Baskhuu Yondonperenlei again superb for Mongolia

At the category U66kg world number one and Olympic silver medallist Baul An (KOR) went through the preliminaries of the Grand Slam in Paris without major difficulties to face Baskhuu Yondonperenlei (MGL), fifth in the world and on fire since the morning, with a significant win against Vazha Margvelashvili (GEO) in the semi-final.

The first attack came from the most successful Korean judoka on the circuit right now, with a low seoi-nage for no score but from there on, the match was too balanced for any attack to be successful and it was An Baul who started to commit false attacks. After a long golden score period, the third penalty fell on An Baul, who didn't play it well from a tactical point of view against the wall of bricks that is Baskhuu Yondonperenlei. The Mongolian won the gold medal.

There was one last French competitor, out of four engaged in the competition in this category, who was present in the final block. Daikii Bouda (FRA) was up against Vazha Margvelashvili (GEO). Bouda resisted for a long time and we had to wait for the last forty seconds to see the Olympic silver medallist from execute a powerful hip movement for a clear ippon.

With no record on the international scene, the presence of Luukas Saha of Finland was a surprise and a good one since the Finnish judoka showed some really good judo during the preliminary rounds. The last step was a big one and probably too big as he faced Ryoma Tanaka (JPN) for a spot on the podium. After only 23 seconds, Tanaka, winner last year here in Paris, scored ippon with a one arm shoulder movement. No chance for Saha.