The first to climb to the top of the podium and for the second time in the tournament, was Luciana Julca. The national judoka won the gold medal in the Junior category (-57kg), after defeating her compatriot Romina Baltazar, who won the silver. It should be noted that Julca also won the gold medal last Wednesday at the Cadet Lima 2022 Pan American Cup.
Yumiko Tanabe faced her compatriot Zoila Nevado in the -70 kg final, taking the gold medal. While Nevado got the silver one. Another national judoka who also won a gold medal was Javier Saavedra (-81 kg) by defeating his similar Benjamín Galarreta, who achieved second place.
Finally, Sebastián Otiniano in a close fight beat the Uruguayan Agustín Gorriz in the -73 kg final. The Peruvian was painted gold in the tournament.
“I am excited about this medal because this has not been my year, but the drive of my coaches has resulted in this result. Fighting the final with Galarreta is proof that Peruvian judo is at a good level”, said Javier Saavedra after receiving the gold medal.
Those who also achieved a silver medal were the Peruvians Julio Cusi (-66 kg.), Idania Ambulay (-78 kg.) and Eillynn López (-63 kg). While Arnold Prado (-60 kg.), Mateo Cóndor (-60 kg.) and Franco Baltazar (-66 kg.) hung the bronze.
The judo party continues on the weekend. On Saturday, September 17 and Sunday, September 18, the Lima 2022 Pan American Open will break fire at Polideportivo 3 de la Videna.
The Lima 2022 Pan American Open is a tournament that adds points for judokas to achieve their long-awaited classification for the Santiago 2023 Pan American Games and the Paris 2024 Olympic Games. The Junior and Cadet Pan American Cup positions athletes of these ages in the ranking World.
