Latest news with #ShahanaHajiyeva
&w=3840&q=100)
First Post
18-05-2025
- Sport
- First Post
Paralympic gold medal-winning judoka Shahana Hajiyeva handed life ban for faking blindness, claims report
Shahana Hajiyeva, who had won gold while competing in the 48kg category in the 2020 Tokyo Paralympics, was found to be faking blindness after failing a medical classification test ahead of the World Para Judo Championships in Astana, Kazakhstan earlier this month. read more Azerbaijani judoka Shahana Hajiyeva had won gold while competing in the 48kg category of the 2020 Tokyo Paralympics. Reuters Nearly three years after making her country proud with a gold medal at the 2020 Tokyo Paralympics, Azerbaijani judoka Shahana Hajiyeva has been handed a ban for failing a medical classification test which suggested that she was faking blindness to compete in the categories where she found so much success. Hajiyeva had stood on top of the podium while competing in the 48kg event in the Tokyo 2020 Games and was also a gold medallist at the European Para Championships in 2023 while competing in the 48kg J2 category. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD And after missing the Paralympic Games in Paris last year, Hajiyeva was scheduled to compete at the World Para Judo Championships that took place in Astana Kazakhstan earlier this month. The 24-year-old, however, was found to have failed a medical classification test for partially sighted judokas that took place before the event, according to a report on Hajiyeva's national federation claims change of rules to blame for her failed test Hajiyeva thus was handed a lifetime ban from competing in her original categories. Azerbaijan's National Paralympic Committee, however, cited a change in regulations for her failed test. 'At the Paralympic Games in Tokyo, Parajudo competitions were held in categories B1, B2 and B3. However, in the run-up to the Paralympic Games in Paris and at the Games themselves, the number of categories was reduced, and competitions were organised in two new categories - J1 and J2," the National Paralympic Committee of Azerbaijan said in a statement. 'As a result of the changes, many eye diseases previously included in the J2 category were excluded from the list. 'Despite the fact that Gadzhieva represented our country in the J2 category until 2024, due to the changes it became clear that she will no longer be able to compete in parajudo,' it added. Hajiyeva, however, wasn't the only athlete who had failed the medical classification test – compatriot Elnara Nizamli was moved from the J1 to J2 category after she was found to have partial vision.
Daily Mirror
17-05-2025
- Sport
- Daily Mirror
Paralympic gold medalist banned for life – as she's not actually blind
Not too long ago the sporting world was celebrating her achievement, but Paralympian Shahana Hajiyeva has now been banned for life from competing in her previous categories A Paralympic gold medallist has been banned for life from their category after failing a disability classification test. Shahana Hajiyeva, who was a member of the Azerbaijani Paralympic team, won gold at the 2020 Tokyo Paralympics. However, recent reports have claimed that she has since been banned from competing in her previous categories, after failing a medical classification test. The 25-year-old athlete won gold in Japan in the 48kg judo event, while also winning gold in the 48kg J2 category at the 2023 European Para Championships. She did not participate in the recent 2024 Olympics in Paris, but was due to be in Astana, Kazakhstan for the World Parajudo Championships. According to she was deemed to have failed a medical classification test for the partially sighted judokas, before the competition in Kazakhstan. It determined that she did not have any vision restrictions that would prevent her from competing in Parajudo competitions for the visually impaired, resulting in her being given a lifelong ban from her original category. A similar incident also took place in the blind J1 category as similar tests showed that Elnara Nizamli had partial vision. She was moved down to the J2 category. In a statement released to the National Paralympic Committee of Azerbaijan claimed the new classification systems have caused the situation. They said: "The categories B1, B2 and B3, in which parajudo competitions were held at the Tokyo 2020 Summer Paralympic Games, were reduced in the period leading up to and at the Paris 2024 Games and combined into two categories - J1 and J2. "As a result of these changes, many ophthalmogical diagnoses were excluded from the list of acceptable diseases for the J2 category. For this reason, the International Blind Sports Association (IBSA) re-submitted our parajudokas for medical classification. "Despite the fact that the winner of Tokyo 2020, Shahana Gadzhieva [Hajiyeva], represented our country in parajudo in the J2 category until 2024, due to these changes, it became clear that she will no longer be able to compete in parajudo. "The National Paralympic Committee is taking all the necessary steps to adapt to the new requirements of medical classification." It's not the first time the change in classification system has been criticised. According to a report from The Guardian in 2020, as many as one in 10 visually impaired athletes in the UK were vulnerable to falling into the B4 category, which was described as "a level recognised by British Blind Sport but not by the Paralympic movement" and one that is "outside the criteria defined by the International Blind Sport Association". At the time, Karina Lang, who had represented Team GB in goalball but was reclassified as B4 thus making her ineligible to compete at the Paralympics, said: "It crushes you because you've spent your entire life trying to find somewhere that you fit in and then you do, you get quite good at it and you're told: no, you don't fit in here any more. 'Paralympics is about being inclusive. It's such an amazing movement and I was proud to be part of it. But it just feels like this classification system is outdated now and something needs to happen. It needs to be looked at, to say: 'Actually there is this big group of people we're missing out. How can we include those people?''
The Hindu
16-05-2025
- Sport
- The Hindu
Azerbaijani Paralympic Judo Gold Medallist Faked Blindness, Report Says
Azerbaijani judoka Shahana Hajiyeva, who won gold at the Tokyo Paralympics in the visually impaired category, has reportedly failed a medical qualification test for the World Para Judo Championships earlier this month. The test determined that Hajiyeva has full eyesight, meaning the 24-year-old will now serve a lifetime ban from the para sport. Azerbaijan's National Paralympic Committee (NPC) cited a change in regulations for her disqualification. 'At the Paralympic Games in Tokyo, Parajudo competitions were held in categories B1, B2 and B3. However, in the run-up to the Paralympic Games in Paris and at the Games themselves, the number of categories was reduced, and competitions were organised in two new categories - J1 and J2. As a result of the changes, many eye diseases previously included in the J2 category were excluded from the list,' said the NPC in a statement. 'Despite the fact that Gadzhieva represented our country in the J2 category until 2024, due to the changes it became clear that she will no longer be able to compete in parajudo,' the NPC added. Related Topics Tokyo Paralympics / Judo
