Baku Judo Grand Slam
Baku, Feb 16 (PL) Japan triumphed today in four of the five categories disputed at the closing of the Baku Grand Slam of judo, a tournament with the participation of 36 countries.
At the National Gymnastics Arena, the first final was a duel at 78 kilograms between Germany's Anna Monta Olek, the event's champion, and Alina Boehm, the only gold that escaped this afternoon from the powerful Japanese squad.
Also among the women, but at over 78, the title went home to Ruri Takahashi, winner by Ippon over the promising 22-year-old Turkish Hilal Ozturk, third last year at the Abu Dhabi World Championships.
The bronzes in this weight ended up in the chest of the Dutch Marit Kamps and the Croatian Helena Vukovic.
In the men's event, the triumphal path for the country of the rising sun was opened by the 90 kg Sanshiro Murao (24), Olympic silver medalist in Paris 2024 and universal third in Doha two years ago, ahead of Brazil's Marcelo Fronckowiak, accompanied on the podium by Frank De Wit (Netherlands) and Kenny Komi Bedel (Italy).
The third gold medal on Sunday came for Japan in the 100m, through the 20-year-old Dota Arai, also against a representative of Brazil, Leonardo Goncalves.
The bronzes in this category at the went to Russia's Niiaz Bilalov and Tajikistan's Dzhakhongir Madzhidov.
Finally, Hyoga Ota took the top prize from the tatami in the over 100-kilogram bout with Russia's Temerlan Bashaev, relegating Kazakhstan's Yerassyl Kazhyvaev and Japan's Kanta Nakano to third place.
Earlier, Natsumi Tsunoda (48 kilograms), Uta Abe (52) and Momo Tamaoki (57) in the women's division and Ryuju Nagayama (60), Takeshi Takeoka (66), and Tatsuki Ishihara (73) in the men's division were crowned here.
The other three gold medals were won yesterday by Canadian Olympic and world medalist Jessica Klimkait (63), Hungary's Szofi Ozbas (70), and local Zelim Tckaev (81).
The next judo circuit event will be in Tashkent, Uzbekistan, venue of the third Grand Slam of the campaign from February 28 to March 2, in which 266 competitors from 25 countries are already confirmed, with Brazil and Cuba as the only Latin American representatives.
