What the Draw Might Offer on Day Seven: +78 kg and +100 kg / IJF.org

Teddy Riner is the man to beat, surely. He’s the 6th seed but the undisputed king of the category. He’s likely to have Magomedomarov (UAE) first, not a walkover, but Olympic silver medallist and 2018 world champion Guram Tushishvili should await him in the quarter-final.

Guram Tushishvili.

Elsewhere in the draw there are men who have moved Teddy, at least, have given him trouble, but none have beaten him in competition. We know Yusupov (UZB) has the strength to pick him up, to counter him. We know Kim (KOR) surprises people with his pace. we also know that Saito has been working on his gripping specifically to manage the Teddy fight. Is any of that enough though to stop Riner from finally winning his third individual Olympic title?

Teddy and Saito in Antalya this year.

The Olympic seedings at +100 kg tell us these should be the quarter-finals:

1 Kim (KOR)

8 Puumaleinen (FIN)

4 Granda (CUB)

5 Saito (JPN)

2 Rakhimov (TJK)

7 Yusupov (UZB)

3 Tushishvili (GEO)

6 Riner (FRA)

Yusupov vs Riner at the Paris Grand Slam.

The semi-finals should therefore be:

Kim vs Granda

and

Rakhimov vs Tushishvili

Not many judo fans will accept those as the likely semi-finals, regardless of seeding. The 11-time world champion, has to be among them, doesn’t he? If the ranking is obeyed fully, the gold medallist should be Kim, beating Rakhimov in the final, with 2023 Masters champion Puumaleinen, 2022 Masters champion Saito and double Olympic champion Krpalek (CZE) all leaving early. Such density and experience means big names are going to fall!

Krpalek and world champion Granda at the Upper Austria Grand Prix, 2024.

The women’s category on day six will also deliver some huge contests. The Olympic seedings at +78 kg tell us these should be the quarter-finals:

1 Dicko (FRA)

8 Nunes (POR)

4 Kim (KOR)

5 Souza (BRA)

2 Hershko (ISR)

7 Asya Tavano (ITA)

3 Ozdemir (TUR)

6 Shiyan Xu (CHN)

Hayun Kim (KOR) on her way to fight for bronze at the 2024 World Championships.

The semi-finals should therefore be:

Dicko vs Kim

and

Hershko vs Ozdemir

Hershko and Ozdemir at the 2023 Tel Aviv Grand Slam.

If the rankings were to be obeyed fully, the gold medallist would be Dicko, beating Hershko to the top spot in the final. However, 4-time Olympic medallist Idalys Ortiz (CUB) is in Hershko’s quarter. She’s not had the best year but she’s here, she’s qualified and she knows better than anyone how to win an Olympic medal. Below, in pool D, is Akira Sone (JPN), the current Olympic champion, having won on her own home soil 3 years ago. She’s capable, experienced, technical but we or on Dicko’s home soil now!

Dicko vs Sone in Kazakhstan, 2024.

There are just 24 hours to go to know some of the answers and we can’t wait!