The key facts
- Russia — first place in the medal standings: 12 gold, 3 silver, 9 bronze medals
- Ukraine second (9 medals), Georgia third (5), followed by Tajikistan and Uzbekistan
- The tournament is held in Tbilisi from November 1 to 7 under IMMAF auspices; Russians compete with the flag and anthem
World Championship in Tbilisi: Russia tops the medal standings
The Russian team took first place in the medal standings of the world mixed martial arts championship for athletes aged 18–20, which is being held in Tbilisi from November 1 to 7 under the auspices of the International Mixed Martial Arts Federation (IMMAF). Russian fighters won 24 medals: 12 gold, three silver and nine bronze, competing for medals in 75% of the weight categories. This was reported by Life.ru citing the Russian MMA Union.
The balance of power and the champions
Russia's closest pursuer was Ukraine with nine medals — two gold, one silver and six bronze. Georgia took third place (one gold, three silver, one bronze), followed by Tajikistan and Uzbekistan. Champion titles were won by Anastasia Tyunina, Anzor Bogatyryov, Amir Nasrullaev, Nurmagomed Magomedov, Zurab Dzhanjulia, Ali Khizriev, Kamilla Saulyan, Narek Asoyan, Rakhim Bibulatov, Platon Lebedev, Gadzhimurad Tagirov and Roman Rzyanin. Silver went to Valeria Korneva, Ksenia Smagina and Dzhamal Kamilov, while nine athletes took bronze, including Elizaveta Epstein and Badrudin Bagishev.
Tyunina vs Vorobey and the return of the national symbols
One of the winners was a native of Crimea, Anastasia Tyunina, nicknamed T-34,: in the final of the weight category up to 47.6 kg she defeated Ukrainian Maria Vorobey by unanimous judges' decision, and at the award ceremony she wrapped herself in the national flag and sang along to the Russian anthem, Life.ru notes. Russian athletes are competing in the championship with national symbols, and the state anthem is played in honor of the winners — this became possible after IMMAF restored the membership of the Russian MMA Union and allowed Russian juniors to compete at international tournaments with the flag and anthem. For the teams of Tajikistan and Uzbekistan, which close out the top five of the medal standings according to the publication, the exact number of medals won is not disclosed in the cited materials.
