Afghanistan’s prospects in Jiu-Jitsu at the Asian Games narrowed further after Abdul Basit Rahimi was eliminated in his opening bout of the men’s 94kg competition.
Rahimi faced an Iranian opponent in his first appearance of the competition but was unable to advance, bringing his individual campaign to an end without a medal.
His elimination followed the exits of fellow Afghan Jiu-Jitsu athletes Sarwar Hosseini and Noorullah Shafaei, who also finished their respective competitions without medals a day earlier.
Taken together, the results represent a difficult sequence for Afghanistan in the discipline, with three of its competitors ending their medal campaigns across consecutive days.
For Rahimi, the opening-round defeat meant there was no opportunity to build momentum deeper into the 94kg competition, where athletes from across Asia are competing for continental medals.
Afghanistan is participating in several sports at the Asian Games in Japan, with its athletes competing against representatives from across the continent.
While participation provides Afghan athletes with international competition at Asia’s biggest multi-sport event, the results of Rahimi, Hosseini and Shafaei underline the challenge of converting that representation into medal-winning performances in Jiu-Jitsu.
