Karine Karapetyan, who is a professional athlete of the Armenian “Armfighting” Federation for mixed boxing, defeated Azerbaijani Rena Safarov during the international championships in Tbilisi. Rena Safarov is the sister of Ramil Safarov, who axed Armenian officer Gurgen Margaryan to death in his sleep in Budapest in 2004, and then became a hero in Azerbaijan.
Aravot.am interviewed Karine Karapetyan.
– Congratulations on your victory. Did you know who you were going to fight against before going to Tbilisi?
– Yes, I did. My coach told me. We didn’t know the exact date of the match, but we knew that it was going to take place in September. We prepared for a little under two months. About five days before the match, I got sick with a fever, but my sense of responsibility didn’t stop me from practicing.
– Tell us a little bit about the match.
– My opponent had a depressed look on her face the day before the match. But when we entered the ring, she looked aggressive and like she wanted to be my enemy… I kept myself relaxed. The nationality of my opponent in the ring doesn’t usually mean anything for me. I simply enter the ring with one thought: this person is your opponent, and you have to do everything in order to defeat them. But this time, I felt a little different. I was thinking to myself, “do you know that I’m going to beat you?” I’m happy that I defeated that reprobate Ramil Safarov’s sister and I dedicate my victory to the bright memory of Gurgen Margaryan. I told Azerbaijan with this victory that axing someone to death while they’re asleep is evil and obscene. Axing people is something that happened in the Middle Ages. No civilized country makes a reprobate into a hero. If you have a fight with someone, then have courage, go face them in person, look them in the eyes, and win. I have never been defeated in any match. I won again this time through looking in the eyes of my opponent and following the rules of the game.
Ashot Hakobyan
