Baby takes bronze and Brazil bids farewell to the Almada Grand Prix with three medals
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Brazil said goodbye to the Grand Prix of judo in Almada (Portugal) with three medals. This Sunday (29), Rafael Silva, Baby, won bronze in the category over 100 kilos, surpassing compatriot João Cesarino, by accumulating three shidos (punishments), in the confrontation that earned him a place on the podium. South Korean Kim Minjong was the weight champion.
Ranked ninth in the category by the International Judo Federation (IJF), Baby ended the Grand Prix with four wins in five fights. In addition to Cesarino, he defeated Cypriot Antoniou Giannis, Kazakh Zhambyl Turgynaliyev and South Korean Youn Jaegu, losing only in the semifinals to Georgian Saba Inaneishvili (who won silver). Third place will earn 350 points in the world and Olympic ranking. The latter, launched on June 24, 2022, will define the qualifiers for the Paris 2024 Games.
Cesarino, who started the tournament in the 95th position of the ranking, opened the campaign beating the North American Christian Konoval. Then he overcame Azerbaijani Dzhamal Gamzatkhanov. In the quarterfinals, he did not overcome the Dutchman Jur Spijkers, fifth in the world, but recovered in the repechage, beating the Ukrainian Khammo Yakiv. The Brazilian will receive 252 points for the fifth position in Almada.
Another seven judokas represented Brazil in Almada this Sunday: Marcelo Gomes, Giovanni Ferreira (both in the category up to 90 kilos), Eduardo Bettoni, Leonardo Gonçalves (both up to 100 kilos), Millena Silva, Samanta Soares (both up to 78 kilos) and Giovanna Santos (above 78 kilos). None, however, advanced to medal disputes.
In the two previous days of competition, Brazilian judo was on the podium twice. On Friday (27), Rafaela Silva took the silver medal in the under-57 kg category. On Saturday (28), Gabriella Mantena repeated the world and Olympic champion and was runner-up in the category up to 63 kilos. Like Cesarino, Gabriella won last year’s national selection, which qualified her for a spot on the national team.
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