Montreal, September 28, 2019 – Five Canadians were in action on the last day of the Cadet World Championships held in Almaty, in Kazakhstan, on Saturday. Once again, the competition was a great opportunity for the young athletes to gain more experience and show off their potential on the international scene.

In 70 kg, Asia Douglas won against Russian Olga Mikheeva in her first bout after a close fight. The Canadian defeated her opponent in overtime when the Russian got a penalty.

“During the full nine minutes, Asia kept moving, attacking and working hard until the Russian was disqualified for non-combativity. It was a very impressive win!” commented coach Ewan Beaton. Exhausted after the long match, Asia Douglas, who’s in her first year fighting in U18, was eliminated in the second round by Italian Asya Tavano.

“Asia fought with heart and passion today (Saturday). Unfortunately, that first match took a lot out of her, and she was unable to deal with the Italian in the same manner. It’s impressive to see that she is able to compete with older, heavier and stronger opponents. She has a lot of potential,” added Beaton.

Two Canadians were in action in -70 kg. Brae Booth lost her first contest against German Elisabeth Pflugbeil, and Alexandria Lefort was defeated by German Anna Monta Olek.

On the boys’ team, Amr Abd Elrehim almost surprised one of the best in the world in -90 kg, Russian Dzhavad Guseinov. Despite his loss, the Canadian was able to keep the upper hand for a moment and made it difficult for the Russian, who ended up on the second step of the podium at the end of the tournament. According to Ewan Beaton, Amr Abd Elrehim, who is fighting in U18 for the second year, is on his way to international success.

Finally, Simon Popov (+90 kg) lost in the first round against the eventual bronze medallist, Japanese Mitsuki Sugawara.

In total, sixteen Canadian judokas fought at the Cadet World Championships during the week. The team was composed of very promising athletes who have everything they need to reach success and will soon be able to shine in major tournaments.

Luxembourg European Open

Virginia Nemeth was the only athlete representing Canada on Saturday at the Luxembourg European Open. The day was a short one for the judoka, who was eliminated in the first round in -48 kg by French Marine Lhenry. The competition will continue on Sunday. Shianne Gronen (-78 kg) will be facing French Sarah Seymour, while Mohab El Nahas (-90 kg) will receive a bye through the first round.

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Written by Sportcom for Judo Canada

Information:
Patrick Esparbès
Chief Operating Officer
Judo Canada
(514) 668-6279
p.esparbes@judocanada.org