Canadian Duo Poised for Unusual Olympic Showdown

The various judo divisions are shaping up to be a truly international affair at the 2024 Olympic Games, with the medals likely to be shared by judoka from many different nations. But as for the women’s 57kg category, Canada has pretty much got the gold medal on lock… regardless of who goes on to represent them.

The country boasts the best in the business at that weight in Jessica Klimkait and Christa Deguchi, with judo officials in Canada now facing the prospect of trying to figure out who will represent them in the 57kg division.

The Great White North

It’s fair to say that women’s martial arts in Canada is flying right now.

In addition to Klimkait and Deguchi, Catherine Beauchemin-Pinard is the top-ranked athlete in the 63kg division while over in the UFC, Jasmine Jasudavicius and Gillian Robertson have been active at the top levels of the organization.

Jamey-Lyn Horth, meanwhile, is the 8/11 favorite in the betting UK to defeat Veronica Hardy. A betting calculator confirms a return of $0.73 for every $1 wagered – highlighting Horth’s perceived advantage.

Klimkait and Deguchi may one day eye a switch into MMA, but right now they have bigger fish to fry as preparations for the 2024 Olympics in Paris continue to ramp up.

And here’s the rub for Canadian sports fans: only one judoka can represent their country per weight class, meaning that one of these former World Championship gold medallists will be forced to miss out on the sporting pinnacle and watch on from home.

You don’t envy Judo Canada, who will ultimately have to decide who represents them in the 57kg division. They may even create a one-off meeting between Klimkait and Deguchi to save them from having to make the decision!

World Domination

If Judo Canada are tasked with making the final call, the World Championships in May could be the decisive factor.

It was Deguchi who celebrated 57kg gold there, defeating Haruka Funakubo in the final with relative ease after a near-miss with a waza-ari was followed by ippon with plenty of time left on the clock.

It was the second World Championship gold of the 28-year-old’s career, following her 57kg triumph in Tokyo back in 2019.

Klimkait, meanwhile, had to settle for bronze. She had lost in the quarter-finals, but dusted herself down and rallied during the repechage, defeating the ever-dangerous Sarah-Leonie Cysique to finish in third place.

That followed the pattern of the Pan-American Games in September, where history would repeat itself with Deguchi claiming gold and Klimkait having to settle for bronze.

So you might think that Judo Canada have an easy decision on their hands given Deguchi’s supremacy in 2023, but that does a disservice to the incredible experience that Klimkait has on the big stage.

A former world champion from 2021, the 26-year-old already has an Olympic medal to her name – the bronze she claimed in Tokyo back in 2020, which meant that she became the first female medallist for Canada at the Summer Games.

She, or indeed Deguchi, will be hoping to double that haul next year…