Day 1 - Preliminaries

The morning session of the first day in Linz, Austria, saw world silver medallist Romain Valadier Picard (FRA) suffer for his wins in a category which, on paper, should have been his comfortably. He won his first contest in golden score, his second a little easier but in the quarter-final, Bakytzhan (KAZ) secured a hold-down inside the first minute and it looked to be all over for the top seed.

Valadier Picard is not the number one seed for no reason though and he struggled his way free, only a yuko separating the two. It took him some time to find the equaliser but he did, in tachi-waza, converting it in golden score, much to the Kazakh athlete’s dismay; he had been so close. The Frenchman then offered Sei Sato (JPN) the same disappointment but only after 9 and a half minutes of contest time!

Second seed, Fransisco Garrigos, did not survive so well. He lost in the round of 16 to 2025 junior world champion Matsunaga (JPN), a pretty good debut on the World Judo Tour for him! Matsunaga then lost in the round of 8; such is judo! One moment you beat a world champion and in the next you lose to an athlete with just one prior victory at grand prix level. The two Japanese judoka would have to fight for a single bronze medal in the final block, a tough way to end the day for one of them.

And so the -60 kg category delivered a mix of moments, wins for both expected and unexpected judoka. Each category has offered a similar story; even when some seeded athletes have made it to medal contests, not all have, making way for the hunger of the youngsters to break through.

At -48 kg, twenty-year-old Vera Wandel (NED), an EYOF and u23 European champion, earned a full set of scores against world number one Abiba Abuzhakynova (KAZ) in their quarter-final. A makikomi for ippon sealed the deal but it was an onslaught the Kazakh champion could have expected. This is Wandel’s first event on the World Judo Tour and no matter the final outcome, a semi-final appearance is an outstanding effort.

Second seed Laura Martinez Abelenda (ESP) lost too, also in the quarter-final stage and also to a Dutch competitor. Amber Gersjes, 28, is more experienced than her compatriot and already has 3 World Judo Tour medals on top of her junior world gold, but the Spanish judoka was not expecting to lose to her and by two yuko throws and a submission; it was not close!

Some contests, though, produced less surprise and more intrigue. At -66 kg, all 4 top seeds won through to the semi-final stage and knocked out several big names along the way who, although lower on the rankings, have outstanding resumés.

Olympic and world medallists Vieru (MDA) and Margvelashvili (GEO) found themselves against each other in a repechage contest. The latter had his rhythm perfectly balanced, recovered from his loss. He threw Vieru twice and the second throw was decisive. The seeded judoka may have reached the final but the old guard was still in play too!

At -52 kg, there was one serious confirmation, delivered by 18-year-old Iroha Oi (JPN). She was cadet world champion in 2024 and won the junior world title just weeks later in the same year. She then appeared on the World Judo Tour for the first time and won gold there, in Dushanbe, 2025. That’s 3 golds for 3 appearances at IJF events, so far. In Linz, she is not diverting from her plan. Seeded just outside the top 4, she ploughed through the field to arrange a meeting with world bronze medallist Rosa Gyertyas in the final.

Also making it to the final block, Tatum Keen (GBR) had a good morning run beating Dimitrova (BUL), Easton (AUS) and number 3 seed Beaton (CAN) along the way. This will be her first World Judo Tour final block. Alyssia Poulange (FRA) will compete for the other bronze medal, working to secure her first Tour medal. She lost for bronze at the 2024 Upper Austria Grad Prix and does not want to repeat that result.

Two Japanese judoka with limited previous experience took control of the -57 kg category. One by one the seeded athletes fell to one or the other. Moa Ono (JPN) dealt with number one seed Perisic (SRB), a win secured with an o-uchi-gari for a yuko. She then beat 4th seed, Martha Fawaz (FRA), in their semi-final. Ayami Takano (JPN) dispatched Brazil’s Jessica Lima, the third seed in Linz, in their quarter-final. The second of the listed bronze medal contests could easily have been the final, if not for the Japanese contingent. Both Fawaz and Lima could not finaihs their day on the podium.

The final block will begin at 17:00, following the opening ceremony, and it promises to bring excitement and volume to the Tips Arena. Tune into JudoTV.com to stay up to date with all throws, wins and medals in Upper Austria.