Catching the Win Against the Run of Play

A lapse in concentration or a sprinkling of magic can turn a contest on its head and in the case of ‘ippon’ there is no way back. We see it at every event, from children’s competitions up to the Olympic Games.

In Baku, there have already been several instances just like this, moments of brilliance which have shocked, thrilled or delighted the spectators and online fans, garnering a social media frenzy, comments everywhere.

At -60 kg Jonathan Yang (USA), a junior, threw top seed Balabay Aghayev (AZE) for ippon in golden score. He had already come close to losing in ne-waza and was two penalties down but he found his entry and went for it. A massive seoi-otoshi captured Aghayev’s balance at exactly the right moment, leaving the crown of the day even more at sea.

Also at -60 kg, Ahmad Yusifov (AZE) threw and held Davlatov (KAZ) from a score down to win the gold medal. This was an immense comeback and brought him and the host nation an incredible title on the first day of competition.

At -57 kg, in Marica Perisic’s (SRB) first fight of the championship, a sumi-otoshi put her a waza-ari behind but without hesitation she threw for ippon with ko-uchi-gari and turned a disastrous start into a win and eventually a bronze medal.

Athletes’ unshakable attacking attitudes and persistent effort seen at the highest level of judo are remarkable to witness. This is an instruction manual for the young, a guide to how you must behave when under pressure, when your future is at stake, when you make a mistake that you simply have to fix.

In judo, anything can happen. This will never not be true. When there is a second on the clock, there is a chance. Never give up!