Montreal, November 27, 2016 – Canadians Priscilla Gagné (Under 52 kg) and Justin Karn (Under 60 kg) both were both awarded silver medals at the 2016 Japan Open for Visually Impaired and Blind Judoka, which took place at the Kodokan Judo Institute in Tokyo.

Gagné, who was born in Granby, began the day with victories in her first three bouts of the qualifying round. She defeated two Japanese and a South Korean. It wasn’t until the gold medal final that she was overpowered, when Ayumi Ishii scored a yuko with a well-executed shoulder throw.

“Gagné fought into almost 7 minutes of overtime against the top Japanese competitor. Both athletes had multiple close calls, but in the end it was Ishii who prevailed,” said Andrzej Sądej, Sports Director at Judo Canada.

Justin Karn of Guelph took out all four of his competitors in the qualifying round. “He dispatched of three Japanese and a South Korean in spectacular fashion, claiming four decisive wins by ippon using various ne-waza (ground work) techniques,” added Mr. Sądej.

In his semifinal bout, Karn defeated Takaaki Hirai of Japan, the silver medalist at the 2015 IBSA World Games in Seoul, by a penalty. In the final, Justin lost by yuko to Alex Bologa of Romania.

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Written by Sportcom for Judo Canada
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