In an all-French derby Faiza Mokdar and Chloe Devictor left nothing in their lockers. They delivered a positive contest with attacks from both and strong defence from both, but from the outset Mokdar seemed to have the edge. She threw first with a seoi-otoshi for a yuko but soon followed up on the ground to ensure an ippon finish. This is Mokdar’s second grand slam gold in Kazakhstan.
After the final she said, “It might be the air in Kazakhstan but I always enjoy my time in Astana. This could be the reason for my second title here. This performance gives me a great base to go on with, one event at a time.”
The first bronze medal would be assigned to either Jessica Lima (BRA) or Shannon Van De Meeberg (NED), Pan-America and Europe making their presence felt in Asia. In fact the second bronze medal contest was of a similar continental make up, Veronica Toniolo (ITA) and Sarah Souza (BRA) going tope-to-toe for the last medal of the category.
Van De Meeberg won her bronze medal with a well timed uchi-mata that earned a substantial waza-ari. This medal signals an excellent day for the Netherlands after Amber Gersjes won gold at -48 kg.
Souza won the second bronze medal of the category after catching Toniolo with a ko-soto-gake that caught her by surprise. The effort from both judoka was admirable but Souza was stronger today and would claim her place on the podium.
Final (-57 kg)
Bronze Medal Fights (-57 kg)
