Second Grand Prix victory for Kisumi Omori

At just 23 years old, Kisumi Omori of Japan continues to make waves in the judo world, adding another gold to her growing collection. Competing at the Zagreb event, Omori, already a champion at the Heydar Aliyev Baku Grand Slam and the Grand Prix Upper Austria in 2023, as well as a bronze medalist at the Paris Grand Slam 2024, led a strong young Japanese team.

In the final, Omori faced Spain’s Ayumi Leiva Sanchez, who had a remarkable run through the preliminaries. Leiva Sanchez defeated Darja Mihhailova of Estonia with a decisive *shime-waza* and went on to outscore Naomi Van Krevel from the Netherlands, first with a waza-ari from a *seoi-otoshi*, then securing another score with a *sasae-tsurikomi-ashi*. She followed this up with a victory over Tereza Bodnarova from the Czech Republic in the semi-final, setting the stage for a tense final.

The final between Omori and Leiva Sanchez was closely contested. Omori showcased her traditional Japanese judo, while Leiva Sanchez threatened with her left-handed *sumi-gaeshi*. The pair neutralized each other through regular time, pushing the match into golden score. It was there that Omori’s expertise in *ne-waza* came to the fore, as she executed a well-timed turnover and secured an *osae-komi* for *ippon*, earning her second gold of the tournament for Japan.

Omori’s path to the final was no less impressive. She began with a dominant victory over Tatum Keen from Great Britain, scoring a waza-ari after just 1:34 minutes and finishing the contest with an immobilization for *ippon*. Next, she overcame Spain’s Mireia Lapuerta Comas with a *harai-goshi* for waza-ari, which she followed up with a second *harai-goshi* to claim *ippon*. In the semi-final, she overpowered Hungary’s Roza Gyertyas, leaving her with no room to respond.

In the bronze medal contests, Tereza Bodnarova of the Czech Republic secured her medal with a brilliant counter-attack against Aydan Valiyeva from Azerbaijan, scoring *ippon*. France’s Leonie Gonzales also took home a bronze, overcoming Roza Gyertyas of Hungary despite being penalized twice. Gonzales capitalized on her opportunity with an *o-soto-gaeshi*, scoring waza-ari and securing the third bronze for France.

Omori’s latest victory adds to Japan’s already impressive standing, and with such a young and talented squad, they continue to dominate the judo circuit.