The Egyptian opponent of Israeli kickboxer Yulia Sachkov failed to show up for the quarterfinal bout in the under-52 kg category of the World Kickboxing Championship in Abu Dhabi.
The Israeli kickboxing delegation, led by the three medalists from the World Games, is currently competing in Abu Dhabi. Sachkov is a World Games gold medalist.
Israeli kickboxer Yulia Sachkov at the World Games
(Photo: Kickboxing Association)
“I was confident the fight would take place and that they would put politics aside, but unfortunately that is not the case and the Egyptian woman did not come to the fight," Sachkov's coach, Michael Britavsky, said. "We wanted and waited for this fight. We were ready and sure we would win.”
So far, Sachkov has advanced to the semifinals, along with Polina Grossman (‑72 kg), a World Games silver medalist, and Guy Hagag. On Thursday, World Games gold medalist Osaid Joudeh (‑75 kg) and additional Israeli competitors will fight in the quarterfinals.
“It’s very sad that politics is involved in sport again, and even more painful that Egypt — with which we have a peace agreement — does not respect the peace treaty or our athletes,” said Arik Kaplan, president and CEO of the Ayelet Federation.
The world championship features competitors from 85 countries and around 2,000 athletes.