Varapayeu, one of the outsiders at the beginning of the day, built quiet momentum on the opposite half of the draw. His victory over world champion Goki Tajima (JPN) opened the door to the semi-finals, where he halted Erzhan Kanatbekov's (KGZ) impressive run, to reach the biggest final of his career. While Schimidt relied on consistency and control, the Belarusian combined tactical maturity with growing confidence to underline his credentials.
The bronze medal contests brought together four judoka whose performances had made them worthy podium contenders. Murtozoev had produced one of the strongest campaigns of the category before being denied entry to the final by Schimidt, while Tajima fought his way back through the repechage after missing out on the semi-final and final. In the second contest for bronze, Fatiyev recovered well from his quarter-final defeat to keep his medal hopes alive, while Kanatbekov remained one of the revelations of the day after an outstanding run that only came to an end in the semi-finals.
The final began with Schimidt taking the initiative, applying pressure in both the standing exchanges and on the ground without managing to trouble the scoreboard. As the final minute approached, Varapayeu produced a beautifully timed circular uchi-mata to score a yuko and move ahead. The Brazilian responded almost immediately with a ko-uchi-gari that was initially awarded a yuko too, sending the contest into golden score. However, a video review revealed that Schimidt had grabbed the leg during his attack. The score was cancelled and replaced with a shido, handing victory to Varapayeu and securing his first grand prix gold medal.
Varapayeu declared, "I feel great! After a long break and a tough opening loss to a Korean athlete in Ulaanbaatar, I was really upset. However, I pulled myself together during a short training camp in Mongolia and managed to win this grand prix. This victory was crucial to beginning my Olympic qualification campaign on the right foot and I hope it secures my path to the Olympic Games. Now, I'm looking forward to going home to celebrate and share a big, delicious meal with my family."
The first bronze medal contest was decided in the closing stages as Murad Fatiyev (AZE) scored a yuko in the final minute against Erzhan Kanatbekov (KGZ), enough to secure a second consecutive World Judo Tour bronze medal, following his podium finish in Mongolia a week earlier.
The second bronze medal contest ended in emphatic fashion. Goki Tajima (JPN) wasted little time imposing himself, turning Nurbek Murtozoev (UZB) onto his back before immediately securing a hold-down for ippon to complete the podium.
Final (-90 kg)
Bronze Medal Fights (-90 kg)
