Grigalashvili and Kaju confirm their greatness

Georgia’s Tato Grigalashvili and Japan’s Haruka Kaju confirmed their status as judo greats by winning the World Judo Championships titles in Baku.

Grigalashvili returned to the top of the world podium in the men’s -81kg category. The Georgian, already a three-time world champion, had to dig deep against Azerbaijan’s Zelim Tckaev in a final that stretched far into golden score.

Kaju delivered another confirmation in the women’s -63kg category. The Japanese judoka defended her world title successfully by defeating Kerem Primo of Israel in the final, combining sharp attacking judo with excellent work on the ground.

It could not be a more perfect end to the fourth day of competition to have a host nation athlete pitted against a five-time world championship finalist. Tckaev worked hard to get to the -81kg but facing Grigalashvili is no easy task, not for anyone, even if they do have the crowd inside the National Gymnastics Arena on their side.

These two judoka put everything they had on the tatami, all their spirit, their national pride, their heart. They gave the world of judo an epic battle, first of gripping, then of attacks, counters and survival. They took turns collecting penalties but everyone was waiting for the score that would decide the contest; it could come at any moment.

As golden score began there was palpable anticipation in the arena, no-one knowing how it would end, each nation’s supporters waving their flags and calling for their heroes.

It took almost ten minutes for the score to come, a waza-ari for a counter. There was a moment of silence as certainty was checked and double-checked by video review. Grigalashvili had done it again; four times a world champion! Tckaev has his third world medal but will have to come back for another edition to win his first gold.

“The last three months were a very important period of preparation for me, said Grigalashvili. “There were changes within the team, particularly after our head coach left, so we had to adapt and reorganise ourselves. With the new team, my personal coaches and everyone around me, we continued to work together towards the same goal. In the end, all that collective effort allowed us to achieve this title once again, for the fourth time.”

Kaju claims second world crown

Israeli Kerem Primo had an absolutely outstanding morning session in Baku. With two World Judo Tour medals and several good junior results, the 21 year old fought better than ever before to reach her first senior world final block.

She defeated world medallists Szymanska of Poland and Lkhagvatogoo of Mongolia en route to a final with the so-far undefeated Kaju. This is the kind of performance athletes remember for the whole of their lives. Primo did everything right in the morning session.

Primo arrived with positive gripping and a clear strategy but Haruka Kaju was just too strong for her. The Japanese powerhouse struck first with a seoi-otoshi for a yuko before securing a hold. Everyone in the arena thought that was it, all over in the first minute, but after nine seconds Primo escaped.

Primo’s reprieve did not last long as despite the escape, Kaju continued to work in ne-waza and found a new position with which to hold the young Israeli and this time there was no escape possible. Kaju is a double world champion while Primo can be proud of a great performance to earn the silver medal.

After the final, Kaju spoke warmly about her win, “This world championships was a very important step on the road towards the Los Angeles Olympic Games, so I came here extremely focused. I wasn’t necessarily expecting to go so far, but I took each contest one at a time and concentrated only on the opponent in front of me. I always try not to become defensive. I want to remain hungry, keep moving forward and constantly look for opportunities to attack. That is the kind of judo I want to produce.”