Arash Miresmaeili
| Medal record | ||
|---|---|---|
Representing  Iran
|
||
| Men's Judo | ||
| World Championships | ||
 |
2001 Munich | 66 kg |
|
2003 Osaka | 66 kg |
 |
2005 Cairo | 66 kg |
|
2007 Rio de Janeiro | 66 kg |
| Asian Games | ||
 |
2006 Doha | 66 kg |
|
1998 Bangkok | 66 kg |
| Asian Championships | ||
|
1999 Wenzhou | 66 kg |
|
2001 Ulaanbaatar | 66 kg |
|
2008 Jeju City | 66 kg |
|
2005 Tashkent | 66 kg |
|
2007 Kuwait City | 66 kg |
Arash Miresmaeili (Persian: آرش میراسماعیلی , born March 3, 1981 in Khorramabad) is an Iranian judoka. He is a double world featherweight champion. Controversy attended his showing up more than two kilos - four pounds - over the 66-kilogram weight limit, leading to his not having to face his slated Israeli judoka opponent in the 2004 Summer Olympics.
He won the gold medal in two World Judo Championships, the first one in 2001 in Munich, Germany, and the second in 2003 in Osaka, Japan. He also won bronze medal in the 2005 World Judo Championships in Cairo, Egypt and 2007 World Judo Championships in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
Arash Miresmaili was the favourite for the gold medal in the 2004 Summer Olympics, where he was the flag bearer for Iran at the opening ceremonies.
Slated to fight Israeli judoka competitor Ehud Vaks in the first round, Miresmaili was disqualified from competing because he was above the permissible weight limit for his class. He was more than two kilos - four pounds - over the 66-kilogram weight limit. It was claimed that Miresmaili deliberately set out to be disqualified, rather than compete against an Israeli, which was understood from Miresmaili's own comments: "Although I have trained for months and was in good shape I refused to fight my Israeli opponent to sympathise with the suffering of the people of Palestine and I do not feel upset at all."
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