August 06, 2021
Iran’s first gold medal of the 2020 Olympics was won by a pistol shooter, who it later turned out is a member of the Pasdaran who fought in Syria, which has prompted many critical comments from anti-regime people.
Iranian marksman Javad Foroughi surpassed all expectations at the Tokyo Olympics and won Iran’s first gold medal. He also set Olympic record by winning gold in the men’s 10-meter air pistol final, and at age 42 became the oldest Iranian to win an Olympic medal as well.
Only after he put on the gold medal was it learned that he is a member of the Pasdaran.
The Fars news agency, affiliated with the Pasdaran, referred to Foroughi as “a Pasdar nurse.” The agency said Foroughi fought in Syria as part of the Qods Force.
In a video clip from an old interview posted by Fars, the sharpshooter said that besides fighting in Syria, he had served as a nurse tending to the injured on both sides of the line.
“Whenever we were treating the Islamic State’s wounded,” he said, “I told my colleagues to be very kind to them because religion tells us to be kind to prisoners of war.”
In Iran, anti-regime activists took to social media to demand that the International Olympic Committee strip Foroughi of his medal. But there is nothing to bar members of military forces from participating in the Olympics. The fact that Foroughi was a Pasdar did not draw the attention around the world that it drew inside Iran.
Some critics posted a picture taken in 2009 of a sniper firing at protesters from a rooftop in Tehran and said that was Foroughi. But the picture was too dim and distant to identify the individual shooting.
Some critics said Foroughi should be denied the medal because the Pasdaran is a terrorist organization. It is listed as such by the United States, but not by the United Nations.
In the preliminary round of the Olympic contest, Foroughi came fifth with 580.23 points and got to the final as one of the top eight. In the final, he competed with athletes from India, China, Germany, Ukraine, South Korea and Serbia and won the gold with a score of 244.8, breaking an Olympic record. Serbia’s Damir Mikec finished second with 237.9 points and China’s Pang Wei won the bronze with 217.6 points.
As the Iranian flag was raised during the medal ceremony, Foroughi stood at attention, military-style, in front of the cameras.