Daria Bilodid needed to be aggressive against Dolgova

Daria Bilodid won her second European senior title and defeated last year’s champion Irina Dolgova in the final of the European Games. Not only Bilodid but also Georgii Zantaraia completed the party with a second gold medal for the Ukraine.

You managed to resist the pressure: "I am in a really good shape now and I am happy that I was able to win.”

The result was the same as two years ago. "It is twice as nice to have won two titles [2017 European championships and Minsk 2019 European Games]. I have competed at Europeans before, but not at an Olympic-style competition like European Games, so this is a great experience for me. It was good because last year I was not able to compete at Europeans because of an injury.”

How was your final bout against Dolgova today: "I attacked right away. Then I just tried to continue to attack and to win. I had fought Dolgova before, and in order to prepare for the opponents my coach and I are watching videos and discuss them."

You set quite a few record!: "I am setting the highest goals for myself and I am not paying any attention to the age."

What happened to judo in the Ukraine after your titles? "It is not such a big sport in Ukraine but, year by year, it is getting more popular. People start to recognise me on the street, which is nice."

Silver medallist Dolgova

Irina Dolgova had a good day in Minsk as we didn’t see her so often in 2019 with just a bronze medal at the Grand Slam in Ekaterinburg.  "Of course, I feel tired by the end of the day. I want to come back to the village, to wash up and have a good rest."

You know Bilodid well but it must hard to fight her: "I try to find an approach to every opponent. Now it's much better. I fought with her several times, but have never defeated her. Still, everyone has weak and strong points."

There’s quite a difference in height isn’t it? "I was trying to impose myself on the fight, but it was hard to pass through such long hands. Of course, I wanted to win the gold, but in general I am satisfied with the silver."