Evelyn Beaton (-52 kg) and Julien Frascadore (-66 kg) were the two sole Canadians stepping onto the tatami Friday at the Ulaanbaatar Grand Slam, and sadly faced defeated in their first bouts in Mongolia, owing to incredibly tough competition.

Beaton’s day came to end after she lost by ippon to Japanese judoka – and eventual gold medallist – Uta Abe. The Alberta-based athlete faced stiff competition from the start, given that Abe has one of the most impressive track records among all active judokas—men and women combined—ranging from multiple world championship titles, to an Olympic gold medal.

National Team Coach Antoine Valois-Fortier acknowledged, “Abe is undoubtedly to be considered one of the greatest judokas of the past 10 years, so the bar was set very high for Evelyn in her first match. Ultimately, it’s a good thing that she (Beaton) faced the tournament favourite and world No. 1. Regardless of the status of her opponent, Evelyn demonstrated that she was there to win, and that’s what we need to take away from today’s bout.”

After her bout against such a formidable judoka, the Canadian now knows which aspects of her judo skills she’ll need to improve in order to continue progressing in the sport.

In Men’s action on the tatami, Julien Frascadore’s bout ended on a vastly different note than his teammate, when, after a solid hit to the head, he was forced to withdraw from his match against European Champion Murad Chopanov (Russia).

“Julien also had a tough draw, facing the European Champion, and it was a very close fight. Julien put in an excellent performance, and in my opinion, had the edge in terms of scoring opportunities,” Coach Fortier analyzed.

Frascadore came achingly close to scoring during one sequence, however during a transition to the ground, Chopanov took the Quebecer down and caused him to hit his head. After a brief assessment by Team Canada’s therapist, Frascadore decided to put an end to the bout himself.

The coach determined it was more of a scare than anything serious, but also made sure to note that his protégé still put on an excellent performance. “Julien has had a string of minor injuries over the past few months, and I can tell he’s a little frustrated, but it’s only a matter of time and his luck will turn. He’s right there in the mix, and belongs among the best.”

Saturday in Mongolia, Team Canada’s Justin Lemire (-73 kg) and François Gauthier-Drapeau (-81 kg) will step onto the tatami to test their mettle in thrilling judo action.