She opened with a waza-ari victory over Rochele Nunes (POR) with a left-sided sode-tsuri-komi-goshi, followed by another waza-ari m, against Mariia Ivanova (IJF) with seoi-otoshi. In the semi-final, she overcame Célia Cancan (FRA), scoring a waza-ari first before finishing the contest on the ground.
On the other side of the draw, Léa Fontaine (FRA) cleared her path convincingly to reach the final. She began with a solid win against Poland’s Emilia Gonsior, before defeating Tina Radić (CRO) and then Asya Tavano (ITA) to secure her place in the final.
In the final, Fontaine was initially penalised for being less active but she turned the situation in her favour fast, scoring a waza-ari with o-uchi-gari. As the contest entered the final minute, Hershko continued to apply relentless pressure. Confident in her strength, Fontaine was waiting but was caught by a powerful o-soto-otoshi, landing flat on her back. It was ippon and gold for Raz Hershko.
The first bronze medal contest featured Mariia Ivanova (IJF) against Asya Tavano (ITA). After just one minute, Tavano took control, scoring a yuko with a makikomi and maintaining her advantage until the end to claim the bronze medal.
Erica Simonetti (ITA) offered Italy another chance of a medal as she faced Célia Cancan (FRA), who was also aiming to add to France’s medal tally. Midway through the contest, Cancan held a slight advantage, fewer penalties than her opponent. After an extended groundwork exchange, she eventually forced Simonetti to submit, securing her first grand slam medal.
Final (+78 kg)
Bronze Medal Fights (+78 kg)
