A historic battle.
The Budapest Grand Slam in judo will soon, for the first time, bring together former world champion Sagi Muki and Iranian Said Moulay, who fled his country and now represents Azerbaijan.
The 30-year-old Moulay, who competes in the weight category up to 81 kg, was forced to flee for his life at the end of the 2019 World Championships in Tokyo, as he received threats not to win the semifinals, in order to avoid a final against the Israeli, who eventually won gold.
In recent years, Moulay has waged a struggle for his independence, initially moving to represent Mongolia, while Iran itself has suffered a punishment that prevented it from participating in competitions - a reminder of those threats.
That judoka himself even arrived in Israel in February 2021 to take part in the Grand Slam, where he was warmly received by the Israeli audience, members of the delegation and union chairman Moshe Ponti, who gave him a warm hug at the airport.
The draw in Hungary signaled that Moulay and Muki must win their first battle, so that they meet immediately in the second stage.
The Iranian did his thing easily against an opponent from Greece, while Muki needed Vasari to beat Frenchman Nicolas Chillard.
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