From the very beginning, however, Boukli appeared to be struggling to impose her usual pace. She needed a long golden score period to finally overcome Tynbayeva, scoring a narrow yuko.
In the next round, she faced Belgium’s Lois Petit, who had little experience at grand slam level but arrived with strong credentials as a two-time junior world medallist. Once again, Boukli was unable to raise the intensity and a second consecutive golden score proved fatal, as Petit secured a significant victory.
On paper, Sabina Giliazova (RUS) seemed to be among the strongest contenders for a place in the semi-final but it was another outsider, Wenna Zhuang (CHN), who upset predictions. She advanced to face Petit in the semi-final, where she delivered a dominant performance to secure victory by ippon.
The second half of the draw was equally challenging for the favourites. Both Anudari Jamsran (MGL) and Laura Martinez Abelenda (ESP) were eliminated, leaving Wakana Koga (JPN) to progress to the final. Koga arrived in Ulaanbaatar with solid credentials, having won the Tokyo Grand Slam at the end of 2025 and claiming a bronze medal at the Paris Grand Slam earlier this season.
The final therefore brought together Wenna Zhuang (CHN) and Wakana Koga (JPN), both athletes having produced a series of impressive performances through the day. Koga was the first to make her move, taking the lead with an early yuko within the opening seconds of the contest. With just under a minute remaining, she doubled her advantage, controlling the final perfectly and ultimately claiming the gold medal.
Koga declared, "Since this tournament serves as a pathway to the world judo championships for us, I am incredibly happy to have won here. After watching my opponent's contests today, I knew she was a very powerful athlete. To ensure I wasn't overwhelmed by her strength and momentum, I stayed focused, stuck strictly to my grips and fought hard. Because this tournament awards crucial Olympic qualification points, I was determined to achieve the best result possible here and I will carry that same drive into the next tournaments as I take on the challenging path all the way to the Olympics."
Türkiye was particularly successful in the category, placing both of its athletes, Sila Ersin (TUR) and Tugce Beder (TUR), in a bronze medal contest. As expected, the fight between two judoka who know each other perfectly was a closely contested affair. It was eventually Tugce Beder who emerged victorious, winning by penalties in golden score to secure Türkiye’s first medal of the this new Olympic qualification period.
Laura Martinez Abelenda (ESP) and Lois Petit (BEL) faced each other for the second bronze medal. This contest was much shorter than the first, as Martinez Abelenda produced a perfectly timed right-handed seoi-otoshi after excellent preparatory work, scoring ippon and finishing her day on the podium.
Final (-48 kg)
Bronze Medal Fights (-48 kg)
