In a dramatic turn of events at the 2024 Paris Olympics judo competition, Brazilian judoka Rafaela Silva, the 2016 Rio Olympics champion, lost her bronze medal match against Japan’s Haruka Funakubo in the 57kg category. The closely contested match extended into golden score time, lasting nearly five minutes before Silva was penalized for an irregular move, resulting in her disqualification.Silva’s journey to the bronze medal match included victories over Maysa Pardayeva of Turkmenistan and Eteri Liparteliani of Georgia, before losing to South Korea’s Mimi Huh in the semifinals. The loss was particularly poignant as Silva had returned to competition in 2022 after an eight-year absence due to a doping ban, during which time she won a world championship and a gold medal at the Santiago Pan-American Games.In another surprising development, Japanese judoka Uta Abe, the reigning champion from Tokyo and undefeated since 2019, was eliminated in the quarterfinals of the -52 kg category by Uzbek judoka Diyora Keldiyorova. Abe’s emotional exit, unable to walk alone due to distress, was met with supportive applause from the Parisian crowd.On a more positive note for other nations, Canadian judoka Christa Deguchi advanced to the gold medal match in the 57 kg category after a grueling semi-final victory over France’s Sarah Léonie Cysique. Cysique later secured a bronze medal, demonstrating resilience after her semi-final loss.These events have reshaped the judo competition landscape at the Paris Olympics, with unexpected losses for favored athletes and emerging opportunities for others.
Key points
- Brazilian judoka Rafaela Silva lost the bronze medal match in the 57kg category at the Paris Olympics.
- Japanese champion Uta Abe was unexpectedly eliminated in the quarterfinals of the -52 kg category.
- Canadian Christa Deguchi advanced to the gold medal match in the 57 kg category.
Contradictions👾Some sources state that Uta Abe was eliminated in the 8th round, while others report it was in the quarterfinals.
This discrepancy might be due to different terminology used to describe the same stage of the competition.
