The judoka Rochele Nunes won the gold medal this Thursday at the Abu Dhabi Grand Slam, by beating the Kazakh Kamila Berlikash in the final of the +78 kg category, for ippon.
Rochele Nunes won the first gold medal of her career in a Grand Slam, with a victory achieved before the halfway point of the match, which began with a uchi kills (launch technique) and finished with a osaekomi (immobilization).
The Benfica judoka, in the Olympic qualification zone, has earned a thousand points with this victory – more than a victory in a European Championship is worth – and should have a significant rise in the classification. classification world championship and also in the qualification for Paris 2024.
In Abu Dhabi, Rochele Nunes confirmed the good year she has had, which earned her, still in June, her first gold in a Grand Prix, and now in a Grand Slam, the most important international event after the Olympic Games, Masters and World Cups. .
The Grand Slams are even more important than the European ones when it comes to counting points for the world ranking, although the continental competition, which is worth 700 points for a victory, represents the achievement of a title.
Before Abu Dhabi, in September, Rochele Nunes had won silver again in a Grand Slam, then in Baku, after having also won silver in 2022 in the Azerbaijani capital, and in 2021 in Tbilisi and Tel Aviv, which gave him four lost finals. in these important.
In today’s competition, which precedes the European Championship in Montpellier, from November 3 to 5, the Benfica judoka had a more than positive test, in a 100% victorious route, always with the maximum score (ippon).
Rochele, who is ranked 12th in the world and was third seed, beat the Moldovan Oxana Diacenco (62), the Italian Asia Tavano (21), the Russian Elis Startseva (64) and the Kazakh Kamila Berlikash (17).
Today’s gold, translated into 1,000 points, which count in total, should “project” the judoka to the top positions in the +78 kg category, in the best of cases in fourth position, guaranteeing a status among the eight seeded.
An important point for Rochele Nunes, due to the greater confidence on the eve of the European Championship, but also to continue with the consistent results of the judoka born in Brazil and who at the beginning of 2019 chose to represent Portugal.
Also today in Abu Dhabi, Patrícia Sampaio was in good shape, missing – like Catarina Costa (-48 kg) on Tuesday and João Fernando (-81 kg) on Wednesday -, very little to take the medal, repeating fifth place among his companions.
The Philharmonic Society judoka Gualdim País (11th), from Tomar, played four matches, with two victories, against the Australian Maria Swan (63rd) and the British Emma Reid (18th), and defeats against the Italian Alice Bellandi (1st). and Anna Maria Wagner (4th), first and second favorites.
Patrícia Sampaio has 360 points in -78 kg and should also, with less impact, capitalize on some progression in the category, in which she is in an eligible position for Paris 2024 and in the top positions for the next European Championship.
Finally, Jorge Fonseca, two-time world champion in -100 kg, in 2019 and 2021, also competed in Abu Dhabi, but after overtaking the Belarusian Daniel Mukete (66th), he was surprised nine seconds from the end in his second fight.
The Sporting judoka (13th in the world) faced an old acquaintance, the Serbian Aleksandar Kukolj (17th), whom he defeated in the final of the 2021 World Cup, but lost this year in the final of the Grand Prix of Zagreb, in August.
Source: TSF
