"The Balkan competition was my first competition this year. Before that, I competed unsuccessfully in Paris," Nazim Babayev, who won the gold medal at the Balkan Championship in Istanbul, told Report. The 23-year-old Azerbaijani athlete, distinguished in the triple jump, said that his main goal was to win a license for the Summer Olympic Games in Tokyo in 2020: "Unfortunately, I still have not won a direct license. However, I was very close to that. Our main goal is the World Cup in China, but it has been postponed due to the coronavirus. I will perform in Liévin (France) on February 19 and in Madrid on February 21. There is a chance to score rating points in Madrid for the Olympics."
Babayev spoke about his Armenian opponent at the Balkan Championship, Levon Agasyan.
"I never thought about losing. If the Armenian athlete gave the impression of a strong athlete, I would have jumped a greater distance. Silver medalist Agasyan was the winner of the European U23 Championship. It was our first meeting. In serious competitions, he always loses and cannot reach the final. However, according to average statistics, his result is normal."
Nazim Babayev won the gold medal in 2019 at the indoor arena at the European Championships in Glasgow.