Judo World Championships day 4: three more World Champions

All the latest developments on the 2024 Abu Dhabi World Judo Championships.

Transcript

00:00Welcome to day 4 of the Abu Dhabi World Judo Championships.

00:04Awarded by IJF President Mr. Marius Wieser,

00:07Mr. Jean-Luc Rouget has been honored with the prestigious Judo Tentan.

00:12The under 70kg category produced an all-French final.

00:16Margot Pinot was determined all day with impressive judo,

00:20but her compatriot Marie Evgaye was also destined for the final after storming through the preliminaries.

00:27Knowing each other so well, it was a cagey affair that went into golden score,

00:32but Evgaye overreached and Pinot was primed to capitalize,

00:36countering her teammate for Waza-Ari and the world title.

00:40They were presented their medals by His Excellency Mohamed Bin Tallulh Valderrey,

00:45President of the UAE Judo Federation.

00:49I'm world champion. That's crazy.

00:52It was the first words on my mind.

00:55I dream about this title. When I was younger,

00:58I dream to become world champion because it's a huge title for me.

01:05In the under 90kg category,

01:082017 world champion Nemanja Majdov took on the relatively unknown Goki Tajima.

01:16They both looked solid throughout the preliminaries.

01:21This final also ventured into golden score

01:23and it was Tajima who conjured up the power to score and cement his place in the history books.

01:31Fourth president of Croatia and IOC member Mrs. Kolinda Grabar-Kitarovic awarded the medals.

01:43I always go for the win,

01:45but I also want to be an entertainer and that's what I tried to show today.

01:51The under 78kg final saw two fierce competitors lock horns,

01:56Germany's Anna Maria Wagner who was on top form

01:59and Italy's Alice Balandi who was looking to claim her first world title.

02:04In the final, the more experienced Wagner earned her second red back patch by forcing Balandi to submit.

02:12CEO of MET Group Chairman Mr. Benjamin Lakatos awarded Wagner her gold medal.

02:21Right now, I can't believe it.

02:25It was the last three years were so rollercoaster and this time again before the Olympics.

02:33This medal means a lot to me and it was a hard fight again for the Olympic ticket and I think now I can say I have it.

02:44As the sun sets on the fourth day of the judo world championship in Abu Dhabi,

02:48the air is electric with excitement as athletes revel in the joy of qualifying for the Paris Olympic Games.