Aleksandra Kaleta was the judoka tasked with challenging Italy’s champion and it would be a steep hill to climb. However, with a medal and valuable world ranking points already guaranteed, an open judo ‘discussion’ could yield an unexpected opportunity for her.
The contest was closer than Giuffrida might have liked. It was clear that the Polish judoka had done her homework, arriving prepared to oppose the Italian champion’s preferred grips and attacks. However, Giuffrida is not new to well-drilled adversaries and she calmly dominated, step by step; an understated confidence that left Kaleta collecting unhelpful penalties. Odette Giuffrida adds a sixth grand slam gold to her impressive resumé.
Odette Giufrrida was engaging and bubbly after the final, "I wanted to compete in Dushanbe because many people told me that there is nothing like Tajikistan, and they were right! The atmosphere here gave me power. I am glad that Dushanbe will host the Masters in 2026 so I can return and experience how nice the local people are once again."
In the first contest for a bronze medal Gal-od Tserentogtokh (MGL) was up against Italy’s Kenya Perna, both hunting a first World Judo Tour medal. It was a close contest but rule infringements from the Mongolian judoka gave Perna the edge and she took the medal on penalties. She ran off the mat into her coach’s arms, emotional and energised by winning her first medal at this level.
In the second contest for a bronze medal Nandin-Erdene Myagmarsuren (MGL) met Mukhayyo Akhmatova (UZB in the middle of the tatami. As the first minute disappeared Myagmarsuren hooked in with a ko-uchi-gake and scored an important yuko. Akhmatova got straight down to work in an effort to equalise but Myagmarsuren was ready to defend her bounty. Nothing changed in the scoreline and as the gong sounded, the Mongolian delegation could celebrate another medal on their growing tally.
Final (-52 kg)
Bronze Medal Fights (-52 kg)
