Paris Olympics 2024: Georgian Bekauri retains judo title, Croatia’s Matic wins historic gold

Georgia’s Lasha Bekauri retained the men’s under 90kg judo title he won in Tokyo three years ago, while Croatia’s Barbara Matic won her country’s first gold medal of the Paris Games on Wednesday in the under 70kg category.

Bekauri, now a double Olympic champion at the age of 24, beat Japan’s Sanshiro Murao in a controversial final that saw the Georgian awarded a decisive second waza-ari after a video review just four seconds before the end of the bout.

The Japanese, a world championship bronze medallist, was denied a similar decision on an attack of his own seconds earlier, leaving his coach in disbelief.

Murao scored an early waza-ari before Bekauri equalised two minutes and 37 seconds into the bout.

The Georgian has already set his sights on a potential “three-peat” when the Games arrive in Los Angeles four years from now.

“I will continue to train everyday, my goal is gold of course”, he said.

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Twice world championship medallist Bekauri earlier eliminated Georgian-born Tristani Mosakhlishvili of Spain in a tense semi-final, winning on a golden score when the referee penalised his opponent for a third time.

Both judokas hugged and saluted the crowd hand-in-hand after their bout.

Mosakhlishvili, who competed for Georgia at youth level before switching to Spain in 2020, later lost to Greece’s Theodoros Tselidis in a bronze medal match.

Murao took out Maxime-Gael Ngayap Hambou in the semi-finals, winning by ippon after inflicting two waza-ari on his French opponent.

Ngayap Hambou recovered to win a dramatic bronze against Brazilian Rafael Macedo, when his opponent received a third penalty five seconds before the gong.

The medal was France’s seventh in the judo competition in Paris, though the hosts are still waiting for their first gold.

Matic defeated German Olympic debutant Miriam Butkereit in an all-European clash in the women’s contest, scoring with an early waza-ari and then controlling the rest of the fight to win a historic first-ever Olympic judo gold for Croatia.

“It’s a dream. I am very very happy. I am really proud of myself,” said Matic, who was Croatia’s flagbearer in Friday’s opening ceremony.

“Now I am European champion and Olympic champion, I am very very satisfied.”

Butkereit beat Austria’s Michaela Polleres, the Tokyo Games silver medallist, on a golden score to reach the final.

Polleres and Belgium’s Gabriella Willems won the women’s bronze medals.