Pleasure is the essential ingredient for success of Kim Polling

Pleasure is the most important ingredient for success for Dutch world ranking leader Kim Polling. Although she couldn’t train as usual over the last few weeks, it was the pleasure that gave her the boost to take the gold at the Grand Prix in Tbilisi.

World number one Kim Polling won gold for the first time since becoming European Games gold medallist last summer as she came from behind to beat world bronze medallist Fanny Estelle Posvite of France. It was the French fighter who had the advantage with a yuko score but Posvite - who is locked in a domestic battle against world champion Gevrise Emane - was thrown for ippon with exactly a minute remaining to extend her lead at the helm of the U70kg category. The last confrontation, in Astana’s World Championships, was won by Posvite, so it was payback time.

In the first semi-final Asian Championships winner Tsend Ayush Naranjargal (MGL) fell to Posvite by a waza-ari which came moments after both judoka were penalised for passivity. In the second semi-final Polling  defeated former world bronze medallist Katarzyna Klys of Poland by the smallest margin possible as a shido against the Polish fighter was the only time the referee was called upon.

The first bronze medal was claimed by African Championships silver medallist Assmaa Niang (MOR) who threw Tsend Ayush with a tomoe-nage for a yuko score to take the lead with 45 seconds left and spent the remainder of the time winding down the clock but her opponent was unable to take advantage. Niang finished with three shidos to her name but also with the only score of the contest to secure the final position on the podium.

The second bronze medal contest was won by Junior European silver medallist Elisavet Teltsidou of Greece who earned her first Grand Prix honours by defeating Klys after just 50 seconds by ippon and was elated with the result.