While still a teenager Rafaela Silva won grand slam medals in Brazil and Tokyo and she claimed the top spot in Dusseldorf.
Then, in 2011, she battled through an immense -57 kg category at the Paris World Championships, beating Quintavalle and Roper along the way. She arrived in the final where she lost to Sato (JPN). On the podium, Silva was in second place and on the 3rd place step stood Kaori Matsumoto who had beaten her in Rotterdam in 2009. Silva was building belief.
Two years later, on home soil in Brazil, Rafaela Silva became world champion and didn’t stop there. An Olympic gold and another world championship gold, 4 continental titles and no less than 37 World Judo Tour medals illustrate a career glazed in commitment.
At the Upper Austria Grand Prix, March 2026, Silva continued to dominate, winning the gold medal at the age of 33. Staggering statistics can be found in every corner of her CV; it’s nothing short of incredible. Elite sports careers rarely travel in smooth straight lines and of course, neither has Silva’s, but no injury, funding, selection or external circumstance has dampened her fighting spirit.
After the medal ceremony in Linz, Rafaela said, “There’s no secret to it because everybody here trains judo with the same commitment, bringing equal effort but in the dojo. In competition it’s not the judo preparation that wins, it’s the one with the best mind, the one who is ready for everything, who can win.”
It is a serious challenge to find any occasion in competition when Silva isn’t totally focused on her task. She moves fluidly on the tatami almost as if it is part of her; she looks at home.
So at 33 and with 67 IJF event appearances already collected, including 3 Olympic Games, why does Silva continue? “I love it. That’s all. I love judo, I love competing, I love to be on the tatami.”
There is nothing more to be said; this is the key. Rafaela Silva continues…