Sagi Muki feeds Israeli fans judo ecstasy

Sagi Muki the flamboyant world champion in 2019 came out of his dip to peak high at the second day of the Grand Slam. For months it hurt our hearts to see him in difficulty, finding neither the mental resources nor the physical resources to reach a summit which seemed to escape his sights more and more.

In Tel Aviv the judo fans found the Sagi Muki they love, arriving quietly on the tatami, almost in slow motion, concentrated and precise, suddenly exploding in all directions, with o-soto-gari on the back leg coming from nowhere, or sode-tsuri-komi-goshi, the kind which only he manages to bring to an end.

Sagi Muki returned to his form in the great days. In the other part of the draw, there was also an athlete whose ability to throw is well known and feared by his opponents. Vedat Albayrak (TUR) is not only a good technician but he is also a rock, difficult to move, especially for Sagi Muki, who likes to rely on the inertia of his opponents to develop his judo. The final, the last of the day, therefore offered a possible dream ending to the day.

For this last final of the day, suddenly the silence was followed by a massive roar, while in the stands, 1000 lights started to shine to support Sagi Muki. The match was to be tense and complicated for both athletes, but only twelve seconds after the start, Muki launched a massive uki-goshi that Albayrak probably didn't see coming.

In less time than it is necessary to write it, in precisely twelve seconds, the Turkish judoka was on his back and ippon was announced. Sagi could stand up and show that he did it again and it was on his home soil. His name was chanted by the crowd.

Joao Fernando (POR) and François Gauthier Drapeau (CAN) battled for the first bronze medal. With a powerful o-soto-otoshi, François Gauthier Drapeau scored a beautiful ippon to take the bronze medal.

Timo Cavelius (GER) and Antonio Esposito (ITA) competed for the second bronze medal. Timo Cavelius produced a clever and perfectly placed sumi-gaeshi to score ippon for his bronze medal.

Seeing some of the old Muki on home ground, with the crowd really lifting him, is a pleasure. That crowd support is the catalyst for adrenaline-fuelled performances and of course creates opportunities for great TV. Seeing Muki fight today was reminiscent of his massive throws here 4 years ago, one of which became ‘Throw of the Year’ at the first ever IJF Judo Awards. The crowd has an impact and Muki is the best example of it today.