Eleudis Valentim back at world level after Zagreb victory

Brazilian Eleudis Valentim booked her best career win since 2012 claiming the gold at the Grand Prix in Zagreb in her category U52kg. Being second top seeded athlete Hungarian Pupp Reka qualified for the final to be opposed to Eleudis Valentim, who was ranked 3rd after the draw.

Valentim won the Grand Slam in Rio in 2012, but in all honesty that field wasn’t the best. In Zagreb she showed to be able to meet with some of the best U52kg. The first three minutes went by with both athletes neutralising each other, but Pupp, being less active than here opponent, was penalised with a shido for passivity, which should have pushed her to be positive, but this was the time that actually Valentim chose to attack and score a waza-ari with a left-handed tsuri-komi-goshi before holding Pupp with an immobilisation for ippon and a first gold on the occasion of a Grand Prix.

Angelica Delgado was expecting a place in the final this time, but after having been eliminated by the Brazilian during the preliminary rounds, she qualified for the bronze medal contest where she had to face the other Brazilian Jessica Pereira. Pereira was close to score with a o-soto-gari attempt but Delgado did not land enough on her side. Nevertheless, with the Brazilian being more active, Delgado was penalised with a shido for passivity. Just before the last minute, it was the American who put her opponent in danger with the same technique but again for no score. Delgado was penalised a second time for holding the judogi on the same side too long without attacking. With only penalties on the scoreboard it was time for golden score. After 21 seconds in golden score Delgado was penalised a third time giving the victory to Pereira and Brazil.

Slovenia secured a medal and qualified both athletes Anja Stangar (SLO) and Petra Nareks (SLO) for the second bronze medal match of the category. Half way to the end, Stangar applied a powerful shime-waza technique for a ippon.