But we will also remember that if Tushishvili had the full support of the public, his opponent of Georgian origin was also encouraged and the noise level, like the elimination phases, looked particularly high when both judoka stepped on the tatami.
Before that, the competition was spectacular, which explains, among other things, why it took place so quickly. Ippon, Ippon, Ippon, we no longer knew how to give head as the commitment of the judoka was total from the first contest on.
Andy Granda (CUB), world champion in 2022, was one of the entertainers of the morning, before he was defeated by Ushangi Kokauri in the semi-final. But obviously the one who made the audience explode with joy was Guram Tushishvili, whose presence and commitment were total from the start of the competition. None of his opponents really managed to resist him, both standing, left and right, and on the ground. Kokauri was warned.
The moment the whole crowd wanted was coming, the moment of the last contest of an unbelievable three day competition and they were expecting something special. That something came in the form or a neat seoi-otoshi, when Tushishvili just dropped under Kakauri and executed the perfect ippon. Unstoppable it was and this was just pure magic. This gold medal, number four in Tbilisi this year for the host country and gold medal number five in a grand slam for Tushishvili.
Saba Inaneishvili (GEO) provided a second chance at a medal by advancing to the first bronze medal contest against Yerassyl Kazhybayev (KAZ). It was not long before Saba Inaneishvili took the initiative and the lead with a massive soto-makikomi for a waza-ari, but only for a few seconds as the score was upgraded to ippon offering the victory to the Georgian much to the delight of the crowd.
The second contest for a bronze medal was between Marius Fizel (SVK) and Andy Granda (CUB). It was a one sided contest, with Granda dominating the debates totally and scoring a with masterpiece, a left handed tai-otoshi for ippon, the kind of movement you learn when you start judo. Well done Andy Granda.
Final (+100 kg)
Bronze Medal Fights (+100 kg)
