TEHRAN – Mahtab Nabavi from Iran claimed a gold medal at 2019 World Para Taekwondo Championships on Tuesday.

The Iranian para athlete came first at -58kg k 41 division.

The World Championships help the Iranian fighter in her bid to qualify for next year's Paralympic Games in Tokyo with maximum ranking points available at the G-10 tournament.

Taekwondo is due to make its Paralympic debut at Tokyo 2020.

The event, set for 5-6 February in Antalya, Turkey, has brought nearly 400 athletes from 69 nations – nearly twice as many as the last edition – together for bragging rights and valuable ranking points.

 Seven new nations are competing for the first time, including Jordan, Saudi Arabia, Senegal, Switzerland, Slovakia, Tanzania, and Uganda.

Host Turkey leads the way, with 56 athletes registered.