Balabay Azer oglu Aghayev (Azerbaijani: Balabəy Azər oğlu Ağayev; born 30 September 1998) is an Azerbaijani judoka, silver medalist of the 2024 European Judo Championships, member of the Azerbaijan national judo team.[1] He is also a silver medalist at the 2018 World Juniors Championships, a three-time Grand Slam gold medalist), the champion of the 2021 Islamic Solidarity Games and the 2021 Azerbaijan national champion. Aghayev represented Azerbaijan at the 2024 Summer Olympics.

Balabay Aghayev
Aghayev in 2026
Personal information
Native name
Balabəy Ağayev
Born30 September 1998 (1998-09-30) (age 27)
OccupationJudoka
Sport
CountryAzerbaijan
SportJudo
Weight class60 kg
Achievements and titles
Olympic GamesR16 (2024)
World Champ.R16 (2023)
European Champ.‹See Tfd›Silver (2024)
Medal record
Men's judo
Representing  Azerbaijan
European Championships
Silver medal – second place2024 Zagreb60 kg
World Masters
Bronze medal – third place2022 Jerusalem60 kg
IJF Grand Slam
Gold medal – first place2021 Paris60 kg
Gold medal – first place2022 Baku60 kg
Gold medal – first place2023 Paris60 kg
Gold medal – first place2025 Dushanbe60 kg
Gold medal – first place2026 Paris60 kg
Silver medal – second place2026 Tashkent60 kg
Bronze medal – third place2022 Abu Dhabi60 kg
Bronze medal – third place2024 Baku60 kg
Bronze medal – third place2024 Tbilisi60 kg
IJF Grand Prix
Gold medal – first place2025 Guadalajara60 kg
Silver medal – second place2022 Almada60 kg
World Juniors Championships
Silver medal – second place2018 Nassau55 kg
European Junior Championships
Bronze medal – third place2018 Sofia55 kg
Islamic Solidarity Games
Gold medal – first place2021 Konya60 kg
Gold medal – first place2021 KonyaMen's team
Profile at external databases
IJF20144
JudoInside.com96575
Updated on 2 March 2026

Biography

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Balabay Aghayev was born on 30 September 1998 in Baku. He studied at the Azerbaijan State Academy of Physical Education and Sport.[2]

In October 2018, he won a silver medal at the Junior World Championship in Nassau. That same year, he won the European Cup for juniors under 21 in Lignano. In October 2021, he won the gold medal at the Paris Grand Slam. In December 2021, representing the Neftchi Sports Club, he won the Azerbaijan National Championship.[3][4]

In January 2022, Aghayev won silver at the Almada Grand Prix. In April 2022, he placed fifth at the European Championships in Sofia, losing the bronze medal match to Jorre Verstraeten of Belgium.[5] That summer, at the Islamic Solidarity Games in Konya, he won gold in the under 60 kg category and in the men's team event. In October 2022, he won bronze at the Abu Dhabi Grand Slam, and in November secured a gold medal at the Baku Grand Slam. In December, he earned a bronze medal at the World Masters.

In February 2023, Aghayev claimed another gold medal at the Paris Grand Slam. In November, at the European Championships in Montpellier, he lost his first match to Andrea Carlino of Italy.[6] In 2024, he won bronze at the Baku Grand Slam[7] and at the Tbilisi Grand Slam.[8][9][10]

As of March 2024, he ranked 7th in the world rankings.[11][12]

In April 2024, Aghayev won silver at the European Championships in Zagreb, losing in the final to reigning world champion Francisco Garrigós of Spain.[13] At the 2024 Summer Olympics, Aghayev was eliminated in the round of 16, losing to Kim Won-jin of South Korea.[14]

On 29 November 2024, he secured a bronze medal at the Azerbaijan Judo Championship.[15]

His personal coach is Shumshad Bakhramov.[16]

References

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  1. "Azərbaycan Cüdo Federasiyası". judo.az. Retrieved 30 March 2024.
  2. "Aghayev Balabay". olympics.com. Retrieved 22 December 2024.
  3. Azərbaycan Kubokunun qalibi olan ilk cüdoçular müəyyənləşib
  4. AZƏRBAYCAN ÇEMPIONATI. 07.12.2021
  5. Наджафов и Агаев проиграли бронзу ЕВРО
  6. Наджафов проиграл встречу за бронзу на ЕВРО
  7. "Baku Grand Slam 2024 / IJF.org". www.ijf.org. Retrieved 30 March 2024.
  8. "Tbilisi Grand Slam 2024 / IJF.org". www.ijf.org. Retrieved 30 March 2024.
  9. ""Большой шлем": Азербайджанский дзюдоист завоевал бронзовую медаль". Azertag (in Russian). 22 March 2024.
  10. Агаев и Пашаев завоевали бронзу Большого шлема
  11. Кокаури и Гаджиев улучшили свои позиции в новом рейтинге
  12. Балабей АГАЕВ: Очень хочу отправиться на Олимпиаду в ранге чемпиона Европы и мира
  13. Агаев проиграл в финале ЕВРО, Байрамов и Велиева упустили бронзу
  14. "Aghayev Balabay vs Kim Won Jin Results". olympics.com. Retrieved 22 December 2024.
  15. "Azərbaycan çempionatının ilk yarış günü keçirildi". Федерация дзюдо Азербайджана (in Azerbaijani). 29 November 2024.
  16. Наставник Агаева: Сказал ему, что хочу остаться в истории тренером олимпийского чемпиона
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