The second half of the draw offered another fascinating storyline with the rivalry between two French judoka, Faiza Mokdar and Sarah Léonie Cysique. On one side was the rising generation represented by Mokdar; on the other, the experience and maturity of Cysique. The battle from a distance ultimately went in favour of experience, as Cysique secured her place in the final without having to face her younger compatriot, who was eliminated in the quarter-finals.
The final therefore featured Akari Omori (JPN) against Sarah Léonie Cysique (FRA), an exact remake of the Paris Grand Slam final in February, which went in favour of the French judoka.
Nearly three minutes passed before the first penalties were awarded, one to each athlete for passivity, illustrating just how balanced the contest was. However, in a transition phase that seemed to be heading into ne-waza, Omori took advantage of a brief moment of relaxation from her opponent to turn her over and score an undeniable ippon. It was another gold medal for Japan on a remarkable opening day of competition.
After the final, Akari Omori said, "While I am taking a moment to savour this victory in Ulaanbaatar, I know I still have areas to work on. The key to my success today was reflecting on my performance at a competition in Japan just last week; I spent the last seven days fixing my mistakes, developing specific strategies and training hard to bridge the gap that comes with competing abroad. Looking ahead, nothing is scheduled next just yet but if I am given the opportunity to compete in another grand slam before the world championships, I want to take it, win another title and carry that momentum into the worlds to aim for gold."
Timna Nelson Levy (ISR) still had the opportunity to salvage her tournament by claiming a bronze medal against Seija Ballhaus (GER). However, the contest did not go in favour of the Israeli judoka. Already trailing on the scoreboard against a determined Ballhaus, she was eventually forced to submit to a strangle, handing the bronze medal to her German opponent.
France could still add another medal to its tally, with Faiza Mokdar facing the surprise package of the day, Maysa Pardayeva (TKM), in the contest for the second bronze medal. Pardayeva took the first step towards victory with a surprising low o-uchi-gari that earned her an early yuko. Although Mokdar increased the pressure and launched repeated attacks in the closing stages, the Turkmen judoka resisted every assault to preserve her advantage and claim a magnificent bronze medal.
Final (-57 kg)
Bronze Medal Fights (-57 kg)
