Portuguese Catarina Costa wins gold in Brasilia

Portuguese lightweight Catarina Costa was crowned the first Brasilia Grand Slam gold medallist after denying world number 26 Gabriela Chibana (BRA) a fairytale start for the hosts.

Two-time Grand Slam bronze medallist and Montreal Grand Prix silver medallist Costa was pencilled in as the favourite by many experts and lived up to those expectations as she produced a solid performance to claim her first Grand Slam title. COSTA was unfazed by the chants of Brazil by the capacity crowd and countered a morote-seoi-nage with a sode-tsurikomi-goshi for the first and only score in the U48kg final.

In the first semi-final world number 26 Gabriela Chibana (BRA) edged past London 2012 Olympic bronze medallist Csernoviczki Eva (HUN) by a waza-ari score.

In the second semi-final Costa saw off Hohhot Grand Prix bronze medallist Katharina Menz (GER) by the same scoreline to advance to the first final of the competition.

The first bronze medal contest was won by Montreal Grand Prix bronze medallist Shira Rishony (ISR) who narrowly defeated Menz by the slender margin of a single waza-ari score to strike first at the Brasilia Grand Slam.

The second bronze medal was won by Baku Grand Slam winner Laura Martinez Abelenda (ESP) who edged past Csernoviczki by a waza-ari score.