Abe siblings seal their judo dynasty together for Japan

Japan’s superstar siblings, Abe Hifumi and Abe Uta, lived up to the enormous expectations the host nation had for the Kobe duo on the second day of judo at the Nippon Budokan on Sunday.

Both making their Olympic debuts, two-time world champion Abe Hifumi, 23, reigned in the -66kg weight category just minutes after his younger sister and double world champion Abe Uta, 21, had claimed the top prize in the -52kg category.

“It was a relief and joy that we won the championship together. We had people to support us. We hugged each other and enjoyed waiting for the award ceremony”, said Uta Abe moments after her victory.

“My brother kept walking in front of me. I can only thank my parents for being with me and supporting me”.

Judo’s pair of gold medals at stake on day two not only went to the host nation but the same family in a historic first in judo that will catapult both talents to mega stardom and beyond in the sport’s founding nation.

The Abe siblings had won World Championships gold on the same day and just minutes apart in 2018 in Baku, Azerbaijan and today they lit up the sport’s spiritual home with faultless displays at Tokyo 2020.

Abe Hifumi bested Vazha Margvelashvili of Georgia by one score as he followed up on Abe Uta conquering French standout Amandine Buchard by a holddown to win Olympic gold.

Abe Hifumi’s road to glory

As the host nation, Japan, are not required to qualify athletes in judo. Instead they can select their representatives and, given their abundance of riches in almost every weight category, that proved to be a decision that even the All Japan Judo Federation could not make in the -66kg field.

That was because Abe Hifumi was the 2017 and 2018 world champion while Tenri University’s Joshiro Maruyama was the 2019 world champion and again illustrated his immense quality by winning this year’s worlds in June, by which point, however, Abe was already pencilled in for the sole -66kg Olympic berth for the hosts.

Abe and Maruyama met in December 2020 in a winner-takes-all bout at the Kodokan Judo Institute in Tokyo to determine who would represent Japan at the Tokyo Olympics and Abe emerged victorious after a lung-busting 27-minute battle.

Abe was long installed as one of the original poster boys of the Tokyo 2020 Games before his heated rivalry with Maruyama threatened to put his place under threat. Abe was the last member of Japan’s 14-strong judo team to be officially selected.

“I was watching my sister’s game. I believed that I would definitely win a gold medal. I was watching the game with a smile. When my sister won the gold medal, I vowed to do it. Only fighting spirit, no pressure”, said Abe Hifumi after his victory.

“I think it’s the best day for my family. When my sister started to be active in high school, I began to imagine that we would both win a gold medal at the Tokyo Olympics. I believe this is the result of my strong determination to win a medal with both of us.

I want to become a judoka who can pull Japanese judo. I want to pursue my own judo. I want to do my best for my fourth consecutive Olympic victory.”

-66kg

Abe Hifumi needed five minutes of added time to defeat French veteran Kilian Le Blouch in his opener with a o-soto-gari (large outer reap) for ippon (the maximum score and a contest-ending score).

Sometimes the world’s elite judoka will deliberately start slowly and make a contest go longer than fans and media would expect in order to work up a sweat and then they hit their rhythm in the key contests later in the day against their fellow seeds.

Abe edged out accomplished Mongolian Yondonperenlei Baskhuu in the quarter-finals by the narrowest margin possible of a single waza-ari score (half point) with another forceful o-soto-gari (large outer reap).

Abe met Brazilian hotshot and former world number one Daniel Cargnin in the semi-finals. Abe earned the loudest reaction of the session so far for by beating Cargnin by ippon with 95 seconds left as a small section of Tokyo 2020 officials and media clapped and couldn’t hold back their emotions. Cargnin went down fighting despite being caught with a seoi-nage (shoulder throw) and slipped down into one of two bronze medal contests.

The second semi-final saw Rio 2016 Olympic silver medallist of South Korea fall to former world bronze medallist Vazha Margvelashvili.

Margvelashvili prevailed in golden score with a sumi-otoshi (corner drop) in golden score earning him a match-winning waza-ari to the delight of the plentiful Georgian delegation.

Abe defeated his highly-regarded Georgian rival by a waza-ari score from an o-soto-gari (large outer reap) which was registered at the halfway point of their final which went the distance.

Judo and mixed martial arts legend Yoshida Hidehiko, who won gold at the 1992 Barcelona Olympics, punched the air with delight, as he heads up the corporate judo arm of Park 24 which Abe Hifumi is a member of along with Saturday’s gold medallist Takato Naohisa.

Bronze medals went to South Korea’s An Baul who emphatically dispatched Italy’s Lombardo by ippon with a seoi-nage (shoulder throw) after two minutes and Brazil’s Daniel Cargnin who squeezed past Israel’s Baruch Shmailov by a waza-ari score from an o-goshi (major hip throw). An lost to Italy’s Fabio Basile in the Rio 2016 Olympic final.

-52kg

Abe Uta started her competition with a routine win over Brazilian youngster Larissa Pimenta after breaking the deadlock with a waza-ari score from a tsuri-goshi (lifting hip throw) and then held down her foe for 15 seconds a kuzure-kesa-gatame (modified scarf hold) to advance.

Ade dismissed gutsy British hope Chelsie Giles in the quarter-finals with a waza-ari score from a sumi-otoshi (corner drop).

In the semi-finals Abe squared off with Rio 2016 Olympic silver medallist Odette Giuffrida in what was surprisingly a first-time meeting between two of the leading judoka at the weight.

Abe made a strong start as she kept pushing forward and made a string of attacks. Giuffrida could have been penalised for false attacks, as there was no degree of commitment in her efforts, but rather a fear of being countered against the soon-to-be-crowned -52kg kingpin and a need to register an attack in the eyes of the referee.

There has noticeably been a high volume of contests going to golden score on both days of the judo competition in Tokyo with judoka reluctant to engage fully with the stakes being so high and referees have been reluctant to issue penalties for judoka being passive. Referee’s and the sport’s refereeing commission would prefer to avoid being called upon and having a direct judgement call to make which would have an impact on the outcome of a contest. There’s also the desire to avoid any controversy which we have seen in previous Olympic judo tournaments from questionable decisions.

The experimental fake crowd noise was piped in to the Nippon Budokan, as it was across many Tokyo 2020 venues, but left a lot to be desired as it sounded like a static microphone had been left switched on rather than replicating any realistic noise at all. The delegations did their best to inspire their athletes and teammates and eventually drowned out the fake noise during the medal contests.

Abe finally extinguished the Italian’s hopes of back-to-back Olympics finals after the Japanese threw with her trademark uchi-mata (inner thigh throw) for a waza-ari score after three minutes of added time.

In the second semi-final French ace and world number two Amandine Buchard battled her way past Switzerland’s world bronze medallist Fabienne Kocher.

World Masters gold medallist Buchard, 26, needed just 16 seconds to book her place in the final as she surged pass her Swiss rival by ippon with a modified kata-guruma (shoulder wheel).

Abe Uta defeated Buchard by ippon from a kuzure-kesa-gatame (modified scarf hold) after four minutes of golden score as the Frenchwoman was pinned to the tatami for 20 seconds and ippon.

Bronze medals were won by Odette Giuffrida who saw off European Championships bronze medallist Pupp Reka after 31 seconds of golden score by ippon with a seoi-nage (shoulder throw) and Briton Chelsie Giles who bested Switzerland’s Fabienne Kocher with two waza-ari scores for a combined ippon.

Kosovo’s Rio 2016 Olympic champion and national hero Majlinda Kelmendi, who witnessed her long-time teammate and best friend Distria Krasniqi win gold on Saturday, fell in her opening contest against Hungary’s Pupp Reka. A waza-ari score from a ko-uchi-gari (small inner reap) was the difference after the bout went the four-minute distance.

The judo competition continues on Monday with the men’s -73kg category which features pound-for-pound king and reigning Olympic champion Ono Shohei of Japan and the women’s -63kg division which includes French great Clarisse Agbegnenou who was on flag bearer duty for her country at the opening ceremony.

Judo Day 2 Results

Nippon Budokan

-66kg

GOLD – Abe Hifumi (JPN)

SILVER – Vazha Margvelashvili (GEO)

BRONZE – An Baul (KOR)

BRONZE – Daniel Cargnin (BRA)

-52kg

GOLD – Abe Uta (JPN)

SILVER – Amandine Buchard (FRA)

BRONZE – Chelsie Giles (GBR)

BRONZE – Odette Giuffrida (ITA)