TEHRAN - Shahram Heravi, head coach of Iran's men karate team, talked about his team performance in the 2023 Asian Senior Karate Championships.

The karate athletes won 12 medals at the 19th Asian Senior Karate Championship, securing third place with three gold, two silver, and seven bronze medals.

However, in the male section, Iran only won one gold medal in the Kumite Male -55kg category, which is not included in the Karate competitions of the 2023 Asian Games in Hangzhou.

With three gold, four silver, and four bronze medals, Kazakhstan earned the title, while Japan finished second, claiming three gold, three silver, and two bronze medals.

“For this tournament, we had two crucial objectives - to achieve better results than the previous edition and to win the Team Kumite gold again. Overall, we accomplished them, although, I think the national team's performance in the individual division could have been improved,” Heravi said.

“We anticipated to grab at least three gold medals in the individual division, but it didn't pan out. Although each player participating in the Asian Championship was capable of winning the best medals, none of them could manage it.

“In general, I am not satisfied with the results and we need to work harder for better performance in upcoming competitions,” added the head coach of Iran.

Iran claimed the top spot in Men's Team Kumite, with Kazakhstan following closely behind.

“Our young nationals performed admirably in the Team Kumite section,” he added.

“The match against Jordan was the turning point for our team's performance, as we were able to come back from 2-0 behind to win 3-2 and reach the final match. We defeated Kazakhstan in the last battle, demonstrating our superiority over them,” Heravi concluded.