Saeid Mollaei

He said in an Instagram post that even though he didn’t win, it was a “victory of sport over politics.”

“I hope Israelis are happy with this achievement,” said Saeid Mollaei, who now represents Mongolia.

It has been backdated to start in 2019 and will run to September 2023.

A committee spokesman said the sports organization “takes note of the letter and continues to evaluate the alleged issues.”

“I apologize to the families of the martyrs and the Iranian people ... and am ashamed that a foolish athlete who only considers his personal interests traveled to Tel Aviv,” says the head of the Iranian Judo Association about Saeid Mollaei, now a Mongolian citizen.

Saeid Mollaei, who was forced to throw a match at the 2019 World Judo Championships to avoid a bout with Israeli counterpart Sagi Muki, is now competing on behalf of Mongolia.

Iranian prodigy Alireza Firouzja, the No. 1 ranked player in Iran and currently the No. 2 ranked junior player in the world, may play under the U.S. or French flags, according to Iran’s Chess Federation president.

Saeid Mollaei criticized the Iranian government for demanding that he not face Israeli judoka Sagi Muki at the World Judo Championships.