The IKA media team continues to present interviews of the participants of the World Championship
Ali Seraj Shahrakhani – referee of IKA (Saudi Arabia):
I’m From Saudi Arabia. Kurash entered Saudi Arabia recently. I am the technical director in the referee committee on kurash.
We have big goals ahead of us. The work we have to do is even bigger than our goals. It wasn’t always easy to introduce a new sport. But I’m sure we can manage it.
In a short time, we have opened branches of our committee in all regions of the country. We have reached agreements with the country’s sports clubs on the organization of kurash trainings. Our initial results are encouraging.
I’m an athlete. From an early age, I was engaged in many types of martial arts. It would not be an exaggeration to say that I have a lot of experience in judo in refereeing.
In 1990, I started as a national judo referee. From that moment on, I grew up in martial arts. I was a continental referee in 1997, an international referee in 2007 and an Olympic judo referee in London in 2012. I have always thanked Allah for being a referee in the Olympics and finals.
I am glad that I am applying the experience gained in my life in kurash.
I would like to express my special gratitude to the President of IKA Mr. Haidar Farman and the Technical Director of IKA Rezo Nassiri, who expressed their trust in me and supported my participation in kurash competitions all over the world.
In March, I participated in the Asian Championship in Tajikistan, international tournaments in India, a refereeing seminar in Dubai and the Asian Children Games in Russia.
You know, kurash is much better than the sports that I know. It is also easy to learn and safety should be recognized separately.
More importantly, kurash is an Islamic sport. These factors also influence to the rapid development of kurash in Saudi Arabia.
I want to share information, we are organizing a National Qualifying Championship. Our first competitions will be held in the city of Mecca. And the number of candidates is more than we expected.
We have 14 national referees so that we can hold competitions. It’s true not enough yet. But a good result in 6 months. We also have a plan to organize a coaching and refereeing seminar within the framework of the championship. This means that our ranks will expand even more.
I am very glad that I was invited as a referee to the World Championship in India.
This is a real competition. The responsibility is also great.
I am grateful to be a part of the Kurash family under the leadership of Mr. Haidar Farman and Reza Nassiri.
The referee should always be on the side of justice. Justice is for everyone. The winner deserves to win.
The kurash system is well designed and contains enough thoughtful ideas. In addition, IKA is a team of referees around which experienced highly qualified specialists work.
I should note that not only referees should know the rules, but also coaches, most importantly, should teach the rules of refereeing kurash athletes. Then I think that there will be no misunderstandings in the disputes.
