Of course, the tactical dimension is always present. It is part of the panoply of high-level judoka and is interesting to dissect. Yet today, in the lightweight categories we have seen judoka go ahead, looking for the ippon above all; it was Gefen Primo against Diyora Keldiyorova who bravely tried her luck in the first seconds.
The two Canadian champions were a real pleasure to see and it is certain that they had not come to Ulaanbaatar to make up the numbers. Dominating the category, head and shoulders above, they were focused on only one objective, to meet in the final and to take the lead over each other. For this, they passed the rounds one after the other, both without taking any risks, but also taking some. What may seem like a paradox is not. Sure of their judo and their abilities, they are in total control, which allows them to free themselves and take the right risk to attack, knowing that they are sufficiently confident in themselves not to fear the counter-attack.
To achieve this, they both do a lot of work on the hands and on the movement. It's about kuzushi, tsukuri, kake, the basics of judo. Jessica Klimkait, who we know with kneeling seoi-nage attacks can sometimes be close to the false attack margin, in Mongolia managed to correct this to launch unstoppable movements. Christa Deguchi knows how to rely on powerful and efficient judo, both standing and on the ground. She is a complete judoka. Both Klimkait and Deguchi are experts in risk management.
The same comments can apply to Amandine Buchard. All her opponents know that she likes kata-guruma and that she is able to throw with it in all directions. Even today her kata-guruma has wreaked havoc, but so has her ippon-seoi-nage, because having a tokui-waza is not enough at this level.
As we are talking about France, let's stay there, with the performance of Romain Valadier Picard in -60kg. Not at all frightened by his illustrious Korean opponent in the semi-finals, he only took a few seconds to score with a shoulder movement and conclude with an armlock. Nothing but classic; it works and it's beautiful.
Ulaanbaatar is already a good vintage and we can not wait to see the next two days.