Catherine Beauchemin-Pinard was uncompromising on Saturday, on the tatamis of the Grand Slam in Tbilisi, where she had a perfect day to climb to the highest step of the podium. An important victory which aligns perfectly with his preparation for the Paris Olympic Games.
Posted at 5:03 p.m.
The world number one in the under 63 kg category completed her tournament by winning by waza-ari against the Polish Angelika Szymanska. An opponent against whom she lost in her only outing against her at the Jerusalem Masters Tournament in 2022.
This time, it was Beauchemin-Pinard who had the upper hand thanks to a waza-ari scored in the very last minute of the fight. “I’ve been practicing a left-handed technique for a while and it opened the door for me,” said the champion at the end of the day. I tried it, she dodged and I was immediately able to move on to get the waza-ari. »
Ahead, the Quebecer then took the duel to the ground to run out the remaining seconds on the clock, but everything almost turned against her. Szymanska tried to immobilize the Quebecer with an armlock, but was unable to achieve an ippon.
“I was a little greedy and I wasn’t careful enough,” admitted the Canadian. At first, I was afraid, because I was in a really bad situation, but I managed to surround his body with my legs and that allowed me to avoid the worst. I was happy to get through it and go to the end, even if it wasn’t my best end to the fight. »
Beauchemin-Pinard, who had previously won four fights, including two in overtime, thus signs the fifth Grand Slam victory of his career. What’s more, this new gain will allow him to remain at the top of the world rankings and move a little closer to the Paris Olympic Games.
“For me, it’s an important step to win a tournament before Paris. I wanted to have a really good weekend and I can say that I am exactly where I want to be in my preparation. I am confident and I feel good physically. I will be careful to rest well in the coming days and I will be able to set myself new challenges next weekend,” concluded the one who will be at the Grand Slam in Antalya, Turkey, in a week.
Also competing in Tbilisi on Saturday, Arthur Margelidon (-73 kg) and François Gauthier-Drapeau (-81 kg) were both eliminated in the second round in their respective categories.
Louis Krieber-Gagnon (-90 kg), Shady ElNahas (-100 kg) and Kyle Reyes (-100 kg) will be the last three Canadians to walk the mats of this Grand Slam which will conclude on Sunday.
Two Canadian medals in Germany
Several maple leaf judokas were also in action on Saturday for the international tournaments in Bremen and Thuringia, Germany.
Of the lot, two made their way to the third step of the podium, namely the British Columbians Nathan Thiel (-55 kg) and Lowan Le Bris (-66 kg). Registered in the under-18s, the two compatriots signed six victories in seven outings to leave with a bronze medal around their necks.
“The guys have had fairly similar journeys. They lost in the quarter-finals, but they showed character to come back strong in the repechage and get a medal. This is a very good result and it is very promising for the future. They are good on the ground and they used this aspect well,” commented coach Alexandre Émond, who guides the men’s troops in Bremen.
Zachary Harris (-73 kg) finished with a win and a loss, while Justin Webber (-55 kg) and Jean-David Bouchard (+90 kg) were defeated in the first round.
At the same time, but a little further south, Quebecer Melody Grenier (U18) and Ontarian Kiera Burt (U21) obtained the best Canadian results at the women’s tournament in Thuringia, finishing fifth and seventh respectively.
In the under 52 kg category, Grenier ended his day with five wins and two losses, including a heartbreak in the bronze final. “Melody stood out today (Saturday). It’s a first experience for her in Thuringia and she looked really good. She knew how to manage her fights adequately and she was really close to a medal. All in all, she can be satisfied! » declared coach Antoine Bouchard.
Burt (-78 kg) also managed to do well, even though she was fighting in a higher weight category for the occasion. “She is normally in the under 70 kg category, but she didn’t let that dictate her. She faced much heavier opponents and she did very well,” concluded Bouchard.
Catherine Toshkov (3-2, -57 kg), Loika Robertson (2-1, -63 kg) and Hailey Ko (1-1, -57 kg), in the under-21 category, as well as Carla Van Zyl (3 -2, -57 kg), Hayden Thibault (2-2, -57 kg) and Abigail Smith (2-2, -70 kg), in the under-18 category, were the other Canadians to win at least one fight on Saturday .
Valeria Kostrovets (U18, -48 kg), Addyson Tamura (U18, -48 kg), Alandra Steiger (U18, -63 kg), Kylee Esparbes (U21, -48 kg), Laurence Gagnon (U21, -57 kg) and Alisa Kofman (U21, +78 kg) could not find the path to victory.
With the Thuringian women’s tournament now over, all eyes will be on Bremen on Sunday when it will be the turn of the under-21 athletes to take to the tatamis at this international tournament.
Vincent Nepton (-60kg), Eliandre Barriault-Tremblay (-66kg), Luke Thomson (-66kg), Daniil Kremerman (-66kg), Matis Ganet (-73kg) and Oleksandr Kaplin (-90kg) will follow of the party.
2024-03-23 21:12:18
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