TEHRAN – Atousa Golshadnezhad has expressed her determination to win a gold medal at the 2025 World Karate Championships.

She recently claimed gold at the 2025 AKF Senior Championships held on Saturday.

Golshadnezhad defeated Sevinch Otaboyeva of Uzbekistan 5-1 in the final of the Female Kumite -61kg category. Additionally, she secured a bronze medal in the team kata event.

In an exclusive interview with Tehran Times, Golshadnezhad shared her thoughts on the competition:
“In the individual events, I managed to reach the final by overcoming opponents from India, China, and Japan. In the final, I faced a competitor from the host country, which was very intense. Fortunately, I was able to win the match with a score of 5-1 and claim the gold.”
“In the team division, we defeated Indonesia and China but narrowly lost to Kazakhstan. However, we defeated Chinese Taipei in the third-place match to secure the bronze medal,” she continued.

“Thanks to this victory, I have secured my qualification for the 2025 World Championships. I hope to replicate this performance in Egypt and bring home the gold medal,” Golshadnezhad added.

Regarding the possibility of karate returning to the Olympics, she said: “Why not? We always hope that this will happen.”

“I believe our team's performance was very good. Out of six quotas for women, we secured one gold, one silver, and two bronze medals, and obtained three confirmed spots for the World Championships. Overall, it’s a positive result,” she reflected on Iran's team performance.