Photo IJF – Tamara Kulumbegashvili
Lowan Le Bris

Montréal, May 9, 2026 – In the first Grand Slam of his career, Lowan Le Bris gave his all in Astana, Kazakhstan, on Saturday, forcing his under-73 kg match into overtime, where he ultimately received a third shido, thus putting an end to the bout.

During the fight, which lasted six minutes and forty-nine seconds, the 18-year-old judoka executed some excellent offensive sequences. And in the opinion of Canadian coach Antoine Valois-Fortier, Le Bris’s debut Grand Slam performance against experienced French opponent Maxime Gobert—a gold medallist at Antalya in 2023—bodes well for the young Canadian’s future.

“Lowan is still very young, but he has enormous potential. He came here to gain some experience at the senior level. His match was very close and very tactical, and he seems to have already learned a great deal from a bout like that. He’s really starting to find his feet, and I’m optimistic about what’s to come,” said Valois-Fortier.

Catherine Beauchemin-Pinard also competed on Saturday, in the under-63 kg category. Following a first-round victory over Kazakhstan’s Samalay Yergaliyeva, the Québécoise injured her knee in her second-round clash against Gankhaich Bold of Mongolia.

Beauchemin-Pinard had to forfeit the match, and she was also forced to withdraw from her subsequent bout in the repechage.

“[Catherine’s] fight against the Mongolian was going really well. She was engaging well and pushing hard. However, she fell during one of her attacks, and when she re-attempted it, she hurt herself, and the bout ended immediately. I don’t have any details at this point, but it doesn’t seem to be too serious. In her first match, she was very dominant on the ground, which is classic Catherine, to be honest” explained Valois-Fortier.

In the under-81 kg group, François Gauthier-Drapeau was limited to only one bout. After receiving a first-round bye, he bowed out to David Lima of Brazil. However, according to coach Valois-Fortier, it was one of Gauthier-Drapeau’s best bouts against Lima, who has proven to be an indomitable opponent in the past.

“He put up a very good fight, but he made a tactical error early in the bout, and his opponent was able to score. From that point on, it became a game of cat and mouse. François almost had him a couple of times, but it wasn’t quite enough,” concluded the coach.

Coralie Godbout will be the only Canadian in action on Sunday in Astana, competing in the under-78 kg category on the final day of the Grand Slam. Her first opponent of the day will be Khuslen Otgonbayar of Mongolia.

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Written by Sportcom for Judo Canada

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