In this all-Japanese final, both attacked and kept the pace high but in normal time there were no scores, each judoka neutralising the other. A m minute into golden score, Kondo looked to be dominating, searching for a way to score while Shirakane was on his knees but a moment of genius from the latter saw him rise up and counter Kondo for ippon; it was a magnificent throw and won him the gold in his first grand slam appearance.
In the first bronze medal contest Turan Bayramov (AZE) and Iznaur Saaev (IJF) continued the theme of dynamism. It was a flurry of movement throughout, both judoka attacking non-stop while also feeling their vulnerabilities enough to avoid danger. However, a big, direct Tani-otoshi attack from Bayramov left him open to be countered and that is exactly what happened. Saaev adjusted his weight perfectly and scored ippon. tHis is Iznaur Saadi’s fourth grand slam medal.
The second bronze medal contest pitted Sukhbat Byambasuren (MGL) against Mehrzod Sufiev (TJK), an all-Asian line-up. Staying on trend, it was a lively contest, one which raised the volume of the spectators, cheering a whooping at every attack. There was almost nothing between them but Byambasuren found tiny spaces from which to attack. More precisely than Sufiev and he placed two yuko scores on the board before the time ran out; they were enough.
Final (-60 kg)
Bronze Medal Fights (-60 kg)
