Fight for gold: Giovanna Scoccimarro (right) is defeated by the Japanese Saki Niizoe
Image: AFP
Giovanna Scoccimarra wins five bouts at the World Judo Championships and reaches the final, losing to Saki Niizoe of Japan. It secures the first German medal in Doha.
Judoka Giovanna Scoccimarro provided the first German medal at the World Championships in Doha. The 2017 European Championship runner-up won five fights on her way to the final and only had to admit defeat in the class up to 70 kilograms in the final to the Japanese Saki Niizoe and took silver.
The duel in the third round with Sanne van Dijke was particularly stressful for Scoccimarro. She lost the small final against the Dutchwoman at the Tokyo Olympics. This time it was a particularly long fight, which was only decided in favor of the Germans with the golden score. Giovanna Scoccimarro also won the semi-final against the Austrian Michaela Pollerers after a total of almost five minutes of fighting.
Two-time World Cup fifth-placed Miriam Butkereit only entered the second round after a bye against Hungarian Szabina Gerczak. She then failed a round later at the Briton Katie-Jemima Yeats-Brown, against whom she could not use her ground strength.
The only German judo world champion since 1993 remains Anna-Maria Wagner, who won the class up to 78 kilograms in Budapest in 2021.
