GENEVA, Sept. 29 (Xinhua) -- Athletes from over 20 countries and regions competed in the debut of mixed martial arts at the Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games, which the Federation of Mixed Martial Arts (FIMMA) described as a milestone in the sport's pursuit of Olympic recognition.
Six gold medals across modern and traditional MMA were contested over three days from Sept. 20 to 22. For the Games, FIMMA used an Open Field of Play instead of a traditional cage or ring, a format designed to better suit a major multi-sport event.
"Nagoya has shown what MMA can achieve within a major multi-sport environment," FIMMA President Gordon Tang said. "We are extremely proud of the athletes who competed here and of the quality of the competition they delivered."
"For MMA, this is an important milestone and an important step towards our ambition of Olympic recognition. There is still much work to do, but Nagoya has given us a strong foundation for the next stage of our journey," he added.
The prospect of Olympic inclusion was also welcomed by competitors. Tajikistan's Mirzobek Umarov, one of the gold medalists in Nagoya, said, "I hope and wait that MMA will become an Olympic sport. It's not a dangerous sport. There are other sports that are more injury prone than MMA."
FIMMA said the Asian Games debut provided a foundation for the sport's continued international development and its Olympic ambitions.
"The next focus will be on expanding MMA's presence within major multi-sport events worldwide, developing the international competition pathway and preparing for the first FIMMA World Championships," said FIMMA. ■
