Cancan, 20, represents the next generation of French heavyweight judo. The 2025 junior world and European champion had continued her rapid progression on the senior circuit, earning grand slam bronze medals in Tbilisi and Ulaanbaatar this year, following her Zagreb Grand Prix victory in 2025.
Cancan’s reach was expected to pose problems for Raz Hershko, but she is now exceptionally experienced on the circuit and took advantage of a lapse in concentration from her opponent to launch an incredibly precise and powerful arai-goshi that sent the French judoka onto her back. It was ippon and a seventh grand slam gold medal for the Hershko.
After the final, the gold medal winner explained, "Winning another grand slam means a lot, especially mentally. After the Paris Olympics, I told myself that to continue I had to achieve things I’ve never done before. It took over ten years of daily hard work to build this mindset and tune out the noise but I learned that if you surround yourself with the right people and truly believe in yourself, you can achieve any dream. Heading into Baku, the expectation is always gold. That pressure is a good thing; I love the adrenaline, raising the flag, and hearing the anthem."
Safa Soliman (EGY) and Helena Vuković (CRO) met in the first bronze-medal contest. From the outset, Safa Soliman completely smothered Vuković’s medal ambitions and won by ippon to claim an historic grand slam medal for Egyptian women’s judo.
Siwar Dhawedi (TUN) and Emma Melis Aktas (EST) contested the second bronze medal. Aktas gave her opponent no chance, countering her first with ura-nage for an initial waza-ari before finishing the contest decisively on the ground with an immobilisation.
Final (+78 kg)
Bronze Medal Fights (+78 kg)
