Arash Miresmaili
Encyclopedia
Arash Miresmaeili ' onMouseout='HidePop("93913")' href="/topics/Khorramabad">Khorramabad
) is an Iran
ian judo
ka. He is a double world featherweight champion.
, the first one in 2001 in Munich
, Germany
, and the second in 2003 in Osaka
, Japan
. He also won bronze medal
in the 2005 World Judo Championships
in Cairo
, Egypt
and 2007 World Judo Championships
in Rio de Janeiro
, Brazil
.
in the 2004 Summer Olympics
, where he was the flag bearer for Iran at the opening ceremonies. Slated to fight Israel
i competitor Ehud Vaks
in the first round, he was disqualified from competing because he was above the allowable weight limit for his class. It was claimed that Miresmaili deliberately set out to be disqualified rather than compete against an Israeli, which was interpreted from his own comments: "Although I have trained for months and was in good shape I refused to fight my Israeli opponent to sympathise with the suffering of the people of Palestine
and I do not feel upset at all."
Comments from Iranian officials and politicians have supported this view. The Iranian state news agency IRNA quoted then Iranian President Mohammad Khatami
as saying that Miresmaeili's actions would be "recorded in the history of Iranian glories" and that the nation considered him to be "the champion of the 2004 Olympic Games." Iranian Olympic team chairman Nassrollah Sajadi told Shargh
newspaper that the government should give the athlete $115,000 for his action, the amount the Iranian government awards gold medal
winning athletes. Then mayor of Tehran
and current president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said that though Miresmaeili "did not get a gold medal, he earned eternal honor by his refusal". Gholam-Ali Haddad-Adel, the speaker of Iran's parliament, congratulated Miresmaeili, calling his refusal to compete a "brave decision" and that "Your disqualification because of supporting Palestine would promote your position in the heart of Muslims."
On August 18, 2004, the International Judo Federation
(IJF), which set up a commission to investigate whether Miresmaeili deliberately missed weight so he would not have to face Vaks, concluded he had no intention to avoid competing against an Israeli. After a hearing that included the president of Iran's judo federation, the commission concluded that Miresmaeili said he had no pre-planned intentions for not competing and that "he made no statement of any sort to any press," according to an IJF statement. The only issue that remained was that Miresmaeili was overweight on the weigh-in day, the IJF said, and as it has no rule for penalizing overweight athletes, it decided not to take any action against him.
On September 8, 2004, Iran's official press agency announced the government had given him $125,000, the same amount awarded to Iran's two Athens
gold medalists.
, one of Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's rivals.
Mohsen Rezaei appointed Miresmaeili as his campaign chief for Sports Committee. After being appointed, during a press conference, Miresmaeili stated that if Mohsen Rezaee
is elected as president, there would be no more place for Iranian sports officials who have been appointed for political purposes, as opposed to their knowledge and capabilities. His backing of Rezaee and his remarks did not sit well with the conservative backers of Mahmoud Ahmadinejad in the Iranian Sports Federation and elsewhere. It also drew immediate and harsh condemnation from the former Chief of Iran's Sports Federation, Mohammed Aliabadi.
Since then, the effort to punish and sideline Miresmaeili has gone as far him even being denied entry to an election event of Iran's Judo Federation held on Jan 2nd, 2009. Miresmaeili tried very hard to gain entry into the event and was denied entry by the security guards. This angered Miresmaeili to a point where he called a press conference on the same day, during which he stated that he is very sorry for sports in Iran and that he is officially done with the Iranian Judo, but they cannot kill the love for Judo in him.
Khorramabad
Khorramabad is a city in and capital of Lorestan Province, Iran. At the 2006 census, its population was 328,544, in 75,945 families. Khorramabad is situated in the Zagros Mountains...
) is an Iran
Iran
Iran , officially the Islamic Republic of Iran , is a country in Southern and Western Asia. The name "Iran" has been in use natively since the Sassanian era and came into use internationally in 1935, before which the country was known to the Western world as Persia...
ian judo
Judo
is a modern martial art and combat sport created in Japan in 1882 by Jigoro Kano. Its most prominent feature is its competitive element, where the object is to either throw or takedown one's opponent to the ground, immobilize or otherwise subdue one's opponent with a grappling maneuver, or force an...
ka. He is a double world featherweight champion.
World Judo Championships
He won the gold medal in two World Judo ChampionshipsWorld Judo Championships
The World Judo Championships are the highest level of international judo competition, along with the Olympic judo competition. The championships are held once every year by the International Judo Federation, and qualified judoka compete in their respective categories as representatives of their...
, the first one in 2001 in Munich
Munich
Munich The city's motto is "" . Before 2006, it was "Weltstadt mit Herz" . Its native name, , is derived from the Old High German Munichen, meaning "by the monks' place". The city's name derives from the monks of the Benedictine order who founded the city; hence the monk depicted on the city's coat...
, Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
, and the second in 2003 in Osaka
Osaka
is a city in the Kansai region of Japan's main island of Honshu, a designated city under the Local Autonomy Law, the capital city of Osaka Prefecture and also the biggest part of Keihanshin area, which is represented by three major cities of Japan, Kyoto, Osaka and Kobe...
, Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
. He also won bronze medal
Bronze medal
A bronze medal is a medal awarded to the third place finisher of contests such as the Olympic Games, Commonwealth Games, etc. The practice of awarding bronze third place medals began at the 1904 Olympic Games in St...
in the 2005 World Judo Championships
2005 World Judo Championships
The 2005 World Judo Championships were the 24th edition of the Judo World Championships, and were held in Cairo, Egypt from September 8 to September 11, 2005...
in Cairo
Cairo
Cairo , is the capital of Egypt and the largest city in the Arab world and Africa, and the 16th largest metropolitan area in the world. Nicknamed "The City of a Thousand Minarets" for its preponderance of Islamic architecture, Cairo has long been a centre of the region's political and cultural life...
, Egypt
Egypt
Egypt , officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, Arabic: , is a country mainly in North Africa, with the Sinai Peninsula forming a land bridge in Southwest Asia. Egypt is thus a transcontinental country, and a major power in Africa, the Mediterranean Basin, the Middle East and the Muslim world...
and 2007 World Judo Championships
2007 World Judo Championships
The 2007 World Judo Championships are the 25th edition of the Judo World Championships, and were held at the Rio Olympic Arena, usually called Arena Multiuso, that was built for the 2007 Pan-American Games, in Jacarepaguá, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil from September 13 to September 16, 2007.The...
in Rio de Janeiro
Rio de Janeiro
Rio de Janeiro , commonly referred to simply as Rio, is the capital city of the State of Rio de Janeiro, the second largest city of Brazil, and the third largest metropolitan area and agglomeration in South America, boasting approximately 6.3 million people within the city proper, making it the 6th...
, Brazil
Brazil
Brazil , officially the Federative Republic of Brazil , is the largest country in South America. It is the world's fifth largest country, both by geographical area and by population with over 192 million people...
.
Athens Olympic Games
Arash Miresmaili was the favourite for the gold medalGold medal
A gold medal is typically the medal awarded for highest achievement in a non-military field. Its name derives from the use of at least a fraction of gold in form of plating or alloying in its manufacture...
in the 2004 Summer Olympics
2004 Summer Olympics
The 2004 Summer Olympic Games, officially known as the Games of the XXVIII Olympiad, was a premier international multi-sport event held in Athens, Greece from August 13 to August 29, 2004 with the motto Welcome Home. 10,625 athletes competed, some 600 more than expected, accompanied by 5,501 team...
, where he was the flag bearer for Iran at the opening ceremonies. Slated to fight Israel
Israel
The State of Israel is a parliamentary republic located in the Middle East, along the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea...
i competitor Ehud Vaks
Ehud Vaks
Ehud Vaks is an Israeli judo athlete .-2004 Olympics:In the 2004 Summer Olympics, competing in the half lightweight 66 kg weight class, Vaks was scheduled to fight Iranian competitor Arash Miresmaeili in the first round...
in the first round, he was disqualified from competing because he was above the allowable weight limit for his class. It was claimed that Miresmaili deliberately set out to be disqualified rather than compete against an Israeli, which was interpreted from his own comments: "Although I have trained for months and was in good shape I refused to fight my Israeli opponent to sympathise with the suffering of the people of Palestine
Palestinian people
The Palestinian people, also referred to as Palestinians or Palestinian Arabs , are an Arabic-speaking people with origins in Palestine. Despite various wars and exoduses, roughly one third of the world's Palestinian population continues to reside in the area encompassing the West Bank, the Gaza...
and I do not feel upset at all."
Comments from Iranian officials and politicians have supported this view. The Iranian state news agency IRNA quoted then Iranian President Mohammad Khatami
Mohammad Khatami
Sayyid Mohammad Khātamī is an Iranian scholar, philosopher, Shiite theologian and Reformist politician. He served as the fifth President of Iran from August 2, 1997 to August 3, 2005. He also served as Iran's Minister of Culture in both the 1980s and 1990s...
as saying that Miresmaeili's actions would be "recorded in the history of Iranian glories" and that the nation considered him to be "the champion of the 2004 Olympic Games." Iranian Olympic team chairman Nassrollah Sajadi told Shargh
Shargh
Shargh is the most popular reformist newspaper in Iran. It is managed by Mehdi Rahmanian, and its chief editor was Mohammad Ghouchani in its first period of publication...
newspaper that the government should give the athlete $115,000 for his action, the amount the Iranian government awards gold medal
Gold medal
A gold medal is typically the medal awarded for highest achievement in a non-military field. Its name derives from the use of at least a fraction of gold in form of plating or alloying in its manufacture...
winning athletes. Then mayor of Tehran
Tehran
Tehran , sometimes spelled Teheran, is the capital of Iran and Tehran Province. With an estimated population of 8,429,807; it is also Iran's largest urban area and city, one of the largest cities in Western Asia, and is the world's 19th largest city.In the 20th century, Tehran was subject to...
and current president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said that though Miresmaeili "did not get a gold medal, he earned eternal honor by his refusal". Gholam-Ali Haddad-Adel, the speaker of Iran's parliament, congratulated Miresmaeili, calling his refusal to compete a "brave decision" and that "Your disqualification because of supporting Palestine would promote your position in the heart of Muslims."
On August 18, 2004, the International Judo Federation
International Judo Federation
The International Judo Federation was founded in July 1951. The IJF was originally composed of judo federations from Europe plus Argentina. Countries from four continents were affiliated over the next ten years. Today the IJF has 200 National Federations on all continents...
(IJF), which set up a commission to investigate whether Miresmaeili deliberately missed weight so he would not have to face Vaks, concluded he had no intention to avoid competing against an Israeli. After a hearing that included the president of Iran's judo federation, the commission concluded that Miresmaeili said he had no pre-planned intentions for not competing and that "he made no statement of any sort to any press," according to an IJF statement. The only issue that remained was that Miresmaeili was overweight on the weigh-in day, the IJF said, and as it has no rule for penalizing overweight athletes, it decided not to take any action against him.
On September 8, 2004, Iran's official press agency announced the government had given him $125,000, the same amount awarded to Iran's two Athens
Athens
Athens , is the capital and largest city of Greece. Athens dominates the Attica region and is one of the world's oldest cities, as its recorded history spans around 3,400 years. Classical Athens was a powerful city-state...
gold medalists.
Recent denial of entry to an election event of Iran's Judo Federation
In the summer of 2009, prior to the controversial Iranian presidential elections, Arash Miresmaeili chose to support the candidacy of Mohsen RezaeeMohsen Rezaee
Mohsen Rezaee Mirgha'ed, also spelled Rezai and Rezaie , born Sabzevar Rezaee Mirgha'ed , is an Iranian politician, economist and former military commander, currently the Secretary of the Expediency Discernment Council of the Islamic Republic of Iran...
, one of Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's rivals.
Mohsen Rezaei appointed Miresmaeili as his campaign chief for Sports Committee. After being appointed, during a press conference, Miresmaeili stated that if Mohsen Rezaee
Mohsen Rezaee
Mohsen Rezaee Mirgha'ed, also spelled Rezai and Rezaie , born Sabzevar Rezaee Mirgha'ed , is an Iranian politician, economist and former military commander, currently the Secretary of the Expediency Discernment Council of the Islamic Republic of Iran...
is elected as president, there would be no more place for Iranian sports officials who have been appointed for political purposes, as opposed to their knowledge and capabilities. His backing of Rezaee and his remarks did not sit well with the conservative backers of Mahmoud Ahmadinejad in the Iranian Sports Federation and elsewhere. It also drew immediate and harsh condemnation from the former Chief of Iran's Sports Federation, Mohammed Aliabadi.
Since then, the effort to punish and sideline Miresmaeili has gone as far him even being denied entry to an election event of Iran's Judo Federation held on Jan 2nd, 2009. Miresmaeili tried very hard to gain entry into the event and was denied entry by the security guards. This angered Miresmaeili to a point where he called a press conference on the same day, during which he stated that he is very sorry for sports in Iran and that he is officially done with the Iranian Judo, but they cannot kill the love for Judo in him.
External links
- Mystery over Iran judo Web Site
- Mystery over Iran judo 'protest' on BBC NEWS.