Last Tuesday, the Tokyo Olympics featured a truly heartwarming moment when Iranian defector judoka Saeid Mollaei won the silver medal and dedicated it to Israel, as the Times of Israel reported. He fled to Germany and then moved to Mongolia, the country he represents now. This is his first Olympic medal.
Mollaei defected from Iran after he was ordered to lose in the semifinals of the 2019 World Championships, rather than possibly face Israel's Sagi Muki in the finals.
As it turns out, Mollaei and Muki are good friends now. From the Times of Israel:
Mollaei told the Israeli Sports Channel that he was thankful for the support he’s received from Israel over the years.
“Thank you to Israel for the good energy. This medal is dedicated also to Israel,” he told the network. “I hope the Israelis are happy with this win.”
He added in Hebrew: “Todah” (thank you).
Muki congratulated his friend on his achievement, despite his own disappointing finish on Tuesday.
“I’m super happy for Saeid,” Muki told a press conference of Israeli reporters on Tuesday. “I know what he’s gone through, and how much he wanted it. He’s a very close friend of mine, and I’m so happy that he succeeded in achieving his dream. He deserves it — his journey is incredibly inspiring.”
Their friendship was memorably publicized in an Instagram post when the two were at the Paris Grand Slam tournament in February 2020. Muki expressed hope that Mollaei would one day complete in Israel, which he did.
Muki also congratulated Mollaei over Instagram for performing at the 2019 World Judo Championships in Tokyo as part of the Grand Slam Osaka Refugee Team.
Mollaei won the silver at the Judo Grand Slam competition in Tel Aviv the following February. He dedicated his medal to Israel there as well, and said Israel has "very good to me since I arrived," including the Israeli judo team which had "been very kind," and which he said "is something I will never forget."
As the Times of Israel reported at the time of the world competition:
Meanwhile Muki, a world champion, was surprisingly ejected from the competition in the first round on Friday morning.
According to Channel 12, Mollaei told Muki after the competition was over: “Maybe we’ll meet in the finals of the Olympics.”
Such a story is especially feel good after last weekend's coverage of the blatant anti-Israeli discrimination on display at the Games. Algerian judoka Fethi Nourine, pulled out of the Games on Thursday rather than possibly face Israeli opponent, Tohar Butbul. Nourine and his coach, Amar Benikhlef, were suspended by the International Judo Federation’s (IJF) executive committee and sent home.
This won't be the last we'll hear of Mollaei and Muki's story, though. "The story of the unlikely friendship between Mollaei and Muki is being developed for television by Israel’s Tadmor Entertainment and MGM," The Times of Israel also reported.