Iranian Wrestler Throws Match To Avoid Facing Israeli In Next Round

[oberliner]

Iranian wrestler Ali Reza Karimi had his eye on the prize at the U-23 World Championship in Poland: He was heading to certain victory against his Russian opponent.

All was good until his coach shouted from the sidelines "Ali Reza, lose."

As The New York Times describes the scene: "The Iranian wrestler shakes his head and continues, until his coach once again shouts at him. At that point, he throws in the towel, metaphorically speaking ..." According to the Times, Karimi was forced into the same dilemma in 2013.

In a video of the match, to the untrained eye it seems at first like a simple stumble for Ali Reza, as his opponent, Alikhan Zhabrailov, manages to pin him by the shoulders. But it quickly becomes obvious that the Iranian isn't even trying as the wrestlers do a series of half-hearted barrel rolls around the circumference of the ring.

https://www.npr.org/sections/thetwo-way/2017/11/29/567136693/iranian-wrestler-throws-match-to-avoid-facing-israeli-in-next-round

[underpants]

1. Didn't plan on this possibly happening?

[oberliner]

2. His comments were interesting

“I could have easily become the world championship, but this prevented it. I made it easy for my Russian opponent, and this made him a finalist,” Karimi-Mashiani told ISNA. “I worked for months to get the gold medal and I could easily have gotten the gold medal of the world. I admit that Israel is cruel and oppressive, but if the officials of our sport can so easily ignore my work, is not it cruel? The wrestlers do not have a good financial situation, and only the pleasure for all of us is to win a global medal.”

https://forward.com/fast-forward/388431/iranian-wrestler-throws-match-to-avoid-facing-israeli/

[Angry Dragon]

3. beat the Israeli, bcome hero to country

[dhill926]

4. exactly.....wtf....

[bathroommonkey76]

5. Or lose to the Israeli and get beheaded in a square filled with

angry Ayatollah worshiping fanatics.

He was better off throwing the match. lol