In international judo, day three of the Tbilisi Grand Slam was another smash for host country Georgia as the heavyweights rose.
Horse -90kg, Beka Gviniashvili was on fire, a combination of clever sweeps and brute strength earned the Georgian a place in the final against Krisztian Toth and before there was another sweep, earned him the gold.
It was a fantastic display of sportsmanship, showing typical judo values of friendship and respect, and drawing the eager crowd to their feet to honor two great warriors.
The President of the Georgian Judo Federation Giorgi Atabegashvili presented the medals.
Wagnerian rise
Current -78kg World Champion Anna Maria Wagner continued her brilliant return to competition, with every uchi-mata on display blasting every way through the preliminary round.
The German judoka faced off against former world champion Mayra Aguiar of Brazil in the final, where every determination and effort yielded a decisive victory. Wagner has not lost a fight on the World Judo Tour since she became world champion.
She received her medal from the IJF Event Director Dr. Lisa Alan.
“I think we’ll see at the World Championships. Hopefully I’ll be at 100% at the World Championships and then we’ll see,” said Wagner after her victory.
One of Georgia’s strongest categories is the -100kg, with Onise Saneblidze always at the top of this highly competitive category. And on that occasion, he finally stepped up to win his first-ever Grand Slam gold.
In the final, it was the most powerful pickup that distinguished him in the minds of the home crowd.
He received his medal from the Vice President of the Georgian Judo Federation, Tamaz Naveriani
“I can’t even describe this feeling,” declared an enthusiastic Saneblidze Judo. Thank you for the fantastic support and this fantastic atmosphere here in the Tbilisi sports hall.”
At +78kg, France’s Julia Tolofua threw Nihel Cheikh Rouhou of Tunisia to take the gold medal and received her honors from the IJF Education & Coaching Director, Mohamed Meridja
show
In the +100kg category, last year’s heavyweight champion Gela Zaalishvili defended his title in phenomenal fashion. The stadium was filled with the deafening screams of the ecstatic Georgian fans, in an absolutely incredible manner
A fantastic element of the Tbilisi Grand Slam is that the home nation can proudly stand on the winners’ podium while also putting on a spectacular show
