Uzbekistan's amputees team returns home after winning the Asian Championship

In the group stage of the Asian Championship, the Uzbek amputee team defeated Indonesia (8:1), Bangladesh (3:0), Nepal (13:0) and Iraq 4:1, and in the final, Indonesia scored 6 goals without reply.

The resolute champions returned to Uzbekistan on the night of February 14. Tribuna.uz also attended the heroes' welcome ceremony and asked the tournament participants about their thoughts on the competition.

Abdujamil Shukurov
— The competition was originally supposed to be held in India. For some reason, it was canceled. In the meantime, winter came and it got cold. We needed an indoor arena to prepare for the tournament. We found a field in Yangiyul ourselves. The Paralympics took care of the rest. We lived in a new hotel and trained twice in the cold. It wasn't easy: we went to Bangladesh, a country 30 degrees warmer than the cold, but we got used to it. The preparation was good, so we played and won.

I can say that the match against the Iraqi team in the championship was more difficult. After defeating them, I felt calm as a coach and a player.

I have been playing football for 35 years. We played a friendly match against England and other teams at a training camp in Turkey. At that time, I didn't play, but coached, and I had a lot of trouble. It's easier to play than that. I have been a 5-time world champion and now I have also become an Asian champion. Now I can continue to coach without any problems.

Kudrat Khudoikulov
— We took first place in the first Asian Championship. I was named the best player of the final and the tournament. We scored 33 goals, conceded 1 goal. I congratulate the entire Uzbek people on the victory.

Our main rivals in Asia were Iran and Iraq. The Iranians could not come due to some unfortunate incident. The most interesting match in the tournament was against Iraq.

Aziz Abdurakhmonov
— The Asian Championship was great. We prepared well for the competition. If we are lucky, we will prepare for the World Championship next year.

Ulugbek Tashpulatov
— Winning the gold medal of the first Asian Championship is a great pride. The seniors have been world champions 5 times before. We are young swallows. If we are lucky, we will also be champions 5 times.

Bekzod Habibullaev
— Everything is the result of hard work. We won the first Asian Championship. This cup belongs to all of Uzbekistan. Follow “Zamin” news on “Telegram”