Highlights From the Women’s Preliminaries - Day 2

Odette Giuffrida (ITA), Ariane Toro Soler (ESP) and Ayumi Leiva Sanchez (ESP) were leaning towards an all-European podium but a certain superstar of global judo shook that objective.

Below: Ayumi Leiva Sanchez at her best in Baku.

The one slip can and must be forgiven. Mascha Ballhaus (GER) did everything she could to join her Italian and Spanish colleagues. In her quarter-final against Olympic and 4-time world champion Uta Abe (JPN) she almost pulled off the seemingly impossible by throwing her with a massive pick-up. The score would undoubtedly be all-important and as the waza-ari was called, the suspense became palpable.

There was less than a minute left on the clock and Ballhaus was already collecting penalties. Abe pressed at maximum strength and Ballhaus could not withstand it and with only 4 seconds remaining she had to accept a third shido. This was a huge disappointment for the spirited German but also a show of power from Uta Abe. We could not have imagined a final block without her and she made sure we didn’t have to.

At the end of the preliminary session, it was Ariane Toro Soler and Uta Abe who moved into the final. Toro Soler executed an outstanding ko-uchi-gari against Giuffrida in their semi-final, giving herself a very special moment to enjoy. To compete against the undisputed queen of the category for a world championship gold medal is the culmination of a lot of work and a lot of heart.

To see all four top seeds in action again, fighting for medals in the day-two final block, tune in to JudoTV.com where all the action will be live from 6pm local time.