 17 medals, including 8 gold. The third best performance was demonstrated by the Azerbaijani kickboxers, which is not included in the list of Olympic games: 15 medals, including 3 gold medals.

Golden names

We are glad to present you the names of athletes who have demonstrated an outstanding performance at the Konya Games. Wrestlers Maria Stadnik, Leyla Gurbanova, Zhala Aliyeva, Eldaniz Azizli, Hasrat Jafarov, Rafig Huseynov, Haji Aliyev and Turan Bayramov; kickboxers Anar Mammadov, Farid Aghamoghlanov, Bahram Rajabzade and Balabey Aghayev; karate-ka Irina Zaretskaya; taekwondo-ka Farida Azizova; Anna Skidan in track-and-field athletics; Ramil Velizade in swimming and Nurlana Jafarova and Javid Hasanov in shooting. In basketball, our women's team was also awarded the highest honours.

The performance of our gymnasts deserves a special mention. Thus, Zohra Aghamirova was awarded the gold, silver and bronze medals for her performances with ribbon and clubs, hoop and ball, respectively. Our rhythmic gymnastics team consisting of Gullu Aghalarzade, Laman Alimuradova, Kamilla Aliyeva, Zeynab Hummatova, Yelizaveta Luzan and Daria Sorokina won a gold medal in group exercises with 3 bands and 2 balls and a silver medal with 5 hoops. Ilona Zeynalova made it to the finals in the individual programme and became the 4th and 6th best athlete for her performances with clubs and ribbon, respectively. Alina Gozalova took the 4th place with the ball, and the 7th place for her performance with the hoop. In total the members of Azerbaijan's national rhythmic gymnastics team finished the Islamic Solidarity Games with 8 medals (5 gold, 2 silver, 1 bronze).

The aerobic gymnastics athletes also demonstrated successful performances. Vladimir Dolmatov won a gold medal and Madina Mustafayeva—a silver medal in the individual programme. Vladimir and Madina became champions in the mixed doubles programme. In addition, Madina, Vladimir and Khoshgadam Guliyeva became the second best in the trio. Members of Azerbaijan’s gymnastics team finished the ISG with 5 medals (2 golds and 3 silvers). In total, the number of medals of Azerbaijani gymnasts in the 5th Islamic Solidarity Games reached 17 (8-7-2).

Appreciation from president

President of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev and his spouse Mehriban Aliyeva met the ISG medallists in Baku. Ilham Aliyev expressed his satisfaction with the performance of the national team: "You returned to Azerbaijan with great victory. You have once more glorified the sport traditions of our country. I sincerely congratulate you on this occasion and would like to express my gratitude for your performance. I am sure the Azerbaijani people is proud of you because you have once more proved to the world that Azerbaijan is a sports country, Azerbaijani sportsmen are known for their potential. Fourth place in the 5th Islamic Solidarity Games is a great achievement. This shows that our success in the past was not accidental.

President Ilham Aliyev then signed an order to allocate ₼10m to the Ministry of Youth and Sports of Azerbaijan to reward athletes, their coaches and other professionals involved in the preparations for the ISG.